Always check mine each trip.i have the yellow markers pointing to the centre.this means if the wheel nut has not moved there is no need to tighten it.CC missed a trick there not telling you about checking wheel nuts on the coarse.sorry about your troubles hope the insurance sorts it quickly for you.fully agree about the nuts not being tight after service no way can they come loose in the distance you covered if done correct.if you are in the CClub speak to the legal team free.after each service I have always been told to check nuts after 30 miles but i check before i set off.bailey have redesigned there wheel nuts for the new caravans.just a note they can be over tightened which is just as bad because they stretch.
------------- the only silly question is the one you do not ask.
The information that might be of use to caravanners is that some caravan wheels do have a tendency to come loose. There have been several threads on this forum & others over the years that does suggest lost wheels from caravans is not an unknown event.
There is now enough useful information on this thread to allow those who sought enlightenment to take the appropriate actions to ensure that their wheels stay on.
I think the internet must be a different universe.
Most of us get 'experts' to do work for us when we are not sure or able to do a job. The wheel comes off just a few miles after fitted by a competent person, paid to do the job in a competent manner and it is in some minds the fault of the hirer for not checking the work. The mind boggles.
Most folk would think it unreasonable to have to go round with a torque wrench after their car was serviced by their main dealer - in fact most folk probably wouldn't know what a torque wrench was let alone the values required.
Wheel have been lost when improperly fitted or tightened on all vehicles. Job done properly, wheel stays on. Wheel falls of when the job has been done properly or comes loose outside standard servicing period then there is a manufacturing problem and should be dealt with by the appropriate authorities.
The request by some manufacturers to check wheel nuts before every trip is a lazy cop out in this case as they had been checked - by an 'expert'.
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"The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt." - Bertrand Russell
Quote: Originally posted by John in Leeds on 13/4/2013
I think the internet must be a different universe.
Most of us get 'experts' to do work for us when we are not sure or able to do a job. The wheel comes off just a few miles after fitted by a competent person, paid to do the job in a competent manner and it is in some minds the fault of the hirer for not checking the work. The mind boggles.
Most folk would think it unreasonable to have to go round with a torque wrench after their car was serviced by their main dealer - in fact most folk probably wouldn't know what a torque wrench was let alone the values required.
Wheel have been lost when improperly fitted or tightened on all vehicles. Job done properly, wheel stays on. Wheel falls of when the job has been done properly or comes loose outside standard servicing period then there is a manufacturing problem and should be dealt with by the appropriate authorities.
The request by some manufacturers to check wheel nuts before every trip is a lazy cop out in this case as they had been checked - by an 'expert'.
When wheels are fitted the points of contact should be clean shiny metal. It don't take much, just a quick wire brush & wipe with a rag. This should ensure wheel is seated correctly & will not come loose. The cause of loose wheels is often grit & dust on the mating surfaces. This grit grinds away after a few miles & leaves a loose nut.
Despite cleaning it is still possible for grit to find it's way onto mating surfaces during fitting in a workshop situation & it is for this reason it is suggested that nuts are retorqued or at least checked with a wheelbrace after some mileage has been covered.
Last time I had tyres fitted to my car the fitting centre was advising customers to return after a few days so their wheelnuts could be retorqued which I though was good customer service.
just had new tyres on car and NTS advice is to check wheels after a hundred miles and retighten they do not say re torque. always check van wheels before each trip but again each to there own malc
the last time i had some tyres fitted they said i could call back after 50-100 miles and they would check the nuts for free and good to there word they did
i also had some tyres done on a work van and later that day one of the wheels came off on the motorway luckily no one was hurt and little damage was done but a passing police car stopped and he pointed out that although the garage seemed to have failed to tighten the nuts it is the drivers responsibility to make sure there vehicle is safe
he didn't give me a ticket but did say he could have
all that said it is the engineers responsibility that his work was safe
some good points made in this thread i personally think if you had it done professionally then the work should be safe
i never had a wrench on the nuts b4 every trip but i do have a walk round shake the wheels to check for play etc
Its interesting to read everyone's take on this, but its not till you have this happen to you that it really comes home to you. Last year I lost a wheel, from our caravan on the A1 fortunately no one was hurt and the damage was only slight (£3000). I had had a puncture and had replaced the wheel and tyre re torqued the nuts before the journey travelled 120 miles stayed a week on a site and then lost the wheel on my return journey.
No problem I thought the vans insured and everything had been done correctly so no problem so I thought, the insurance company declined to cover the incident as they said I had not maintained the caravan correctly,after pointing out that the instruction manual states that the wheels should be re torqued after 50 miles and then every 3000 miles they relented and payed for the repair. I now torque the wheels before every journey so I don't have to go through the argument with insurance company's and all the anguish that courses
Its interesting to read everyone's take on this, but its not till you have this happen to you that it really comes home to you. Last year I lost a wheel, from our caravan on the A1 fortunately no one was hurt and the damage was only slight (£3000). I had had a puncture and had replaced the wheel and tyre re torqued the nuts before the journey travelled 120 miles stayed a week on a site and then lost the wheel on my return journey.
No problem I thought the vans insured and everything had been done correctly so no problem so I thought, the insurance company declined to cover the incident as they said I had not maintained the caravan correctly,after pointing out that the instruction manual states that the wheels should be re torqued after 50 miles and then every 3000 miles they relented and payed for the repair. I now torque the wheels before every journey so I don't have to go through the argument with insurance company's and all the anguish that courses
Quote: Originally posted by ard129 on 13/4/2013
No problem I thought the vans insured and everything had been done correctly so no problem so I thought, the insurance company declined to cover the incident as they said I had not maintained the caravan correctly,after pointing out that the instruction manual states that the wheels should be re torqued after 50 miles and then every 3000 miles they relented and payed for the repair.
There is no ways any insurance company could have enforced that and I am even surprised that they referred to it. It cannot be expected for any reasonable person to carry a torque wrench with them at all times. What a load of hogwash and if I were you, I would definitely be looking for another insurance company when renewal time comes around!
Sorry to hear about your accident Maddy. We've been caravanning for a few years now and like you didn't pick up on this at the start either. The same is so for the majority of caravaners here.
Thanks for raising this here, I do now check ours regularly but as a result will check before every trip now.