What else to go wrong ?

[UK-RV]

What else to go wrong ?.....

OK - HERE GOES......

We arrived in the? USA on Jan 5th - so, what can go wrong in just 8 weeks ?

1. Lazydays (no need to say more - still not happy)

2. Agree to buy new car from Saturn of Brandon and explain it was LLC purchase. Told to travel 50 miles to sign paperwork and THEN told they cannot do LLC - ANNOYING.

3. Buy new Ford thru LLC no problem, but - NO PDI DONE AT ALL but offered free PDI when we revisit Florida in Jan 2007.

4. Garage appointed to fit blue ox base plate. They tell us we need part to put in rv which will notify when brake activated. They tell us all wiring in place for b/b but - DONT FIT BRAKEAWAY SWITCH AND CHARGE US FOR IT - sorted after we had to complain.

5. Laptop breaks the day we leave Lazydays - just annoying.

6. Ann-Marie falls whilst jogging and we fear she has cracked ribs - $210 doctors bill reassures us ribs are just bruised.

7. Meal at Ruby Tuesdays nr Robertsdale Alabama - FOOD POISONING.

8. Securing Pins fall out (or removed) from tow vehicle and car nearly breaks loose.

9. Charged $25 for a 5 mile taxi ride - TWICE.

10. Various fuses blown in new car 2 days after delivery - MISSING PDI.

11.? TODAY - Brakes seize on tow vehicle and result in serious problems including all parts of the wheels melting - MISSING PDI !!

So - what else could possibly go wrong for us ?

paul

 

[Tom]

Paul,

You and Marie have sure had more than your share of bad luck. Let's hope that things improve from here.

BTW how did the brakes on the toad seize? Was it beong towed or driven?

 

[Rex]

Sorry for all your trouble.  Sure doesn't give you a warm cozy feeling about traveling in the USA.  Are you still near Foley or Robertsdale Alabama?  If so, give me a call at 251-233-9227 if I can be of any assistance, and I would be happy to help.  I am not English, but that is where my family started in 1066.

Sure hope you have better luck with the remainder of your trip.

Cheers,

Rex Darley

 

[UK-RV]

tom - the car was being towed. we had travelled just 7 miles when someone waved to pull ove .

when we did, we found the wheel trims has totally melted and therevwas a really bsd burning smell.

we took to garage who said to take it to ford - thankfully 2 miles away.

fotd took a look and said just about everything to do with wheels and brakes needed replacing.

everything has just melted - except brake pads which looked fine !

no, the brake buddy wasnt on at the time.

rex - thx for offer, we are? ow in baystown houston.

hopefully ford will get car sorted by tues.

i'm going to suggest they contact Brandon ford to find why the PDI wasnt done - we thought it had been done prior to them taking it for ba e plate fitting. when they told us it hadnt and following delay at garage doing base plate, we didnt have time to stop.

paul

 

[Tom]

Hi Paul,

I've never heard of brakes locking up like that. I've heard of inadvertently leaving the parking brake (aka hand brake) on while towing - guess how I heard  :-[ That was on our brand new Suburban. Although it was my fault, the nearest dealership fixed it for free.

 

[Ron]

Wow sorry to hear of the continuing difficulties.  Sure hope it all gets sorted out soon and you will be able to enjoy the adventure.

 

[Karl]

Paul,

Sorry to hear about all your troubles. No one should have to go through all of that - especially in such a short period of time.

IMHO, if it got that hot (don't know if it was all 4 wheels, or just the rears or fronts), but there could be damage to the wheels bearings and axle shafts as well - loss of hardness, galling, etc. And, if the smoke/smell from the melting plastic and other smoke got into the car, it would be almost impossible to get rid of it completely. Personally, I'd demand a new, fully sorted car as a replacement with them also picking up the bill for base plate installation. You may not get satisfaction from the local or the selling dealer, but all states have "Lemon Laws" and state agencies that will investigate any and all claims relating to motor vehicles.

Could anything else go wrong? Lots, but hopefully this will be your last for a long, long time!

 

[Rollie]

Paul,
Sorry to hear of your problems.  It seems you have had a load since you arrived in the USA.  But it is just these kinds of events that makes most people not brave enough to attempt the adventure you have started out on.  There will be somemore bumps in the road but you will endure them and be better for it.  I hope you will share with us all the wonderful things that you find in your travels.  We all have had a few setbacks in our travels but the good will eventually outweigh the bad.  You just gotta believe and keep it ponited down the road.
Rollie

 

[John From Detroit]

And to think I thought I had an interesting first-major trip.... I think you got me beat.

There is a rule when it comes to the topic of this thread

DO NOT ASK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Least you receive an answer

(In my case.. The dog shower came apart and I broke it while trying to reassemble, this, however, is very minor, and I'm now parked at home)

 

[UK-RV]

hi guys

ive spoken to ford this morning, but they cant find cause of problem.

whilst not wanting the same thing to happen again - hence wanting them to identify the cause - how long should i leave it before insisting they repair or replace the car?

what other options do i have on this - things that can be sorted in 48hrs?

thx
paul

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

I note you say the brake pads were fine, so I doubt if the brakes actually locked up. I'm thinking the wheels overheated for other reasons, perhaps related to towing. Overheating due to inadequate lubrication is always a danger when towing 4-down. That's why only certain cars can do it.  What model Ford was this and what type of transmission?  Is it dront or re3ar drive?  And (sorry but I have to ask) are you sure you followed the proper set up procedure for towing it?

 

[Karl]

Paul,

Braking systems nowdays are pretty complicated, with computers for ABS and who knows what else. If they can't find the cause of the problem, there's nothing that says that wholesale a replacement of parts will prevent it from happening again, possibly with more serious results. You would always be looking over your shoulder, so to speak, never trusting it to work correctly. I would demand an immediate replacement of the vehicle NOW!

 

[UK-RV]

hi guys

the car is a new 06 ford focus zx3

it is a manual and there are no restrictions on towing - other than neutral, handbrake off and no steering lock.

the car has been towed 1000 miles and driven a total of 350 miles

it was both front wheels which 'melted'

paul

 

[Karl]

Gary,

I can't think of anything other than brakes and/or wheel bearings that could generate that amount of heat in that area, and those are things you don't normally have to do anything different with for towing.

Paul, you never said if it was the  one wheel, the front wheels, rear wheels, or all of them. What was it?

 

[Karl]

Another question, Paul:

Was the Brake Buddy in place (you said it "wasn't on at the time.") If so, could it have accidently been activated, or could the seat have somehow slipped forward, applying pressure to the pedal even if it wasn't on?

 

[UK-RV]

hi

no, the b/b wasnt even in the car.

we were driving around 9 miles to a flying j to fill-up the coach and car, so left it off so ann-marie could fill the car whilst i did the rv.

paul

 

[Karl]

Gotcha - had to ask.

What about the question about which wheels?

 

[UK-RV]

karl

both front wheels 'melted'

paul

 

[Karl]

Well, that eliminates the emergency brake - it operates the rear brakes. Remco's site shows that no mod's are necessary for towing 4-down. Unless I'm mistaken, that leaves just a brake malfunction or, to a lesser extent, dry or bad wheel bearings (possible, but unlikely to have both of them fail at the same time). I think we can eliminate ABS too, seeing that the Focus doesn't have it. No wonder Ford can't figure it out :-\

 

[UK-RV]

the local ford dealer have stated
they cant repair the car under warranty.

they are saying that by simply having wiring in place for the b/b suggests it could have been the cause of the problem - even though i have stated the b/b wasnt fitted.

it seems that everything in the usa is geared in favour of the dealer and not the customer.

dont take offense but my image of the usa is fast going down the toilet.

paul