Chinese Hybrid suspension failure

[rags]

Thought I would post up some pictures of a suspenion failure in a mates Chinese made 12 ft hybrid van that are commonly available from many suppliers these days.

I'm not sure of the brand as I don't know it but it is grey and black like most of them. (I know it isn't a 3 letter brand)

The failure occurred when cruising down a country dirt road , no rock climbing work.

You can see that the upper shock mount has just ripped away from the chassis , the bottom mount are usually attached to the red suspenion swing arm.

[tryagain]

Was it the welds that failed?

[edz]

Looks like its some sort of unsupported out rigger design thats flexed to much and its ripped the sidewall out of what it was welded to ..
Either that or the spring rates to hard / soft / length of shocks bottomed out / over stroked ..

[S.W]

Are you able to post a photo of the chassis where it came from?

[DannyG]

Bit of a blurry photo but it looks like very poor welding, zero penetration and most likely poor design.

Even though Chinese made gear in some area's is getting better clearly they have a long way to go. I am not suggesting that Australian made gear doesnt have the same issues from time to time but as a rule the quality control is better.

[GBC]

That's the problem. Just because they are grey and black doesn't mean they are similar/same construction. I found out pretty quickly when doing the rounds for a chinese camper and can spot the free market sold vs built in our own chinese factory models easily. They are copying the knockoffs now.

[Redback]

I'm gunna stick my neck and say, that plate wasn't sitting flush with the chassis creating a gap which in turn creats a weak point.

That plate should have been welded to the chassis, then the BOX welded to the plate, that's what I would have done anyway, unless I'm looking at how it was mounted all wrong

[macca]

I'm gunna stick my neck and say, that plate wasn't sitting flush with the chassis creating a gap which in turn creats a weak point.

That plate should have been welded to the chassis, then the BOX welded to the plate, that's what I would have done anyway, unless I'm looking at how it was mounted all wrong

I think that "plate" is the side wall of the SHS the shocker bracket is welded to Redback

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[JCOJ]

This suspension failure was of a 3 letter brand. 

You can see that the weld at the back of the arm behind the cracked one gave way which then caused the middle of the closer arm to give way.

[Bird]

more photos required to make accurate decision on chinese trailer

[Spada]

I have no technical knowledge, but it looks to me that the swingarm failed first which has then put lateral load on the shock mount causing it to tear away from the chassis at the top? But it seems an unusual point for the box section on the trailing arm to fail??? and it has broken on opposing corners. I'm guessing corrugations have played a big part.

[macca]

This suspension failure was of a 3 letter brand. 

You can see that the weld at the back of the arm behind the cracked one gave way which then caused the middle of the closer arm to give way.

Good weld penetration on that rear arm 

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[penski]

That second one looks a lot like Aussie made Cruisemaster suspension or a very good copy design wise. If so, a possible cause apart from taking a big hit at speed is using the incorrect load weight for the camper. They have a few and the axles and springs at least are different between ratings.

[JCOJ]

This happened on the drive into Mt. Caernarvon campsite.  It was slow going but nothing difficult or too rough.  The road to the turnoff is just gravel, no corrugations.

[tryagain]

That second one looks a lot like Aussie made Cruisemaster suspension or a very good copy design wise. If so, a possible cause apart from taking a big hit at speed is using the incorrect load weight for the camper. They have a few and the axles and springs at least are different between ratings.

Looks like thinner wall SHS, pretty sure the Cruise Master is 6mm wall, but yes most of the Chinese independent set ups are a Cruise Master clone

[rags]

I think that "plate" is the side wall of the SHS the shocker bracket is welded to Redback

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

Looks like its some sort of unsupported out rigger design thats flexed to much and its ripped the sidewall out of what it was welded to ..
Either that or the spring rates to hard / soft / length of shocks bottomed out / over stroked ..

I think Edz and Macca you are on the money.
Now I haven't seen the van myself and I only received the 2 photos posted but it was described to me that the "plate" others have mentioned is in fact part of the side wall of chassis that has ripped away leaving a hole in the wall of the chassis. It was mentioned that the metal that has pulled away appears pouress.

[GBC]

This happened on the drive into Mt. Caernarvon campsite.  It was slow going but nothing difficult or too rough.  The road to the turnoff is just gravel, no corrugations.

That must be an early one, the blue system changed to the upgraded orange swingarms and parallel bearings in late 2015 odd? I don't know if the upper mounts are the same but they might bolt straight on if you are lucky.

[GBC]

I have no technical knowledge, but it looks to me that the swingarm failed first which has then put lateral load on the shock mount causing it to tear away from the chassis at the top? But it seems an unusual point for the box section on the trailing arm to fail??? and it has broken on opposing corners. I'm guessing corrugations have played a big part.

I think it is two different trailers?

[Spada]

I think it is two different trailers?

You may be right, there's no sign of shocks on the other side, but I thought they could be hidden due to the angle of the photo.

[DannyG]

Looks like thinner wall SHS, pretty sure the Cruise Master is 6mm wall, but yes most of the Chinese independent set ups are a Cruise Master clone

I agree with this. The wall thickness of that trailing arm is not thick enough.

I know someone very well who built the same trailing arm suspension out of a similar sized wall thickness to only have near enough to the exact same thing happen.

Once home and investigating more as to the wall thickness the reputable suspension guys such as Cruisemaster use, I can confirm they use at least 5mm or thicker.

[edz]

  Bet the relief and beers when you got it into a service place  and fixed went down nice DG .

[DannyG]

Bet the relief and beers when you got it into a service place  and fixed went down nice DG .

I can not confirm or deny that the person was in fact me, but here is the dirty and ugly mug looking relieved to be back on the road again.....


And this is what a miracle looks like.......finding a cattle station in the middle of nowhere that allowed me to use all their equipment while wearing my safety crocks to repair the broken arm!!

[rags]

I think it is two different trailers?

Correct the one I initially posted about is not the same van as the one posted in JCOJ. To different failures.