NHTSA Complaint #10549637 — 2010 HEARTLAND GREYSTONE

THIS SPRING (2013) THE BRAKES ON MY FIFTH WHEEL RV TRAILER APPEARED TO BE WEAKENING. AFTER A FALL CAMPING TRIP IT SEEMED I HAD NO TRAILER BRAKES. A TEST REVEALED THAT FULL EMERGENCY BRAKING INDUCED BY PULLING THE BREAKAWAY PIN WOULD NOT LOCK UP THE BRAKES. FURTHER TESTS SHOWED THAT ELECTRIC MAGNETS IN ALL FOUR BRAKES WERE FUNCTIONING BUT NOT CAUSING ENOUGH BRAKING TO LOCK UP THE WHEELS. I FOLLOWED UP BY TAKING THE TRAILER TO MY LOCAL RV DEALER WHO CHECKED THE BRAKE SYSTEM AND CONFIRMED THAT THE MAGNETS WERE TOO WEAK TO MAKE BRAKES FUNCTION PROPERLY. HE SAID THAT HE HAS SEEN THIS PROBLEM NUMEROUS TIMES ON LOW MILEAGE UNITS WHICH HAVE THE SAME LIPPERT BRAKES AS MY UNIT. I BOUGHT THIS TRAILER NEW AND IT HAS BEEN PROPERLY MAINTAINED. IT HAS LESS THAN 6000 MILES ON IT AND IS NOW NOT SAFE TO TOW BECAUSE IS HAS VIRTUALLY NO BRAKES. THE BRAKE COMPONENTS USED WERE NOT ADEQUATE FOR US IN A 10,000 LB PLUS RV AND LIPPERT IS RESPONSIBLE. *TR