equitrek- recall??

diggerbez

diggerbez

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i've heard on the grapevine that a load of equitrek show trekkas have been recalled because of the axle problems? does anyone know if this is true? also, does anyone have the number for andy tudor at VOSA who was investigating this? thanks :)
 
Hi, there has been a recall, have you received a letter yet? I received mine on Tuesday 10 may. It affects all two axle equitreks made in 2008. I do have andy tudor's number somewhere, if you still need it. Suse
 
Interesting, I met a lady last year who had a show treka and there had been an axel issue within a few weeks.

Although not sure I want one now as the BRC magazine interviewed a fireman who said that all issues they'd had with horses rearing and trying to escape trailers/lorries had been in rear facing ones, usually when travelled alone. Odd as research says they prefer to travel backwards or backwards herringbone.
 
Dizzle said:
Interesting, I met a lady last year who had a show treka and there had been an axel issue within a few weeks.

Although not sure I want one now as the BRC magazine interviewed a fireman who said that all issues they'd had with horses rearing and trying to escape trailers/lorries had been in rear facing ones, usually when travelled alone. Odd as research says they prefer to travel backwards or backwards herringbone.
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I hope this is not the case. All the jumping over the breast bar ones I have come accross were for the little 3.5t lorries with the day living at the back (I wont mention the makes)and the horse jumped through to that living space believing it to be an exit, getting wedged in the doorway as they have done it. The equitreks do not have any space just the door which looks like a window to a horse, so there is nothing to rear over to if you catch my drift! Never heard of such an accident with an Equitrek.
 
Dizzle said:
Interesting, I met a lady last year who had a show treka and there had been an axel issue within a few weeks.

Although not sure I want one now as the BRC magazine interviewed a fireman who said that all issues they'd had with horses rearing and trying to escape trailers/lorries had been in rear facing ones, usually when travelled alone. Odd as research says they prefer to travel backwards or backwards herringbone.
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I dont think this is the issue with the trailers just the toy lorrys which have a open area and a narrow door at the back so it's a horse trap!! they get over the wall and get stuck then you need a nice fireman to cut the back out of the lorry to free them... I think the problem with the equitrek is just that the wheels fall off sometimes otherwise they are fine....
 
lloyd said:
Not good news for someone like me who is looking to get one.....
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Also be aware a friend has taken back her new Trekka because of the floor moving under the horse. OH went underneath to see why and found that the floor was in two pieces, not a solid run and was just placed on the supporting beams of the chassis, there was no overlip to fasten it too and when friend walked in the trailer, the whole floor bent downwards and the OH could see daylight at the joins! If she had had a heavier horse, the weight would have taken it through the floor when it collapsed off that main beam. Very scary thought. Firm is investigating but doesn't seem to think they have done anything wrong in supplying a death trap for a horse and I'm not holding my breath it can be fixed as it is the materials have been so skimped on, there's nothing to fasten it to.:eek:
 
My friend has had the letter to say that they will replace the axle - it is only the larger Show Treka L which is affected and only between 07 and 08 (i think). She then phoned one of the dealers on the list to get it done and they had no idea what she was talking about but said they would look into it and get back to her.

There was an article about a horse that reared over the breast bar at the back of a equitrek and when the lady went to check on it by opening the back door it tried to get out and got stuck - but this could happen in any rear facing trailer and I have heard of horses trying to get out the grooms door in ifors !!

I have a space trekka M and I am really pleased with it - no issues but you do need to check over them as they are not always the best build quality !!
 
We have alwasy had Ifor's and tried and tested however they are not without there fault too.

Cant use the handbrake in any winter months as the drum breaks seize & The Partictons are far too light now , they used to be made out of steel and where solid however obvoisly in a bid to reduce weight the modern particions are like bloody lego.

Our problem is that we now have two stallions and when the first one is loaded in the Ifor the second stallion doesnt want to come up past the first's hind for fear of a kick. A side by side trailor would solve this problem but if not from Equi-trek then from who ?
 
lloyd said:
We have alwasy had Ifor's and tried and tested however they are not without there fault too.

Cant use the handbrake in any winter months as the drum breaks seize & The Partictons are far too light now , they used to be made out of steel and where solid however obvoisly in a bid to reduce weight the modern particions are like bloody lego.

Our problem is that we now have two stallions and when the first one is loaded in the Ifor the second stallion doesnt want to come up past the first's hind for fear of a kick. A side by side trailor would solve this problem but if not from Equi-trek then from who ?
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The only thing I dislike about Ifors is that they front unload into the road - how useless is that if you breakdown? On second thoughts so do Equitreks doh!!!
 
Apparantly my one is OK, as it was built in 09. To be fair I have used it a lot, and go out at least once a week, sometimes twice a week and I've not had any problems at all.

It always worries me though, when I read about some of the horrible and dangerous problems other people have had with theirs. My horses are the most precious things I own, so I couldn't bear to think I was putting them at risk. One of the reasons I chose it was because the research I did seemed to indicate these give them a more comfortable ride.
 
Depends which way you look at it , if you have to unload onto the road you can garentee that you will be able to get the horses out , if on the other hand you are in a built up area ie walls and buildings against the road or parked cars for instance , a narrow country road etc then there may not be the room to get the ramp down on the near side to unload.

Pros and Cons I guess. I can count on one hand how many times I have used the front door to unload , they reverse back out just as easy.
 
lloyd said:
Depends which way you look at it , if you have to unload onto the road you can garentee that you will be able to get the horses out , if on the other hand you are in a built up area ie walls and buildings against the road or parked cars for instance , a narrow country road etc then there may not be the room to get the ramp down on the near side to unload.

Pros and Cons I guess. I can count on one hand how many times I have used the front door to unload , they reverse back out just as easy.
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Very true. I only have one way out of my Equitrek!
 
YasandCrystal said:
The only thing I dislike about Ifors is that they front unload into the road - how useless is that if you breakdown? On second thoughts so do Equitreks doh!!!
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If buying an Ifor Williams from new you have the option of a left or right hand side front ramp.

I nearly bought an Equitrek but after talking to the only two people I know who have them I decided against it and bought an Ifor Williams 511. Both people I spoke to had axle problems one of which resulted in a blow out on the motorway.
 
I'm finding this thread very interesting. I had one of the first equitreks and had problems with the axle. Looking to change my current trailer, I went to see Equitek at Badminton and spoke to Tom (MD - I think), who assured me that he was not aware of any axle problems whatsoever. He kept repeating this even when we told him one of our friends axle had cracked a few weeks before and the trailer was with one of the dealers!!!
 
baggyb said:
I'm finding this thread very interesting. I had one of the first equitreks and had problems with the axle. Looking to change my current trailer, I went to see Equitek at Badminton and spoke to Tom (MD - I think), who assured me that he was not aware of any axle problems whatsoever. He kept repeating this even when we told him one of our friends axle had cracked a few weeks before and the trailer was with one of the dealers!!!
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yes this sounds familiar! i had an axle snap back in 2008 (bought trailer October 2007)- yes wheel did fall off when i was doing 40mph with a horse on! :mad:. Equitrek repaired FOC and then wouldn't give me an accident report- they were adamant that i had caused it by hitting a kerb :( anyway, i had to threaten to take them to court and eventually a report arrived that concluded 'probably' faulty axle. since then have read lots and lots of posts on various forums from people having had the same problem. But, since then trailer has been fine. however, when i took it for a service (at a place that used to supply Equitreks but no longer do- because of the axle issue) they told me there had been a recall. someone had already PM'd me on here to tell me- but i received no letter. so i rang Equitrek the day before the royal wedding. they told me there had been no recall (strange that some people have received recall letters?! ;)) and they would get back to me. still waiting for a call. in the meantime have been trying to get hold of Andy Tudor at VOSA (whose number i now have)- going to speak to him first before i ring Equitrek back.
i've maintained all along that i love the concept of the trailer. think it tows fab, horses love it, like having the extra space. but i cannot abide the rubbish customer service when things go wrong. i had been told they had improved...this experience is not convincing me.
 
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