trailer disaster, give advice or comments

[bopscott]

This thursday Myself and my wife were leaving fortune bay casino after a fun time of R&R. I have a 2004 Lund fisherman 17 with a 140 4-stroke Johnson on a classic 2004 Karavan roller trailer. Driving down bois forte road about 25-30 mph when I hit a small dip in the road then slightly apply brakes as a resort van is in front of me. Well all hell breaks loose as my boat and trailer swing left and I am able to stop the rig about in the middle of the road. I get out and the entire rear axle is turned with the left tire mangled and sitting under the trailer where a liscense plate would be and and the right tire is pushed up against the trailer. The guy who was behind me said he saw bolts shoot out the side of the trailer when I hit that small dip. To make a long story short I had to get one tow truck to jack up the trailer so we could get it off the road and a flatbed to transport me back down to Duluth(Total of 425.00 later). Heres the kicker, the rear roller either got flipped or was broke and punched a square crease into the bottom of my boat with four at least 1/8 holes through the bottom in the corners of the square. I took many pictures and no one I have talked to has ever heard of something like this happening. I called Karavan trailers and we are going to send all the pictures and the circumstances of this. They may have to total my boat because of the bottom puncture. I am really angry as this trailer was always stored inside and I greased the wheel bearings and probably only had 12-14 trips on the trailer. Other ideas?,recourse?,and responsibility for this fiasco?. Sorry so long a post but I had to vent..

[Norsky]

I've got nearly the same trailer, I'm thinking I'll tighten up all the bolts this evening. At least you have insurance and nobody was hurt.

[JohnMickish]

Your dealer is the one that assembles the trailers, not the manufacturers, so the crappy assembly would fall on them. That's really a bummer and you did a great job of keeping everything on the road.

If it where me, I'd talk to the dealer and if that didn't work I'd have my insurance company talk to them.

[Valv]

I agree with Mnfishinguy, dealer was responsible. I can guarantee they will total the boat + trailer, you might be able to keep motor depending of settlement.

Sounds like you lost the left U bolt that holds the axle in position, but without seeing it it's tough, and I trust Karavan more than my "diagnosis".

[fish2live]

any idea what the insurance co. does with the boats and trailers? next year i will be looking for a new trailer (well new to me) and i could very easily replace axles ect. if it was cheap enough.

[bopscott]

Hey guys, I think you are right. Valv when I looked at the bottom left u-clamp it was the one that went. These should not loosen or bolts break? (The guy behind me said he saw it "shoot out" and I could not find the bolts. The boat is at RJ in duluth but I bought the boat at crystal Pierz in Brainerd in June of 04. The guy at Brainerd gave me Karavan's number and I talked to a person there and I am getting them all the info. incuding about 22 photos of the incident. Another problem is RJ does not carry Karavan trailers but if this gets totaled with depreciation I would be on the short end probably about 3thousand I gues I am wanting full reperation as this is not my fault and it could have been alot worse if we were going faster. I suggested to Karavan that they have someone come up and investigate but the Rep. said they may want various parts shipped to them UPS at their cost. It seems to me it would make alot more sense for them to look at it personally. Valv and guys what do you think? thanks for replying I'm kind of a lurker but this sight gives great info. and insight.

[Valv]

Boat and trailer if they go as salvage will have much less value. You will get current or complete replacement value, that's why I said you might keep motor, it all depends from settlement. A trailer like that will cost new $ 1650 to dealer and $ 2500 market new.

[blacksheep]

hey i was at rj's today getting some work done on my boat, i think i saw yours there?, is it the one they got up in the hoist?........a little inside tip for you.....double check all the bolts before you leave rj's they run a real tight ship there

[bopscott]

Blacksheep, yeah that was me at RJ's. This whole fiasco probably is gonna cost me alot of fishing time in my favorite time of year. I was looking forward to taking my son out on a day excursion next week but looks like I'm have to figure on something else for jr.

[bopscott]

Oh, should let everyone know the dealer I bought the boat from was Crystal Pierz in Brainerd not RJ's

[CodyDawg]

I had a Karavan that had a similar problem. the flat stock that the U-bolts hold on broke on my trailer after a year and a half. I cannot remember ever hitting any nasty bump or anything. You should double check that the flat stock is not broke. The same type of thing that you describe would happen as the flat stock/u-bolt is the only thing that holds the axle in place. I then looked at a Shorelandr and the Shorelandr is built way heavier.

[shouldbefishn]

I believe I have the same trailer bought at same store in Albert Lea. Had trouble with the entire brake assembly falling apart inside the hub. Crystal sent all the parts and fixed it myself but I do wonder if I made a bad decision on the Karavan trailer. Is yours a 3200 lb trailer? I haul an 18ft Fisherman on mine.(2004) Living in Iowa my trailer gets more of a workout than my boat.

[Steve Bakken]

I don't know how attached you are to your boat, but if it looks like you're going to get a raw deal on a total loss settlement, don't be too quick to take it. We've been able to save several "total loss" boats already this year and we're always up for taking good care of a fellow FM'er.

[bopscott]

I believe the trailer is a 2800 pound trailer, just to le t everyone know I determined with a mechanic at RJ's in Duluth that the front schackle bolt for the spring on the left side either "broke out or dropped out. Either way this is what caused the entire rear axle to shift dramatically. Sent all pictures and info. to Karavan and waiting to hear back. I dont know if Karavan assembles their trailers or if dealer (crystal Pierz) does.

[bopscott]

Steve, I will definetely keep you in mind but I am hoping for full compensation wether a new boat and trailer or a 04 that has not been sold yet, we will see.

[marine_man]

I'm about 80% sure that just about all dealers assemble their trailers... shoreland'r, karavan, ez loader, etc...

marine_man

[wisconsinfish]

After buying my boat in june of 2005, I would check everything possible on the package. I had a lot of stuff that was incorrect. All of it was items put together or mounted by the dealer. The motor (4-stroke) was over filled with oil. The spare tire was finger tightened on its mount. The air pressure was incorrect on all the tires. The bow-mount trolling motor hits the boat when I put it down. The fuel hose was loose - it let air in the line and the fuel would drain back into tank from that point down. Motor would run for a few minutes and run out of fuel. The motor cover latches were not adjusted and opened up on the trip home from the dealer. At least it stayed in place!!! The list go's on.

I took it in for them to adjust the trolling motor and other problems and on my first trip back out on the water I noticed the trolling motor mount was moving. Well, they never tightened the bolts holding it in place after they adjusted it. They also put my transom saver right on the plastic water intake vents on the lower unit. Good think I saw that!!

Needless to say, I will never take my business back to this dealership.

The thing everyone has to remember is,(for the most part) it's not the mechanics assembling these units, its a $10 an hour Monkey that doesn't give a $#it.

[marine_man]

Not to dig up the past... but what ended up happening here... did the dealer resolve the situation?

marine_man

[bopscott]

I am still waiting on the outcome as my boat is laid up still. My insurance co. offered a amount that wiil not replace the boat and rigging. The insurance adjuster for Crystal Pierz came out with one of Crystal's Tech guys and looked at the photos of the accident and the actual boat with me. He did not quite say that it was the dealers fault but he stated to the tech guy that the locking nuts on the bolts through the spring apparatus either were not put on correctly or perhaps may have not been on at all. He is contacting a company down by the Twin cities to see if they can repair the bottom of the boat, he says they are really good. My insurance guy totaled the boat as Lund said they could not repair it. I will keep you all posted on the outcome as I know that the trailer was not put together the way it should have been.

[Valv]

I would start looking for a good attorney. It was not your fault, and you should not have to pay anything out of this deal. Your insurance can pay what they can but I would involve Crystal Pierz to pitch in the differnce.

[bopscott]

Hey valv, Yeah this has been quite frustrating and a long process but I am looking to get it resolved this week. I would prefer Crystal Pierz to just replace the boat and trailer and re-rig my motor and other various equipment on my boat. The Investigator for the dealer gave me the impression that it was the dealers issue and the tech guy for the dealer really did not say much or refute anything. Of course he did try to claim that the area on the trailer that failed he thought that they did not assemble that part but then he said the change in trailer building may have began in late 2003 and of course I purchased the rig in june 18 of 2004. The insurance adjuster-investigator said he knew of a company that repairs boats and he said they do a great job out of the cities. I am going to call him on Monday and get the scoop as we met last Tuesday. I just hope the dealer will "take care of business" as this problem needs to be resolved as the cold weather gets closer and I am losing patience and not been able to wet a line much.

[upnorth]

Hey if they screwed up they should make good for you on the deal. If they are a reputable company they should warranty their part of the work. If not word of mouth advertising can work in 2 directions. I would tell everyone I know how you were treated.

[Steve Bakken]

I don't want to point fingers at any of the shops, but just to caution you so that you're boat is fixed correctly. We've re-glassed two boats this year that had been prieviously repaired by a "marine repair shop" in the metro area, that had actually been filled with body filler and painted over, and the owners were told that it had been fiberglassed and gelcoated. I'm confident that there are plenty of shops up there that do excellent work, just make sure that you are getting what you paid for and paying fairly for what you get.