I am writing this account as a warning to those who have had an E&P levelling system fitted by Solar Solutions of Sturminster Marshall in Dorset. It would be a very good idea to get your system independently checked.
In September 2019 Solar Solutions fitted an E&P levelling system to my motorhome. In August 2020 one of the rear rams started to drop by itself, so I took the van back to Solar Solutions under warranty and they replaced the faulty ram. They mentioned that they had had a few of these rams fail (more on this particular subject later). In October 2020, while in Italy, one of the crimped hose
joints failed spilling hydraulic oil everywhere. We were now getting rather concerned about the system - and the nearest E&P agent was over 500km away. By this time I had already lost confidence in Solar Solutions due to a problem with the Alugas system that they also installed, together with the fiasco that ensued when they attempted to organise a repair to the satellite dish. However, I will not go into further details of those issues here - they are mentioned only as
justification for seeking help and advice elsewhere.
My partner maz suggested phoning Mick at SAP in Doncaster for advice. I had already been
told off for not getting the levellers installed by him in the first place. Not all E&P installers are created equal, as I have found out the hard way. I posted a thread on Fun at the time detailing Mick’s exceptional efforts to help. In a nutshell, he found us a local garage who were able to do the repair that same afternoon. Brilliant!
Fast forward to April this year when we returned to the UK. While stuck in isolation playing around with Day 2 and Day 8 tests, I phoned Mick to make an appointment to have the levelling system checked, and in early May we arrived in Doncaster. By this time, the other rear ram had started to
drop by itself! Mick gave the system a thorough inspection - every single crimp joint done by Solar Solutions was defective. The only good joints on the van were those done by the Italian garage. How can an authorised E&P installer fail so miserably to fit a system properly? We are not talking a one-off duff joint here, but every single one! Mick had to replace all the hoses as well as
the second defective ram. He confirmed that there was a known issue with a batch of rams being badly machined so that they would leak oil over time. This second failing rear ram was one of that bad batch; the front rams were from a different batch and not problematic. Solar Solutions agreed to pay for the remedial work that Mick carried out, so that was a good thing. However, how many vans have Solar Solutions fitted E&P levellers to in the same defective manner? We fulltime and so our levellers get considerably more use than on most motorhomes. This is no doubt why we have become aware of the issue in a relatively short time - and within the 2-year warranty period. These defective joints will become problematic over time - as will the defective batch of rams.
The defective joints issue is solely down to Solar Solutions. They need to recall all the vans to which they fitted E&P levellers and inspect each and every joint. At this point I would like to draw attention to the fact that Solar Solutions did not notice the joints were defective when they replaced the first failing ram, nor when they topped up the pump reservoir. The defective rams issue is down to E&P themselves. They knew they had supplied a bad batch, yet they did nothing to correct the issue until each ram actually failed. They too should organise a recall of all vans fitted with these defective rams.
In September 2019 Solar Solutions fitted an E&P levelling system to my motorhome. In August 2020 one of the rear rams started to drop by itself, so I took the van back to Solar Solutions under warranty and they replaced the faulty ram. They mentioned that they had had a few of these rams fail (more on this particular subject later). In October 2020, while in Italy, one of the crimped hose
joints failed spilling hydraulic oil everywhere. We were now getting rather concerned about the system - and the nearest E&P agent was over 500km away. By this time I had already lost confidence in Solar Solutions due to a problem with the Alugas system that they also installed, together with the fiasco that ensued when they attempted to organise a repair to the satellite dish. However, I will not go into further details of those issues here - they are mentioned only as
justification for seeking help and advice elsewhere.
My partner maz suggested phoning Mick at SAP in Doncaster for advice. I had already been
told off for not getting the levellers installed by him in the first place. Not all E&P installers are created equal, as I have found out the hard way. I posted a thread on Fun at the time detailing Mick’s exceptional efforts to help. In a nutshell, he found us a local garage who were able to do the repair that same afternoon. Brilliant!
Fast forward to April this year when we returned to the UK. While stuck in isolation playing around with Day 2 and Day 8 tests, I phoned Mick to make an appointment to have the levelling system checked, and in early May we arrived in Doncaster. By this time, the other rear ram had started to
drop by itself! Mick gave the system a thorough inspection - every single crimp joint done by Solar Solutions was defective. The only good joints on the van were those done by the Italian garage. How can an authorised E&P installer fail so miserably to fit a system properly? We are not talking a one-off duff joint here, but every single one! Mick had to replace all the hoses as well as
the second defective ram. He confirmed that there was a known issue with a batch of rams being badly machined so that they would leak oil over time. This second failing rear ram was one of that bad batch; the front rams were from a different batch and not problematic. Solar Solutions agreed to pay for the remedial work that Mick carried out, so that was a good thing. However, how many vans have Solar Solutions fitted E&P levellers to in the same defective manner? We fulltime and so our levellers get considerably more use than on most motorhomes. This is no doubt why we have become aware of the issue in a relatively short time - and within the 2-year warranty period. These defective joints will become problematic over time - as will the defective batch of rams.
The defective joints issue is solely down to Solar Solutions. They need to recall all the vans to which they fitted E&P levellers and inspect each and every joint. At this point I would like to draw attention to the fact that Solar Solutions did not notice the joints were defective when they replaced the first failing ram, nor when they topped up the pump reservoir. The defective rams issue is down to E&P themselves. They knew they had supplied a bad batch, yet they did nothing to correct the issue until each ram actually failed. They too should organise a recall of all vans fitted with these defective rams.
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