Dropdown bed woes - unscheduled deployment

[Eurohomer]

I'm not sure whether it is related to adding a mattress topper and bedding, or clipping a kerb with a front wheel, but our drop down bed has developed a habit of dropping whilst driving. We have a A class Carthago 4.9.

Looking at the mechanism, there doesn't seem to be much to adjust:

There is a locating pin behind the guide plate (2), which drops into the white nylon block (1). There is a gas strut (3), but I don't think it has anything to do with locking the bed in position. The block (1) is on a plate that is bolted to the frame, this can move sideways at bit. This seems to be the only adjustable available.

The depth of the locating pin (1) doesn't seem to be adjustable. The nut on the rear (2) is to adjust the release cable tension. It has a little slack on both sides, so is not pulling on the pin when the bed is in the up position.

The extension of the locating pin is the same as the depth of the hole in the white nylon block, on the other side the extension of the pin is 9mm, so nothing much in it.

Am I missing something? Is there anything else to adjust, or that can be done? The white nylon blocks have a little wear, where the pin drops into them. Would replacing these make a significant different difference?

Is it practical to shim the back of these blocks?

All suggestions welcome.

Thanks, Ian

 

[buzz1]

The trouble is there so many different model and all seem be slightly different controllers,
Im sure you have tried removing the mattress topper that newly installed,
Maybe it’s stopping it reaching the top , or obscured a sensor , as some drop down beds have sensors etc .
Sorry not much .
Good luck

 

[Brains]

I think I'd be installing a very short seat belt, to ensure it could not drop on the driver unexpectedly.

 

[LostInSpace]

Does the bed not have a strap to fasten it up?

EDIUT: As a Hymer owner, I have just had to look it up
The answer appears to be No. - you have to be very careful with weight that is added to the Carthago drop down bed.

 

[Jake Royd]

Just a guess.
If I understand correctly.
You've added thickness and weight to the mattress.
This prevents the pin locating correctly in the white nylon block.
So it's not locked in the up position properly?
Is it possible to check this , visually , with the bed up?

 

[LenaTimes]

I'm not sure whether it is related to adding a mattress topper and bedding, or clipping a kerb with a front wheel, but our drop down bed has developed a habit of dropping whilst driving. We have a A class Carthago 4.9.

Looking at the mechanism, there doesn't seem to be much to adjust:
View attachment 1247480
There is a locating pin behind the guide plate (2), which drops into the white nylon block (1). There is a gas strut (3), but I don't think it has anything to do with locking the bed in position. The block (1) is on a plate that is bolted to the frame, this can move sideways at bit. This seems to be the only adjustable available.

View attachment 1247482
The depth of the locating pin (1) doesn't seem to be adjustable. The nut on the rear (2) is to adjust the release cable tension. It has a little slack on both sides, so is not pulling on the pin when the bed is in the up position.

View attachment 1247486
View attachment 1247485

The extension of the locating pin is the same as the depth of the hole in the white nylon block, on the other side the extension of the pin is 9mm, so nothing much in it.

Am I missing something? Is there anything else to adjust, or that can be done? The white nylon blocks have a little wear, where the pin drops into them. Would replacing these make a significant different difference?
View attachment 1247492
Is it practical to shim the back of these blocks?

All suggestions welcome.

Thanks, Ian

View attachment 1247490

We had a problem with the drop down bed 18 months ago in Spain when the technician had to raise/lower the bed several times to trace and rectify a wiring fault in the bed lights. The bed would raise to notch 2 or 3 and then suddenly drop like a stone; no fault showing, and the garage spent a further 3-4 hours trying to find why the erratic behaviour occurred. In the end, they managed to get the bed to go to ceiling height, and kicked us out before the problem returned.
We drove to the nearest aire, about 35 miles away, and the bed operated perfectly, and at a greater speed than it had in the workshop. The Leisure Battery had been hammered with the repetitive raising/lowering (probably 1 month's worth!) during the wiring work, and the drive was just enough to replenish the SOC. No further problems since

 

[Eurohomer]

Just a guess.
If I understand correctly.
You've added thickness and weight to the mattress.
This prevents the pin locating correctly in the white nylon block.
So it's not locked in the up position properly?
Is it possible to check this , visually , with the bed up?

I believe that it does lock properly, there are two distinct clicks, one each side, and I can hang from it.

It's bumps in the road, even joins between sections of Autobahn that cause it to drop. So I'm guessing that some lateral movement allows a pin to drop out of the white block. Once one pin is out, the other follows shortly after.

Thanks, Ian

Just for clarity, for others, there is no motor or sensors. A simple twist control pulls the two release wires to retract the pins and allow the bed to lower.

 

[donkey]

Is there enough side to side movement for one of the pins to disengage? Can you replicate this by hand? I suspect there is. Perhaps shim behind the white blocks.

Geoff

 

[Pie]

The pin engagement looks quite substantial, and is probably not the issue if you can hang off it. Has the bed developed any side to side play in the mechanism which could allow the pins to disengage? Maybe hang of it and swing a bit from side to side, check all pivots and anchorages are tight.

Also maybe remove the locking pins, give them a good clean and a bit of lube on pins and block, maybe they are just sticking and not dropping fully home.

 

[Eurohomer]

An update on this. I adjusted the plate with the white nylon block in as far as I could, with bed still raising up. There is no discernible sideways movement in the bed.

I have since been driving for a month in Poland and Lithuania, where the road surfaces can sometimes be questionable. I have had no further issues So I think that it is sorted.

I can only surmise that the nuts were not as tight as they could have been and me clipping the kerb put enough flex into the structure to allow a plate to move slightly.