Upper Deck Flex Measurement on Momentum 398M

[rcolemanreed]

Good evening,

My first post here. I've recently had the Upper Deck Flex Measurement performed on our 2022 GD Momentum 398M. The readings were 99" with weight of trailer on the landing gear and 99 5/8" when load was on the king pin. So, the overall flex was 5/8". I've heard from reading in other forums that upper deck flex should be no more than 1/4" to 1/2". Some have said that no more than 3/4". Our trailer is either over or just barely under depending on who is correct on this matter. My dealer wouldn't say one way or the other. They are leaving it in the hands of GD. The reason we had the measurement performed in the first place is because the bedroom floor squeaks and nail/screw heads are popping up through the linoleum. This has been going on since the first time we took the trailer on her maiden voyage and was part of the original 33-item list that we provided to GD a year ago! They've already repaired the floor once but, we are noticing more heads starting to pop up! I'm thinking that there is an issue with frame welds breaking. This is a very well-known issue with the Lippert frames. Apparently, Lippert has addressed the problem but, perhaps ours slipped through their fingers??? Can anyone shed some light and maybe provide some real-world experience regarding this issue?

Thanks!

Roger and Jan
2022 Momentum 398M
2021 RAM 3500 Limited DRW HO 6.7 Cummins TD

 

[Fsalmy]

Contact Lippert directly. They were way more helpful than GD was when we faced a potential upper deck issue. There is a upper deck flex measurement sheet you or your dealer can fill out. Lippert paid our dealer directly for the inspection including dropping the filon. Good luck.

 

[el Rojo]

1" is what I was told when GDRV inspected mine.

 

[ajg617]

LCI also paid our dealer to drop our Filon and take measurements as we were snapping screws attaching the lower cap trim.

 

[Chaps2018]

I would agree with the above--contact LCI directly.

This snippet of an email(4/22) on our SOB trailer with LCI chassis. It was related to the Upper Deck Flex measurement:

I later found the alum frame in the wall had broken under the bedroom slide (very common failure, only visible after outer fiberglass/wall was removed). Also the frame was actually broken above the propane tank mounting area below the bedroom slide).

My symptoms: 1)Front cap was moving vertically nearly an inch (relative to hitch) as I was raising/lowering the front jacks onto the hitch. 2)nails coming loose in the closet areas (mainly opposite side), 3)screws holding front cap in place under the chin (noted in post above) kept coming loose.

 

[ajg617]

I would agree with the above--contact LCI directly.

I contacted LCI today and they informed me that Grand Design is handling all frame flex issues and that the dealer had never properly measured the flex per their instructions last year as they were supposed to - according to dealer 1.5 FEET of flex - not possible. Appears the dealer never performed the authorized work and certainly didn't fill out the frame flex sheet properly.

 

[rcolemanreed]

Hi to all,

I meant to respond sooner but, retirement is so darn busy?

GDRV approved the dealership to resolve the upper deck flex issue. Apparently, during manufacturing, an assembler used a 1/2" drill then, followed up by using 3/8" bolts under the floor structure. The bolts loosened up as they were the incorrect size thus causing the floor to squeak and the screws to pop up through the linoleum. I'm not sure how this all resolved the flex issue but, they stated that it is now within the 1/4" limit. GDRV also sent their regional technician out to the dealership to assist with this issue and to talk with me about it and any other questions I might have. His name is Rutger and he was extremely helpful and informative. GDRV has extended our warranty for an additional 6 months since we've had so many problems with this trailer. Brittney Plank at GDRV has been great to work with and very empathetic regarding the plethora of issues we've encountered with our dealer here in Washington State. It's never a dull moment with this trailer...now we've got an issue with our Jaboni solar controller and/or the bluetooth module which allows it to talk to the mobile app. GDRV is shipping me both modules. Got the bluetooth module today but, it still is not connecting to the controller and the mobile app. Fun times!

 

[ajg617]

Hi to all,

I meant to respond sooner but, retirement is so darn busy?

GDRV also sent their regional technician out to the dealership to assist with this issue and to talk with me about it and any other questions I might have. His name is Rutger and he was extremely helpful and informative.(

Rutger is great. He's the tech who welded on two new hangers when were stuck at Glacier. He works the northwest corner of the US and was in Coeur d'Alene on his way to the National Rally last year when he re-routed to help us out. Glad you found the root cause!!

GD has been great about all of this - we are headed to the factory in April for flex check and complete suspension inspection repair.

 

[rcolemanreed]

Yes. Rutger was very helpful and professional!

We would like to go to the Rally but, it is a very long drive from Washington State...perhaps a long vacation is in order?

Take care!