NHTSA Complaint #11218232 — 2015 FOREST RIVER R-POD

THE AXLE FELL OFF THE VEHICLE WHEN BACKING UP IN MY DRIVEWAY GOING 1 MPH. ON EXAMINATION, THE 'L-SHAPED' METAL BRACKET WELDED TO THE FRAME ABOVE HAD BROKEN BELOW THE WELD AND ABOVE 2 BOLTS FASTENING THE BRACKET TO THE RISER OF THE TRAILER. THE WELDER WHO REPAIRED THE BROKEN PIECE OF METAL TOLD ME THAT THE BRACKET HAD A CUT BETWEEN THE 2 BOLTS AND THAT THIS HAD WEAKENED THE METAL BRACKET TO THE POINT THAT IT FAILED. I FEAR THAT THIS IS A SYSTEMATIC PROBLEM DURING MANUFACTURING WHEN THEY TEMPORARILY RAN SHORT OF THE STANDARD PIECE OF METAL AND GRABBED WHATEVER WAS AT HAND. IF SO, THIS IS AN EMERGENCY BECAUSE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS THIS COULD CAUSE A TERRIBLE ACCIDENT! IN THE PHOTOS *DT THE TRAILER HAS AN L-SHAPED 'ANGLE BRACKET' WELDED TO THE FRAME, FROM THIS 2 BOLTS GO INTO A BOX-LIKE 'RISER' FROM THE SIDE THAT IS INTENDED TO RAISE THE TRAILER SEVERAL INCHES. THE RISER IS THAN ATTACHED TO THE AXLE THRU THE BOTTOM OF THE BOXY RISER. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE BREAKAGE OF THE "ANGLE BRACKET" IS BETWEEN THE WELD AND THE BOLTS, IN THE METAL ITSELF. ALL OF THE BOLTS ARE INTACT. *JB *BF CARFAX CANNOT PROCESS THIS REQUEST. *JB *AS 'PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).'*JB