Thank-you. This has been done. However I was curious to see if many more owners have had a similar problem. And consequently how they solved the issue on their trailer. A recent recall from ETI is what moved me to inspect the chassis and discover that it was completely fractured on the front driver side just behind the jack support. In fact there is a 5mm dislocation between the two pieces.
I am grateful for their warning. I would never have suspected such a defect. This could have led to serious consequences on the road. I was heading to Florida this winter with the trailer. Ouch!!!
RWD
Thank-you. This has been done. However I was curious to see if many more owners have had a similar problem. And consequently how they solved the issue on their trailer. A recent recall from ETI is what moved me to inspect the chassis and discover that it was completely fractured on the front driver side just behind the jack support. In fact there is a 5mm dislocation between the two pieces.
I am grateful for their warning. I would never have suspected such a defect. This could have led to serious consequences on the road. I was heading to Florida this winter with the trailer. Ouch!!!
RWD
Sorry to hear that you are having issues. However, many of us on this forum would be interested in seeing any pictures that you may care to post that show the fracture that you have found. Would you be able to post something?
Yes. The fractured on the chassis occurred posterior to the weld. Just behind the steel reinforcement plate that serves as an anchor to the stabilizer jack.
I am having difficulty inserting pictures. Can someone offer assistance.
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
How to add photos to a post
Click reply and scroll down to bottom of text box.
Click "go advanced" add text to message window and then scroll down.
Click "Manage attachments" A separate window will pop up.
Click "browse" Then select the file to be uploaded. Be sure that the photo is appropriately sized. 1000 x 1000 pixels (or smaller) and no more than 50K. Forums software will automatically reduce the size, but smaller size photos will upload much faster. You may select several photos to upload at the same time by repeating the last step.
Click "Upload" After pics have loaded close the pop-up window
Wait for the message "Uploading" to go away.
Click "submit reply" to mount the text of your message - photos will automatically appear at the bottom of your post.
I'm only guessing, but I think most people have problems because they don't wait for the pix to be uploaded before hitting submit. It can take a while.
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
When I select "insert image" I am asked to insert the "URL of the image". I am using a Mac computer that describes the image as follows: IMG_1370.jpg
This is not working. Help!
Trailer: 2009 Escape 17B 2020 Toyota Highlander XLE
Posts: 17,136
How to Post Photos
Here's what I do, which isn't what is suggested in the Help forum.
I click on Go Advanced.
That brings up the posting forum with a paper clip icon at the top of the message box.
I click on that and it brings up a window for attaching pix or video. I click on browse, which allows me to find the pix in my computer. I find it easiest to place them on my desktop before I start the message so I don't have to look for them.
I click on browse and select one pic at a time to a maximum of four and then I click Upload.
And, then I wait until the uploading message goes away. Then I click Submit. You might want to click Preview to make sure you're on track before hitting Submit.
__________________
What happens to the hole when the cheese is gone?
- Bertolt Brecht
Is that at the welded angle joint? I does appear to be, as the stabilizer attaches to the cross member that is right behind it. Maybe a wider picture showing more of the trailer would be good.
Maybe I have missed this, but have you shared this with Reace yet. I am sure he would like to hear what has happened there.
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2017 Escape 5.0 TA
2015 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5L EcoBoost
2009 Escape 19 (previous)
“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” — Abraham Lincoln
Absolutely. Reace was the first person to be informed. In fact he suggested that we fortify the fractured section with a 3/8" plate. Also burrowing holes in this plate before welding it to the chassis. These cavities would serve as weld spots, not to weaken the existing 3" chassis.
However, since I reside in the province of Quebec, you will understand that he is far from the trailer. So this problem has to be assessed and repaired by a local expert. I will know better by Monday when a protocol is proposed.
A follow-up will be forthcoming.
I wish to thank everyone for their interest in my problem and especially this FORUM for being able to share this information and no doubt its eventual solution. I will send a larger picture view of my trailer for those of you who expressed difficulty orienting the chassis fracture on previous pictures.
By the way, I still LOVE my 19' Escape very much. I consider this chassis a serious but temporary problem and intend to keep my trailer for a very long time.
Kind regards and thank-you to Reace for his on going support.
By the way, I still LOVE my 19' Escape very much. I consider this chassis a serious but temporary problem and intend to keep my trailer for a very long time.
This is a great attitude for dealing with a problem.
__________________
2017 Escape 5.0 TA
2015 Ford F150 Lariat 3.5L EcoBoost
2009 Escape 19 (previous)
“Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” — Abraham Lincoln
Suggest you visually inspect the rest of the frame and the frame to cabin attach bolts for signs of buckling or deformation. The adjacent fiberglass around the frame to cabin attach bolts should also be checked for cracks. The inspection should be the most thorough closer to the break.
You may also want to check the frame to cabin attach bolts to make sure none are severed or cracked. A moderate applied torque should be adequate to show they are not damaged.
The frame load path was significantly altered by the break, those loads took an alternate path through the frame and probably the cabin structure.
[QUOTE=RWD;117388
I will know better by Monday when a protocol is proposed.
RWD[/QUOTE]
I hope you don't mind a suggestion on what that protocol might include. If I had to do this repair on my trailer I'd drill some small holes upwards on either side of the damage. These would locate the floor area, hopefully inside the locker, that is directly above the damage. I'd remove a 4" square of floor to gain access to the top of the frame and be able to weld the complete circumference of the frame. Then I'd weld plates on the sides.
The fractured on the chassis occurred posterior to the weld. Just behind the steel reinforcement plate that serves as an anchor to the stabilizer jack.
Although that describes the location, from the photos what seems perhaps more relevant to me is the bolt and nut visible immediately ahead of the break. If I understand what I am seeing correctly, this is a the end of a bolt which holds the body to the frame - unrelated to the stabilizer jack - which goes right through the top and bottom of the frame. This makes holes in the most highly stressed areas of the frame rail, and increases the risk of a crack at the bottom where the steel is loaded in tension... especially if the weld-affected area due to welding on the stabilizer bracket extends to the area of the hole.
Does the crack go through the bolt hole, or is it completely separate (and just very close behind the hole)?
I note that for this model the reinforcement to address potential issues with the tongue-to-main-rail joint is accompanied by brackets to secure the body which do not use a vertical hole right through the frame this way. In the repair, I would certainly want that body bolt hole to be plated over, and the body mounting bolt relocated to a right-angle bracket welded (or bolted) to the side of the frame rail.
This instance of frame seperation at or near the bolt that goes through the 3" frame gives some insight to explain the right angle bracket that is welded on the frame in addition to the mend plate provided to owners of escape 19 trailers. The right angle bracket is welded to the frame and bolted through the floor forward of the bolt through the frame.
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