I remember a story posted on this forum in 2010 about a Heartlander travelling along the Oregon coast on US 101. Well, they had one of their springs break (probably due to poor Chinese steel in the springs) North of Tillamook, Oregon. They chained up their broken axle and limped into Tillamook, and the Les Schwab store there. As I remember it the Les Schwab folks made most of the arrangements with Lippert to get new springs airfreighted out, set up the 5th wheel RV behind the tire store with 15 amp electricity and water, and got the 5er rolling again in a couple of days at a nominal price.
The Les Schwab tire delivery trucks that deliver the tires to the stores from the warehouses have this motto on the back: "IF WE CAN'T GUARANTEE IT WE WON'T SELL IT".
When we had complete axle and spring failure, along with a wheel bearing burn out on our previous 2013 Heartland Trail Runner in Phoenix, AZ last year (January 2015), we wound up having a $1000 band aid repair to get us home as we were told it would take at least a week to get a new axle shipped from Elkhart to Phoenix.
I will say that I give a heads up to Sun City RV in Mesa, AZ as they set us up next door to them for the night and took us in at 8 a.m. the next morning, and had us on our way to the 2015 Quartzite/Brenda HOC Rally by 6:00 p.m the next day!
Here we are next door (look closely at the leaning front door side tire on the trailer - wheel bearing burned out) . . .
And then on our way at 6:00 p.m. the next day to the 2015 Arizona HOC Quartzite Rally at Brenda, AZ (notice how low the tires are to the frame of the trailer):
Basically, it was discovered that the axles from the factory were underated for this trailer and the weight of the Trail Runner (1000 pounds more than the axles were rated for) completely empty was making the Trail Runner bottom out on the tires, causing damage to the floor of the trailer and the slide out. (I have pics if requested)
As much as we loved our Trail Runner . . . that trip to the Arizona HOC Rally was the beginning of the end of that Trail Runner for us . . .
As much as we love our new 2015 Heartland Prowler 5th-wheeler . . . we do miss that Trail Runner for the many reasons that we bought it in the first place.
Turned out to be a nearly $4000 repair (not including the $1000 band aid fix in Phoenix), although I will say that Lippert and Heartland did kick in about half of the repair bill.
All that being said . . . it seems that the powers that be dictated to us a 5th-wheeler upgrade!
And so far . . . we love it!