Lunar Qausar 646 worn through mud-gaurd

[Gussy]

Hi All,
I'm new to caravanning and I have just purchased a 2016 Luna Qausar 646 twin axle caravan and found the o/s tyre has come into contact with the mud-guard and rubbed through, This will allow water into the van from the road wheels, I only travelled from the dealer to a site some 30 miles away and the van was light, I've spoken to a colleague and to my horror I'm told this may be more of an issue with AL-KO axles, Can any one advise what the clearance between the tyre an wheel are unladen. Or if there's any advice to support my argument with the dealer
Thanks

 

[otherclive]

Hi All,
I'm new to caravanning and I have just purchased a 2016 Luna Qausar 646 twin axle caravan and found the o/s tyre has come into contact with the mud-guard and rubbed through, This will allow water into the van from the road wheels, I only travelled from the dealer to a site some 30 miles away and the van was light, I've spoken to a colleague and to my horror I'm told this may be more of an issue with AL-KO axles, Can any one advise what the clearance between the tyre an wheel are unladen. Or if there's any advice to support my argument with the dealer
Thanks

Study the CRA 2015 and bull up on your consumer rights. Depending on when you bought it you could be within the timescale to reject it. If you used a credit card fir paying over £100 there’s section 75 protection from your card provider.
But your best bet is to speak to the dealer regarding the problem and what they will do to correct it. Fundamentally the wheel should never rub the wheel arch even under max load. It sounds as if you may have a failed axle suspension bush (es). I had a single axle fail and it required a new axle. Cause was never identified. But if one side has given way how confident can you be that the other side or axle will not be at risk.
Don’t be strung along, keep careful notes and if necessary commit your concerns in writing formally. Remember rejection has to be done within the CRA 2015 timeframe.

 

[Gussy]

Study the CRA 2015 and bull up on your consumer rights. Depending on when you bought it you could be within the timescale to reject it. If you used a credit card fir paying over £100 there’s section 75 protection from your card provider.
But your best bet is to speak to the dealer regarding the problem and what they will do to correct it. Fundamentally the wheel should never run the wheel arch even under max load. It sounds as if you may have a failed axle suspension bush (es). I had a single axle fail and it required a new axle. Cause was never identified. But if one side has given way how confident can you be that the other side or axle will not be at risk.
Don’t be strung along, keep careful notes and if necessary commit your concerns in writing formally. Remember rejection has to be done within the CRA 2015 timeframe.

Thanks, for the advice, Unfortunately I paid cash but i only picked it up last Thursday so I believe I'm entitled to a full refund up t 30 days, I do like the Caravan so will be a shame if it cant be rectified.

 

[otherclive]

Thanks, for the advice, Unfortunately I paid cash but i only picked it up last Thursday so I believe I'm entitled to a full refund up t 30 days, I do like the Caravan so will be a shame if it cant be rectified.

Not to worry the CRA 2015 is a powerful consumer aid used properly when required. Hopefully the dealer will resolve the problem. Don’t forget you could still obtain an independent report on any repair action and the adequacy of the other axle.

 

[ProfJohnL]

What are you towing the caravan with? I ask because a large caravan needs a large tow vehicle, and the tow ball height may not be correct at 350 to 420mm vertical height when loaded.

Also bearing in mind that you have quite a large caravan, and thus you will be using a large tow vehicle, there is a real chance their combined MAM may exceed
3500kg. Coupled with your comment about being new to caravanning raises the possibility you may have passed your test after Jan 1997, and thus have a combined MAM limit of only 3500kg.

 

[Hutch]

Sorry Prof , the caravan in not that big really, a lot of us tow caravans of that size , it has also nothing to do with the licence that the Original poster has as to why the wheel has worn through the wheel well, also the angle of the caravan will not change the clearence between wheel and The wheel well. Reread what the OP has told us.

 

[littlebasher]

Pictures would be useful for us to form an opinion

 

[ProfJohnL]

Sorry Prof , the caravan in not that big really, a lot of us tow caravans of that size , it has also nothing to do with the licence that the Original poster has as to why the wheel has worn through the wheel well, also the angle of the caravan will not change the clearence between wheel and The wheel well. Reread what the OP has told us.

I most certainly did read the OP's posting, I whilst I do agree the damage is more likely due to a caravan suspension failure. there are other possible reasons such as in correct tow ball height that may have contributed to it.

Frankly Hutch does not matter what size your caravan is, Its the OP that has the problem, and a little research has thrown up the fact the 2016 Lunar Quasar 646 has an MTPLM of 1555kg. This is quite a large caravan.

I have made the assumption the OP will have followed the Industry guidelines and will have chosen a car with a kerbweight of to give a towing ratio of between 85 to 100%. which means the car would be 1555 to 1829kg kerbweight. These are again largish cars and would have load margins of at least 450kg bringing their MAM's to 2000to 2229kg respectively giving a combined MAM's of greater than 3500kg, therefore requiring the driver to have licence cat "Be" or to have taken the "E" extension test.

This is potentially 4x4 territory, and as we know form several contributors over the years some 4x4's have towball heights that fall outside the EU's range of 350 to 420mm. Excessive static height variation will cause the caravan to assume an angled towing attitude. That means that one axle on the caravan will be compressed more than usual, and the other will be less compressed than usual depending on whether its nose up or nose down.

The compressed axle will therefore have a reduced clearance to the mud guard, and whilst might actually come into contact with it under poor road conditions. The situation would be exaggerated if the internal layout of the caravan has more heavy items on the O/S, but the layout has a dinette.

It is more likely to be an axle problem, but the above is still true, and driver would need to have Be.

 

[Parksy]

Unless we know which part of the
mudguard is damaged it's difficult to diagnose what caused the damage.
I'd have thought that if excessive towball height was the problem the damage would affect both sides unless the caravan is seriously unbalanced on one side.
What we do know is that a caravan tyre should never wear through a mudguard so the OPs first point of contact should be the supplying dealership to either obtain a satisfactory repair or to reject the caravan.
The OPs driving licence has no bearing on this question.
It's not in our remit to act as the 'caravan police' and licence requirements are an entirely separate issue which is covered extensively on this forum and website.
Further off topic comments will be removed, please stick to the question that was asked.

 

[Raywood]

The cause seems irrelevant in that it was purchased only a few days ago and is clearly faulty. The caravan should go back to the dealer, either for a repair or refund.
I have not heard of Lunar having a problem with the ALKO axle, this seemed to be confined to Bailey.

 

[otherclive]

The cause seems irrelevant in that it was purchased only a few days ago and is clearly faulty. The caravan should go back to the dealer, either for a repair or refund.
I have not heard of Lunar having a problem with the ALKO axle, this seemed to be confined to Bailey.

And some Sprites too. 👎

 

[Gussy]

What are you towing the caravan with? I ask because a large caravan needs a large tow vehicle, and the tow ball height may not be correct at 350 to 420mm vertical height when loaded.

Also bearing in mind that you have quite a large caravan, and thus you will be using a large tow vehicle, there is a real chance their combined MAM may exceed
3500kg. Coupled with your comment about being new to caravanning raises the possibility you may have passed your test after Jan 1997, and thus have a combined MAM limit of only 3500kg.

Hi, The vehicle is a BMW520 Tourer, the ball height is 42 to the centre of the ball, the van does sit nice and level on the car and there is circa 30mm clearance between the tyre and wheel arch, the hole doesn't appear as fresh damage.

 

[Buckman]

Sad to say but I think the suspension rubber on the chassis has probably collapsed. We had similar on our caravan even though we had shock absorbers fitted. If not, it is an issue with the axle which could be big bucks to repair. If they are a reputable dealer they should have picked this up at the PDI before delivery as it is very obvious and they should refund your money. IMHO get a refund and find another dealer.

 

[otherclive]

Hi, The vehicle is a BMW520 Tourer, the ball height is 42 to the centre of the ball, the van does sit nice and level on the car and there is circa 30mm clearance between the tyre and wheel arch, the hole doesn't appear as fresh damage.

It could have been the result of a tyre blowout. Although the clearance does look low. If you squeeze underneath and look at the area where the swing arm pivots into the axle rubber suspension bush it may appear as if the rubber has extruded. That’s what mine looked like and it left me with just under 30 mm clearance.
Irrespective you need to speak to the dealer.

 

[Damian]

Hi, The vehicle is a BMW520 Tourer, the ball height is 42 to the centre of the ball, the van does sit nice and level on the car and there is circa 30mm clearance between the tyre and wheel arch, the hole doesn't appear as fresh damage.

Whilst you have taken the trouble to reply to that particular part of a previous post it is totally irrelevant to the original problem, given that quite a lot of caravans are delivered to dealers on the tow hitch of a lorry.

Whatever you towed with has no bearing on the issue and bringing the next red herring about licence entitlements just muddies the waters.

One possible reason for the damage may be that the previous owner suffered a tyre failure and it is quite common for the damage to happen then.
However, that damage should have been picked up by the dealer before he sold the van.

 

[Gussy]

Sad to say but I think the suspension rubber on the chassis has probably collapsed. We had similar on our caravan even though we had shock absorbers fitted. If not, it is an issue with the axle which could be big bucks to repair. If they are a reputable dealer they should have picked this up at the PDI before delivery as it is very obvious and they should refund your money. IMHO get a refund and find another dealer.

I'm taking it back to the dealer tomorrow but unfortunately its a 160 mile round trip,

 

[Gussy]

Sad to say but I think the suspension rubber on the chassis has probably collapsed. We had similar on our caravan even though we had shock absorbers fitted. If not, it is an issue with the axle which could be big bucks to repair. If they are a reputable dealer they should have picked this up at the PDI before delivery as it is very obvious and they should refund your money. IMHO get a refund and find another dealer.

When i collected the van the motor movers didn't work so I was dubious about it going through the workshop

 

[Buckman]

I'm taking it back to the dealer tomorrow but unfortunately its a 160 mile round trip,

You will be towing a trailer with a known defect so be very careful of any implications. Dealer should br collecting as they sold you defective goods.

 

[Hutch]

Gussy, take photos with date and times on them, for proof of Damage.
Sucking eggs, make sure the dealer knows your intentions, and he is happy for you to bring it back.
As Buckman states, dealer should collect preferably.

 

[ProfJohnL]

When i collected the van the motor movers didn't work so I was dubious about it going through the workshop

I agree with the other comments regarding the dealers responsibility to collect this caravan. I do advise you to read up about the Consumer Rights Act, as the seller's responsibilities are made clear.

But I am perplexed as to your comment regarding the motor mover. Why were you dubious about having their workshop deal with it? As a buyer its important to point out any issues to the seller so they can be put right.

 

[Buckman]

When i collected the van the motor movers didn't work so I was dubious about it going through the workshop

Why did you accept the caravan if the motor movers were not working? It now seems obvious that they never checked the caravan prior to delivery. Reject this caravan as all you are going to get from this dealer is hassles. BTW hopefully you are aware that Lunar went into administration adn clsoed up shop some time ago?

 

[Raywood]

Buckman is right but enforcing that right is another matter. I am afraid that this is a familiar problem when buying from a remote dealer. If things go wrong then they have your money and are miles away.
The second point going wrong here is paying cash. You need to put something on a credit card to cover yourself in case things go wrong and the dealer will not play ball. Easy to be wise after the event though.

 

[Buckman]

Buckman is right but enforcing that right is another matter. I am afraid that this is a familiar problem when buying from a remote dealer. If things go wrong then they have your money and are miles away.
The second point going wrong here is paying cash. You need to put something on a credit card to cover yourself in case things go wrong and the dealer will not play ball. Easy to be wise after the event though.

However it now appears that there is a possible danger in towing back the caravan as the tyre could burst and this could result in an accident. A strong argument is that the trailer was not roadworthy. What do you think?

 

[WayneS]

I can offer no words of advice to you Gussy, but I do you wish you sucess in safely reaching a totally satisfactory outcome.