What is the best emergency road service?

[Likes to tow]

After nearly 20 years of having Good Sam Emergency Road Service we had problems!! Due to my own ignorant neglect of not examining the u-bolts our axles one had become loose, the leaf spring centering bolt sheared and the axle slipped backwards on the right hand side rear axle at least 8-10 inches. The tire turned out and the trailer did not track straight. Luckily I noticed this in my mirror and pulled over at the next exit.

I called Good Sam road service and they offered no help other than a tow. I tried to explain to the agent that I could tow the trailer myself if it would only roll safely. She then offered what I interpreted to be some kind of a wrecker or rollback that could carry the trailer to a service facility. I then said that this is a 32 ft 5th wheel, I doubt you can carry it anywhere. I needed some type of mobile road service that could respond to axle issues. She did not apparently understand what I needed and offered no ideas so I just hung up the cell phone and proceeded to solve the issue myself. I'm 78 and rather fit for my age and carry a good variety of tools and jacks. I felt reasonably safe because the off ramp had a wide area near the bottom to get far away from traffic.

After removing the wheel and determining what exactly had happened I realized I needed a new leaf spring centering bolt. Since I was on an off ramp of the WV Turnpike I did not feel comfortable unhooking and leaving the trailer sit while I went looking for a hardware or auto parts store. Two nice fellows stopped and ask if I needed help!!! They assisted in going after a bolt and in the relocating the axle back into position. They were unbelievably nice and extremely helpful. I was beside the exit ramp for 3 hours with them.

So what good is having Good Sam Road Service?? The one time I needed help they had no idea exactly what I needed. Did I say the wrong things? Did I not make myself clear? Can Good Sam not dispatch the nearest road service to you? Is all they can do is give you a tow ??

Where did I go wrong and is there a better road service company? Is there a national listing for mobile techs or breakdown service? I'm confused and would like some answers since my first experience with Good Sam was not successful. Luckily I'm still able to solve things on my own!!

 

[jjbbrewer]

The best emergency road service I've found is a well equipped tool box, 12 ton hydraulic jack, a healthy set of spare parts, and good mechanic skills.

I have never heard of any reasonable emergency RV roadside service. I know Progressive Insurance & AAA are useless & it sounds like Good Sam is as well.

There certainly have been situations that I couldn't fix, though.

 

[Likes to tow]

Was that caused by heat from bearing failure? You are correct in stating there is no substitute for being self reliant and prepared. I had everything needed to make the repair on my spring except a grade 8 bolt to use for a center pin. One of the motorist who stopped to help ran to the auto parts store for me.

 

[Likes to tow]

Keep in mind that in drastic situations on a tandem axle trailer you can remove the wheel and travel at slow cautious speed to get near a garage. One time a few years ago I completely lost a wheel and did not even know about it until I arrived at the campground 80 miles from home. When it actually came off is a mystery but I did not feel anything. Come away with a new respect for carrying a torque wrench and checking my lug nuts every day while traveling. All lugs were sheared off at the drum. Apparently the wheel was loose for a long time and I was not aware of it. Now I have two things to constantly monitor. Lug nuts on wheels and U Bolts on axles!!

 

[jjbbrewer]

This was caused by a bearing failure and subsequent loss of a wheel. I was on I-80 in Wyoming east of Rock Springs and this happened between there and Wamsutter. The only clue I had was I looked in the mirror and saw part of the skirt/j-wrap sticking out. I pulled off on an exit and found what you see in that picture.

I was able to limp the trailer about 3 miles farther down I-80 to the Conoco. After unhitching @ the Conoco, I drove about 20 miles back down the freeway twice looking for the wheel and never found it. Thankfully, all this happened in the early morning hours of Labor Day, so almost nobody was on the road. It probably ended up in a field somewhere.

Later (like a couple of weeks later) I returned with a new axle. It wasn't a fun experience, but I did not have to involve any other "assistance" other than ordering the trailer axle at a local shop and paying the guys in the Conoco to bolt the new one on. (I would have replaced it myself, but I felt the least I could do is give them some business for (sort of) letting me keep the trailer there for a couple weeks).

 

[CedarCreekWoody]

I don't think any service roadside repairs; they all offer towing service. It sounds like Good Sam was providing exactly what they promised (which is often not the case.)

 

[Likes to tow]

I was aware and did not expect Good Sam to do any repairs. I did however think they could at least dispatch a local road service or at least give me some phone numbers. I was in Charleston WV and surly there are some mobile mechanics who do road service. She had no idea other than to tow or haul it away.

 

[Bungy]

I was aware and did not expect Good Sam to do any repairs. I did however think they could at least dispatch a local road service or at least give me some phone numbers. I was in Charleston WV and surly there are some mobile mechanics who do road service. She had no idea other than to tow or haul it away.

Their mandate is to supply towing services not mobile rv repairs.

 

[Skilletface]

Like to tow,
Your frustration is well founded, been there with you. It has been my experience that the definition for
“Road Side Assistance” only covers towing, fuel, tire, lock outs and battery related issues, not “Service Repair”. Also, no matter who we contract with for “Assistance” does not guarantee you will get assistance as the provider may not do business with who ever you are contracted with.
I was in a position once, when towing companies nearby that we could use but none would tow a motor home, solution was to find one on our own and submit a reimbursement request to AAA.

My plan for getting roadside service is to reach out to local RV parks and seek recommendations for mobile services. I think for now that’s the best we can expect.

 

[Likes to tow]

When we renewed our Good Sam they wanted to know what kind of RV we had. I said 5th wheel. In my way of thinking they should have responded with a statement...."If it won't roll then it sits there! We offer no other help other than a tow."

 

[jjbbrewer]

When we renewed our Good Sam they wanted to know what kind of RV we had. I said 5th wheel. In my way of thinking they should have responded with a statement...."If it won't roll then it sits there! We offer no other help other than a tow."

That was exactly the same response I got from AAA RV in this other situation I had.
(disclaimer - this was on my previous toy hauler - not my Momentum)

 

[Likes to tow]

The Interstate Highway System is in bad repair especially going onto or coming off of bridges. The transition can have massive pot holes. When my incident with a shifted axle happened I had just drove through Charleston WV on Interstate 64 heading East. There were a few profane pot holes that got my attention. Very soon after hitting the Turnpike I noticed my problem. I think it was going to happen anyway somewhere do to my U Bolts not being tight enough. This allows the springs to shift back and forth which shears the centering bolt. I will constantly monitor the torque on the U Bolts and I will now carry a spare spring with a new set of U Bolts.

 

[ajg617]

I had AAA for decades. Even with cars, the response was great locally, but terrible outside of the local area. When we broke down in East Glacier KOA on a Sunday with missing/broken wet bolts and a spring hanging loose, KOA said I had to move - they were full up that night. A local Native American gent who hung around the KOA and had a shop a few minutes away brought back a bunch of bolts for a really temp fix so I could limp to West Glacier where a mobile tech would come out. Old head bolt did the trick.

Called CoachNet after we limped into West Glacier. They had a mobile tech out Monday morning. He couldn't fix it there - no welding but installed new wet bolts with the hope it would allow us to get it to his shop. If it weren't for a GD mobile tech re-routed to us on his way to the National Rally and a pallet of parts sent by GD, we might still be there.

And yes, the interstate system is a mess. Lippert told both GD and me exactly that.

 

[gabathey]

I’ve found the best help while on a trip at RVHelp.com. To get listed on their search, i think you have to be a member of the RVTAA. Pretty easy to search by area.

 

[Xlsmle]

Good Sam is useless had it and a simple flat tire between Searchlight and I40 took the hours looking for a bid. I called a local tow shop and they were there in 20 mins and changed the tire and had AAA on the side of their tow vehicle. I called Good Sam and canceled my road service and went with AAA. At least they are more widespread for common issues. Good Sam is only good for their annual normal membership where u get rv park discounts and 5 to 10 cents off gas at Pilot as well as Camping World discounts.

 

[IBEW Sparky]

After nearly 20 years of having Good Sam Emergency Road Service we had problems!! Due to my own ignorant neglect of not examining the u-bolts our axles one had become loose, the leaf spring centering bolt sheared and the axle slipped backwards on the right hand side rear axle at least 8-10 inches. The tire turned out and the trailer did not track straight. Luckily I noticed this in my mirror and pulled over at the next exit.

I called Good Sam road service and they offered no help other than a tow. I tried to explain to the agent that I could tow the trailer myself if it would only roll safely. She then offered what I interpreted to be some kind of a wrecker or rollback that could carry the trailer to a service facility. I then said that this is a 32 ft 5th wheel, I doubt you can carry it anywhere. I needed some type of mobile road service that could respond to axle issues. She did not apparently understand what I needed and offered no ideas so I just hung up the cell phone and proceeded to solve the issue myself. I'm 78 and rather fit for my age and carry a good variety of tools and jacks. I felt reasonably safe because the off ramp had a wide area near the bottom to get far away from traffic.

After removing the wheel and determining what exactly had happened I realized I needed a new leaf spring centering bolt. Since I was on an off ramp of the WV Turnpike I did not feel comfortable unhooking and leaving the trailer sit while I went looking for a hardware or auto parts store. Two nice fellows stopped and ask if I needed help!!! They assisted in going after a bolt and in the relocating the axle back into position. They were unbelievably nice and extremely helpful. I was beside the exit ramp for 3 hours with them.

So what good is having Good Sam Road Service?? The one time I needed help they had no idea exactly what I needed. Did I say the wrong things? Did I not make myself clear? Can Good Sam not dispatch the nearest road service to you? Is all they can do is give you a tow ??

Where did I go wrong and is there a better road service company? Is there a national listing for mobile techs or breakdown service? I'm confused and would like some answers since my first experience with Good Sam was not successful. Luckily I'm still able to solve things on my own!!

Unfortunately none of them will offer roadside repairs other than fuel, tires replacement, lockout service, and towing. When you call for service you're getting a national number that might be halfway across the country. I've found GS RA to be the best around and have gotten my monies worth over the years. He's my previous TT the towed for me in Georgia back in 2017 after I sheared a wheel off my rear axle.

When I showed this picture to every other roadside assistance company I got laughed at and told they definitely wouldn't do that!

 

[jbwilliams25]

Good Sam’s and FMCA both strung us along for hours before they each on different occasions said they couldn’t find a tow in my area. Turns out, they only want to pay for ONE tow, according to the drivers that eventually towed our truck and 5th wheel. I paid cash for the second tow with our insurance company. Good same later paid for the other the following day because of the five hour failure. CHP stopped to check on us and when we said Good Sam, he said at 3 hours they’re going to tell you they can’t find a tow in the area (near Bishop, CA). Sure enough he stopped back at three hours and Good Sam was giving us the bad news. FMCA roadside was about the same when a 66 gas station switched diesel with premium in Goodlettesville TN. Now we have Progressive and Xtraride.

 

[AustexGP]

After nearly 20 years of having Good Sam Emergency Road Service we had problems!! Due to my own ignorant neglect of not examining the u-bolts our axles one had become loose, the leaf spring centering bolt sheared and the axle slipped backwards on the right hand side rear axle at least 8-10 inches. The tire turned out and the trailer did not track straight. Luckily I noticed this in my mirror and pulled over at the next exit.

I called Good Sam road service and they offered no help other than a tow. I tried to explain to the agent that I could tow the trailer myself if it would only roll safely. She then offered what I interpreted to be some kind of a wrecker or rollback that could carry the trailer to a service facility. I then said that this is a 32 ft 5th wheel, I doubt you can carry it anywhere. I needed some type of mobile road service that could respond to axle issues. She did not apparently understand what I needed and offered no ideas so I just hung up the cell phone and proceeded to solve the issue myself. I'm 78 and rather fit for my age and carry a good variety of tools and jacks. I felt reasonably safe because the off ramp had a wide area near the bottom to get far away from traffic.

After removing the wheel and determining what exactly had happened I realized I needed a new leaf spring centering bolt. Since I was on an off ramp of the WV Turnpike I did not feel comfortable unhooking and leaving the trailer sit while I went looking for a hardware or auto parts store. Two nice fellows stopped and ask if I needed help!!! They assisted in going after a bolt and in the relocating the axle back into position. They were unbelievably nice and extremely helpful. I was beside the exit ramp for 3 hours with them.

So what good is having Good Sam Road Service?? The one time I needed help they had no idea exactly what I needed. Did I say the wrong things? Did I not make myself clear? Can Good Sam not dispatch the nearest road service to you? Is all they can do is give you a tow ??

Where did I go wrong and is there a better road service company? Is there a national listing for mobile techs or breakdown service? I'm confused and would like some answers since my first experience with Good Sam was not successful. Luckily I'm still able to solve things on my own!!

I don't think that any RV roadside assistance is very good. We have FMCA and I can't complain our what happened to us. For a note we only travel on a long trip once a year, so I wouldn't expect us to need roadside assistance like someone who travels several months.
We were coming into Mt. Pleasant Texas and when we pulled into our site, we noticed that the leaf spring was broken. It was late afternoon, and we called FMCA. Since we were at a campsite, they wouldn't send a tow service but did call me back about an hour later with the names of 4-5 mobile repair companies. We called several companies and got a company to come out the next morning. FMCA called me several times during the morning to see if we were able to get a mobile repair company. As a final solution (if we couldn't get it repaired) was to tow the 5th wheel to a RV repair shop and we would take the truck and head home. Not the greatest of solutions, but at least FMCA didn't leave us hanging and offered reasonable solutions.

 

[Likes to tow]

who is FMCA??? At least they offered you with the names of some mobile repair companies. Good Sam offered me nothing but a tow. The trailer could not roll !!

 

[AustexGP]

who is FMCA??? At least they offered you with the names of some mobile repair companies. Good Sam offered me nothing but a tow. The trailer could not roll !!

FMCA was Family Motorcoach Association. Now Family RV Association. It contracts with SafeRide RV Motor Coach for service. Cost is $129/year. Membership to FMCA is $99/year, however they do offer benefits that I feel are worth the membership. Like Travel Assist, Magazine, Local Chapters that offer monthly/quarterly meetings, trips and a couple of annual rally's.