Lazy Daze Owners' Group

Cabover squeak

July 31, 2023, 04:53:10 am

So now when I'm driving, I get a squeak from the area behind the sun visor.  Larry mentioned that he had the same squeak, and he put in more screws. Those infernal 1/4" hex screw heads that bury into the carpet, and join the Ford chassis to the front fiberglass nose cone. There don't seem to be very many.  What size screw can I use?  I don't know the details of the mounting method.  Has anybody done this patch?  Any pictures of this Larry?  I'm too lazy to just start ripping up that carpet.  RonB

Re: Cabover squeak

Reply #2 – July 31, 2023, 10:45:32 am

Quote from: rich  -  July 31, 2023, 08:00:42 am

Overhead squeak repair | Flickr

This is a relatively common problem, I had the issue in both of my LDs and have repaired several other LDs.
The older LDs used nuts and bolts to attach the cab to the coach, newer models use self-tapping sheet metal screws.
Our 1983  LD needed the nuts tightened, along with a drop of Loctite to keep them tight.

The newer models that use self-tapping sheet metal screws can have the heads of the screws sheared off, allowing the connection to move and make noise. The noise is usually most noticeable at the back of the driver’s or passenger’s head  (or both), some road surfaces can be very annoying.
The cure is to remove the curtain track, as necessary, and to pull the stapled carpet back to expose the connection. I found most of the screws broken on one side of our 2003 LD. Since access to one side of the connection is blocked, sheet metal screws are the only available way of securing the joint. I installed as many self-tapping screws as [possible, not wanting to do this again. In retrospect, it may be possible to slightly pry the connection apart and inject a structural adhesive into the joint before installing new screws.

Larry