Frame Strength, Who to Believe! The RV Sales Guy or the New Truck Dealer? Maybe Neither?
- Thread starter AbleGuy
- Start date
I’m just trying to figure out how many maxtrax it will take to level that camper so mommy doesn’t spill her coffee in the morning… and where to mount them?
All things considered, you can make all the idiocy comments in the world, but the guy made a choice and it turned out to be wrong. I haven’t learned a lot of $15-20k lessons in life, but they are out there and everyone gets one now and then. The real problem is crying on the internet about how it is everyone else’s fault ‘cause reasons!
If this guy posted up that he thought this would be okay, it wasn’t, he got bad advice from people with a vested interest in making a sale, and he was sharing his story as a Public Service, I would have mad respect for him!
All things considered, you can make all the idiocy comments in the world, but the guy made a choice and it turned out to be wrong. I haven’t learned a lot of $15-20k lessons in life, but they are out there and everyone gets one now and then. The real problem is crying on the internet about how it is everyone else’s fault ‘cause reasons!
If this guy posted up that he thought this would be okay, it wasn’t, he got bad advice from people with a vested interest in making a sale, and he was sharing his story as a Public Service, I would have mad respect for him!
billiebob
Well-known member
THIS ^^^ quite apart from the fact no sales guy is going to tell you it cannot be done unless the answer is obvious, the spec sheets for everything are buried so doing yer own homework is impossible.
With that said when I see these rigs my mind goes.....
billiebob
Well-known member
And this from 40 years ago....
The information is out there even when it is hard to find.
billiebob
Well-known member
The entire truck and camper porpoise which creates the stress on the frame between the cab and box. The cab adds integrity to the front half, the box adds integrity to the back half, but there is only the frame with no "body on frame" integrity added between the body/box. Kind of like opening a book.
This is not rocket science. I think us old guys get it because we grew up with Saturday morning cartoons. Road Runner and Wiley Coyote were the best science teachers.
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billiebob
Well-known member
All that said I have never seen this kind of destruction before. Not sure if it is a design or loading issue. Pretty sure it has nothing to do with driving. In the !960s, 70s, 80s.... we drove just as hard and stupid as today yet I never saw frames bend like this. The campers today are stupidly huge. The weakest point of any beam is in the middle. And way too many kids get a ribbon for last place.
Stupid should hurt.
Stupid should hurt.
Alloy
Well-known member
A F250 use to = 3/4 ton and a F350 = 1 ton
AbleGuy
Officious Intermeddler
This forum has had numerous comments in other threads where folks argue about whether it’s an issue (or not) for some of the rigs shown here to be so seemingly, visibly overweight (often the blinged out Taco’s).
FWIW, I really did not post this thread with any intention of shaming or embarrassing the poor guy who’s truck got cracked up, but put this article up rather to serve as a hoped for, helpful reminder to folks wanted to haul behemoth campers to triple check their info sources.
Over The Silent Planet
Active member
Ultimately, it’s his responsibility to check before putting too much camper in the bed of a truck. This is an expensive lesson to learn.
But what about the dealers who recommended this pairing? Especially the camper dealer. If this guy showed up with that truck, and that dealer said, “yeah this Eagle camper will do great, you’re gonna love it,” what repercussions should he face? It doesn’t seem right he can professionally recommend and sell what is grossly too much camper for a truck and then not face any consequences when said camper breaks his customer’s truck in half. Should he lose his dealer’s license?
But what about the dealers who recommended this pairing? Especially the camper dealer. If this guy showed up with that truck, and that dealer said, “yeah this Eagle camper will do great, you’re gonna love it,” what repercussions should he face? It doesn’t seem right he can professionally recommend and sell what is grossly too much camper for a truck and then not face any consequences when said camper breaks his customer’s truck in half. Should he lose his dealer’s license?
rruff
Explorer
It doesn't seem ethical, but would he have any legal liability? I'm guessing not. He probably has many satisfied customers with that camper on a 1-ton.
As several people have pointed out, real weights can be much higher than what the camper manufacturers claim as well...
As always, buyer beware. It's on the purchaser to do their research to ensure that they are buying the right products for their needs. Research does not mean asking a salesman with a financial stake in selling something if product A will work with product B. They will almost always say "yes" if it is remotely workable. Once a potential buyer shows an interest in a product by asking a question about it, the seller has no financial incentive to torpedo the sale, especially if it could work. Lightly loaded, without a motorcycle hanging off the back, driven only on smooth, paved roads, that camper and truck may have never had an issue. Research means poring over spec sheets and talking to RV dealers, manufacturers, and owners about loaded weights. Research is taking this information to the vehicle manufacturer to find suitable vehicles for the loaded weight, with a safety margin that allows for other stuff plus passengers. A prudent buyer is willing to move on from their preferred vehicle if it is insufficient, or find a more suitable camper for the vehicle they really want.
Holding sellers liable for the purchaser's decision is a dangerous road to go down. Where do you draw the line?
AbleGuy
Officious Intermeddler
Salesmen may know prices and finance issues to some degree but most I’ve ever had an interaction with are woefully ignorant (and unconcerned about that) as to the actual, detailed, important specifications of the vehicle they sell.
Way too often, instead of saying something like, “I don’t know but I’ll find it out for you,” when you ask salespeople a question they’re not able to answer correctly, you instead get a made up guess/lie.
As to them actually being liable for a fraud charge (the intentional misrepresentation of a ‘material’ fact in the buyer’s decision making process)? The court cases generally will rule against the complainant if the misled facts deal with public information the buyer could have easily researched and ascertained* himself.
(* but too frequently, finding that accurate info isn’t easy. Just look up any commercially produced camping rig out there on the manufacturer’s website and try to find any useful figure for its cargo capacity)
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