dboller

Lon ... If you haven't addressed the ride issue yet you may want to consult with the folks at Source Engineering ... http://www.rv-chassis.com/products.html We were VERY pleased with the ride improvement resulting from the new trailing arms and ride improvement package. Regards, Dave B.

Won't spend but a moment regarding the ethical vacuum that must have existed at Monaco to allow this to happen ... too bad a class action would only further the frustration on the part of those impacted by this travesty. That said, our 2003 Holiday Rambler 34PST suffered a trailing arm failure and we were fortunate to notice as we were pulling out of Kitty Hawk, NC for our next destination along the Eastern seaboard this past Fall. Can't say for sure when the actual failure occurred but it sends a chill up my spine to contemplate the possible outcome from a loss of control as we previously navigated the gauntlet of construction in the DC area on our way down. Like so many of the other posts, I just happened to notice that the rear axle had shifted and announced to the family that 'we weren't moving another inch' until we had a mechanic out to inspect the cause, which, predictably, was a complete failure of one of the trailing arms. Having a vague recollection of an article in the FMCA magazine, I went online, did some research and ended up ordering the arms as well as the ride enhancement kit from Source Mfg. We were fortunate to connect with a great shop on Kitty Hawk -- ABC Towing http://abctowing.biz/ -- that did a great job at a VERY fair price. Upon inspecting the work I thought they'd salvaged those trailing arms off a Sherman tank -- talk about incredibly substantial vs. the OEM crap -- and then the drive back from the shop ... nothing short of incredible. Really pleased I went ahead and opted for the ride pkg ... although the wife probably misses the theme park ride she experienced previously ;-) A side story to all this was a friend [and fellow FMCA member] has a 2004 Monaco Knight. I alerted him to our adventure, suggesting his rig may very well be implicated. He just happened to have his coach at the shop for tires and requested they check it out ... turns out both arms were cracked so bad the shop opted for jacks instead of the lift for safety reasons! **Given what's happened, I'd really shy away from ANYTHING that Monaco would offer on this front -- other than a CASH SETTLEMENT! Thanks to all for the research and sharing on this forum ... Best wishes for SAFE and pleasurable travels!