U-Haul safety shortcomings

[tom h]

3-part investigative report on U-Haul, by the LA Times ... pretty scary reading

I wouldn't let friend or family rent a U-Haul truck or trailer, after this.

Falsified records, failing brakes, missing lugs, dually tires so mismatched the inner tire doesnt even touch ground, etc.

By comparison, Budget and Penske get pretty good safety reviews.

May need a free registration to view article.

Upkeep lags in U-Haul's aging fleet - Los Angeles Times

"During a yearlong investigation, Times journalists surveyed more than 200 U-Haul trucks and trailers in California and other states and found that more than half were overdue for a company-mandated "safety certification," a check of brakes, tires and other parts typically required every 30 days.​

Some safety checks were more than a year overdue." ... ​

...​

"From July 2005 through August 2006, the Ontario Ministry of Transportation inspected about 800 U-Haul trucks and removed 20% from service because of such problems as defective lights, steering and brakes.​

The inspectors idled only about 4% of the trucks of other rental firms [mainly Penske & Budget] ... "​

 

[57loboy]

Personally, I rank Penske the best but they can be hard to find. Never had a problem with Budget - rented a brand new 16' box in NC (5k miles on it) and other than an annoying squeak from the cargo box, zero issues from NC to CT, 12 hours of non-stop driving.

Had a 24' Ryder shoot giant flames out the exhaust whenever going over 40 mph or up a hill with any sort of grade to it - that was interesting for the surrounding traffic (especially since the vehicle was placarded for Class B explosives at the time!)

 

[Pablo]

Sounds like typical news media sensationalism.

 

[tom h]

Sounds like typical news media sensationalism.

The LA Times is not usually prone to baseless sensationalism ... they generally research their stories pretty well.

 

[turbofish38]

Uhaul has been the "red headed stepchild" of the rental world forever it seems. Watch 60 Minutes Classic on ESPN2.IIRC thier Uhaul story was just on a couple of months ago. And that was at least 20 years ago. Whoever wrote that article is picking through old news. Uhaul bashing aint anything new. The reason Penske and Budget do a little better is because they have dedicated maintanence centers across the country. When a Uhaul breaks its sent down the street to Joes Repair.

 

[87GNSteve]

Had a 24' Ryder shoot giant flames out the exhaust whenever going over 40 mph or up a hill with any sort of grade to it - that was interesting for the surrounding traffic (especially since the vehicle was placarded for Class B explosives at the time!)

Holy crap that was funny!
:biggrin:

 

[BlackMetal]

Doesn't surprise me, Uhaul truck inspector is a pretty popular job for school kids on summer vacation around here.