We traded in our 5th wheel for a class C motorhome awhile back. One reason for the change is our 5th wheel suffered damage on a road trip 3 years ago in which the frame was bent. No other vehicle was involved, and the only thing we could conclude was that we hit a pot hole in a street. We just heard a loud bang from the 5th wheel and when we got it home we saw the damage. The process of getting it fixed was a nightmare, and even though the frame was straightened, we could tell things like the slide and the rear wall were off a little. In short, we didn't feel like we could trust the unit. This has caused me to wonder about the durability of frames in 5th wheels. Any opinions or similar experiences?

stargirl96 wrote:We traded in our 5th wheel for a class C motorhome awhile back. One reason for the change is our 5th wheel suffered damage on a road trip 3 years ago in which the frame was bent. No other vehicle was involved, and the only thing we could conclude was that we hit a pot hole in a street. We just heard a loud bang from the 5th wheel and when we got it home we saw the damage. The process of getting it fixed was a nightmare, and even though the frame was straightened, we could tell things like the slide and the rear wall were off a little. In short, we didn't feel like we could trust the unit. This has caused me to wonder about the durability of frames in 5th wheels. Any opinions or similar experiences?What FW did you have? Odds on, it was a Lippert framed one.FWIW, I passed a 40+', triple axle FW (non-TH) today, parked in a friend's neighborhood. New to the guy towing, since it had temporary plates on it and a faded front cap. Driving past, slowly so as to check it out, I noticed the tail seemed to be sagging a bit. You could even see that the left-rear slide was no longer square to the cutout for it, behind the rear axle. Can't remember the name, though it started with an "A", and not familiar to me. Hope the guy knows what he's in for, or got a deal too good to pass up.Lyle

Not many things can be described as "durable." A sledge hammer??? Once any kind of vehicle is in an accident, odds are it may very well have issues down the road. I expect something other than hitting a pot hole caused your fifth wheel frame to bend, but stranger things have happened.

I know the light weight 5th wheels can have 6" Ibeams. Some of these can be 30' or longer. In my opinion they should have a much more substantial frame. Our first 5th wheel frame would flex quite badly on rough roads.

My question was prompted by the TV show, RV Nation, in which couples look at RVs (in this case 5th wheels) and try to decide which one to buy. Of course all they paid attention to were the cosmetic features, never asking how the units were made.

Without more details like make, model, year and what actually happen to your trailer it is hard to answer your question. We had a issue with our 2005 Cardinal 5th wheel with cracks in the I-Beams in four places. Lippert had a service bulletin on how to repair and reinforce the area of the I-Beams, and to install square tubes between the spring hangers. It was better than new after the repair.Chris

5th wheel durability | Good Sam Community

15 Replies

Me_Again
Explorer III
May 31, 2016
Without more details like make, model, year and what actually happen to your trailer it is hard to answer your question. We had a issue with our 2005 Cardinal 5th wheel with cracks in the I-Beams in four places. Lippert had a service bulletin on how to repair and reinforce the area of the I-Beams, and to install square tubes between the spring hangers. It was better than new after the repair.

Chris
stargirl96
Explorer
May 31, 2016
My question was prompted by the TV show, RV Nation, in which couples look at RVs (in this case 5th wheels) and try to decide which one to buy. Of course all they paid attention to were the cosmetic features, never asking how the units were made.
grampscamper
Explorer
May 31, 2016
I know the light weight 5th wheels can have 6" Ibeams. Some of these can be 30' or longer. In my opinion they should have a much more substantial frame. Our first 5th wheel frame would flex quite badly on rough roads.
1ofmany
Explorer
May 31, 2016
Not many things can be described as "durable." A sledge hammer??? Once any kind of vehicle is in an accident, odds are it may very well have issues down the road. I expect something other than hitting a pot hole caused your fifth wheel frame to bend, but stranger things have happened.
laknox
Nomad
May 31, 2016
stargirl96 wrote:
We traded in our 5th wheel for a class C motorhome awhile back. One reason for the change is our 5th wheel suffered damage on a road trip 3 years ago in which the frame was bent. No other vehicle was involved, and the only thing we could conclude was that we hit a pot hole in a street. We just heard a loud bang from the 5th wheel and when we got it home we saw the damage. The process of getting it fixed was a nightmare, and even though the frame was straightened, we could tell things like the slide and the rear wall were off a little. In short, we didn't feel like we could trust the unit. This has caused me to wonder about the durability of frames in 5th wheels. Any opinions or similar experiences?

What FW did you have? Odds on, it was a Lippert framed one.

FWIW, I passed a 40+', triple axle FW (non-TH) today, parked in a friend's neighborhood. New to the guy towing, since it had temporary plates on it and a faded front cap. Driving past, slowly so as to check it out, I noticed the tail seemed to be sagging a bit. You could even see that the left-rear slide was no longer square to the cutout for it, behind the rear axle. Can't remember the name, though it started with an "A", and not familiar to me. Hope the guy knows what he's in for, or got a deal too good to pass up.

Lyle

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5th wheel durability

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