Another bad Lippert axle on a R-Pod

I've had our 171 for slightly over 2 years, recently at our campsite I found a deflated tire, severe wear on inside tread of both tires. The repair guy says it's the axle. The trailer has been across country twice and many shorter trips, so it's had a fair amount of use, but no abuse I'm aware of. The repair guy says it's probably simplest and cheapest to just replace tires every 2 years, or earlier if one looks like it's about to go, rather than at the standard rate of every 5 years. 

Originally posted by Podster    It doesn't matter that you are out of warranty. You can make a case that you have a factory defect on an axle that was overlooked and hidden until the tires began to show the wear that led to the problem today. FR are reasonable people and if it looks like you got short changed on one of their units, I believe they will take reasonable action to make it right. You never know until you try.  What do you have to lose? Good luck and do come back and let us know how things work out.

With you being out of warranty there isn't much Forest River can do for you. If you would like I can provide you with Lippert's phone number, they are your axle manufacture, and you can talk with them to see if there are any options for you.

Thank you- 
Danielle Beber 
Surveyor/Rpod 
Warranty Claims & Part Returns 
(574) 642-3119 ext 275
dbeber@forestriverinc.com

[/QUOTE]

It doesn't take much looking to find LOTS of stories about good warranty results on Pod problems.  When you are out of warranty you are on your own.  Not only with rpods. 

A 1 year, or two year warranty is the standard for EVERYTHING sold.

The axle had a 3500 pound rating on it when you bought the camper. If you now need or choose to carry more then that, then you should have bought a camper with more axle rating. There are millions of campers out there with Lippert axles, so yes there will be some that are bad.. but n my expereince most failures are due to abuse or accident.

I don't understand the back-and-forths comment.. You mean, a company you contacted said they can't help you because you are out of warranty, but "the actual builder of the part might, contact them".. but you won't?

I see no way a weight limit is a fundamental flaw.. Your truck has a weight limit, your car.. hell even the floor and roof of your house. Are they fundamentally flawed because if you decide to turn your living room into a disco and have 85 people in there and the floor joists fail?

You will find that every TT manufacturer builds to both price and weight points, because that's how people decide what they can tow.

BTW, by axle rating, our pod can carry more "cargo" than our Airstream, which has double the GVWR. So I would say, since 'stream is the gold standard of towables.. FR is doing OK in the weight allowed dept.