Trailer Problem

[jimmycc]

Here we go, i bought a new Chris Craft speedster in June of last year, it came as a complete package, boat, trailer, ropes, fenders etc We have a place in France so the boat does a fair bit of travelling, i would say about 2,500 miles a year. Now the boat came with a single axle (1800Kg) trailer which i questioned at the time of purchase, why was it not on a twin axle. Anyway to cut a long story short, one of the bearings destroyed itself on a French autoroute at 9pm at night, on the way to the ferry. This caused a 4 hour sit on the hardshoulder/ missed ferry etc.
Heres the issue, the trailer is rated at 1800kg, to carry a weight of 1400kg. The boat has a dry weight of 1300kg, plus has the ability to carry 125litres of fuel, plus all of the normal tat you carry in a boat. I believe we are overloading the trailer, therefore do i have any comeback to the dealer who specified this boat and trailer. The whole fiasco in France cost me £1k to repair the trailer, another ferry crossing etc, and the trailer manufacturer would want £1200+vat to uprate my trailer to twin axle. I am not one of these people to have a rant and take the dealer to court, but i do feel that why should i pay to have a package to do the job, i was told it would.
Your thoughts please.

 

[Alrob]

difficult one :-

do you use the trailer in sea water and if so do you hose the trailer down.

do you check the bearings
I dont think you were vastly overloading the trailer

p.s. better renew other bearing and carry spares in future

p.p.s fit top quality bearings as well

 

[landlockedpirate]

I doubt that you have any come back on the dealer. The boat and trailer as supplied were fit for purpose.Its only because you have put 'extra' equipment/provisions on board that the rig is now overloaded. (I realise that its not 'extra' but essential, but I doubt the dealer will agree !!)

Having said all that I belive you were badly advised in the 1st place, dealers tend to try and sell the package at the best possible price and by using a smaller capacity trailer they keep the overall cost down.

How much overloaded was the rig when the bearing let go? Most bearings destroy themselves due to lack of maintenance, was it the sealed type ? If so you may have a comeback agaist the trailer manufacturer (dont mention your possible overloading)

If you have to replace, cheapest option will be to sell current trailer and buy a new one.

Mark

 

[Lakesailor]

I reckon you're on a loser. The package he sold you was entirely legal.
You did question that and perhaps he should have offered an upgrade on the trailer spec, but that would of course cost you more. Which is what the upgrade of your present trailer will do.
The issue of bearings going is down to you really. If you are immersing the trailer and then doing long journeys you really need to check and repack the bearings. Sealed for life bearings are a pain.
As far as plod is concerned you are responsible for your vehicle.

The worst you can accuse the dealer of is not offering a more expensive alternative and perhaps not advising you on trailer-loading and maintenance.

 

[gjgm]

if its been in the water, the bearings will go. Fraid they need regular servicing/ replacing. No ones to blame for that. Did you have breakdown/recovery insurance...?

 

[pelicanpete]

You could try retro-installing a fresh-water flushing kit to the bearings and brake hubs. Connect fresh water hose and flush for about 5 minutes. Not sure if they're avail. in UK but are definitely avail. in the USA. I have them.

 

[Howardnp]

I trail my boat all over the place and bearing failure is my greatest worry. Only solution is regular replacement and fingers crossed.

So in answer to your question I don't think you have any claim BUT

I presume the trailer was a UK spec one and not an American trailer.

The reason I ask is I recently did an own boat assessment for level 2 with a chap who had brought a complete package in from the US, a Glastron bow rider, the trailer it came on, while being a super job wasn't road legal here.
That I think would be your only possible claim but I can't see a UK dealer selling boat in the Uk on a US trailer that ain't legal here.

 

[PCUK]

We fitted grease nipples to the trailer hubs and pumped them full of grease after every immersion. Never had a failure but wheels were always a greasy mess.

 

[duncan]

As others have said - it would appear legal on the info given.

I always used to tow my 21ft cuddy empty, with the gear excluding the life jackets and soft stuff, in the car.

bearing are always an issue, hence the hub flush kits, grease solutions, sealed bearings etc etc

brake pads are a disasted waiting to happen if launched in seawater without a flush kit - dealer solution is to recomend you get the boat crained in each time!

recomendations -
1. carry 2 spare wheel bearings, 1 spare wheel/tyre, tools and a trolley jack at all times - especially when trailing abroad.
2. always wait at least an hour for the bearings to cool before launching - otherwise hot hubs cooled quickly in water will suck the water in so fast you wouldn't believe it.
3. flush the hubs if launching in sea water after launching and after recovery
4. make sure your brake cables have nipples in the middle and pump full of grease regularily.

Most people don't do 2-4 making 1 even more important. However they also tend to have a short season of boat use int eh UK so they replace the bearings and brake pads every year.

enjoy your boat

 

[jimmycc]

The bearings i have were sealed, however the boat is predominantly a fresh water boat, we take it to a lake in France. It has been in salt water once in September and i flushed the brakes as best as i can with a pressure washer but without stripping the drum down, you will, never get the salt out. I was only whinging because the place that repaired it in France said the boat was far too heavy for a single axle and i was probably travelling too fast! Well i have checked the speed with sbs trailers and they said i was fine at the speed i was doing. I quite like the idea of these flush kits, does anyone know where i can get those from? All in all i am very happy with the boat and the package i was sold, it is just unbelivably frustrating with 3 kids under 12 on the hard shoulder trying to liase with french RAC, when my french was as bad as their english.
On the question of trailer recovery policy, i am with the RAC and LandRover assisitance, they are both a waste of time, they would recover the car back to the uk had that broken down but only take your trailer to a point of safety. However for £35 a year i have found out they will recover the trailer. This is obviously very cheap compared to what it cost me, but how would they recover something pushing 35 ft long?

 

[landlockedpirate]

They wont !!

My new Disco broke down on the french auto route. I was towing a 28ft 3500kg boat at the time.

After a lot of scratching of heads , the French assisstance guy that Landrover sent reset the engine management and I towed the boat off the autoroute at 5mph with a great Police escort my self.

The only way to get around this is a bit erm..... sneaky.
1. Join the Caravan Club
2. Join the RAC.
3. Tell the RAC you are a caravan club member and you will get cover for your trailer. (It doesnt actually state that the trailer needs to be a caravan !!)

They will then recover your trailer if you have a problem.

Mark

 

[duncan]

[ QUOTE ]
My new Disco broke down on the french auto route. I was towing a 28ft 3500kg boat at the time.

[/ QUOTE ]

????

3500kg boat plus trailer would be it's (legal) limit - I assume you mean that ?

big rig either way!

 

[landlockedpirate]

3496kg on the weighbridge just before we set off, a bit heavier coming home. (Well youve got to get the plonk in !!)

About as big as you can go. Disco's had a towing limit of 5000kg with overrun brakes once upon a time. It towed the rig suprisingly well. (Untill it broke down.)

 

[Lakesailor]

New Disco towing weight 3500kg Specs

 

[BrendanS]

Seems to be a fairly typical spec for most cars that can realistically tow much more.

 

[Lakesailor]

Realistically or legally?

 

[BrendanS]

Realistically. For some reason, many manufacturers are sticking 3500 on their cars now, when they could handle much more.

I've been wondering about that limit for some time.

 

[landlockedpirate]

Approx Pre 1997 Disco's could legally tow 5000kg, with suitable brakes. I was just making the point that its the law thats changed not the ability of the car.

Towing limits make no sense at all to me. i.e. 2006 Honda Civic 1500kg, 2006 Honda CRV 1500kg !!??

Limits seem to be based on engine power, rather than on the cars actual ability to tow.

I do realise we have to have some limits though, other wise we would have Touareg's dragging 747's up the M6 all the time. /forums/images/graemlins/laugh.gif

 

[Lakesailor]

It's a minefield. I don't know how a Civic can handle the same weight as a CRV either.
But the problem is that plod has to go by the manufacturer's ratings.
Ford saw fit not to give a rating to the Ford Ka, so you can't legally put a tow bar on it. Not even for one of those little box trailers.
Bonkers.

 

[BrendanS]

Traffic cops have no idea either, they resort to trailer manufacturers guidelines.

When we had a real in depth discussion on this subject years ago, I found a tame traffic cop. He resorted to his magic manual, and it wasn't provided by the police, it was a trailer company