2006 HOLIDAY RAMBLER NEPTUNE — Problems, Recalls & Safety Data

AFTER READING AN ARTICLE IN THE JANUARY, 2011 MOTORHOME MAGAZINE, I DISCOVERED A CRACK IN BOTH TRAILING ARMS. CONTACTED HOLIDAY RAMBLER/MONACO AND WAS ADVISED THEY WOULD NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR REPLACEMENT. IN APRIL, 2012 NEW TRAILING ARMS WERE ORDERED FROM SOURCE ENGINEERING AND REPLACED AT MY EXPENSE. *TR

RECENTLY PURCHASED 2006 HOLIDAY RAMBLER MOTORHOME. THE ISSUE IS THE REAR TRAILING ARMS IN THE CHASSIS. MONACO,LLC WHO WAS & NOW IS AGAIN THE MANUFACTURER OF THE HOLIDAY RAMBLER PUT AN UNDERSIZED TRAILING ARM ON THOUSANDS OF MH RANGING FROM 2002-2009. WE BOUGHT THIS MH FROM THE ORIGINAL OWNER & WHEN WE FOUND OUT ABOUT THIS ISSUE & ASKED HIM WHY HE NEVER CHANGED THEM, HE SAID HE WAS UNAWARE OF THE ISSUE & DID NOT RECEIVE THE RECALL NOTICE, NOR HAD HE MOVED SINCE THE PURCHASE OF THE MH. NOW THAT MONACO IS SO CALLED OUT OF BUSINESS BUT BACK IN BUSINESS UNDER DIFFERENT OWNERS THEY CLAIM THEY ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RECALL. THIS IS A $3000.00 MISTAKE BY MONACO, NOT TO MENTION A DEADLY DISASTER WAITING TO HAPPEN. THESE ARMS WILL CRACK/BREAK & SHIFT THE REAR WHEELS OUT OF ALIGNMENT CAUSING THE DRIVER TO LOOSE CONTROL OF THE MH HAVING IT FISHTAIL ALL OVER THE ROAD. NOT TO MENTION IF EVERYONE SURVIVES IT, THE EXTENSIVE DAMAGE THAT IT WILL CAUSE TO THE MH. I CAN NOT BELIEVE THAT SOMETHING SO SEVERE AS THIS ON A UNIT THAT IS AS BIG OR BIGGER THAN A CITY BUS, THAT SOMEONE IS NOT HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR IT BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY THAT COMPANIES THAT MFG CARS, PLANES, TRAINS, BUSES, MH, ETC ARE NOT REQUIRED TO HAVE INSURANCE IN PLACE TO COVER SITUATIONS LIKE THIS ONE IN THE EVENT THEY GO UNDER. HOW CONVENIENT THAT WAS TO HAVE ALL THESE 1000'S OF MH IN DEADLY SITUATIONS AND THEN GO BK. THE SUPPOSEDLY PUT OUT THE RECALL IN 09 I BELIEVE, THE SAME YEAR THEY DID THE BK. THE SAD PART IS THAT MANY OF THESE MH OWNERS, LIVE IN THEIR MH. THEY ARE TRAPPED. THIS SETS A BAD PRECEDENCE. GO IN BUSINESS, WHEN TIMES ARE ROUGH, MFG GARBAGE, MAKE BIG BUCKS ON IT, SEND OUT A WARNING TO AS MANY AS YOU CAN BEFORE GETTING CAUGHT AND THEN BK THE COMPANY AND WALK AWAY WITH YOUR BIG PROFITS. YOU ASK IF REPORTED TO POLICE, CRASH ETC. FOR ME, THERE HAS NOT BEEN YET. BUT THERE ARE OTHERS THAT HAVE HAD CRASH, DAMAGE AND OTHER ISSUES HAPPEN FROM THESE BREAKING. EACH YEAR I AM SURE THERE WILL BE MORE AND MORE. *TR

WE WERE TRAVELING NORTH ON HIGHWAY 54 THRU KINGDOM CITY MO. WHEN WE CAME TO A STOP LIGHT. UPON APPLYING THE BRAKES THE VEHICLE LISTED VIOLENTLY SIDE TO SIDE. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OFF ON THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD AND INSPECTED THE VEHICLE BUT FOUND NOTHING WRONG. WE CONTINUED NORTHBOUND AND I NOTICED THAT WHENEVER I DECELERATED, COASTED THE VEHICLE WOULD LIST SIDE TO SIDE. I CONTINUED TO MY DESTINATION APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS AWAY DRIVING WITH MY FLASHERS ON AT 40 MPH. WE STOPPED 3 MORE TIMES TRYING TO FIND THE CAUSE TO NO AVAIL. UPON REACHING MY DESTINATION I DISCOVERED THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE AXLE HAD MOVED TO THE REAR 3". IT WAS THEN I FOUND THE TRAILING ARM CRACKED AND SEPARATED 1/2" AND THE AXLE MOVED REARWARD. I CALLED MONACO, THEY WERE IN BANKRUPTCY AND OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. I HAD MY VEHICLE TOWED TO A TRUCK REPAIR FACILITY WHERE THEY WELDED THE BROKEN ARM AND STRENGTHENED BOTH ARMS AS WELL. UPON RETURNING HOME A DISTANCE OF 2500 MILES I HAVE NOW DISCOVERED THE SAME ARM CRACKED AND IN NEED OF REPAIR. I CALLED "NEW" MONACO AND WAS INFORMED THEY WOULD NOT ASSIST OTHER THAN RECOMMEND AN AFTER MARKET COMPANY THAT WAS MANUFACTURING A KIT FOR $1800 PLUS AN ESTIMATED $1000 INSTALLATION. I AM ALREADY OUT OF POCKET $1000 FOR THE PREVIOUS REPAIR. I HAVE NOT AT THIS TIME CONTRACTED THE NEEDED REPAIR. *TR

WE WERE TRAVELING NORTH ON HIGHWAY 54 THRU KINGDOM CITY MO. WHEN WE CAME TO A STOP LIGHT. UPON APPLYING THE BRAKES THE VEHICLE LISTED VIOLENTLY SIDE TO SIDE. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OFF ON THE SHOULDER OF THE ROAD AND INSPECTED THE VEHICLE BUT FOUND NOTHING WRONG. WE CONTINUED NORTHBOUND AND I NOTICED THAT WHENEVER I DECELERATED, COASTED THE VEHICLE WOULD LIST SIDE TO SIDE. I CONTINUED TO MY DESTINATION APPROXIMATELY 2 HOURS AWAY DRIVING WITH MY FLASHERS ON AT 40 MPH. WE STOPPED 3 MORE TIMES TRYING TO FIND THE CAUSE TO NO AVAIL. UPON REACHING MY DESTINATION I DISCOVERED THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE AXLE HAD MOVED TO THE REAR 3". IT WAS THEN I FOUND THE TRAILING ARM CRACKED AND SEPARATED 1/2" AND THE AXLE MOVED REARWARD. I CALLED MONACO, THEY WERE IN BANKRUPTCY AND OFFERED NO ASSISTANCE. I HAD MY VEHICLE TOWED TO A TRUCK REPAIR FACILITY WHERE THEY WELDED THE BROKEN ARM AND STRENGTHENED BOTH ARMS AS WELL. UPON RETURNING HOME A DISTANCE OF 2500 MILES I HAVE NOW DISCOVERED THE SAME ARM CRACKED AND IN NEED OF REPAIR. I CALLED "NEW" MONACO AND WAS INFORMED THEY WOULD NOT ASSIST OTHER THAN RECOMMEND AN AFTER MARKET COMPANY THAT WAS MANUFACTURING A KIT FOR $1800 PLUS AN ESTIMATED $1000 INSTALLATION. I AM ALREADY OUT OF POCKET $1000 FOR THE PREVIOUS REPAIR. I HAVE NOT AT THIS TIME CONTRACTED THE NEEDED REPAIR. *TR

ON 7 SEPTEMBER 2009 WE WERE ON THE FREEWAY NEAR ATLANTA WHEN OUR 2006 HOLIDAY RAMBLER NEPTUNE STARTED ROCKING FROM SIDE TO SIDE AND MADE SOUNDS LIKE SOMETHING UNDERNEATH UP FRONT WAS LOOSE. WE SLOWED DOWN AND MADE IT TO OUR CAMPGROUND AND WHEN I LOOKED UNDERNEATH I COULD FIND NOTHING LOOSE UP FRONT. I WENT ONLINE AND DID A GOOGLE SEARCH AND FOUND THIS POST. I WENT UNDERNEATH AGAIN AND FOUND THE LEFT REAR TRAILING ARM WAS COMPLETELY BROKEN WITH A 1 INCH GAP BETWEEN THE U-BOLTS. THE TRAILING ARMS ON THE ROADMASTER RR4R CHASSIS ARE A KNOWN PROBLEM AND ARE FAILING AT A RATE OF SEVERAL PER DAY. *TR