Has this happened to anyone else?

[tartan_camper]

I was washing our 5th wheel this morning and noticed that the plastic panel under our bedroom overhang (the panel that has the hole in it for the king pin assembly) was cracked. I called our dealer (not looking for anything to do with warranty as the trailer is seven years old)to get an appointment for panel repair or replacement. I can't believe that I wouldn't have noticed it before now, but cannot imagine how it became damaged in the first place.

I was not expecting something like this just before we go camping.

[tartan_camper]

Thanks for all of the input! The truck has lots of clearance, so I really doubt it was caused by hitting the truck rails. I did notice a small, what looks like a stress crack on the other side of the king pin and have heavily taped that with Gorilla Tape also. I looked inside the panel with a flashlight and don't see any stress cracks on the metal - everything looks good - no rust, etc. My thinking is that it is white plastic and is starting to give out. The dealer is getting a new panel and will let me know his estimate very soon. I will keep everyone informed when I take it to the dealer and see everything underneath.
Again, thanks for all the help!

[shadoow]

on our trailer both the cover for manually operating the front landing gear and the vent for the battery compartment are on the side of the trailer under the bedroom slide. I've replaced both in the last year cause the got brittle and broke during washing as with your situation. I figured they got brittle cause of sun exposure. Other white plastic pieces i've got are showing signs of being brittle too.

[the_bear_II]

Every once in a while I find something new on the 5th wheel. A stress crack here, a small dent there, a scrape, or loose trim. The road vibrations and flexing will cause things to happen. Even my truck ends up with dings a scrapes and most recently a crack from a rock on the lip of the fender.

None of these were caused by me but results of travel or careless others.

That being said I have caused a few dings and scrapes.

[ol_Bombero-JC]

kampinguru wrote:
You may have been backing in and had the trailer or truck dip in one corner and it came in contact with the corner of the truck.

Examine it carefully for the possible source....external or internal.

External:
As guru suggests - check the bed rails of your truck carefully for any evidence of contact.

Internal:
May have nothing to do with the above - so, with front f/glass off in the area of the pinbox, check for breaks in the welds in the framework.

Let us know what you find..:h

~

[SomedayisNow]

Ours was not damaged but the screws that held it up to the coach kept falling out and it would sag. DH took it apart when we got parked for the summer. The sheet of plywood it was fastened to had rot around all the edges causing the screws to fall out. A new piece of marine grade plywood, waterproof glue, new outside vinyl,fresh insulation, and help from a neighbor, lots caulking later, the piece was replaced for less than $200.00. CW would have been around $1200.00. We figure the road spray when raining was forced thru the edges around the base piece causing the rot. DH used lots of caulk when putting it all back together.

[kampinguru]

You may have been backing in and had the trailer or truck dip in one corner and it came in contact with the corner of the truck.