Check your undercariage!

[Voltage 3615]

Went to hook up trailer today for a short camping trip in Tampa. It was a colder morning and my tire pressure sensor was telling me PSI was a little low so I topped them off. Upon doing so, I see something that does not look right. The bracket attaching my leaf springs to the frame of the camper had broke. Looks like the welds failed. My Voltage is a 2018 model.

Called the General, you know how that went. Got on the phone with Dutchman, and they were no help either, as 'it's out of warranty'. I am surprised at this, this is not a pocket door closing incorrectly, or a leaky seal in the roof. This appears to be a structural flaw in construction. Let me add here that I am not a welder, fabricator, or similar. But this seems to be something that they should help with??

I am so lucky to have thought to top off the tire pressure, as the springs are no longer attached to the frame on that one tire. Not sure on this fix. Can't tow it, too tall to fit under overpasses and street lights if it is on a flatbed? Not sure it is safe at all to tow behind the truck. I am guessing I need to find a mobile welder that can come out and fabricate new piece.

Would of thought the manufacturer could be of more help. Here's a pic of a good bracket and my problem child bracket.

[ATCguy]

Originally Posted by Voltage 3615

Went to hook up trailer today for a short camping trip in Tampa... Upon doing so, I see something that does not look right. The bracket attaching my leaf springs to the frame of the camper had broke. Looks like the welds failed. My Voltage is a 2018 model...

Wish I could tell you that your problem is unique... but it's not. I see that you're new here, but this forum is filled with posts about various component failures.

Sometimes it's rough roads that cause suspension, wheel, and tire failures of one type or another... but in most cases it's simply a case of the manufacturer using the cheapest materials possible, and/or poor quality control during the build & assembly process.

Approximately 4 years into my ownership, I had a similar suspension failure on my rig. Discovered it at a late afternoon fuel stop about an hour from my destination for the day. The damn thing just snapped, and was hanging loose.



I'm not sure how many hours I'd been towing it that way, but figured I was close enough to the campground to go ahead & tow it there. Began calling around, and got it into a local repair shop a couple of days later.

Good luck with your situation... at least you should be able to find plenty of options for repair in that area of the country.

[chily3]

Sad thing is that most are built this way. Sometimes they fail from overloading, but mostly just from CRAP welding. When I get ready for a trip this one of the many things I check before taking off.

[Voltage 3615]

thanks for the input. Feeling a little better today, found a few mobile guys that can do the repairs. Wondering now if I should have them firm up the other 3 brackets while I have them there. Slap on another piece of metal. Might be easier to beef it up now vs risk having it happen while underway and having to find another repair company who knows where. I'll post pics of the fix when complete.

[dsol]

I have had multiple suspension failures and repairs but all related to the leaf springs themselves and not the brackets.

I am glad you posted this as I will regularly check mine now.

I probably have over $2k in suspension repair/upgrades on my 3305. My latest involved fabricating 10 leaf replacements with the top two leaves running all the way to the brackets.

Terrible design with far too inadequate components to start.

[franktafl]

That part is probably associated with LIPPERT! They are probably associated with the frame.

[chily3]

Another thought while fixing, install wet bolt on each of them.

[Voltage 3615]

Funny you mentioned LIPPERT. A friend of mine is working the Tampa RV show and he has been asking around to try to find someone to come out and fix it. Someone told him to contact Lippert. I was under the impression that they only did the hydraulic jacks on my camper.

Add another note, although Keystone manufacturer is saying tough luck, it is out of warranty, the contact person I have been in touch with is trying to help a little. He told me where to look on the chassis to find a serial number, and if so said he may be able to find me the bracket part to send out. I have shown those pictures around and the general consensus is just a poor weld to begin with. Hoping to have someone come out today and look at it (a welder/fabricator)..

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Voltage 3615

Funny you mentioned LIPPERT. A friend of mine is working the Tampa RV show and he has been asking around to try to find someone to come out and fix it. Someone told him to contact Lippert. I was under the impression that they only did the hydraulic jacks on my camper.

Add another note, although Keystone manufacturer is saying tough luck, it is out of warranty, the contact person I have been in touch with is trying to help a little. He told me where to look on the chassis to find a serial number, and if so said he may be able to find me the bracket part to send out. I have shown those pictures around and the general consensus is just a poor weld to begin with. Hoping to have someone come out today and look at it (a welder/fabricator)..

Are you going to the show?

[Voltage 3615]

I was supposed to park my camper there, one of my friends is a vendor there and I park it there yearly for him to use. Wife and I usually go to the show on Saturday and take camper home Sunday.

But this year no, I won't be there due to no camper..

[capeharj]

Originally Posted by franktafl

That part is probably associated with LIPPERT! They are probably associated with the frame.

Lippert is a component supplier, not a frame manufacturer. The RV manufacturers buy the frames from an outside source near the factory, most around Elkhart, Indiana.

[Eric H.]

Originally Posted by Voltage 3615

Went to hook up trailer today for a short camping trip in Tampa. It was a colder morning and my tire pressure sensor was telling me PSI was a little low so I topped them off. Upon doing so, I see something that does not look right. The bracket attaching my leaf springs to the frame of the camper had broke. Looks like the welds failed. My Voltage is a 2018 model.

Called the General, you know how that went. Got on the phone with Dutchman, and they were no help either, as 'it's out of warranty'. I am surprised at this, this is not a pocket door closing incorrectly, or a leaky seal in the roof. This appears to be a structural flaw in construction. Let me add here that I am not a welder, fabricator, or similar. But this seems to be something that they should help with??

I am so lucky to have thought to top off the tire pressure, as the springs are no longer attached to the frame on that one tire. Not sure on this fix. Can't tow it, too tall to fit under overpasses and street lights if it is on a flatbed? Not sure it is safe at all to tow behind the truck. I am guessing I need to find a mobile welder that can come out and fabricate new piece.

Would of thought the manufacturer could be of more help. Here's a pic of a good bracket and my problem child bracket.

The hanger broke at the welds but the the welds did not fail. It's very common on most brands and it's due to the bracket flexing at the welds which eventually causes fatigue and failure. Morryde makes supports that go between the hangers which ties them together but my hangers are boxed in with extra material to eliminate the flex. Sharp turns while maneuvering adds a lot of stress to the hangers so try to keep them to a minimum which isn't always possible so reinforcements are a really good idea.

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by capeharj

Lippert is a component supplier, not a frame manufacturer. The RV manufacturers buy the frames from an outside source near the factory, most around Elkhart, Indiana.

This depends on the brand of RV. Lippert manufactures frames, axles,etc as specified by the mfr. the axles are probably standard depending on the weight of the rv but the RV ASSEMBLER specifies the design. Also, look here!

https://www.classaction.org/media/sh...-inc-et-al.pdf

I think you will find that Lippert (LCI) manufactures more frames than you think. They certainly sell a lot of products for the RV world

[franktafl]

I found this at my grand design forum…

“ I sent an email to Grand Design regarding the Spring Hanger issue. Here is their response.

Mulligan

Good morning

Thank you for reaching out to me; I’m always happy to help and answer questions.

Actually Lippert is a major supplier of frames throughout the entire rv industry and they have actually addressed the potential concern across the board (all frame models) by adding additional supports in the hanger locations. Yes, all of our Grand Design frames, including the 303rls have this modification.

If there are any other questions, please let me know.

Thank you and have an excellent Thursday.

“No matter what happens in life, be good to people. Being good is the best legacy you can leave behind”

Chris Holland
Customer Relations
Grand Design RV
11356 CR2
Middlebury, IN 46540”

So, saying this, lippert has a part of it’s website dedicated to recall information. It also may be beneficial to call lippert customer service regarding your issue, if indeed your chassis is manufactured by lippert.

https://support.lci1.com/rv-recalls/

[Voltage 3615]

it is a frame by Lippert. I had to send in the serial number which is on the pinbox, and it was labeled Lippert.

Having a local, mobile welder out tomorrow to fix and look at other hanger brackets. I am just thankful I found this before hooking up and towing.

It will add to my precheck inspection before towing list for sure!

[franktafl]

Originally Posted by Voltage 3615

it is a frame by Lippert. I had to send in the serial number which is on the pinbox, and it was labeled Lippert.

Having a local, mobile welder out tomorrow to fix and look at other hanger brackets. I am just thankful I found this before hooking up and towing.

It will add to my precheck inspection before towing list for sure!

Answer is most like;y yes! I would call their customer support to see what they say and if your repair would be reimbursed. I looked at your pictures again and it looks like the metal is bent.

[RDJ]

Also when purchasing a new or used trailer, check the torque on the u bolts on the springs/axels, the last 2 new 5vers I purchase the u bolts were loose enough that there were a couple that you could almost remove the nut by hand, just my 2 cents worth..

[The Cramblersons]

Can you be more specific about your suspension mods? Maybe some photos? I have the same trailer and, so far, all is OK.

[dsol]

Here is what I did:

New equalizers that replaced the Mohrryde light weight fancy shock absorbing equalizers that per the suspension shop I went to really weren’t up to the task.

New shackles that were thicker to replace the factory ones that were ovaling out as the bolts stretched the thin metal.

New bolts—grade 8 I think but regardless more stout than original.

And lastly all new leaf springs. The factory Chinese 6 leaf springs were not even close to up to the task—maybe on a three axle where the weight is more evenly distributed but not on the two axle trailer I have. The new leaf springs are made by a company called Triangle in Fontana, CA (USA). The shop built me a 10 leaf set up with the top two leafs extending all the way to the eyelets. Typically they only have one across the top and that sheared off on me already.

See picture:



If you zoom in tight you can see the leafs and specifically the two across the top.

The bonus is my back end is now a good two or so inches higher which helps a ton when navigating driveways, etc., and the overall height of the trailer is still no higher because the area above the king pin is still higher.

[dsol]

Better picture as the upload is such low resolution you cannot zoom in:


You can see the equalizers are no longer the Mohrryde type that were likely no up to the task and the leafs are now 10 instead of 6 with the top two (not just the top one) extending all the way to the bolt, even though only one actually is held by the bolt. The last one that sheared off was right at the top of the stack. We are hoping that two leads there will last.