Torsion bars or something wrong

[G-V_Driver]

Went to pick up my new--to me-- 1997 3124KS yesterday. Came home empty-handed (hate it when that happens, especially after driving 750 miles each way). Long sad story. Now trying to figure out what went wrong and how wrong it went.

The dealer--not a TM dealer--had "detailed" it and the tech said he had "adjusted" torsion system because of gap between shells when trailer was folded. From what I could tell, he had loosened the four bolts that hold the lift arms to the torsion bar and adjusted the lower shell upward to get a good fit.

When came time to put it down, rear shell (the big one that goes down first with the a/c on roof) would not go all the way down. Latches were maybe 6" away from each other. By "messing" with it a number of times back and forth around the trailer he was finally able to get it down, but each time I put it back up and started over the process over, I had the same problem.

The tech wrenched on the side bolts that connect the arms to the torsion bar (which I now see from this site maybe isn't the proper thing to wrench on). The wrench team pushed and shoved and pulled and stepped until it finally went down a few times, but in the process I noticed that the torsion arm had somehow gone crooked in between the four bolts in the lift arms, which they tried to fix by tightening the bolts real tight and bending the lift arm back to somewhat rectangular shape with the vice grips. One of them even got into the trailer when the slide was in and pushed down on the rear shell to try to make it latch.

I also noticed that when they were able to make the latches mate up, the rear corner on the opposite side would raise several inches, indicating to me that something was awry.

They finally concluded that "both sides have to go down at the same time" which was the final straw, as it seems unlikely that even with my girth I could be on both sides of the trailer at the same time.

I should have checked this site to see all the stuff you guys have written, but was too immersed with the proximity of the alligators to think about the available drain plug for the swamp. We tried to call Jimmy, but it was too late by the time we thought about it.

Now I'm trying to decide if it is worth another go at it. I didn't see anything else break, but DW noticed some new marks on the lower sides where something was rubbing in an arc pattern as the rears shell went up and down. For you crystal-ballers,

How bad is it hurt?

How much stress will those tops take?

Do I gotta take it to Tennessee to fix it?

If I need new rear roof, arms and bars, whassa dinero?

It was a trailer that Ron Deem in Denver owned since new, and I found his phone number. Great guy, wish I had bought it from him. He said it was a good one. when he had it.

I just didn't know enough to make an intelligent decision so I drove 11 hours home kicking myself.

Other than the obvious answer of "well, that's what happens when business majors start messing with machinery" does anybody have any ideas?

Mr. Driver, I feel for you. I hope everything turns out well for you. I had a somewhat similar experience. We live In Nashville, TN. We called a place in NC that has an older TM for a good price. The salesman said it was in remarkably good shape for it's age. We drove all the way from Nashville to this place in NC. We were prepared to pay cash for the TM. As it turned out, the TM is in terrible shape. It is all to pieces with mold throughout. We were very disappointed. I was also very upset with the salesman for lying to us like he did. So, I know how you feel. Just don't give up. I will eventually find my TM, as I am sure you will. Success comes to those who hang in there and don't give up. Good luck.
Sincerely,
Greg

[mjlaupp]

Driver,
Have you paid for this TrailManor? & Where is the TrailManor?

The dealer--not a TM dealer--had "detailed" it and the tech said he had "adjusted" torsion system because of gap between shells when trailer was folded. From what I could tell, he had loosened the four bolts that hold the lift arms to the torsion bar and adjusted the lower shell upward to get a good fit.

From your description, it sounds as if the latches on the lift arms for both the front and back shell were loose and or out of adjustment. The torsion bar settings most probably should not have been changed.

How bad is it hurt?
How much stress will those tops take?

The top is probably ok, the torsion bars and lift arms need to be properly adjusted by a qualified TM tech.

Do I gotta take it to Tennessee to fix it?

Not if you can find a TM certified dealership in your area. Look on the TrailManor site for a list of dealers in your area. www.trailmanor.com

If I need new rear roof, arms and bars, whassa dinero?

If you need a new rear roof, you would be better off getting your money back and looking for another unit. The TM factory has been re-tooled for the 2003 and later top construction. They had to shut down one of the lines and put the old tooling back into place to replace the front top shell on my '02. The arms, bars, installation and adjustment are affordable. I would make the dealer absorb the cost of the repair.
MJL

[Bill]

The tech wrenched on the side bolts that connect the arms to the torsion bar. The wrench team pushed and shoved and pulled and stepped until it finally went down a few times, but in the process I noticed that the torsion arm had somehow gone crooked in between the four bolts in the lift arms, which they tried to fix by tightening the bolts real tight and bending the lift arm back to somewhat rectangular shape with the vice grips.

If the rectangular lift arm has buckled, I would be very leery of leaving it in place, even if it was "straightened" with vice-grips. I think that the (round) torsion bar doesn't project very far up into the (rectangular) lift arm - someone correct me if I am wrong - so all the stresses of lifting and lowering are concentrated in this joint in the area of the four bolts.

Like Mike, I would insist that a certified TM service tech perform any repairs, and certify the results, and do so at the dealer's expense. It is clear that the wrench crew at this dealer has no idea what they are doing.

Bill

I'm generally not one to get the lawyers involved, but if you are financially involved in this TM it may be time for a consultation to get an opinion on your options. If you are not, I would walk away from it. There are plenty of good TMs available, it just doesn't seem like it at times.

Jim

[G-V_Driver]

Thanks to all for your comments and advice. Just what I needed to get some logical analysis started, rather than just going in circles as I did last week. Anybody besides me see this tendency as you get older?

I called the factory and talked to the customer service guy and the head guy in the shop. For those who don't know, Jimmy is out with a health problem that I interpreted as being somewhat serious. Don't know the details, and have never met him, but have seen numerous comments about his knowledge and availability to owners, so thought those of you who are more familiar might want to follow up. New guy (I forgot to write down his name, but think it is Ed--or maybe Earl) is very nice and followed up as promised, but doesn't have Jimmy's background, as he is quick to admit. But very helpful and someone who hopefully will pick up Jimmy's knowledge over time. For everyone's sake I hope some of the information is captured on paper rather than just in Jimmy's head.

The factory guys seemed to think it was a solvable problem, as did the closest dealer. I am not on the hook for any money at this point, but after thinking it over and reading many of your comments, it jsut seems like it should be fixable.

Neither the factory nor the Houston TX dealer seem to think it is badly hurt, even with the pushing and shovingon the shell. The dealer offered to lower the price by more than the amount they think will take to get it right, and I'm tempted to try it again.

I would be in it for something around $10K when fully restored, based on my current estimate, and that seems reasonable for a decent unit with the solar panels, extra battery, lift kit etc. Am I nuts?

[mjlaupp]

Driver,
I would go for the deal if the dealer is willing to absorb the repair costs. With the extras installed, this sounds like a real deal.
I got word yesterday that Jimmie is in the hospital with pneumonia and will probably not be back to work before he retires at the end of this year.
MJL

[Cateye]

TrailManor has just hired a new Customer Service person (Ed Lydel) and they are replacing the Quality Inspection person (the person who is being replaced has been dealing with cancer and has not been able to be on the job on a regular basis).

G-V, since the Houston RV dealer has to get the TM fixed anyway, and, they don't have the expertise to do it, they may have to tow it to the nearest TM dealership to have the repairs done. the TM dealership closest to Houston appears to be the Tomball, Texas one. Why not suggest that the Houston dealer tow it to Tomball and obtain an estimate of the cost of repairs? you could negotiate to buy it at your previously agreed on price or a lower one once the repairs were done to the satisfaction of the Tomball dealership. It appears that Tomball may be 35-40 miles away from Houston? This way you wouldn't have to take the risk of buying it and then getting shocked by the true cost of repairs after you towed it to the TM dealership. ??? ???

In a 1997, there's NOTHING wrong with your clam shell at all. If you were curious on the cost of an entire new one you're looking at around $8,000. (But you're ok on that one) The actual problem lays in their bad adjustments which are a *SIMPLE* fix, one that you can do yourself if you know what you're doing. The entire lift system is COMPLETELY covered by warrenty from TM for lifetime. If that dealer did something wrong to damage it, it's on them to make it right. Sounds like they didn't know a THING about the TM and were just going on smoke on those adjustments. At any rate, they will NEVER sell the trailer unless they get it right, so they may as well pay for the proper adjustments now, rather than later. (especially if you're waving cash). The torsion bars are ok, they may have to pay for new travel arms, which isn't a super big expense...... "if they broke them". Just sounds like they didn't know what they were doing at the time to me, and got everything all in a tizzy. It can be fixed rather simply, and I'd say it's on them to fix it. All you have to say is "You guys tried to fix it, and didn't know what you were doing, and I did already drive all that way once to pick it up with cash in hand".......trust me, they'll get it right one way or another........I have NOOOOO idea why they were messing with the bolts where the torsion bars go into the travel arms, but umm......there are adjustment bolts JUST FOR THAT KINDA THING, and those aren't them. Providing the travel arms aren't damaged, you could do the required fix in just a few mins. Now tho, it does need professional help as they've adjusted the height of the torsion bars in the travel arms, and doubt you want to mess with figuring that one out. Point being, I really seriously doubt it's a big deal, and it's completely on them to get it right before they sell it to *anyone*...........Just my .02.....

[glow=red,2,300]Happytrails.......[/glow]