Just wanted to throw this out there, anybody got one of these on your tractor and having trouble with it sticking due to gunk and junk getting in the cylinder and causing locking and unlocking problems. I have been told by the shop that there is problems with these but funny thing is I have'nt seen a memo too warn the drivers of this issue. Just curios about this??
FedEx Freight | Auto release 5th wheels?
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chitownpeddler
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One of our drivers hurt his shoulder trying to get one of these 5th wheels to release. He went in and filled out an injury report and they made his write a statement on what he is going to do to prevent this injury from happening again. We had 3 tractors so far that had the same problem. Funny thing was no one told us they were having problems. Then a guy gets hurt and they told him it was his responsibility to make sure the 5th wheel is well lubricated.
As soon as an issue is found wouldn't make sense to let everyone know about it????
As soon as an issue is found wouldn't make sense to let everyone know about it????
In TOL our ops manager posted an e-mail from the shop manager and it said that hro is aware of the problem and just double check to make sure jaws are locked and handle is in locked position and as soon as there is a problem take to the shop and they will fix it
Trailer Trash
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Here in the West we seem to have an issue with auto release fifth wheels every winter. It's refered to as an unplanned separation. Our fifth wheels get full of junk and don't fully close. The driver, not having fully performed a pre-trip inspection, pulls out of the yard and onto the local freeway where the fifth wheel automaticly releases.
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frt hauler
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i think if you go to your shop they put something into that plunger to get rid of the gunk or when fueling give the fifth wheel plunger a splash
accelerator
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As far as I am concearned, auto release should not even be on any truck for that reason alone.Chargeable !
Anything automatic is destined for problems. It should be the shop's responsibility too check the damn things on a regular basis. After all this is the reason for mechanics, is to tell drivers how stupid they are.....
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I have only used them a few times in some of our new equipment and have felt somewhat uneasy about them.
accelerator
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I cannot say's I blame you... I would feel just as uneasy....
I'm not sure why we are calling these "Automatic Release", they are air operated (and can be manually as well). Remote release would be a better description, there's nothing automatic about the whole system.
For those unfamiliar, you have to have the tractor's parking brake set, flip a switch on the dash to unlock it, then pull the button on the dash to release the 5th wheel. An air ram just like in a mule release the 5th wheel, but only if you do this in the right order.
As far as unplanned separations go, they happen with all kinds of 5th wheels when you don't properly inspect them in the winter. I know of 4 happening in KCY in the last several years before we had the remote release 5th wheels at all.
roog
For those unfamiliar, you have to have the tractor's parking brake set, flip a switch on the dash to unlock it, then pull the button on the dash to release the 5th wheel. An air ram just like in a mule release the 5th wheel, but only if you do this in the right order.
As far as unplanned separations go, they happen with all kinds of 5th wheels when you don't properly inspect them in the winter. I know of 4 happening in KCY in the last several years before we had the remote release 5th wheels at all.
roog
accelerator
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I misunderstood, sorry I thought it was a bit more complex, I guess it would'nt be so bad after all.
5th wheel
I have been using one for over a year and love it. The only problem I have is when we have extreme cold and I have to pull manually. I have never heard of an issue other than driver error of not taking a flashlight and checking underneath where the 5th wheel has let go after your tractor brakes are released. "IF ANYONE ELSE HAS PLEASE LET ME KNOW"
I have been using one for over a year and love it. The only problem I have is when we have extreme cold and I have to pull manually. I have never heard of an issue other than driver error of not taking a flashlight and checking underneath where the 5th wheel has let go after your tractor brakes are released. "IF ANYONE ELSE HAS PLEASE LET ME KNOW"
Remove
Here in CLE we have at least 6 tractors that they removed the cylinder. They are replacing them. NOW I don't know if it is just another junk cylinder or replacing it with a new brand. When the cylinder is removed, it is easier to pull on the handle then with it on.
But HRO not putting out a safety memo is ridiculous. We had problems with the cracks in the frames of the trailers and no memo. I get charged with an accident because some driver decided to drive behind me while I was hooking up which is against company policy and he wasn't even written up. Our safety department is a joke. BUT let someone get filmed having an accident and making the national news and watch how they react.
Here in CLE we have at least 6 tractors that they removed the cylinder. They are replacing them. NOW I don't know if it is just another junk cylinder or replacing it with a new brand. When the cylinder is removed, it is easier to pull on the handle then with it on.
But HRO not putting out a safety memo is ridiculous. We had problems with the cracks in the frames of the trailers and no memo. I get charged with an accident because some driver decided to drive behind me while I was hooking up which is against company policy and he wasn't even written up. Our safety department is a joke. BUT let someone get filmed having an accident and making the national news and watch how they react.
The problem I had was mine would not latch. The bad cylinder did not let the handle go all the way in. Shop instructed me to pound the handle in. I told them to pound salt and bob tailed in without doing the switch that was dispatched to me. You may be able to take chances with some issues, but a fifth wheel IS NOT ONE OF THEM!!! They replaced the cylinder, but how long will this one last? The tractor is only 6 months old! Will replacing these things every 3 months or so become part of preventive maintenance?
Jumpy is correct, we have had at least half a dozen or so of these fifth wheels experience problems. One guy dropped a trailer while pulling from the dock, came back preventable! This truck had been written up more than once for the fifth wheel, but shop kept sending it back out there! What a joke!
Bottom line is...if the handle does not slide in on its own, you better drop out, take the truck to the shop and grab another piece of equipment. It is your rear end when you drop a trailer. Even worse, what happens if it doesn't drop until you are going 60 MPH down the highway and the trailer kills somebody? How does jail time sound? I don't think so...put it out of service!
Jumpy is correct, we have had at least half a dozen or so of these fifth wheels experience problems. One guy dropped a trailer while pulling from the dock, came back preventable! This truck had been written up more than once for the fifth wheel, but shop kept sending it back out there! What a joke!
Bottom line is...if the handle does not slide in on its own, you better drop out, take the truck to the shop and grab another piece of equipment. It is your rear end when you drop a trailer. Even worse, what happens if it doesn't drop until you are going 60 MPH down the highway and the trailer kills somebody? How does jail time sound? I don't think so...put it out of service!
HiwayHombre
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Yellow has been using auto releasers since '97. They don't always work (weather, bad cylinder or unhooked) when they're supposed to, but I've never had one release and drop a trailer. I have caught bent handles that prevented a good hook during my pre-trip. Or, the Hostler powering a set and trying to hook it high (trailer too high). But I've never had a bad hook because of the auto release.
i don't use one but a couple of the drivers at my center do and when they are not working properly our mechanics do the half *** job that they have been known to do and just unhook the auto part of it.why bother fixing it fx only paid extra money for that option plus we wouldn't want the mechanics to get there hands dirty or actually fix something
R
Ranger309
Guest
Check that hook up!
We have these on most of our line haul units.
They are pretty reliable, IMO, but no matter we have to remember to check the pin.
I had a unit I ran daily that had a bad 5th wheel, and I used to pop the clutch on that rig so hard it used to stall the motor, to make sure it was not going to let go.
Why? Because that dirty rotten SOB let go as I was leaving a customers yard on a local street, and the shop never did fix it right.
It kept right on unhitching unless you made sure it was tight at the start.
BTW this was not an air-assisted 5th wheel like we have at Rdwy.
We have these on most of our line haul units.
They are pretty reliable, IMO, but no matter we have to remember to check the pin.
I had a unit I ran daily that had a bad 5th wheel, and I used to pop the clutch on that rig so hard it used to stall the motor, to make sure it was not going to let go.
Why? Because that dirty rotten SOB let go as I was leaving a customers yard on a local street, and the shop never did fix it right.
It kept right on unhitching unless you made sure it was tight at the start.
BTW this was not an air-assisted 5th wheel like we have at Rdwy.
I don't drive one but from what I hear from drivers who have them, they'd trade the auto/remote fifth wheel for an extra fuel tank. Fueling everyday is a pain.
For some, the trucks are fueled twice a day. On longer routes the city driver has to fuel to run his 200+ mile peddle route then it has to be fueled in the evening for or by the road driver.
Basicly you're fueling twice as many times as before. What are we talkin'? Five dollars pay each time it's fueled? Over the lifetime of that truck, that's a lot of money shelled out for fueling. You would think it would have been cheaper in the long run to order the extra tank vs paying all the extra time for fueling.