Suspension Issues of Any Type

[rex]

From the get go - bad brakes. Then, a-la R-Time Soon: Bent Frame, broken trusses, broken wet bolt, bent shackles and finally broken spring in the middle of Yellowstone Nat'l Park and no cell service.
Of course - all out of warranty except the brake issue. Have replaced all the stuff with MorRyde. This is the absolute WORST RV I've ever had.
This doesn't count total gel coat fade or replacement friction hinge doors. Now replacing door hinges with non-friction instead of the whole door...for the THIRD time!
2015 36rl

[Macahonic]

I have a 2013 38BR which I ordered new from the factory. When I had the brakes checked we found all the brakes had been OVER GREASED AT THE FACTORY!!!! ALL parts had to be replaced...shoes, drums, etc!!! $2000.00!

FYI....my brother-in-law bought new a 2012 36RE. On his first long trip to Arizona he had to replace all his shackles in Utah.

[mjdcwo]

It's scary to hear about all of these problems. When I get mine out of storage in the spring, it will be time for a total inspection.

[Kalispellcary]

We had broken leaf springs last May on our 2015 31sl

[woodman1]

Pin holding leaf springs to axle broke while pulling our Montana. Axle swung 60 degrees, unit verged off freeway. Fortunately, no one was injured nor were there any other vehicles involved, however; collectively about $3K damage. It held us up for over 6 hours as night time was approaching in Gary, Indiana, a place known for high crime. It was also the impetus to get our MorRyde IS and disc brakes upgrade installed on our Redwood.

[mstan]

I purchased my 2015 38GK in May of 2015. after approximately 6000 miles towing i had to replace both axels and springs due to failure. Both axels were bent and could not be fixed. I replaced with 8k axels and 8k springs. This is just one of the failures that Redwood refuses to acknowledge. The roof is another issue they deny is their problem. But that is another thread.

[Terry S]

Original owners of a custom build 2014 31sl with 8K axles and the heavy duty "H" rated tires. Now have ~ 60K miles on it. Based on comments in the Redwood forum around 2015 I pulled all the wet bolts and found all the plastic bushings were shredded after only 10K miles. Also had to have the brakes replaced in 2015 due to a dealer over greasing the bearings at one of their "required" warranty inspections.


I upgraded all the wet bolts, shackles and bushings myself and have kept a close eye on things, e.g. pull drums my self every year and check and hand grease the bearings, brakes, etc. I also check the torque on the shackle bolts every year with a high quality torque wrench. There's all type of user reports that document why it's best to avoid using those EZ lubes.



Opinion: Yes those shackle hangers need to be sturdier! Even the recommended 90# torque will bend them in if your not careful. So far in regards for durability that the axles and heavy duty "H" tires do a good job for the 13K trailer 31sl trailer. Rides hard but the suspension holds together. I've hit some terrible bridge joints (~4 in) at highway speed and everything held together. I've talked to several Redwood owners who have/had the stock 7K axles and E rated tires on 15 K units who have had multiple disasters while towing on standard highways (blow outs, broken springs, etc.) This in not limited to Redwood! It seems those E tires and spring ratings are not sufficient for real world use!!!


Question??? Is there a service life to the cushioned factory installed equalizers? I already put all new bushings in them. They appear to be ok using a close visual inspection. Wondering if I should consider replacing them on general principal?

[osolate]

Front axel, both sides, springs broke and coach sat on the frame. Now I’m thinking upgrading. I will tell ya, lt leaves a nasty taste in your mouth to spend the kind of money we spent just to put more money into fixing an issue that we shouldn’t have to do.
We love the coach, but... I would not have bought it knowing all this!

[travelin' texans]

Originally Posted by Macahonic

I have a 2013 38BR which I ordered new from the factory. When I had the brakes checked we found all the brakes had been OVER GREASED AT THE FACTORY!!!! ALL parts had to be replaced...shoes, drums, etc!!! $2000.00!

FYI....my brother-in-law bought new a 2012 36RE. On his first long trip to Arizona he had to replace all his shackles in Utah.

I'm sorry this happened & if they charged $2k for 4 brake assemblies then you got it twice. I replaced all 4 complete brake assemblies ($75 each), had all 4 drums turned ($100+/-), packed bearings, replaced seals + $100 for the MorRyde heavy shackle/wet bolt kit, all 4 hours labor provided by me & a fellow RW owner.

[Elliott & Vicky]

Originally Posted by Garyl53

I just spent the weekend straightening the center bracket and frame above the Lippert equalizer on the drivers side of our '17 36RL. This must have happened on out last trip through Utah in late August and September. No accident for sure and no hard turns that I can remember, just normal driving. The lower flange of the frame is so thin it is easily bent without much pressure. There is a gusset above the hangers on the outsides above but when making turns the pressure is applied inward so it does not really help. There should be much more bracing of the hangers or there should be cross members (e.g. MorRyde X-Factor) at least on the center hangers due to the lever created by the equalizers. Not sure if this counts as a "failure" but it required repair.

The same thing happened to mine. The twisted frame was straightened and a long gusset was added. the welder was amazed there was only a gusset on the outside.

[Elliott & Vicky]

My Saga with suspension: All the shackles had to be replaced as they were on too lose and the repair shop would not re-torque them as he felt they were to flimsy. We discovered this when I climbed under the RW and saw the spring packs were fanned out like a deck of cards. Later in that trip both spring packs on the rear axle broke, resulting in the replacement of 2 tires. Then the problem I mentioned in my previous comment. Two years ago, another spring broke and the axle rotated back a bit so the rear tire hit the leveling jack, bending the ground plate and stripping the tread off the tire. I have been weighed twice by SmartWeigh (Escapees) and was well under weigh on both axles, whigh were weighed within 50 pounds of each other. The commercial spring repair shop which replaced the first 2 spring packs, which he beefed up a bit, said that the suspension was what he would expect under a travel trailer, and not a 5th wheel.

[Ann & Dan D]

My 2015 38RL had a wet bolt break back in 2017 after 10k miles. Fortunately I was almost home. I managed to get into a church parking lot where I parked it until I could find a new bolt. I changed it myself. At this year's Redwood rally lippert changed several shackles and wet bolts. Redwood management was there.

[C Flohr]

I have a 2016 38GK. I have had to replace a spring hanger bolt TWICE! The first time I discovered this was in a small accident with a tractor and trailer. He hit me in the rear and up the side into my axles. I thought that he broke the spring hanger bolt, but I've come to find out, that was not the case. After fixing the issue with a exact replacement wet bolt and locking nut (which I also peined over the end of the bolt to ensure the nut doesn't come loose again), it happened again! About a year later while traveling i noticed in my side mirror that my rear axle was sticking out farther than the front axle. I got off at the next exit and sure enough, I was missing the rear axle spring hanger wet bolt. Fortunately, I had saved the grade 8 bolt that I had used as a temporary fix the first time and was able to fix it in a parking lot and continue on my way home. This time after replacing the wet bolt and locking nut, I drilled a 1/8" hole through the and put a cotter pin in to ensure I never loose the nut and bolt again. So far this seems to have fixed the problem. I was under the assumption that the nut was coming off. Now after reading all these horror stories, it may have been that they just broke!

I now religiously check everything out under the RV before and during travels, especially the axles.

My seasoned opinion is that these axles and suspension components are too small. I am VERY disappointed in the build quality of this RV. It is beautiful and wonderful to stay in, but very cheaply made with substandard workmanship. That's what you get when its built on a piece rate wage. This encourages and ensures sloppy work.

My next RV will be a Luxe. MUCH better components, insulation and build quality. It is at a higher, but fair price, but a much nicer and safer RV. I have been to their factory twice now and was impressed with their operation, quality of components and skilled labor that is putting pride and workmanship into their work

Chuck

[Shastakid]

We ordered are 36RL 2017 with 8k axles, disc brakes and 17.5 H tires. Our first trip back east to attend the Redwood Rally in 2017 we broke a wet shackle bolt about 100 miles before arriving at the Rally. Redwood techs. had Lippert replace a hanger and all of the bolts on the trailer. The next year we took a trip to the Southwest when we returned to Calif. we brought the trailer in for warranty work, the dealer found that we had another broken bolt and a cracked frame. Lippert sent a welder from Indiana to Calif. to repair the frame and replace a hanger and all bolts again. Having enough of these problems we returned to Elkhart a week before the 2019 Rally and had MorRyde install their IS system with disc brakes. We really like the new IS system, we found it rides and pulls much better with way less chucking from our lousy highways. We thought Calif. highways were bad until we drove through Illinois, even lost a hubcap on our F350 DW 4X4 to the tune of $260 to replace the front hubcap from Ford. No comparison between Lippert axles and MorRyde IS system.

[par]

Boy you opened up a can of worms, good for you!
2014 FL36 with 8k axles and disc brakes.
Lost a wet bolt on the rear of the rear spring on door side while under warranty. Redwood paid for mobile repair.
Two years later the same bolt 'disappeared", but this time it busted the rubber disk brake hose. $650 to change a bolt and hose and no warranty from Redwood. Now I carry a full set of bolts, bearings and 2 brake hoses and 'heaven forbid' it happens again, but I will be prepared.
Two years ago I had to replace the equalizers, the bars had practically worn through. The plastic bushings had pretty much disintegrated and were replaced with brass.
I repack my bearings yearly, and every year, I need to change at least one bearing and race.
I am an engineer and would have to agree with a previous post that I don't think a lot of "engineering" has gone into this, probably the most critical issue of any trailer on the road.

[Indiana RV rover]

We’ve owned two Redwoods. A 2012 and a 2017 39RL. I installed 8k lbs. springs and axles on the 2012 with disc brakes. We had both rear spring hangers tear off the frame of the 2017, because they used the wrong size shoulder bolts. Also, replaced two sets of shackles and bearings. Also, replaced six broken wet bolts out on the road , laying on a rug with a come along. The axles scaled approx. 1600lbs. Under max. The trailer was back to the factory twice. After the last broken Bolt in August, we traded in the junk trailer and bought a 2019 Tiffin 45ft. Phaeton motorhome. We traded the 2018 1 ton truck for a1/2 ton to pull behind the coach. All of Thor’s product lines are junk because all they care about are profit numbers. I wonder if they still have quality control?

[Chief AFD]

2016 39mb. Not sure this is a suspension issue but my issue was the right front wheel was ready to fall off. I discovered this when leaving my driveway for a 600 mile trip. When doing my pretrip after pulling out of my driveway I noticed the wheel was at a grotesque angle. When I removed the wheel and found there was never a cotter pin on the axle nut I nearly ruined a pair of boxer briefs. The thought of going 60mph and the wheel parting company with the axle and the outcome was terrifying. Having disc brakes the caliper would have taken the brake line with it, resulting in 0 brakes. This was my final issue with my pos redwood. I know the quality control is non existent in RV industry but this could have been a fatality over a 10 cent pin. I have had so many problems with this unit in the 1.5 years I owned it is disgusting. I pity the next unsuspecting owner of this "high end" 5er. Pure junk in my opinion.

[Chief AFD]

In continuation of my previous post to clarify things the axle was shipped to redwood as a axle only with no brakes installed per lippert. I also replaced all of the bearing seals with oil seals. 90 weight gear oil replacing the grease. The bearings should outlast the trailer by doing this. Look at semi truck front wheels sometime. Other issues we had were water intrusion under the bed slide, furnace heat going everywhere under the floor but hardly any coming out of the registers. Air conditioner running same time as the furnace (not the heat pump). Fuse blowing for the front thermostat and front closet light. Front bed slide suddenly stopped which was caused by a wire nut falling off the wire for the motor. Really a wire nut not even a butt connector. Front passthrough compartment wet. This unit has very low miles on it and is no longer my problem. I unloaded it and got a. Berkshire xlt 43a. Hopefully this works out better. Time will tell. Also I will admit I got the redwood slightly used but was only used a few times by the original owner. A word to the wise I personally would NEVER buy an rv brand new. Most of the warranties suck. Most manufacturers won't stand behind their products, and many of the dealers are incompetent. Unless you can fix things yourself be prepared to spend a lot of money. Godspeed to all of you redwood owners. Maybe I could be a guest speaker at the next rally.

[tjh@reagan.com]

Great question. We are full-timers and bought a 2019 3931FL. After two outings of less then 1,000 miles I noticed visually that the distance between the centerlines of my tires on opposing sides were not the same measurement, they were off by an inch. I took the unit to my dealer and they found the U-bolts holding the axles to the springs were loose and the axles shifted. The dealer said when they asked Lippert about it is their reply was it seemed the nuts were never torqued to the required 90#.

I got new axles and drums and the work was done under warranty but we were out of service for three weeks.

Thanks
Tom

[Jim & Mary]

Carl
I lost a front hub cap on our F350 dually on the same stretch of road, so it wasn't either of our faults!!!!