What sort of chemicals carried? Corrosive?
I’ll bet it’s not WD40.
Dear oh dear. Somebody’s testicles will be chewed for that one.
Looks like it’s been like that for a while, although by the amount of grease on the fifth wheel, the trailer might have been disconnected recently. It would have trundled up and down the motorway quite happily, but the tight uphill bend has been too much for it, especially if the load ran to the back as it came round the corner and out she popped. Scary, but looks like everybody is going home in one piece.
Auto ‘boxes probably got something to do with it! [emoji849]
i am not sure about the auto box suggestion, we had various autos from 2005 on and if you read the user manual and understood the gearboxes capabilities they always did as asked, and asked is my point if it was just assumed the gearbox should know what it was supposed to be doing this usually failed especially on the tight hair pin bends in southern Germany, but with a bit of forward thinking you can ask the box to change when you want, or put up with the troubles of mid hill stops, i m not saying you do not know how to drive or anything of that sort but having double manned for many years all across Europe, some drivers do not understand the the limits of what the clutch and gearbox can do. not a rant just an observation.
Wow !
First time I’ve ever seen that happen.
Lack of periodic maintenance checks, manufacturer’s fault, or what?
Think I would of taken a wider radius. Cutting the corner and trying to get up the steepest part would of been a gamble with traction anyway…all the liquid would run to back and leave nothing over the drive axle.
hotel magnum:
i am not sure about the auto box suggestion, we had various autos from 2005 on and if you read the user manual and understood the gearboxes capabilities they always did as asked, and asked is my point if it was just assumed the gearbox should know what it was supposed to be doing this usually failed especially on the tight hair pin bends in southern Germany, but with a bit of forward thinking you can ask the box to change when you want, or put up with the troubles of mid hill stops, i m not saying you do not know how to drive or anything of that sort but having double manned for many years all across Europe, some drivers do not understand the the limits of what the clutch and gearbox can do. not a rant just an observation.
My point was (not made well admittedly) trying to pick up heavy trailers with autos invariably meant smacking into the pin way harder than intended. Every time it happened to me I was left wondering how much of that the pin could take before snapping off. I did have several MAN autos though so that probably didn’t help [emoji849]
Janos:
Think I would of taken a wider radius. Cutting the corner and trying to get up the steepest part would of been a gamble with traction anyway…all the liquid would run to back and leave nothing over the drive axle.
I don’t think the trailer would have been in that position when it broke free ■■ 
Regards John.
Perhaps, but all the markings on the road surface indicate otherwise.
Also, the fact that it is a tanker is pertinent. All the weight at the back of the trailer, the unit will at some point be exerting downward pressure on the pin, actually trying to pull the front of the trailer down, as gravity takes its toll…on the other hand, trailer.could be empty, and pin area was rusted to f**k and driver is a lead booted lunatic.
Janos:
Perhaps, but all the markings on the road surface indicate otherwise.
Also, the fact that it is a tanker is pertinent. All the weight at the back of the trailer, the unit will at some point be exerting downward pressure on the pin, actually trying to pull the front of the trailer down, as gravity takes its toll…on the other hand, trailer.could be empty, and pin area was rusted to f**k and driver is a lead booted lunatic.
Aye…I reckon your right there. 
Regards John.
only seen it once before,we had a loaded tanker in the yard,the driver backed under it and did the tug test and it came out with the pin and mount just like that. the plate was paper thin when we checked it,just wear on an old tanker. good luck that it happened where it did.
Maybe because it’s a tanker…
It’s subjected to highly corrosive cargoes and that, over time, has weakened the pin area? Looks corroded as hell.
Any way regardless of that, I’m still blaming the driver because anything else is breaking with tradition.
i will say that the early MAN auto i drove (pre 05) had the annoying habit that if you wanted a shunt whilst reversing it would just do nothing until you switched off the engine counted 30 and re started it, annoying all the other traffic,
Those Brenntag trailers will have been riven around behind any haulier, a barrel has 30 years life in it and an automatic box is centimetre perfect on a Volvo.
as i’ve posted before,this happened to me when i was on the tippers,around 11 years ago.apart from the occasional service,trailer stayed coupled up.mine come adrift as i was pulling away from the lights just before joining the M1 at J.14…so could have been worse!
Always had my doubts about those weird artic things. 
Great big drawbar turntable with a forth bridge type A frame and eye and pin
what’s not to like. 
nomiS36:
Auto ‘boxes probably got something to do with it! [emoji849]
I’ve seen auto boxes blamed for some ridiculous things but this takes the biscuit
switchlogic:
nomiS36:
Auto ‘boxes probably got something to do with it! [emoji849]I’ve seen auto boxes blamed for some ridiculous things but this takes the biscuit
[emoji23]
It’s surely got to be a maintenance issue rather than driver error there. The pin and its mountings is designed to take HUGE HUGE forces from a driver having to slam on, or worse, keep the trailer in place and not come through the back of the cab after a fairly hard impact (ie. not shear the pin). There’s no possible way that the driver would be able to put enough force on that to shear it just from using the engine to drive forwards. Even trying his/her hardest the wheels would spin out first, regardless of whether the tanker is empty or loaded.
If his red line had stretched another 5ft there before snapping would have been a whole new set of problems to deal with. 