one of these bearings seized up in British Columbia and necessitated the replacement of both axles. The axles were ordered on the 28th of July and were shipped by Lippert on the 16th of August, twenty days later. Due to the incompetence of the shipping company, they sat on the dock in Fort St John for six days. It seems some stray shipping lable mysteriously attached itself to the parts and it took four phone calls to get someone off their rear to go out and see what the problem was. They finally arrived on the 31st of August.
This is where the story gets really good. Remember, they couldn't replace just one axle with an EZ Lube axle, they had to replace both so they would send a set. Now, a set meant to everybody there a front and a rear. Well, they sent two rear axles! After a lot of finger pointing, the Lippert parts folks admitted their mistake. The shop owner said, and told the parts department, the only difference between front and rear axles was the position of the calipers---in the front for front axles , in the rear on the rear axles. He said he could rotate the mounting plates 180*, four bolts out, four bolts in and we're good to go. Not so fast there! Parts got with engineering and informed us that they would not allow that...something to do with product liability and modifying a component would void the warranty. So what does this mean? Lippert was going to send a proper front axle. We would have to wait another month for the correct axle!!
Neither DW nor I were going to spend another month in Ft Nelson regardless of how nice the people at Dalex were. So, they installed the rear axle with the arrangement that we would return at a later date to get the front axle installed :) .
Epilogue:
In the beginning, I respectfully requested of Lippert that they pay for the damages caused by the bearing failure. A representative of the company asked for the invoice to be sent to him when the work was done. I sent him the invoice and in two days he notified me that Lippert was going to reimburse me the $2479 for the axles and installation as "a goodwill gesture".
Vance
Bill and Linda said
08:21 AM Oct 9, 2017
Vance:
Obviously we're happy to hear you can finally leave Fort Nelson. As you say, a nice place but I wouldn't want to live there long enough to "vote" to coin a phrase.
The brand of axles and type bearings that came on one'a rig is sometimes just is-what-it-is. But as has been commented on many times on this forum, if one has a choice of brand, a good choice of vendor is MORryde and not brand "L" and not Nev-R-Lub - IMO.
From various personal and friends experiences MORryde will provide replacement parts, in Canada and the US, promptly. And again, based on more than one personal experience, very promptly and if its their fault there will be no push back as to who's "nickle" will be paying the bill.
I just say all this for those that might be reading along doing research as information. Certainly you didn't make a mistake - "Who knew?" But now we do.
Safe travel from here on we trust. :)
Bill
VanMar said
03:39 PM Oct 9, 2017
Bill,
I would love to have MorRyde IS. But, this trailer and these axles will have to do.
Vance
Bill and Linda said
04:08 PM Oct 10, 2017
VanMar wrote:
Bill,
I would love to have MorRyde IS. But, this trailer and these axles will have to do.
Vance
Vance: I trust you know I expressed that sometimes one just doesn't know ahead of time or the budget will simply not permit some changes. I know, I've been there. But as many people read these posts for research and information I try and pass along my experiences, as you have, in an attempt to provide information. Thanks for sharing your experiences. They could save others some serious problems. Long history on this forum on this subject.
Safe travels.
Bill
NWescapee said
07:59 PM Oct 10, 2017
We can relate, 5 weeks in Fort Mohave AZ waiting on replacement axles and this was 6 months after our engine failed and we were in Laughlin NV (right across the river), for a similar amount of time. Not anywhere we wanted to ever live and certainly nowhere we wanted to spend 10 weeks in an 8 month period of time, in fact we totally avoid that area altogether in our travels.
After a fight with our extended warranty company who claimed Lippert didn't make never lube bearings. They don't now but 2010? Yep, they did. Then the shipping company who claimed the shop was closed but the foreman waited late on the day we were expecting delivery.
Your story sounds just way too similar, someday you'll be able to laugh about it around a campfire, but believe me, it did some time to laugh about it. Still not at ll hppy with Lippert, our next big repair is scheduled in 10 days to have the landing gear replaced. It never ends with their products.
-- Edited by NWescapee on Tuesday 10th of October 2017 08:00:47 PM
-- Edited by NWescapee on Tuesday 10th of October 2017 08:02:03 PM
VanMar said
08:21 AM Oct 13, 2017
Well, NWescapee, there is another story to tell about Lippert. I have posted pics on this forum in the past but it seems I've forgotten how. If I can figure it out, I will post pics of the front of our frame where the pinbox attaches. The main beam in the front of the pinbox is torn, top to bottom. Coming out of Canada, heading to Minot, I noticed the bed rail clearance was only about two inches and that the pinbox and the body of the trailer were moving independently of each other.
So, after the fridge was fixed, I headed for Minot Welding where the front end was taken apart and the extent of the damage was found. I was under the mistaken impression that DRV made their own frames. When I called them, I was informed that Lippert made all their frames. Our insurance company, who initially denied the claim based on design/manufacturing defect (a point I could not argue), reversed themselves and decided to pay after I began the process of disputing the denial. At this time, I was about to contact Lippert to see about any consideration on their part for repairs. After insurance decided to pay, I still informed Lippert of the frame failure. I was really astounded to find that they put that kind of weight on a structure made with 1/8" steel! The Alaskan and Canadian highways were all it took to do it in! My Trailersaver air ride hitch was no match for those highways.
All in all, the trailer incurred about $13,000 in damages and repairs this summer, of which about $11,000 was recovered from insurance, warranty, and Lippert. Also, we spent a total of nine weeks waiting on repairs in Cantwell, AK, Ft. Nelson, BC, and Minot, ND.
Every time we ask ourselves, 'What can happen next?'...we find out.
Vance
RonC said
03:11 PM Oct 14, 2017
Surprised to hear that you had a Trailer Saver Hitch and still suffered a pin box/frame failure. I would say that you made the right selection on your hitch. Normally that will save you from this (not unusual) type of failure. Sorry for your misfortune.
As I prevpiously posted:
Vance:
Obviously we're happy to hear you can finally leave Fort Nelson. As you say, a nice place but I wouldn't want to live there long enough to "vote" to coin a phrase.
The brand of axles and type bearings that came on one'a rig is sometimes just is-what-it-is. But as has been commented on many times on this forum, if one has a choice of brand, a good choice of vendor is MORryde and not brand "L" and not Nev-R-Lub - IMO.
From various personal and friends experiences MORryde will provide replacement parts, in Canada and the US, promptly. And again, based on more than one personal experience, very promptly and if its their fault there will be no push back as to who's "nickle" will be paying the bill.
I just say all this for those that might be reading along doing research as information. Certainly you didn't make a mistake - "Who knew?" But now we do.
Safe travel from here on we trust. :)
Bill
Bill,
I would love to have MorRyde IS. But, this trailer and these axles will have to do.
Vance
Vance: I trust you know I expressed that sometimes one just doesn't know ahead of time or the budget will simply not permit some changes. I know, I've been there. But as many people read these posts for research and information I try and pass along my experiences, as you have, in an attempt to provide information. Thanks for sharing your experiences. They could save others some serious problems. Long history on this forum on this subject.
Safe travels.
Bill
We can relate, 5 weeks in Fort Mohave AZ waiting on replacement axles and this was 6 months after our engine failed and we were in Laughlin NV (right across the river), for a similar amount of time. Not anywhere we wanted to ever live and certainly nowhere we wanted to spend 10 weeks in an 8 month period of time, in fact we totally avoid that area altogether in our travels.
After a fight with our extended warranty company who claimed Lippert didn't make never lube bearings. They don't now but 2010? Yep, they did. Then the shipping company who claimed the shop was closed but the foreman waited late on the day we were expecting delivery.
Your story sounds just way too similar, someday you'll be able to laugh about it around a campfire, but believe me, it did some time to laugh about it. Still not at ll hppy with Lippert, our next big repair is scheduled in 10 days to have the landing gear replaced. It never ends with their products.
-- Edited by NWescapee on Tuesday 10th of October 2017 08:00:47 PM
-- Edited by NWescapee on Tuesday 10th of October 2017 08:02:03 PM
Well, NWescapee, there is another story to tell about Lippert. I have posted pics on this forum in the past but it seems I've forgotten how. If I can figure it out, I will post pics of the front of our frame where the pinbox attaches. The main beam in the front of the pinbox is torn, top to bottom. Coming out of Canada, heading to Minot, I noticed the bed rail clearance was only about two inches and that the pinbox and the body of the trailer were moving independently of each other.
So, after the fridge was fixed, I headed for Minot Welding where the front end was taken apart and the extent of the damage was found. I was under the mistaken impression that DRV made their own frames. When I called them, I was informed that Lippert made all their frames. Our insurance company, who initially denied the claim based on design/manufacturing defect (a point I could not argue), reversed themselves and decided to pay after I began the process of disputing the denial. At this time, I was about to contact Lippert to see about any consideration on their part for repairs. After insurance decided to pay, I still informed Lippert of the frame failure. I was really astounded to find that they put that kind of weight on a structure made with 1/8" steel! The Alaskan and Canadian highways were all it took to do it in! My Trailersaver air ride hitch was no match for those highways.
All in all, the trailer incurred about $13,000 in damages and repairs this summer, of which about $11,000 was recovered from insurance, warranty, and Lippert. Also, we spent a total of nine weeks waiting on repairs in Cantwell, AK, Ft. Nelson, BC, and Minot, ND.
Every time we ask ourselves, 'What can happen next?'...we find out.
Vance