Alko Axle Problems
Comments
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Have you had experience of a failed axle yourself?
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We have a 2013 Hymer and fear that our axle is failing as van is sitting lower than normal. Have checked clearance between wheel & arch and seems ok but after reading this discussion it has made us uneasy. Local dealer has checked it and said " is within tolerance" but what would be consequence of towing in current state?
Gut feeling is that we need it replaced but any advice would be welcomed. Seems 2013 caravans are the unlucky year.
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I initially wrote about the trouble I had with my 2013 Bailey Unicorn started on September 2016.
Both Bailey and Alko refused to address the issue and I took the fault to the Driver & Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA- used to be the VOSA)
The result was I paid for a new axle myself as Alko claimed the axle had been over-loaded - you try and prove otherwise!
If you are worried about the safety of your Caravan, contact the DVSA via the website : -
https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-recalls-and-faults
Follow the - Vehicle Recalls and Faults and then - Report a serious Safety Defect
This will lead you to a form to complete to send online or print and send.
I think it is a safety issue and now check the clearance between the tyre and wheel arch liner at every stop/opportunity
Where did the relaxed and carefree idea of caravanning go?
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We have a Swift 514 Challenger which had the same problem, its obvious that the design of the caravan with all the heavy appliances on the offside is causing the ALKO axle to fail, no one is accepting any liability and we as owners are having to pay for repairs which is a design fault and I am surprised that after several years of complaints that nothing has changed.
It needs to be stated its not fit for purpose.
I suspect that the blame lies with ALKO as there most be liaison with manufactures who specify the capacity of the axle supplied, Swift caravans and many others manufactures suffer from the same failure.
The axle needs to be improved to be accepted as fit for purpose urgently and I am amazed that owners pay and accept the cost when they are not to blame for the inadequate axle fitted to their caravan.
Its unfortunate that most caravans use this ALKO axle which has proved to be unsuitable and subject to failure.
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Dissatisfied customers of failed axles need to report the issue as myself and Georgevan have done to the governing body for safety the DVSA, to date the DVSA only have these 2 reported instances of axle failure even though numerous are reported on forums? If all consumers reported their safety concerns over failures to them it would give them more evidence of the problem to get both the caravan manufacturers and chassis manufacturers to properly investigate and report open the failures. Reporting the failure is very simple via the DVSA website as Georgevan has kindly pointed out.
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It seems Alko axles and chassis have been under question for some time, rubber suspension is not able to cope with modern potholed roads.
Insufficient travel and poor damping result in too much stress on chassis components and too much shock transferred to the caravan structure.
In fact a 1980 van with trailing arm suspension is far better!!
Have a read of this dated - 2012 a bit academic but a good read in vies of this thread.
http://opus.bath.ac.uk/36474/1/UnivBath_MPhil_2013_J_Lewis.pdf
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Sorry to reply to my own post but this may be of interest to any alko chassis owner with failure issues.
Go to chapter 3 of the report which has info from Bailey (2009) showing alko components failing a standard car accelerated life test when only 47% complete. Table 3.2
I'm guessing this research was sponsored by Bailey!!
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ALKO axle failures
I have noticed the new models introduced from most manufactures for 2018 show redesigned layouts to improve weight distribution of appliances, instead of fixing cooker, fridge, microwave and storage cupboards on the offside of the caravan they have in most cases moved the fridge and microwave to the nearside.
This shows that the weight distribution has caused premature Axle failures due to the excess weight if all appliances are installed together on one side of the van.
I took measurements when the axle had to be replaced on a 2013 Swift 514 of some brand new caravans and even those were 10 cms lower on the side where appliances were fitted together.
The problem now is that many of us have paid for new axles to be fitted when it appears to be a design fault, dealers and manufactures accept no liability and even try the blame owners for overloading.
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We have a 2011 Swift Challenger. After mover damage on a kerb in France, have noticed a big difference in wheel clearance on UK offside, indeed where all the appliances are. Hoping to get repairs done on insurance but am waiting for the assessor, who is a car expert, not a caravan expert so who knows? the problem may have been there before but I didn't notice it until after the bump (and lots of road humps on the same trip!)
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This axle problem appears to mainly Bailey caravans? We have been caravanning for 35 years and have had a least 4 Baileys without any problem. That is until we bought a Bailey Madrid last year. Due to unforeseen circumstances we have only used it twice. We have caravanned for 30 years with my wife being disabled. I have now been accused by AL-KO of overloading the van, and it is costing me £1000 to have it repaired. Received a disgusting letter from Bailey referring how to load a van. Has anyone managed to challenge this accusation? It has left the wife and I disgusted and saddened, that we have decided to pack up caravanning
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Very sorry to hear this Lancastrian, I have had the same problem with my caravan and had the problem corrected by the manufacturer at no cost, I will know in a few weeks if the resolution is satisfactory.
Some Bailey vans show the collapse of the alko axle early as they have been designed with minimal clearance between the tyre and the wheelarch liner. When the axle gives up the tyre comes into contact. Other makes have more clearance but may still suffer collapsed axles, owners may not even know they have a problem. The van will have virtually no suspension so shock stress to the body and internal fittings will be excessive.
Just a few questions:-
Is your van a Unicorn 3? What year? How did you find out about the axle problem on your van? I guess you have had the alko inspection, what did they discover?
If you would rather contact me directly please post an email address
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I reported my failed axle to the dvsa as i was being accused just as you are. The conclusions of the report where as follows with my response to their findings in blue. Their report was worthless and would not stand up in a court of law, hence a call from Baileys and a full refund for the new axle i had fitted. (which i paid for myself and stated i was doing so under protest whicj is very important if you wisj to claim costs back)
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Mine was the other report sent to the DVSA and the conclusion was that the caravan had benn overloaded.
How they came that conclusion I do not know but as I could not prove otherwise I had to pay for the axle to be replaced.
I am pleased that ANDY MILLER has been refunded the cost of the axle and would encourage all others to contact the DVSA with their concerns.
I am still concerned that this a safety issue with the worry of tyre damage and a possible blowout or fire as a serious risk
Check the clearance and tyre temperature at every stop.
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ANDY MILLER, very interesting report. Having looked at my own axle I cannot see that there is a bumpstop at all. The design of the axle appears to me to allow complete rotation should the rubbers fail. which could be disastrous if on the road.
this guy had sectioned an axle which shows that the inner could rotate if the rubber sheared
https://youtu.be/yw2DMFMCBM0?t=38
The most variable component in the design is probably the rubber, the processing and resultant rheology is probably the biggest factor in premature failure of this type of axle.
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Totally agree with your comments! Alko specification manual states clearances should accommodate full failure being the axle swinging arm at 12 Oclock position also taking wheel and tyre sizes into account, at no point should the wheel come into contact with anything in the event of a catastrophic failure or otherwise in my opinion. Georgevan did you request a copy of the report and challenge it as i have? If not you could do so, if you paid for the axle under protest? as you have upto 4 years to claim through the courts. On a side note, i don't know of anybody who has actually gone to court and is probably due to Baileys paying out in the end to prevent a president being set if they lost the case
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Hi
I purchased my vigo in July 2017 should I be concerned about the axle problem or has that been resolved on the later model ?
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I think what you have to say to ALKO is, you prove that it has been overloaded. Try a small claims summons and see what happens. It costs very little and costs them a fortune to defend so most firms take the cheaper option and settle. You can get free legal advice on the clubs helpline.
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Re: Al-Ko? Bailey Axles
Nothing changes does it?
I have a 3 year old Bailey Pursuit 560-5 which has just had its annual service. Its exactly one month past its warranty expiry date and have been told by my Bailey recommended service engineer that the axle has collapsed due to worn/faulty suspension rubbers.
Contacting Bailey has resulted in them just forwarding my correspondence onto Al-Ko to deal with. Subsequent correspondence to them has not even warranted a reply. As for Al-Ko not even heard from them yet.
I am reluctant to refurbish the existing axle or to fit a new "like for like" axle only for the same problem to crop up again in the future. Has anybody come up with a permanent solution to the problem or do I just get the repair carried out and then get rid of the van?
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My 560-5 axle failed on the near side where the whole kitchen, gas bottle and battery are. Had a new like for like axle fitted, but added the red Alko shock absorbers as they're not standard on the Pursuits. To date 15 months later all ok with 40mm clearance still. As from THE DVSA report i posted in the thread, Alko admit rubber overtime will fail, but I've never had replies to what are the likely timescales of failure for this kind of axle. Fraser Brown engineering offer a refurbishment service approx 1 week turn around which may be an option for you.
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I first reported this axle problem two years ago and I am amazed that nothing has changed with caravan axles. The discussion has been interesting and frustrating to follow with other caravanners having the same problem and not getting a satisfactory reply from Bailey or AlKo and getting no support from the Caravan and Motorhome Club.
There was a discussion on whether the axle failure could affect the structure of the caravan or be dangerous. The way I noticed the problem was "small black pellets" under the offside bunk and under the cooker. This was the result of the tyre rubbing through the wheel arch liner due the lack of clearance of the failed axle.
Could this cause a tyre blowout or fire?
It has not happened yet!
Something to ask the salespeople at next month's show at the NEC
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Georgevan your quite right, but if a failure does at anytime cause a serious incident or at worse fatality (which i hope never happens), then due too the length of time and amount of reported issues highlighted to Baileys and Alko without a solution, then i wouldn't want to be in their shoes when it comes down to accountability!
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Our 4 year old Bailey Pursuit 550/4 axle has collapsed,and we have been quoted up to £1850.00 or thereabouts to have fixed and it is not under warranty anymore. We need to contact Bailey and Alko about this but having read other people's experiences this is going to be nearly impossible to get any help in getting this paid for. Is not our fault, there are only two people that use the van me and my husband and it would be grossly unfair for them to say that we had overloaded it. We always put heavy stuff like the awning in the car. It being a 4 berth one would expect it would stand up to more rigorous use than two retirees. Any help advising us what we can do would be appreciated.
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Investigate using the Small Claims Court and the Sale of Goods Act.
I suspect that any settlement would take account of you having had 4 years use out of a reasonable service life, however long that service life should have been.
I also think that your claim must be against the dealer that sold you the van, for that is where your contract is.
In case you don't know about Fraser Brown for axil repairs.
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Millan, just out of curiousity what does the MTLPM weight show in Kg on the sticker plate by your door? The reason i ask is that some owners of the Pursuit 1 range who purchased the weight plate upgrades were issued upgraded plates to 50kg beyond the axle rating! 1500kg instead of the maximum 1450kg. Being your van has had this upgrade it would put the resposibility of failure back on to the manufacturer. I had an axle replaced on my Pursuit for £1060 through an Alko approved repairer, so who ever quoted you £1850 is ripping you off!
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I cant agree more as its a design fault and owners should not be paying for it, it affects all makes but importantly those that put all the heavy appliances and storage facilities on one side of the van,it probably is not ALKO at fault, they supplied an axle that exceeds the weight requirements but due to re design of layouts its not good enough.
I agree its disappointing that the club has not done nothing to highlight this problem and other van quality problems. Members need some support on these issues and we probably wont now buy another caravan due to poor after sales service and warranty issues that are not fairly resolved to owners satisfaction, they will in the long term loose members if they are seen to do nothing at all to help.
We have had much pleasure from owning and using a touring caravan since 1992 but I have to say our latest caravan bought in 2014 has cost more in repairs than any of the others added together and it cost a lot more to purchase.
If the caravan industry does not get a grip on design and quality issues I think many people will give up up on it, they have spent to much time adding refinements which are good but the same old problems are still there, water ingress, axle problems, poor build quality, poor service from dealers only interested in selling caravans.
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It is tragic to read these comments. I have a Coachman VIP 2018, and it has been back to the dealers several times for annoying defects to be repaired/replaced, not helped by the wrong part (roof blind) being sent twice, resulting in wasted journeys and frustration. On taking the caravan to the dealer for the third time to repair a defective blind, the dealer's service engineer spotted that the nearside suspension had dropped. Further investigation found a tiny burst in a furniture panel above the wheel arch, which he said was consistent with the axle having been damaged by impact with a pot hole or similar. The caravan was only 6 months old, with only light use. It had never been overloaded, there are only two of us. The repair was expected to cost about £1300, and the van was not safe to use. An insurance claim had to be made, and caravan has been off the road since, awaiting parts for approximately 10 weeks so far, with no indication of when it will be repaired. This is down to parts supply from the manufacturer, which I can only describe as pathetic, and no fault of the dealer.
I have caravanned for over 34 years, and had many different caravans in that time, mostly from new. I have never had this issue before, and I have no recollection of hitting a pothole or similar with the van. I regard myself as an experienced and careful tow car driver, especially when towing, and had never had any such issue previously. The dealer commented that he had a number of other caravans with similar damage, awaiting repair. There seems to be a serious issue here, and I would suggest a design failure evidenced by the number of caravans with AL-Ko Kober axles that are failing. When will something finally be done about it - will the Club take up the problem on behalf of members ? That seems unlikely ! Sadly I conclude that despite the fine claims by the British caravan industry about customer care, my experience over recent years suggests it is a shambles, with abysmal back up and support for customers who have parted with a lot of money for a product that is without true customer care support. Solution - buy German ? Or perhaps the Japanese or Chinee should show them how to build caravans. Remember the British Motor Industry of the 1960/70's !! A sad parallel but true in my opinion.
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My 2 year old Bailey Unicorn 3 has just been diagnosed with Axle failure. I have spoke to the workshop people and to Al-Ko I can't be bothered to waste my time contacting Bailey, I am only customer and the caravan industry see us as idiots in fact we are idiots for putting up with there shoddy work and practices.
I will get the van sorted and then get rid of it.
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