Being a welder for over 42 years and built lots of heavy duty trailers for the oil and gas industry, we always used fish plates and gussets at joints to make them stronger than just butt welds. These people were extremely lucky to have caught the failure before it came apart while doing highway speeds going over a bridge or a double bump in the road.

I discovered a 3’long crack in the Lippert manufactured frame on my pull behind a few years ago. You could see daylight through it. If I would have relied on Lippert to fix it it would still be 1500 miles from home. I found a welder who came out to my campsite, plated it and welded it. You got to think outside the box on this stuff. The dealers and manufacturers don’t want to see you again once you drive off the lot. You’re dead to them.

Bottom line here is DRV and LCI are building substandard frames and coaches! It is Fantastic that you have exposed the two Corporations to their failures when designing the rigs components! Even the after repairs was substandard that will not stand up to the test of time. This Coach should have been totaled due to the extent of the damage. Hopefully the owners recognize this fact and take steps to hold these companies accountable!

From a long-term welding inspector, I saw more than 7 major welding, frame support, material selection and improper techniques used on this RV. Get an attorney because at some point when you’re not satisfied, they will quit responding and you will be ahead of the game.

Retired RV Tech here. After years of repairing trailers and fifth wheels all I can say is that they are all crap! (except Airstream). These things are made alike across the board. The expensive ones look pretty...But they are crap! When I was assigned to go out and do some warranty repairs, I was the one to catch the Hell from an angry customer. It got to the point where I simply told them I'm not the one who built it. I'm not the one who sold it. But I am the one here to fix the problems. The only thing I can recommend is to purchase an Airstream. They're Not without their problems. but they are miles ahead of any others in quality. Its just too bad they don't make a Fifth wheel. Or maybe they're just smart!

Thank you for the video!! And exposing lippert!! My personal opinion, they should be sued out of business and never make another frame in their lifetime. I have had two frames onto different makes of trailer the exact same thing happened to, except one of them was so horrible, I had been working in Pennsylvania and was headed west coming home when I had to make a detour to Northern Indiana to drop the trailer off so lippard could fix it. And six months after they fixed it it was breaking again. I weld for a living and have been doing so for 35 years. What they're doing in their shop, a high school welding instructor wouldn't even call it welding. They are an absolute joke and need to be sued!!

Finally a video that shows just what my 2016 Vengeance is doing. The front is moving just like this when I put it on the truck. I now have a better idea of where else to start looking for cracks in the frame.

Lipert knows exactly where the cracks are , where they start and where the end and how long their repairs will last .They also know about the lower frame at the axles are cracked . They also know about the Pinbox failures and where the cracks are .They can tell you just how many inches of weld that the entire repair will require .

Doesn't surprise me. I bought a brand new travel trailer in 2013 and after a few trips, I was cleaning it and found one bolt that holds the wall to the frame loose, so I tightened it. I then looked at the rest of the bolts and found that all of them were loose! I was able to tighten all but one which was free spinning. I'm assuming it's a carriage bolt inside of the wall so the only way to fix it is to open up the wall! I ended up double nutting all the other bolts with Locktite. In place of a bolt at the back side of the trailer, they actually just used a long wood screw! Yup, quality made in America right there.

I'm so glad to find this video. A couple weeks ago I purchased on-the-spot a beautiful 2016 Forest River Palomino Columbus 295RLC 5th wheel RV (built Nov 2015). While the RV designs are very much alike, the RV builder is different than the one in this video, however the physical chassis frame is the same which is also a Lippert Component build and as soon as I get back to Tennessee in 9-days, that is the very first thing I'm going to check on mine. Why this bothers me is because on mine, the space above is a bedroom with queen size bed and a stacked washer/dryer unit in that corner closet in the nose of the RV. What disturbs me in this video are the welds on the finished product, that is not going to hold for very long as the bonding between the new steel and the old steel is very poor and inexcusable. That shoddy welding needs to be ground down and done correctly. In addition, there should've been 1/2" inch thick gussets welded to the inside of where the new steel meets old steel to prevent side loading and flexing. I like the new larger sized steel used in this repair but the welding leaves much to be desired.

I have a daughter who is going to school to be a lawyer. She’s talking with the lawyers she’s working with, to see if there are grounds for a class action lawsuit. I’m helping her gather names. This should be criminal if it’s not. So far, social media has helped me find dozens of families screwed over by LIEppert, and the rv industry.

Really shows how badly US motorhomes , caravans / fifth wheel units are under all the bling . I’ve been in so many and they feel so cheaply put together

LCI will build whatever frame the manufacturer requests. After that, they are done. The manufacturer provides the specs and it is their engineers responsibility to ensure proper loading capacity. Manufacturers are overloading their rigs more and more every year while not ordering proper frame capacities due to price. JMO.

IMHO, 45 degree rectangular tube gusset, designed way too close to the corner. It does not appear to effectively resolve torsional stresses caused by the leverage arm generated as the weigh & inertial forces are suspended on the front of the trailer as it rests on the pin box. Of course, manufacturer will probably claim, overloading or driving too fast over rough roads. Again, IMO, the fix / repair & original engineering, should have included a second 45 degree brace, about 12" ahead (or as far forward as operational functionality allows) of the original brace / gusset, in addition to the repair.. BTW, Nomad, good job saving your clients a road catastrophe. You deserve a medal! (LOL, edited b/c spell check strikes again!) If there was fairness, the manufacturer and the couple's and manufacturer's insurance companies should award you significant $s! Best regards, Dennis

As someone that works in structural engineering, I would LOVE to see the actual frame design. I also have serious concern for their "repair" at the moment. Hard points as we call them, cause stress concentration and just moves the failure point. As an example, consider bending a stick in a U until it breaks. Then do the same with another identical stick, but slip a steel tube sleeve over the area where the other one broke. Can you guess where it will break now? Either that frame was taken beyond its design (capacity) limits, or Lippert is running their margin of safety WAY too thin! Can't say I've seen many gooseneck to semi trailers do that without an "event"...

These new RV's cost a fortune and the quality just isn't there, sure they look nice but that's it. The square metal tubing used for the goose neck frame seems to be too thin, I would bet that even after they "patch it up" it will eventually crack somewhere else on that goose neck( probably the top part of the goose neck ), please keep us posted in the coming months.

This has got me holding off on buying a new Momentum, and questioning the whole industry even more. 120k, 145k MSRP, is a lot to always have this on the back of my mind. Actually makes me want to look at the cheaper ones even more. At least I will expect issues that way.

You need to report this to the DOT Department of Transportation

Get a mobile welder to weld it for you and install plates to reinforce the breaks on site .Then your done . Also check your big I beam s at the axles at the Cross braces . Shackles , springs and cracks along your I beams .

I have a 2020 Sierra (Forest River) 5th Wheel currently at my local dealership with cracked frame/broken weld issues. It has been 7 weeks now since I discovered the issue. The fiberglass was separating on the non-door side of the 5th wheel overhang, along the curve of the 5th wheel. The issue was happening mostly when the camper had all of the weight on the pin box while connected to my truck. When I unhooked the 5th wheel from the truck, putting all of the weight on the legs of the camper, the fiberglass would suck back into place. There is a slide out that sits over the curve of the 5th wheel overhang and now the aluminum structure wall, that the slide out sits in, cracked/broke and gave way with the weight of the slide out causing the slide out to collapse. When the slide out collapsed down, to the floor of the camper, the exterior fiberglass wall and the interior wall both cracked in a diagonal line. I am currently dealing with the insurance, which sent a forensic engineer to look at the camper's issues, but am getting no where with them currently. I have one of the first Lippert Rhino Box frames that came off of the market for Forest River, but since the camper is just under 3 years old Forest River doesn't want anything to do with it. They told my local Forest River dealership that since I had a 2" receiver hitch welded to the rear of the frame of the camper, to haul a bike rack once and a cargo carrier once, they said I altered the frame and they said there is nothing they can do for me. I wish I had somebody like you that was able to deal with my camper frame issues.

Well as a former LCI employee I must say those welds look like they came out of plant 19 where I used to work. Back then they didn't care how the welds looked as long as they were 1) in the correct place, and 2) were done according to print. 100% welds were passed that looked like explosive diarrhea on a plate and ultimately that's why I left. Guys didn't care because they were making $20-25/hr back in 2013/2014

RV workmanship, mine had two basement boxes fall free of the supports and an entrance door that was installed out of square. Along with cabinets which fell apart. Slide leaks were another problem. It was a cheap unit I guess, list was $106,000

I am eager to see how this fix will evolve in the future. If it was my rig, I’d open it again after one year to give it an inspection. I suspect it might break again. 😢

Wow.... what a nightmare.... Great video.

Wow. Glad you posted this. I'll check mine immediately

It amazes me the crap that we build in this country Not sure if it’s an engineering problem or cost savings or poor manufacturing practices but all of these problems get covered up when the rig is built and the owner is left with trying to figure out what went wrong Looks like Lippert should have a test mule on hand so they can see what happens to their product over time I would hate to think that they just don’t care

I have a North Point 385THWS. Under warranty, it was taken to Minnesota to have the frame repaired and fiberglass panels repaired for this problem. The welds the spring shackle braces are bad. I have had 2 different hangers break. On the road. In January I’m going to Morride to have 3 new axels and suspension installed. I just don’t trust LCI work. When the shackles broke, dealer said LCI would not do anything.

They are building these frames to "spec", as ordered by the RV manufacturer. They are using 1/8" steel, which is NEVER going to hold. From what I understand they have a 70% failure rate. I've been looking at getting a 5th Wheel RV. Thanks to videos like this, I know the questions I will be asking.

Wow, the amount of money these campers cost, you would think they would be built better! Just expensive junk in my opinion. Thank goodness no one was hurt in pulling it down the road.

Thank you for presenting these issues. I had considered getting involved but its clear I dont have the capital to pay so much snd sell at a loss after so much agravation. Good luck all you have my smpathies

Thanks for this information. I am looking for a used trailer and really prefer older units. Now I know not to buy any Lippert frame units. Personally, Lippert should buy the trailer before they get a law suit that will bankrupt the company. What a bunch of jerks making you give then a clean frame to work on,

Our 2004 Cougar (Lippert) frame broke twice. Garbage steel and garbage welding. LCI blew me off both times.

WOW that is so very sad. I have a 2012 DRV Elite and I so far have had no INDICATION of a crack but I would assume it could. Praying you get your home back.

Looks like a good inspection guys. Around 4:10, I would slightly differ in opinion. The frame imho is rusting not from a water leak, but I believe they are transported as bare frames before assembly. The mfg will have like 10+ frames stacked up on a truck to deliver the frames to the RV mfg. In my opinion, they are often slightly rusty from that trip, or just from being bare steel delivered in the winter, in the rust belt, to the mfg and not completely sandblasted/rust treated before the RV is assembled. My Jayco with a lippert frame has some rust underneath the paint the same way, and it's never seen salt since we bought it new.

Good welds Don't break. The steel along side the weld will break before the weld if the welding is done correctly, NOW I am electric ark welding ( 4711) tickets. All positions. Mig welding ( wire feed) welding often the steel does not have the prep, ie gap setting to allow good penetration, also often a flat, or hollow weld , when it should be a raised finish. . .Sadly a weak weld can look ok, but does not have the strength that's needed of it.

This is why I should keep my 1978 converted to a rear swing-door toyhauler. Real frame work the thickness it should all be. It was pulled apart, inside & out walls, insulated with iso-sheets of insulation that can’t be ruined by water/humidity, and put back together. Box framed rear to accept the swing door. It’s 78 pretty, but I don’t have to worry about it liking someone on the road.

When you said welder?? I was like oh hell no this thing is done. But thank god they are taking it.

This is class action level work. Get your lawyers

Great video!!

I’d want a new camper after this.

This is a combination of failure from LCI and DRV. LCI may build the frame, but they build it to the spec that DRV supplies. For all we know DRV asked for a frame that weighed a certain amount with certain materials that was capable of so much load, but then exceeded that load in the name of saving a dollar and maximizing profit. This is usually what happens. See it on travel trailers all the time. The other problem is there is zero oversight in the RV industry.

Lippert really needs to reinforce these frames. Geesh add an extra hundred pound of steel and reinforce everything.

You would think after years of building frames lippert could build a frame that would not break. My fifth wheel frame was torn like paper by the axles

Mine is moving inside the camper, about bed,moving 3/4 ins, rip the wall. Now got to take it 50 miles from house, hope we make it.

Nice job!!

Wow. I’m not an RV’r, but I feel bad for you guys. I expect to start seeing those lawyer commercials (like you see for asbestos) soon.

HOLY SHIWT. Good catch. That could of ended a lot of lives.

Those structural cracks are insane! Four main frame supports. All pretty on the outside, but on the inside?

Just realized that I’m sick just watching this. I’m a Forrest river owner fixing to do some inspections

Thanks for sharing this video. Is Lippert continuing to make these frames the previous way or with the additional metal? I understand this was an older trailer, but have they modified their design?

I work at a major port and see a lot of imported steel arriving which may or maynot be of the best quality. I just wonder where does Lippert get their steel.

in my opinion after being in engineering and welding for 45 yrs.. if the structure is to ridged and cant move it will fatigue and some where it ill give up its structure.airplane wings are made to move u7nder a load ..for instance the C5 Galaxy that Lockheed Marietta made was designed so as the wing would move up and down 18 feet. automobile frames are made to twist under sever loads.steel must be allowed to breath or it will snap under sever loads.The flex must be across the entire structure and not confined to one area. this is an engineering night mare.

I worked for a trailer company doing assembly over the summer and I would never, never buy a RV lightweight cheapest parts and components that the company can buy, assembled with boxes of staples, screws, sealants, caulking tape. Basically a mobile home that is towed around. Company used Limpart frames, we needed to check each frame coming off the stack to make sure all the welds were present. We had spring hanger brackets missing welds, out riggers held with tacks, huge areas not painted or primed. We had touch up paint and a welded at the first station just to correct this. Both the RV company and and the Limpart plants closed down 20 years ago.

That’s unbelievable !!!!!!

Wow...I'm seeing more and more lippert frames breaking on other brand rv's. I hope Lippert takes responsibility for faulty workmanship and materials.

There are so many Lippert broken frames out there, i am surprised a class action lawsuit has been started yet. Everyone should band together and start one.

I wonder if the frame mfr does load testing...simulating the weight and varying road and weather conditions. if not they should...and intentionally overload to see what happens and where before the frame is approved for market. I also wonder if the feds at NHTSA can step in...they should...they are all collisions waiting to happen with this frame design.

Yeah... This engineer says it's both a design problem and a loading problem. I too just repaired and reinforced my cracked Lippert frame.

If you notice, the crack started right below the weld at the gusset and traveled backwards. (1) this is the spot where the frame stresses the most, up and down forces (2) my thoughts, when initially welded, the welder was running the wire to hot. ( production, go fast ) Which causes the metal to crystallize and remove its ability to flex. The more movements up and down slowly made the crack grow. This was a lesson we learned from the Northridge earthquake and all the welds that cracked in high rise buildings. So many welds had to be replaced and new connections introduced that allowed the buildings to flex instead of being rigid and cracking.

RV quality issues have always been below par and everyone knows or at least suspects that this is the case and has always been but we keep buying them regardless. I've always tend to go with a travel trailer over a 5th wheel because of the basic design. Over the years my brother in law has always gone the 5th wheel route and has always 'always' had issues and some head busting issues. He down sized (42 foot to 38 foot) with his last purchase and bad quality issue haven't let off. He's had 4 rigs in the last 10 years and is now (end of 2022) seriously thinking of getting a travel trailer. I'm on my 2nd travel trailer in 8 years. My first trailer was a lowly 20 footer and after 2 years traded up for a 25 foot Cruiser RV 21RB and haven't had any real issues. Quality is still far from heavenly. This video is a total heart breaker. I can just hope the best for you and stay safe.

Why should anyone have to go through this bs?

As a hvac tech for 35 yrs, I once saw a demonstration on bolt strength. American verses import. Grade 8. After the demonstration I found out why only American made bolts are spec. In nuclear power plant construction. The imports don’t care to make the quality American bolt manufacturers live up to. To this day, I look at bolts, screws, and fasteners a totally different light

They went cheap with the initial design and it looks like it will cost them in the long run. And i wouldn't be so sure the reinforcement won't crack either as it still looks like a poor transition, and might crack thru the 45degree tube instead of the vertical. It looks like they made the vertical so strong that all that flex will transfer to the weakest link(45 degree tube right where the big sleeve welds too it). I also agree with others that you should be looking at other parts of the structure to make sure more cracks aren't starting. Best of luck.

It's not Lippert's fault. They built the frame DRV asked them to build. The RV manufacturers want lighter frames.

My goodness! They should have fish plated that. Glad you got it fixed. But I'm betting those new uprights aren't going to hold up. Sorry, but that's not how you fix a major structural frame break where all your stress is located. In my humble opinion, I would have made them fabricate a fish plate running at least 10 or 12 inches long running up, down and diagonal to the frame. I was looking at drv's too. Best of luck to you all

Not to offend anyone. I have seen many videos like this however when the rigs get old people kind of write it off. The repair looks very solid!

That's why I'll stick with a Northwood frame. Arctic Fox or Outdoors RV.

Does the NHTSB track safety hazards like this? I would love to see Lippert hit with a recall on all these units.

Looks like cheap steel to be cracked like that,or just to thin. I had a 14 brand new and fit and finish was a joke. Decided to go the school bus route and if any problems only me to blame. And a whole lot cheaper. Hoping for the best for ya guys.

All responsibility should fall on the RV manufacturer....my guess would be they are building too much(too heavy) of an RV on the supplied chassis.

I’m surprised that working on the frame prior doesn’t void the warranty

Was the wiring going through gusset aluminum without a rubber grommit to protect sheathing on wire?

That welder did a fantastic job on that especially for how poor the access and angles were that he had to work with.

That metal failure not a bum weld. But the welds look terrible in their own right.

Wow, Lippert should do it themselves or pay to take it all apart repair the underbuilt frame and put it back together, I can't believe they are not. Welding the frame is the easy part, but probably no stronger than it was originally unless they are adding gussets.

How do we find when our frame was built.. also how do we get to the frame to inspect it with out tearing everything apart? I do not see any gaps with my unit yet but! 2022 reflections 150series 260 rd

When my dad bought a new trailer he had all kinds of problems with it including the septic tank falling out while he's going down the highway he just kept driving he wasn't going to get a fine for a septic dumping of course he traded in right off the bat it was brand new..... More and more now I'm seeing why these fancy trailers are parked

I’ve had my 5th wheel - bought new- 2014 , looked very nice and expensive to boot - however upon closer inspection - I had to put 40 hours of repair work in it before I can pull down the highway with peace of mind so basically I bought an expensive piece of junk all that being said I love my camper but I would never ever buy a new one and now I know what to look for !!!!! some of the comments said they’re all junk and I agree 100%

mine 2021 and I have the same issue, forest river is supposed to fix it. They have been very responsive so far

Mass produced, owner overloaded, jostling down rough roads, minimal design strength and overall design of a 5th wheel to begin with that relies on reverse cantilever to support weight while connected to tow vehicle. Seems like the perfect storm to me. Weight reducing components/design figure to exacerbate the issue(s). Hauling your home over the road is going to take it's toll over time. Couple that with manufacture by those who want to maximize profit and you have this.

My Lippert Frame broke too. Brand new Keystone Cougar 5th wheel

this is one reason why I bought a cargo trailer and built it out myself.

There is stress from two points of direction on the tubular frame. The fix you have done puts the stress higher on the tube and can reappear in the future. The design for the frame is not engineered correctly for weight and flex.

I have been watching clips of these cracks and breaks for a while now, what is the NSTB doing about having the manufactures recall these trailers to do an Inspection to insure they are safe to even be on the road?

Needs a bolted on gusset plate from the factory, then additional welding could be added from the plate to the tube.

my 2021 forest river columbus river ranch is doing the same thing !

I thought DRVs claim to fame was their ridiculously overbuilt frames. Double stacked. Thor took one of the few well built fifth wheels and destroyed them.

We HAD a 2007 Keystone Everest 364Q, loved the trailer, frame broke behind the axles in 2012. Wife was vacuuming and wanted to know how come she could see daylight at the back wall? Rv trailer frames need to be built much better, heavier. Some engineer has to know how to build a frame, if not check with horse trailer manufactures. 🦅😎🇺🇸

Definitely not a high tensile structural steel. Thin walled mild steel rectangular. As cheap as cheap can get. Might as well use banana peels. You can clearly see the parent metal and not the weld breaking. The reason it broke right at the gusset is because there is not enough steel to support the beginning of the cantilever.

Brinkley says Lippert builds the frames that were ORDERED by the manufacturer, thus Brinkley frames are ordered different.

This is an ongoing issue with larger units. Keep in mind this is not the frame builders fault. They are building these frames to the manufacturer specs. They are not specing these frames out strong enough to handle the weight of these large rigs. Any RV over 30ft is prone for this. They try to give it a nice name of "Flex frame". The manufacturer could easily fix this issue by using thicker metal and better welding with plating when they first build these units. The manufacturer cheap it up to save money. These people were very lucky. Yet I bet is you go to brand new one they are being built with the same old specs. Unfortunately I don't think the manufacturer will change there specs till someone dies and they have a massif law suit on there hands. This is a well known issue by the manufacturer. The price of these units keep going up in price, yet they are putting out junk. Also this is still going on with newer units, with some manufacturer.

You can imagine the leverage from the pin to the inside.The frame is made of thin material that flexes too much.Eventually it will crack. They are mostly concerned of weight not strenght when they make these frames.

Hello, my comment is for everybody answer! Tell me what you think. Well I have a Forest River Sandpiper 2017 381RBOK, I took some mesurements for the upper deck frame to see how much flex I got. I came out with 1/4'' flex when hitch to the truck. What do you think ?

The way the frame was broke was EXTREMELY SERIOUS. The accident that could have resulted, while at vehicle speeds, could have caused many deaths. All owners of this brand need to inspect.

Lippert needs to be looking at a class action!

I had a broken frame and it took them 4 years to fix it!!

Mine is doing the opposite. Gap is closed when on truck and drops when on the jacks...

From all the videos I've seen lately there are a lot of RV's that are an accident waiting to happen.

I have never had to have a guy come and do any welding on my tent, LOL. I guess "GLAMPING" expenses are just on going. Oh, I don't need a hundred-thousand-dollar truck to haul my gear either, ha ha!

Lately ive been interested in buying a camper but seeing these videos makes me reconsider. Is there actual good campers out there? Ive heard Jayco are good