AL-KO Rear Suspension Torsion Bar FAILED

Byronic said:
No greasing, Hope they at least last longer than the hit and mostly miss greasey variety!
Brass bushes? I'd have expected bronze at least, but Al-Ko know best of course!
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They may well be Bronze but it is surprising how much loading a Brass Bush can take (if it is big enough for the job and lubricated). They do less well under shock loading and I would use neither if I designed an axle. I don't even rate the Needle Roller Bearings in my 2 Alko back axles.
 
I mention bronze because you've indicated greaseless application,
and bronze of course is self lubricating. Nowt wrong with brass
where used in the correct applic. though, as we say down sarth ;)

Can't think of an example of brass used in vehicle axle bearings,
perhaps so in ye very olden days.
But fairly common on small light loaded fan axles, elect. motors
and the like.
 
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Ed on Toast said:
Well, Well

It would seem that my rear suspension torsion bar has failed.

Anyone had this happen and or know the best route to rectification?

All advice most welcome. I heard some places will recondition it for you, anyone know about this? recommend?
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When I was in Doncaster have my hydraulic legs fitted, I noticed the big pile of differing Alco torsion bars and fitments, which they took off new motorhomes to fit full suspension, I asked about them and they said it was too much bother to list them on ebay or the like.. Maybe if you know the code colours in bands on the bars, they might have a set to sell you or give you.
I think a phone call might just Peee him off but a trip there MIGHT be favorable if they were not distracted. Depends where you are of course and whether the bits are available to order. The actual torsion bars are in sets according to springiness and fit in a machined groove in sets of however for the weight of the axle four holes and they slide in and secured.
 
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GWAYGWAY said:
When I was in Doncaster have my hydraulic legs fitted, I noticed the big pile of differing Alco torsion bars and fitments, which they took off new motorhomes to fit full suspension, I asked about them and they said it was too much bother to list them on ebay or the like.. Maybe if you know the code colours in bands on the bars, they might have a set to sell you or give you.
I think a phone call might just Peee him off but a trip there MIGHT be favorable if they were not distracted. Depends where you are of course and whether the bits are available to order. The actual torsion bars are in sets according to springiness and fit in a machined groove in sets of however for the weight of the axle four holes and they slide in and secured.
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Ed has long since had his axle overhauled. I trust he won't need to pursue this option!
 
Every design looks good on paper but in the real world things are never that simple. On a Swift Habitation Check they don’t crawl underneath and grease the back axle. On a Fiat Service they only do the Fiat part so the greasing of the back axle is left to the owner. There must be any number of vehicles out there that have never seen any grease. I for one didn’t find out about greasing until we had used the MH for a couple of years.

I wonder when they design the axles if they take into consideration that the MH is going to be fully loaded most of its life and with the vast number of people who have never heard of a weigh bridge overloaded.

We have the simple leaf springs on our Laika. Two leaves on each side with a nylon disc between the leaves. When loaded I can still see daylight between the spring and the spring assistor. As for ride it’s not bad. It’s not like a formula 1 racing car and I do go round roundabouts slowly but it all works and is easy to fix as it all comes from the same place Fiat.
 
In my case (A class Weinsberg Komet) Alko Axle

The grease nipples are not manufactured in the correct place and, in addition, when the fresh and waste water tanks are fitted, they mask those grease nipples, so bad on both counts.

Fraser Brown Engineering, in addition to totally rebuilding the rear axle, also relocate the grease nipples to a more effective place(s) and also will add extensions to a more accessible place, so periodic re-greasing can be carried out much more easily.

AL-KO Axle Repair and reconditioning

This link, to their website has a great video of the process and folk can always email or call the F B Team with any questions.

Enjoy

:egg:
 
My axle was removed yesterday and picked up by TNT today.

All being well it will be returned on Monday and reinstalled Tuesday ...
 
Must be something to do with all these dirt tracks you keep going down looking for places to wild camp :scared: .. Does seem to be a bit of a design problem with these axles. Wonder how many others have just had a new one fitted by their Dealer at great expense.
 
An update ...

The axle took longer to return than anticipated. TNT now only offer a two-day service to and from the Highlands, so it returned late on Wednesday afternoon, too late to start reinstalling.

By the end of Thursday the axle was back in place with the remote greasing option fitted on Friday morning.

There was one hiatus. On Monday afternoon a recheck of the shock absorbers proved them to be knackered.

So the hunt was on to find the hard-to-obtain proprietary Al-Ko shocks!

More info on this process can be read here:

ALKO Black Shock Absorbers Torque Setting.

I am now back on the road with refurbed axle, new shocks, new discs and pads ... And a much lighter bank balance to the tune of about £2,500.

Fraser Brown were great to deal with and I recommend them highly to anyone faced with this situation.

Don't underestimate how much work it takes to remove and refit the axle. My excellent local garage billed me for 15 hours labour but say it took 18 hours. I was present whilst the work was done and can confirm that it takes a long time!
 
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