2021 GRAND DESIGN REFLECTION Suspension Problems

The Driver side rear outer wheel bearing seized and the wheel including drum came off the axle while driving about 30mph. The wheel rolled down the road but fortunately did not hit any other vehicles. The RV was towed to RV dealership. Dealership could not determine root cause of failure. The RV had approximately 10,000 miles on the trailer before incident. The bearings has been inspected and repacked prior to trip by certified RV tech. Before trip started RV was weighed at CAT certified truck scale and combined rear axle weight was 9200 lbs. Each axle is rated at 5200 lbs. Owner of RV contacted Dexter Axle, the manufacturer of the axle. As a second owner, warranty was no longer valid. Dexter representative did state that the replacement 5200lb axle outer bearing has been changed to a larger bearing. The representative stated that the reason for change was not due...

I habe a 2021 Grand Design Reflection 303 RLS. The frame is cracked on both side just above the center spring shackles, I have also noticed frame flex between the pin box of the hitch and the rv body. I noticed the cracks when setting up the rv for the weekend and the frame flex driving down the road. I do not have any pictures of the cracks, but did attach a document to reference the frame crack and procedure to repair. The rv is at the dealership now being evaluated.

In 2021, we began noticing wall movement in the interior of the RV, fasteners, paneling and interior walls getting loose and moving. After more trips we noticed scratches in the flooring and wood chips laying on the interior floor when we would push the main slide out. We also began noticing the large slide didn’t seem to be closing tight to the outside wall on one end. After more inspection we noticed large roller marks appearing on the underside of the main slide. We scheduled our unit into the dealership for review. The Dealership identified bent frame rails, twisted spring hangers, frames cracks, bent outriggers on the frame supporting the outside walls. The dealership contacted the manufacturer and the manufacturer sent one of their service repair technicians (SRT) to my dealership for an inspection. Because we have heard and seen issues with broken springs, spring hangers and the risk they...

While parked in an RV park I discovered that the right rear spring hanger on my fifth wheel RV had fractured and separated immediately adjacent to a weld line. I am unaware of any incident that can explain this damage, although I did hear a clunk while auto leveling the vehicle at our campsite. (Auto leveling is computer controlled and is a routine operation.) Inspection of the intact left rear spring hanger reveals what appears to be a small crack that may be the beginning of a similar problem on that side. An undetected failed spring hanger when traveling at highway speeds can obviously be a cause of severe property damage and death. Research of this problem in user groups and forums revealed that it is well known to vehicle owners. Anecdotes of broken hangers abound, as do user-invented fixes. Interestingly, Lippert (aka LCI, who is the manufacturer of the...