Check Ford F-53 sway bar mounts!

[AquaMan]

I dewinterized 2 2016 364TS Georgetowns today and both had a missing bolt in the rear sway bar mounts. I had already replaced one of mine while out west 2 years ago and had checked them when I added the Roadmaster sway bars last spring. Both were missing the lower bolt on the passenger side. Checking these are part of my typical maintenance routine and it should be part of yours!

[HONDAMAN174]

Isn’t the lower bolt the one that goes thru the link?

[AquaMan]

These are the bolts that go through the bracket the mounts the bar to the axle. I’ve lost a top bolt and a bottom bolt.

[jfp2673]

Another good tip is while your checking them to remove them and coat the bolts with blue threadlocker. I found one rear bolt missing last month and removed all of them and coated them with threadlocker. That should solve the problem.

[HONDAMAN174]

Ah..I see. Thanks for photo

[Jim G]

Good advice, mine did the same thing twice, once on both sides.
One time the nut completely stripped from the bolt and the other they broke off.
I fixed mine with some treated bolts I got from John Deere and later took the RV to a Ford dealership to get oem bolts.
The service manager suggested we keep the John Deere bolts on the unit because they are better than the ones Ford uses.
This has been going on for many years, wonder why Ford does not use hardened bolts ?

[alsdas88]

Cost. It would cost probably .20c per unit made to use the correct hardware.

[bareftn]

Looks like a job for grade 9 Bolts

[reddiver]

Looks like the bushing is missing too. I just had the bushings replaced in my F-53 chassis. They do wear out. Anyway, great photos.

[AquaMan]

Originally Posted by reddiver

Looks like the bushing is missing too. I just had the bushings replaced in my F-53 chassis. They do wear out. Anyway, great photos.

The bushings are still there, just pushed off to the side.

[sherman12]

Great tip and pics!. Just moved my rig to my driveway yesterday awaiting Spring. Definitely something to check too. Thanks.

[pmsherman]

If I'm remembering correctly, there was a problem with those bolts and Ford was replacing the brackets and bolts. I believe it was a safety recall. Unfortunately, for me, it occurred long after mine broke and I ended up paying for much more than just the brackets.

Phil

[270S]

Originally Posted by AquaMan

These are the bolts that go through the bracket the mounts the bar to the axle. I’ve lost a top bolt and a bottom bolt.Attachment 167912Attachment 167913

Interesting!!! As they say, Location, location, location

I looked at my bolts, but it became apparent to me that your bracket appears to "block" the nut access to the bottom bolt. If I had to guess knowing the lousy workmanship at FR, if the nut is difficult to access, it more likely than not will be skipped or overlooked (if being kind)!

On my 270 the bracket used/designed completely different. The lower portion of the bracket where your rear roll bar is attached is where both of our rear shocks are attached, but on my axle there is another bracket just for the roll bar welded onto the rear axle. It is open, up and back a little vs underneath and enclosed. It allows for access enabling a wrench or some tool to hold the nut while assembly tightening.

My roll bar is level/parallel with the axle vs below. General purpose does everything means it does everything poorly, nothing exactly right.

I suspect that F53s with the extra bracket will not have the problem. This may be tied into the various wt ratings of the F53 chassis 18K, 20K, 23K, ... Mine is the 18K.

As an OEM, I pay attention and notice details, not to mention design failure out as much as possible, unlike the entire RV industry - ____!

Watch (completed in a few weeks) for my MC/Scooter Chassis attached behind Rear End Cap "Platform" I already designed machined and fabricated a rear spare. Both will be fully functional and non interfering with each other. Pics of spare from another earlier thread.

[bubbles]

On my 2012 GT 378 the nuts were swaged to the bracket and the swaging failed which allowed the nuts to back off and bolts to drop out. Good for production but bad for a real world application as is evidenced by the number of failures.

[270S]

Originally Posted by bubbles

On my 2012 GT 378 the nuts were swaged to the bracket and the swaging failed which allowed the nuts to back off and bolts to drop out. Good for production but bad for a real world application as is evidenced by the number of failures.

The swaging is only for the initial contact during assembly or R&R. The swaging is because a wrench is unable to access the nut. It would only come loose if the bolt was not initially tightened according to specs of the nut came off during assembly and no one noticed. Hmm, what are the odds - I'll be generous, 99%.

[AquaMan]

Must remember this is not a FR issue, this is all on Ford. Although it doesn’t look like it, the lower nut is accessible through an opening cut in to the other side.

[Grampy Dan]

On our 2014 Georgetown 328 I found the bracket broken on the passenger side. Broke on bend on the bottom side. Top bolt was loose and had to cut bottom one off as it was a locking bolt.
Got new bracket from Ford dealer and installed myself. Cost $55.00

[AquaMan]

Originally Posted by Grampy Dan

On our 2014 Georgetown 328 I found the bracket broken on the passenger side. Broke on bend on the bottom side. Top bolt was loose and had to cut bottom one off as it was a locking bolt.
Got new bracket from Ford dealer and installed myself. Cost $55.00

It's not a hard job to do. I've done it in the parking lot of truck stop and at my shop. Both times, I've had to beat the bracket back into shape. A small 3lb hammer helps. If you find yourself roadside, I've learned you can bolt the bracket on upside down and beat it back into shape.

[sherman12]

Another example of why the drive able RV industry should be excited with Freightliner coming out with their proprietary front engine gas chassis and big block V8 later this year, probably for the 2019 model year. Ford hasn't had any competition for some time now and nothing like competition to make a manufacturer sharpen their pencil, especially if Freightliner markets their chassis engine combo to commercial truck builders.