captain Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 Hi, I am having the worst experience ever trying to get a warranty issue resolved with my new Hobby motorhome, that being the drive of the vehicle is not as it should be with vibrations through the ford transmission, which despite 14 trips to 4 ford dealers is still there and Ford have declared there is nothing they can do it must be the design of the vehicle which is causing it. Hobby are impossible to deal with and are rude on the phone and email. ES Hartley my supplying dealer are the pits as they just abandon you until you appoint a solicitor. Also the extras fitted to the van have been re-fitted as that was appalling too its extremely negligent and out of order IMO. just wondered if others found this to be true ? do you run a shame them column ??? is there an historical transmission issue with ford anyone is aware of ??? Paul http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/images/emoticons/icon_sad.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 What model is it and how long have you owned it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 What model is it and how long have you owned it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 Can you explain the nature of these vibrations, and when they arise? It seems the Ford dealers either cannot detect the vibrations, cannot trace their origin, or consider them normal. Can you say which? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 captain - 2012-08-29 2:50 PM ...is there an historical transmission issue with ford anyone is aware of ??? Earlier versions of the Hobby "Van" were built on a Ford Transit Mk 7 chassis with a 5-speed gearbox. This transmission's 1st and reverse gear ratios were high, making starting from rest and steep-hill starts tricky. Certainly, when attempting to reverse slowly up a slope, the high reverse gearing could result in serious vibration and potential clutch damage. Your "Van" will have a 6-speed gearbox however, with significantly lower 1st and reverse ratios, and, as far as I'm aware, vibration problems are not a known characteristic of Transit Mk 7 front-wheel drive vehicles with the 6-speed transmission. I'm not sure if it will help, but it would still be worth knowing which version of "Van" you have. I can't remember what descriptors Hobby used for Ford-based "Vans" for 2012 (I assume yours is a 2012 model-year vehicle), but there would have been versions 5.99m long with a rear transverse bed, plus 6.75m long models with two rear single beds set lengthways. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 captain - 2012-08-29 2:50 PM is there an historical transmission issue with ford anyone is aware of ??? Paul http://www.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/images/emoticons/icon_sad.gif Not with my 1990 Transit camper................but with my 1999 Transit works van I had the semi auto box which was a complete box of bo****k's *-)........... Have you tried Ford customer service yet?.................Don't hold your breath expecting customer service........ as your'll probably die from asphyxiation >:-( Progress Eh? *-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rolandrat Posted August 29, 2012 Share Posted August 29, 2012 There are numerous Ford Transit derived motorhomes on the road, I wonder if there are other owners that have experienced vibration problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 rolandrat - 2012-08-29 9:07 PM There are numerous Ford Transit derived motorhomes on the road, I wonder if there are other owners that have experienced vibration problems. As far as I'm aware all Ford Transit-based Hobby "Van"s (including the most recent models) have been based on a Mk 7 FWD platform-cab chassis, either with a medium (3.30m) or long (3.75m) wheelbase. This chassis is essentially a Transit panel-van shorn of its roof, sides and rear. Although a good few motorhome manufacturers (CI, Chausson/Challenger, Tribute, Hymer, Hobby, Eura Mobil, Westfalia, Rimor, Benimar, Dethleffs, etc.) have employed this type of Ford chassis over the years, the number of motorhomes produced will have been relatively low compared to the number of panel-vans that have been sold. Given the nature of a front-wheel drive chassis, where all the 'gubbins' that one might expect to cause vibration are concentrated as a compact package in the vehicle's nose, there's every reason to anticipate that any vibration problem endemic in motorhomes constructed on this chassis would be equally recognised in their Transit panel-van cousins (and vice versa). If there were known vibration problems with Transit Mk 7 FWD chassis, the obvious place to look for evidence of this would be the Ford Transit forum and, although there are vibration-related postings, none of these relate to NEW vehicles like Paul's. Similarly, GOOGLEing produces nothing relevant to Paul's stated transmission-related problem. Ford's claims for the latest Euro 5 FWD Transit include reductions in vibration, noise and harshness and a revised gearbox optimised for pulling away, towing, and high speed cruising. So, in principle, the latest FWD Transit chassis should provide a better basis for a motorhome than its predecessors. It's difficult to understand how transmission vibrations can be blamed on a motorhome converter. It might be argued that gear ratios suitable for a commercial panel-van could be unsuitable for a 3500kg motorhome and, in fact, I've always suggested that the 1st and reverse ratios of the 5-speed gearbox fitted to the FWD Transit Mk 6 and Mk 7 were 'wrong' for a biggish motorhome. But one would not expect this to be the case with the latest 6-speed FWD Transit. Brian Kirby has asked Paul for more feedback regarding the vibration and the Ford dealers' diagnosis. Until Paul replies there doesn't seem to be much point in crystal-ball gazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 For the record my van (very similar to yours one assumes) is on tranny mk7 and as derek points out has a very low 1st gear, not experienced any such problems in 3yrs of ownership and cant really come up with any ideas. Exactly when are you experiencing this vibration, on setting off or when cruising etc etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 ips - 2012-08-30 12:41 PM ...Exactly when are you experiencing this vibration, on setting off or when cruising etc etc Andrew and Rona Bromley's July 2012 MMM report on a Tribute T-715 mentioned apparent changes to the 5th and 6th gear ratios of the transmission fitted to the Euro 5 motor of that Ford Transit-based FWD motorhome, with 5th and 6th being higher than the superseded Euro 4 version. Andrew quoted around 1600rpm in 6th equating to 60mph and around 1900rpm equating to 70mph. Allowing for some speedometer optimism, that's still going to be around 35mph per 1000rpm and, with (according to the MMM report) the Euro 5 motor being no ball of fire below 1800rpm, attempting to accelerate much under 60mph in 6th may well provoke harshness/vibration from the transmission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ips Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 True ... My euro 4 (I think its euro 4 anyway) does 62mph at 2000rpm so big difference in new ratio. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davoscar Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 We need more information here to hazard any opinion. Is it a new Van?I have a Hobby Van FSC500 (2011 model) and have no such problems as are mentione here. In fact I have a piece in the September MMM describing our experience with the Van for 20 months or so over about 5500 miles - no complaints at all of this nature! A little mistified... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 Suggest we wait for the cap'n to return! Note that he refers to a "Hobby van", and not a "Hobby Van", which leads me to suppose that the van may not be a Van, but a different model Transit based Hobby motorhome, as yet unspecified. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onecal Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 Hi all,Has anyone come on this post on other forum's?Regards,Brendan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 onecal - 2012-08-31 11:24 AM Hi all,Has anyone come on this post on other forum's?Regards,Brendan When Paul posted originally I did wonder if he might have copied his posting elsewhere, but I could not (and still cannot) find that this took place. Usually, when people post about the same issue on several forums, a straight copy of the text is used each time. Consequently, if the phrase "14 trips to 4 ford dealers" appears on one forum, it's quite likely that it will also appear on the others. GOOGLE will normally pick up multiples, but in this case only the O&AL entry shows up. The reason I occasionally check if multiple forums have been posted to is not because I care if a posting is unique to this forum or all over the internet, but it's sometimes the case that a posting that interests me will 'die' on this forum (which is the only motorhome-related one in which I participate) but be progressed on another forum. Just curiosity really... (Given your question, have you seen Paul's posting on another forum?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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