NHTSA Complaint #10165311 — 2002 GMC SIERRA

I WAS TOWING MY 33 FT 2000 THOR TRAVEL TRAILER, USING MY 2002 GMC SIERRA 2500 HD CREW CAB DIESEL TRUCK. AS I PULLED INTO MY STORAGE LOT THE TRAILER HITCH RECEIVER THAT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE WELDED TO A FACTORY INSTALLED LOAD LEVELER TRAILER HITCH COMPLETELY BROKE OFF. THE SAFETY CHAINS AND THE SAFETY BRAKE PULL WIRE WERE ALL ATTACHED TO THE HITCH RECEIVER. SUBSEQUENTLY THE TRAILER SEPARATED FROM THE TRUCK WITH NO SAFETY EQUIPMENT ATTACHED. THE TRAILER CRASHED TO THE GROUND DAMAGING THE FRONT TOWING PART OF THE TRAILER, SLIDE OUT HYDRAULICS AND AIR CONDITIONER SO FAR. I TOOK THE GMC TRUCK AND THE BROKEN HITCH TO RYDEL GMC IN VAN NUYS, CALIFORNIA. THEY SAID THAT IT LOOKED LIKE THE WELD HAD NEVER TAKEN BECAUSE THERE WAS PAINT BETWEEN THE WELD AND THE TRUCK BODY. RYDEL SAID THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO CONTACT THE FACTORY REP TO GET AN OK TO FIX THE HITCH. THE FACTORY REP TOLD THEM THAT MY ''GOOD WILL TIME'' WAS USED, WHATEVER THAT MEANS, AND THAT I HAD TOO MANY MILES ON THE TRUCK (67,000), AS IF MILEAGE HAD SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT. I ASKED IF THEIR TOWING HITCHES HAD A LIMITED MILEAGE WARRANTY, I GOT NO ANSWER. I TOOK THE PART OF THE HITCH THAT BROKE OFF AND THE TRUCK TO A CERTIFIED WELD SHOP FOR A SECOND OPINION ON THE QUALITY OF THE WELD. I WAS TOLD THAT MOST OF THE WELD HAD NEVER ADHERED TO THE METAL AND THE PART OF THE WELD THAT BROKE NEVER BONDED TO THE STEEL. THE CERTIFIED HITCH WELD SHOP SAID IT WILL COST $550.00 TO REMOVE THE OLD HITCH AND INSTALL A NEW ONE. I FEEL THAT THE DEFECTIVE WELD ON THE HITCH COULD CAUSE A SERIOUS ROAD HAZARD AND POTENTIAL LOSS OF LIFE. I JUST PRAY THAT THE THOUSANDS OF TRAILERS THAT BREAK OFF THEIR TOWING VEHICLES ARE NOT THE RESULT OF DEFECTIVE WELDS. *JB