Having recently completed an incident free trip through western NSW, SA and Vic we set off again yesterday for Urunga. Sitting on 95kph about 20kms north of Raymond Terrace the bolts holding the rear axle on the van snapped on the passenger side causing us to have a pretty wild ride trying to bring the rig to a stop on the verge of the M1. Worse than that was the 4 hour wait behind the concrete barriers until the NRMA could organise a flat top truck to get the van back to a caravan repairer in Heatherbrae. A few positives out of the incident 1) it could have happened 2 weeks ago when we were in the middle of nowhere 2) having NRMAs premium roadside assist on the caravan meant it cost us nothing for the tow 3) the text message that NRMA sent us gave them our exact GPS location as soon as I accepted it 4) Mat at Kingston Caravan Repairs stayed at his yard well after closing time until we could finally get the van there (5:30pm) to drop it off 5) the great response and follow up by the NRMA insurance people to get the claim moving when I rang them last night.
We may have missed this trip but at least we are still around to plan our next one.
Yep! Best thing after the caravan is buying the right motoring club roadside assist.
Great out come.
Possum3 said
08:29 AM Nov 30, 2019
Glad you're OK BB.
kesa32 said
09:17 AM Nov 30, 2019
Glad your ok , this is one of the reasons l like tandems
erad said
09:27 AM Nov 30, 2019
I had a lot of trouble with the axle on my Jayco poptop caravan (but that is another story). Eventually, AL-KO supplied a replacement axle which I had to fit myself and weld the spring centrebolt locating plates to the axles. All good for the time. Then I was towing a trailer to Adelaide for a friend and the centrebolt in one spring broke, meaning that the axle slipped backwards against the mudguard. Luckily, I was in the only town on a long stretch of road which had a mechanic - and he had the time to fix it. One hour later and I was on my way.
The point of this post is to say that after the trailer incident, I checked the U bolts on my own caravan. Although it had only done 2 trips (probably 5000 km), the U bolts were slightly loose. I managed nearly one complete turn of the nuts on each U bolt. When I installed the axle. I fitted new U bolts and tightened them up really tight, but they still settled in. A check 2 years later got only a fraction of a turn more tension. So check the nuts on your U bolts - you may be surprised how loose they are. Loose U bolts allow the axle to move along the spring and will eventually shear the centrebolt off completely. It may save you troubles similar to what the bear described above.
The Belmont Bear said
09:51 AM Nov 30, 2019
Thanks guys I reckon we were pretty lucky to get out of the whole incident with just some damage to the van. I was wondering if it would have been worse if the front axle had failed and caused it to crash into the rear axle ? What I didnt appreciate was that we were in stopped in a really hazardous place on the verge of the M1 in a 110kph zone, we stood well clear of the vehicle and left the hazard lights flashing. A police highway patrol car pulled up on the verge about 20mtrs behind the van he sat there for a minute or 2 then just drove off - he never bothered to ask us if we were okay or if we had assistance organised. Ill be really spitting chips if I get a fine in the mail for being illegally parked or something .
Cheers
BB
Bobdown said
01:22 PM Nov 30, 2019
Glad you are ok Dave and Rose.
Bit scary at that speed......maybe a letter to Retreat is in order.
Cheers Bob
Relax-n said
01:57 PM Nov 30, 2019
Good to hear all safe. Very lucky. Hope you bought a lottery ticket......
Tis a reminder to all to try and check things even after the professionals have done things.
Nothing this bad, but have had experiences with cars, plug leads coming off a day after service, wheel studs broken after a tyre fitted, no oil in vehicle after full service.
Knight said
03:28 PM Nov 30, 2019
The Highway Patrol vehicle Police Officer would have been checking registration and other information on the vehicle surveillance computer system, it can tell them if registered and if the owner has any outstanding fines, a current drivers licence or if suspended.
NSW HWP cars often park alongside the highway for vehicle checks and at the same time monitoring speed. Some have a clear dome on the roof with a traffic camera inside that is remotely operated and used with fixed cameras to monitor traffic.
-- Edited by Knight on Saturday 30th of November 2019 03:29:41 PM
The Belmont Bear said
07:20 AM Dec 2, 2019
Yesterday I had some feedback from the caravan repairer who spent a few hours getting the van to a safe enough condition for me to tow it back to my storage location and wait for the approval and the parts to do the full repair. As I didn't recover the failed component to see what actually caused it to part company I asked him for his opinion based on what he found. He said that he would rule out corrosion as there was only a bit of surface rust and nothing indicating that it was a problem, the tension on all other U bolts was good, he suspected that this particular U bolt may have failed due to a manufacturing fault or even been over tensioned when serviced. The van has travelled less than 20K and has never been off the bitumen, 2 weeks before the incident we were in Mudgee parked on a concrete slab so I took the opportunity to get under and visually inspect everything - nothing obvious (although I didn't check any bolt tensions). I now have to get a new spare as the one I had was used it to replace a tyre ripped open by the stairs does anyone know anything about MPC-27 tyres or who carries them - personally I have never heard of that brand before.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 07:21:17 AM
yobarr said
07:43 AM Dec 2, 2019
The Belmont Bear wrote:
Yesterday I had some feedback from the caravan repairer who spent a few hours getting the van to a safe enough condition for me to tow it back to my storage location and wait for the approval and the parts to do the full repair. As I didn't recover the failed component to see what actually caused it to part company I asked him for his opinion based on what he found. He said that he would rule out corrosion as there was only a bit of surface rust and nothing indicating that it was a problem, the tension on all other U bolts was good, he suspected that this particular U bolt may have failed due to a manufacturing fault or even been over tensioned when serviced. The van has travelled less than 20K and has never been off the bitumen, 2 weeks before the incident we were in Mudgee parked on a concrete slab so I took the opportunity to get under and visually inspect everything - nothing obvious (although I didn't check any bolt tensions). I now have to get a new spare as the one I had was used it to replace a tyre ripped open by the stairs does anyone know anything about MPC-27 tyres or who carries them - personally I have never heard of that brand before.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 07:21:17 AM
On June 26,2017,Vince 56 posted on this forum about "MPC tyres".Might give you enough information to at least get you started in your search. Seems to be a Chinese manufacturer of both tyres and wheels.Cheers
MPC Mags and Tyres, Campbellfield,Victoria.. 03)9308 8008
-- Edited by yobarr on Monday 2nd of December 2019 07:49:06 AM
Thanks Guys I've now read Vince56's post about MPC tyres, I've actually met Vince he is only on the other side of the lake from me. I took the tyre to O'Neils and they said in their opinion it was a cheap Chinese brand and if I intended to do long road trips I really should think about upgrading to something better (when I eventually replace them). I ended up buying the equivalent in a Toyo ($195) which they also said wouldn't be an issue having the different brand. I think to be safe I will replace them all as this event really shook us up and I really want to reduce the risk of having another mishap.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 11:16:59 AM
yobarr said
12:11 PM Dec 2, 2019
The Belmont Bear wrote:
Thanks Guys I've now read Vince56's post about MPC tyres, I've actually met Vince he is only on the other side of the lake from me. I took the tyre to O'Neils and they said in their opinion it was a cheap Chinese brand and if I intended to do long road trips I really should think about upgrading to something better (when I eventually replace them). I ended up buying the equivalent in a Toyo ($195) which they also said wouldn't be an issue having the different brand. I think to be safe I will replace them all as this event really shook us up and I really want to reduce the risk of having another mishap.
Cheers
BB
- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 11:16:59 AM
Good move Dave.Toyo seems a good brand,and was on the short-list for new tyres for my car.Eventually I bought Mickey Thompsons to replace the almost new KO2s,which I put onto the van.Tyres are the one of the thing you dont cut corners with.Cheers
dabbler said
03:16 PM Dec 2, 2019
Good to hear you came out safely. I'm a pragmatic person and firmly believe we benefit from life's disasters even though it doesn't seem that way at the time.
Bagmaker said
05:24 PM Dec 2, 2019
Did the U bolts fail first or did the tyre fail first?
STRETCH ARMSTRONG said
07:29 PM Dec 2, 2019
Glad nobody was hurt.Thanks for posting about your incident Belmont Bear. Hate to think what would happen to a single axel van in that situation.
The Belmont Bear said
07:30 AM Dec 3, 2019
Bagmaker the inside wall of the tyre wall was cut by the step when the wheel crashed into it actually looked like someone had stabbed it with a carving knife. I'm not saying that the cheaper Chinese brand tyre contributed to this incident I just meant that I want to reduce the risk of any sort of incident happening as we may not get out of it as lightly next time.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Tuesday 3rd of December 2019 07:30:41 AM
Bagmaker said
03:35 PM Dec 3, 2019
I was just musing that perhaps if the tyre failed first, this may have contributed to the overstressing of the U bolts.
Its a rare thing to have a set fail completely, just out of the blue.
Tony Bev said
06:29 PM Dec 3, 2019
Glad that you are OK, BB
It is a sobering thought, when two U bolts, fail very close together
I have (in my younger days), fitted new springs on my caravan, but always reused the U bolts
I only ever renewed any nylock nuts
The Belmont Bear said
11:31 PM Dec 3, 2019
Bagmaker wrote:
I was just musing that perhaps if the tyre failed first, this may have contributed to the overstressing of the U bolts. Its a rare thing to have a set fail completely, just out of the blue.
Bagmaker I along with the repairer had assumed that the tyre had been cut after the bolts failed and the wheel had contacted the step or the frame of the van. Looking more closely at the damage and also thing back to the sequence of events it supports more what you are suggesting. 1) the damage to the tyre was a 50mm slit that may have been a sidewall failure rather than a tear - it was a clean cut like it had been stabbed with a knife 2) The damage was to the inside wall of the tyre, when you look at the photos the contact with the step and frame suggests it probably should have damaged the face of the tyre. 3) When I think back to the event there was an initial bang which caused the van to start shaking maybe 5 or 10 seconds later while I was trying to bring it to a stop the van really started to kick around violently - I was very lucky to keep it under any sort of control without it jackknifing. I am going to pay ONeils Tyres a visit tomorrow to see if they still have the old one, if they do I will ask them what they believe was the most likely cause of the failure. Now it makes me even more determined to replace the other 4 MPC tyres, $800 for piece of mind seems like a pretty good investment to me.
Cheers
BB
blaze said
02:45 AM Dec 4, 2019
IMHO it would nave been the ubolts fail first. I have seen quite a few tyres destroyed that have destroyed caravans and vehicle bodywork but never an axle failure. One of the prime reason for ubolt failure is over tensioning, like ever time you get a bit more on the nuts you are most likely just stretching the thread which in turn makes them looser. Ubolt should only be tensioned up and then retensioned after a couple hundred km after they settle.
cheers
blaze
iana said
10:49 AM Dec 4, 2019
I might have this completely wrong, but having a close look at the 1st picture, I see no fresh movement marks on the surface of the spring, or even an indication the axle was sitting hard against the spring, I see the spigot has no wear, where it passes through the plate welded to the axle, if there was movement I would expect to see this.
But I do see wear and shine at the end of the spigot where it is passing through the axle RHS, perhaps suggesting to me the hole in the RHS was drilled under size for the spigot and the spring assembly was held away by this, not seating properly on the plate.
I copied the picture and zoomed it right up.
There are a couple of articles about fitting "U" bolts on the web, one by Lovells.
Pradokakadudavid said
05:15 PM Dec 20, 2019
Yeah I think my Retreat caravan is just as reliable! All the electrics have failed (brand new van never used) and then it was returned to me supposedly in pristine order and it was still stuffed. The repairer said he had never seen such a mess in the wiring. Thanks Retreat. Top effort!
Pradokakadudavid said
05:18 PM Dec 20, 2019
Ha ha they give you all the platitudes then do virtually nothing. Couldn't be more unhappy with my brand new Retreat caravan!
Having recently completed an incident free trip through western NSW, SA and Vic we set off again yesterday for Urunga. Sitting on 95kph about 20kms north of Raymond Terrace the bolts holding the rear axle on the van snapped on the passenger side causing us to have a pretty wild ride trying to bring the rig to a stop on the verge of the M1. Worse than that was the 4 hour wait behind the concrete barriers until the NRMA could organise a flat top truck to get the van back to a caravan repairer in Heatherbrae. A few positives out of the incident 1) it could have happened 2 weeks ago when we were in the middle of nowhere 2) having NRMAs premium roadside assist on the caravan meant it cost us nothing for the tow 3) the text message that NRMA sent us gave them our exact GPS location as soon as I accepted it 4) Mat at Kingston Caravan Repairs stayed at his yard well after closing time until we could finally get the van there (5:30pm) to drop it off 5) the great response and follow up by the NRMA insurance people to get the claim moving when I rang them last night.
We may have missed this trip but at least we are still around to plan our next one.
Cheers
BB
Hi BB.
Yep! Best thing after the caravan is buying the right motoring club roadside assist.
Great out come.
I had a lot of trouble with the axle on my Jayco poptop caravan (but that is another story). Eventually, AL-KO supplied a replacement axle which I had to fit myself and weld the spring centrebolt locating plates to the axles. All good for the time. Then I was towing a trailer to Adelaide for a friend and the centrebolt in one spring broke, meaning that the axle slipped backwards against the mudguard. Luckily, I was in the only town on a long stretch of road which had a mechanic - and he had the time to fix it. One hour later and I was on my way.
The point of this post is to say that after the trailer incident, I checked the U bolts on my own caravan. Although it had only done 2 trips (probably 5000 km), the U bolts were slightly loose. I managed nearly one complete turn of the nuts on each U bolt. When I installed the axle. I fitted new U bolts and tightened them up really tight, but they still settled in. A check 2 years later got only a fraction of a turn more tension. So check the nuts on your U bolts - you may be surprised how loose they are. Loose U bolts allow the axle to move along the spring and will eventually shear the centrebolt off completely. It may save you troubles similar to what the bear described above.
Thanks guys I reckon we were pretty lucky to get out of the whole incident with just some damage to the van. I was wondering if it would have been worse if the front axle had failed and caused it to crash into the rear axle ? What I didnt appreciate was that we were in stopped in a really hazardous place on the verge of the M1 in a 110kph zone, we stood well clear of the vehicle and left the hazard lights flashing. A police highway patrol car pulled up on the verge about 20mtrs behind the van he sat there for a minute or 2 then just drove off - he never bothered to ask us if we were okay or if we had assistance organised. Ill be really spitting chips if I get a fine in the mail for being illegally parked or something
.
Cheers
BB
Bit scary at that speed......maybe a letter to Retreat is in order.
Cheers Bob
Good to hear all safe. Very lucky. Hope you bought a lottery ticket......
Tis a reminder to all to try and check things even after the professionals have done things.
Nothing this bad, but have had experiences with cars, plug leads coming off a day after service, wheel studs broken after a tyre fitted, no oil in vehicle after full service.
The Highway Patrol vehicle Police Officer would have been checking registration and other information on the vehicle surveillance computer system, it can tell them if registered and if the owner has any outstanding fines, a current drivers licence or if suspended.
NSW HWP cars often park alongside the highway for vehicle checks and at the same time monitoring speed. Some have a clear dome on the roof with a traffic camera inside that is remotely operated and used with fixed cameras to monitor traffic.
-- Edited by Knight on Saturday 30th of November 2019 03:29:41 PM
Yesterday I had some feedback from the caravan repairer who spent a few hours getting the van to a safe enough condition for me to tow it back to my storage location and wait for the approval and the parts to do the full repair. As I didn't recover the failed component to see what actually caused it to part company I asked him for his opinion based on what he found. He said that he would rule out corrosion as there was only a bit of surface rust and nothing indicating that it was a problem, the tension on all other U bolts was good, he suspected that this particular U bolt may have failed due to a manufacturing fault or even been over tensioned when serviced. The van has travelled less than 20K and has never been off the bitumen, 2 weeks before the incident we were in Mudgee parked on a concrete slab so I took the opportunity to get under and visually inspect everything - nothing obvious (although I didn't check any bolt tensions). I now have to get a new spare as the one I had was used it to replace a tyre ripped open by the stairs does anyone know anything about MPC-27 tyres or who carries them - personally I have never heard of that brand before.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 07:21:17 AM
On June 26,2017,Vince 56 posted on this forum about "MPC tyres".Might give you enough information to at least get you started in your search. Seems to be a Chinese manufacturer of both tyres and wheels.Cheers
MPC Mags and Tyres, Campbellfield,Victoria.. 03)9308 8008
-- Edited by yobarr on Monday 2nd of December 2019 07:49:06 AM
thegreynomads.activeboard.com/t63688162/mpc-tyres/
Thanks Guys I've now read Vince56's post about MPC tyres, I've actually met Vince he is only on the other side of the lake from me. I took the tyre to O'Neils and they said in their opinion it was a cheap Chinese brand and if I intended to do long road trips I really should think about upgrading to something better (when I eventually replace them). I ended up buying the equivalent in a Toyo ($195) which they also said wouldn't be an issue having the different brand. I think to be safe I will replace them all as this event really shook us up and I really want to reduce the risk of having another mishap.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Monday 2nd of December 2019 11:16:59 AM
Good move Dave.Toyo seems a good brand,and was on the short-list for new tyres for my car.Eventually I bought Mickey Thompsons to replace the almost new KO2s,which I put onto the van.Tyres are the one of the thing you dont cut corners with.Cheers
Bagmaker the inside wall of the tyre wall was cut by the step when the wheel crashed into it actually looked like someone had stabbed it with a carving knife. I'm not saying that the cheaper Chinese brand tyre contributed to this incident I just meant that I want to reduce the risk of any sort of incident happening as we may not get out of it as lightly next time.
Cheers
BB
-- Edited by The Belmont Bear on Tuesday 3rd of December 2019 07:30:41 AM
Its a rare thing to have a set fail completely, just out of the blue.
It is a sobering thought, when two U bolts, fail very close together
I have (in my younger days), fitted new springs on my caravan, but always reused the U bolts
I only ever renewed any nylock nuts
Bagmaker I along with the repairer had assumed that the tyre had been cut after the bolts failed and the wheel had contacted the step or the frame of the van. Looking more closely at the damage and also thing back to the sequence of events it supports more what you are suggesting. 1) the damage to the tyre was a 50mm slit that may have been a sidewall failure rather than a tear - it was a clean cut like it had been stabbed with a knife 2) The damage was to the inside wall of the tyre, when you look at the photos the contact with the step and frame suggests it probably should have damaged the face of the tyre. 3) When I think back to the event there was an initial bang which caused the van to start shaking maybe 5 or 10 seconds later while I was trying to bring it to a stop the van really started to kick around violently - I was very lucky to keep it under any sort of control without it jackknifing. I am going to pay ONeils Tyres a visit tomorrow to see if they still have the old one, if they do I will ask them what they believe was the most likely cause of the failure. Now it makes me even more determined to replace the other 4 MPC tyres, $800 for piece of mind seems like a pretty good investment to me.
Cheers
BB
cheers
blaze
But I do see wear and shine at the end of the spigot where it is passing through the axle RHS, perhaps suggesting to me the hole in the RHS was drilled under size for the spigot and the spring assembly was held away by this, not seating properly on the plate.
I copied the picture and zoomed it right up.
There are a couple of articles about fitting "U" bolts on the web, one by Lovells.
Yeah I think my Retreat caravan is just as reliable! All the electrics have failed (brand new van never used) and then it was returned to me supposedly in pristine order and it was still stuffed. The repairer said he had never seen such a mess in the wiring. Thanks Retreat. Top effort!
Ha ha they give you all the platitudes then do virtually nothing. Couldn't be more unhappy with my brand new Retreat caravan!