Just wondering if anyone has had any dealings with Fruehauf recently with regards purchase of a new tipper. The reason I ask is that I enquired two weeks ago about a quote for a brand new tipper from them and as yet their customer service had been shocking.
On the very same day (monday) that I rung Fruehauf I also spoke to a salesman from Wilcox, who took down the spec of trailer I’m after and had a brochure and detailed quotation out in the post to me in 3 days. Fruehauf, however, did not respond to my call. I called them again on the Friday and eventually got through to sales, who took the spec I wanted and promised a quote on Monday this week. Gets to today, still heard nothing, so I rung this dinner time and asked if the salesman had forgotten me, to which the receptionist replied “he most probably has”. Anyway she tried to put be through but to no avail so said she would speak to him as soon as he’s available and ask him to call back.
I’ve heard nothing!!
Just wondered if anyone has had a similar experience with them and I’m seriously thinking ill just tell him I’ve gone for a wilcox if I decide to go new!
in recent years the Fruehauf tipper trailer has been poor anyway, there are far better trailers, I would not buy one anyway as after sales service will be crap to!
Moose:
in recent years the Fruehauf tipper trailer has been poor anyway, there are far better trailers, I would not buy one anyway as after sales service will be crap to!
Funny, I thought they were the best. I went to an auction with some Stas trailers in it and they were cracking up all over the place.
I’ve only ever had Fruehauf both employed and as owner driver and I just think they’re a hell of a lot neater trailer than a wilcox. The new one I got in 08 was built just before they went bust (again) and the paint job in it was shocking. The chassis paint used to lift off if you got within 3 foot with a pressure washer.
The 02 one I’ve got now is a today trailer for its age and was one of the last to be built at Dereham before the move to Grantham. It’s getting a bit scabby on the chassis but I’ve seen a lot worse. It’s the running gear I’m more worried about on it. Cost a fair bit to get through MOT with spring eye bushes and the liked needing replacing. I’m going on the thought that with a brand new trailer you’ve got almost 2 years cost free running (tyres,pads,calipers etc).
Moose:
in recent years the Fruehauf tipper trailer has been poor anyway, there are far better trailers, I would not buy one anyway as after sales service will be crap to!
Do you intend to hold out & try to sell us this knowledge or would you care to share your mystical leanings?
To be honest, if the salesman can’t be arsed ringing you back, I wouldn’t buy one of them anyway. I’m sure they deal with a lot of time wasters but it takes 2 mins out of his day to send you a one line e-mail with the price on and toss brochure in pdf form.
Try Newton trailers, they deal with a few makes & may share which is the best in their exp.
xfmatt:
I’m going on the thought that with a brand new trailer you’ve got almost 2 years cost free running (tyres,pads,calipers etc).
I know I’ve already said this on here (more than once) but one of the people I used to work for buys Wilcox trailers brand new, keeps them for three years and then uses chops them in for another new one. Reckons it is by far the cheapest way to run a trailer as all he ever has to put on them is tyres and brake pads. He reckoned it usually cost about £10k to upgrade but as you would come out with 6 brand new tyres and send your old one back with 6 well worn ones you’re getting over £1k of that straight back in tyres. So £3k/year. Even ignoring depreciation and downtime whilst repairs were being carried out I spent more than that each year on my 2002 trailer in the time I had it. If you included depreciation and downtime I bet it came to near enough twice that. It seemed to eat discs and calipers but I might just have been unlucky.
He is also running planksiders instead of bathtubs as the place he gets his from (Payne Brothers in Fakenham) charge the same for either new but will give him much more 3 years later for a planksider so even with the slight loss of payload he reckons it works out better.
That said when I put one of his 2011 planksiders on the back of my Renault it turned out it was actually slightly lighter than my 2002 Fruehauf bathtub anyway. It was a nice trailer, much nicer to pull than my Fruehauf, I like the Wilcox back door design better and it could just be coincidence as I only had it for a fortnight but I got a worthwhile fuel saving compared to my bathtub trailer too.
Don’t know if that helps you with your decision or not. He always said he wouldn’t ever buy a Fruehauf because he doesn’t trust them not to go bankrupt again leaving any warranty worthless.
Check out a 2nd hand fruehauf before buying look for spring eye bosses that have torn out of the hanger and cracks on the body step, i dont think you will beat a wilcox body but who’s chassis you get i dont know, AHP used to be good.
Moose:
in recent years the Fruehauf tipper trailer has been poor anyway, there are far better trailers, I would not buy one anyway as after sales service will be crap to!
Do you intend to hold out & try to sell us this knowledge or would you care to share your mystical leanings?
To be honest, if the salesman can’t be arsed ringing you back, I wouldn’t buy one of them anyway. I’m sure they deal with a lot of time wasters but it takes 2 mins out of his day to send you a one line e-mail with the price on and toss brochure in pdf form.
Try Newton trailers, they deal with a few makes & may share which is the best in their exp.
A local large operator to me has many Fruehauf tipping trailers which are on quarry work, some have had issues with the chassis rails bending on new trailers, not through harsh treatment just general use, I would think this is due to the trailers being built lighter and lighter for maximum payload as well as cost cutting
I don’t know what you intend to do with the trailer work wise so a flimsy built chassis might be ok for grain work or on the other hand quarry work might require a stronger built chassis, you pay your money and take your choice!
we all know bulk work is about payload but as they make the chassis lighter they then allow you to put more weight on the thing, you can only reduce chassis weight so far !
I don’t know about “mystical leanings” just local facts, I will admit the bodies on fruehauf trailers always look well finished off, after welding the kingpin back into a weightlifter I would say if ordering a new build a 10mm rubbing plate is a must!
All our trailers come from Newton Trailers now, the later one’s are about 1T lighter than the Wilcox’s, 500kgs lighter than the older Fruehauf’s. All are Bath Tub bodies, newer one’s have pullover sheets, older are electric.
Dan Punchard:
Check out a 2nd hand fruehauf before buying look for spring eye bosses that have torn out of the hanger and cracks on the body step, i dont think you will beat a wilcox body but who’s chassis you get i dont know, AHP used to be good.
andrewv8:
All our trailers come from Newton Trailers now, the later one’s are about 1T lighter than the Wilcox’s, 500kgs lighter than the older Fruehauf’s. All are Bath Tub bodies, newer one’s have pullover sheets, older are electric.
That doesn’t add up given that when I borrowed a 2011 Wilcox plankside last year it was actually lighter than my 2002 Fruehauf bathtub. So a new Fruehauf can’t possibly be a ton lighter than a Wilcox.
Dan Punchard:
Check out a 2nd hand fruehauf before buying look for spring eye bosses that have torn out of the hanger and cracks on the body step, i dont think you will beat a wilcox body but who’s chassis you get i dont know, AHP used to be good.
I think Wilcox use Montracon chassis these days.
Paul
That’s correct Paul wilcox use a Montracon chassis. Ill be giving Dg Taylor a ring on Monday see what he comes up with. I’m tempted to sell my trailer privately but if I sold straight away and had to hire one till the new one is ready it would cost between £175-200 per week.
The new Fruehauf’s have a real thin chassis and body, no electric sheet, on SAF axles. The Wilcox’s are a stronger build, electric sheet, on Merc axles. One of our Volvo’s with a Wilcox is about 15.5t, with a new Fruehauf they are about 14.7t.
xfmatt:
Ill be giving Dg Taylor a ring on Monday see what he comes up with.
They’re another firm who in my experience aren’t really interested in doing business with you. When I was selling up they promised me twice someone would ring me back with an idea of a price to buy my trailer off me and nobody ever did.
I my self would get a good chassis then take it to Swadlincote Aluminium and have them build a body either to my own spec or theres ,they do an excellent body.
xfmatt:
I’ve only ever had Fruehauf both employed and as owner driver and I just think they’re a hell of a lot neater trailer than a wilcox. The new one I got in 08 was built just before they went bust (again) and the paint job in it was shocking. The chassis paint used to lift off if you got within 3 foot with a pressure washer.
The 02 one I’ve got now is a today trailer for its age and was one of the last to be built at Dereham before the move to Grantham. It’s getting a bit scabby on the chassis but I’ve seen a lot worse. It’s the running gear I’m more worried about on it. Cost a fair bit to get through MOT with spring eye bushes and the liked needing replacing. I’m going on the thought that with a brand new trailer you’ve got almost 2 years cost free running (tyres,pads,calipers etc).
Matt.
The site in Grantham used be aveling Barford which did dump trucks,graders,rollers etc and was a quality product,well thought of the world over,then Wordsworth took it over and stopped making rollers ,graders etc as he basically couldn’t compete with caterpillar.
He then diversified into lots of different things,big d couplers,aveling Barford site dumpers,stain hay seed drills,prison grills ,bars,doors,wood choppers etc,the quality went down hill as the skilled workforce grew older and retired( no apprentiship s)
Don’t know much about the freuhauf tris as I’d left by then ,last I’d heard they’d gone bust and been took over by a new owner ,but were struggling,too think in its heyday 1,000,s worked at that factory,last I heard it was in the tens,sad really
Ring newton trailers, they can often beat a single quote off freuhauf themselves because they have a monthly order,And by quite a bit but be persistant as they try it on abit until they know your serious.I ran an 06 and had a terrible paint job but my 11 is superb,planker and is 100kgs lighter than my old bathtub,regret the leccy sheet big time tho,crap in snow or ice and always going wrong but still head and shoulders above anything else ive pulled, especiall those heaps of stas,good for 2 yrs then smoking cheque book time!!
Yeah, see loads with the little Newton trailers logo on them somewhere. They have a nice site you can see from the m1 in Bedford if you look left by the railway line I think near the amazon warehouse.
