Hydraulic Leveling System Acting Very Strange and Weird

SolarPoweredRV

Senior Member
Site Sponsor
RV LIFE Pro
Joined
Mar 25, 2019
Messages
2,204
Location
Tampa Florida
So...

Last week we picked up our Solitude after having both hydraulic landing gears replaced.

When we got to our storage area and unhitched I pressed the "Auto Level" button and walked away. Unfortunately, when I looked back at the camper the rear stabilizers on the Drivers side were hanging in mid air along with the Passenger side landing gear. Some how this didn't seem normal, so, I retracted the rear stabilizers (thinking the system had some type of air lock or something like that) and the front of the coach quickly dropped about 6 inches. I finished retracting the rear stabilizers and raised the front of the coach to try "Auto Level" again, same results.

I hitched it back up and took it back to the Dealer. The Dealer had a tech come out and look at the coach and while he seemed knowledgeable, he insisted that the control board for the leveling system had gone bad. I, of course, wasn't buying that since it had just been in the shop to have the landing gears replaced.

Turns out that the tech had reversed two of the hoses attached to the right landing gear.

So, if your Auto Leveling system ever acts weird, or strange, and the stabilizer legs stop deploying in mid-air, somebody messed up installing your landing gear jacks.
 
Did they skip an operational test after the repair?
 
Did they skip an operational test after the repair?

Apparently skipped a thorough testing anyway.

The more I hear stories about "Techs" and not just in the RV field, the more I think it is just a term given to someone without any real training. After ten years he/she may have become a good tech, but you have the same title as the person hired yesterday with no experience. Just my thoughts. ymmv.

edit..maybe the year should be added to the title. Like a "tech" with 7 years experience would be called a "tech7"..............I'll shut up now...lol
 
Last edited:
I recently replaced all four hoses to my front landing gear because of leaking fittings/hoses. Before starting the project, or even purchasing the replacement hoses, I traced all of the lines from the origin (valve block assembly in the front bay) to the curbside landing gear, then over to the streetside landing gear....and used a magic marker to designate which hose was which. I also took measurements for lengths and noted the type of fittings needed, then ordered my replacements.

The installation went very smooth and the testing at the end of the install was perfect....no leaks and everything worked correctly. And the funny part of this is.....I'm NOT an RV Tech. Yes, it required some attention to details, and identifying and marking the components and locations correctly, but pretty much if you have some common sense, it's not rocket science. The hardest part about the whole project was removing the silicon rubber caulking that GD used around the OEM hoses where they go through the walls between the front bay and the propane compartments where the landing gear legs are mounted under them. For a tech to get a couple of lines reversed is simply not paying attention to what they were doing, or not caring, or simply so inexperienced that they don't know any better.....and that's pretty sad in my opinion.
 
Last edited:
So...

Last week we picked up our Solitude after having both hydraulic landing gears replaced.

When we got to our storage area and unhitched I pressed the "Auto Level" button and walked away. Unfortunately, when I looked back at the camper the rear stabilizers on the Drivers side were hanging in mid air along with the Passenger side landing gear. Some how this didn't seem normal, so, I retracted the rear stabilizers (thinking the system had some type of air lock or something like that) and the front of the coach quickly dropped about 6 inches. I finished retracting the rear stabilizers and raised the front of the coach to try "Auto Level" again, same results.

I hitched it back up and took it back to the Dealer. The Dealer had a tech come out and look at the coach and while he seemed knowledgeable, he insisted that the control board for the leveling system had gone bad. I, of course, wasn't buying that since it had just been in the shop to have the landing gears replaced.

Turns out that the tech had reversed two of the hoses attached to the right landing gear.

So, if your Auto Leveling system ever acts weird, or strange, and the stabilizer legs stop deploying in mid-air, somebody messed up installing your landing gear jacks.

Did they actually admit that to you?
 

Did they actually admit that to you?

I was wondering the same thing. As [MENTION=21739]xrated[/MENTION] said, it isn't Rocket science. Attention to detail is key - as is caring about what you do....
 
"Like a "tech" with 7 years experience would be called a "tech7"..." But does that person have seven years of experience or one year of experience repeated six times?

I'm old enough to remember when a mechanic worked on the vehicle, and he may have had a mechanic's helper assisting him. Now they are both techs.
 
Yes, they actually said they reversed the two lines.

Kudos for them being honest about it. I have done a lot of my own work over the years, and made my share of boneheaded mistakes... So I won't throw anyone under the bus for making a mistake, especially when they own up to it.
An HONEST person is to be valued. They are rare nowadays.
 

New posts

Try RV LIFE Pro Free for 7 Days

  • New Ad-Free experience on this RV LIFE Community.
  • Plan the best RV Safe travel with RV LIFE Trip Wizard.
  • Navigate with our RV Safe GPS mobile app.
  • and much more...
Try RV LIFE Pro Today
Back
Top Bottom