Anderson hitch and warranty

[kowbra]

Hi all,

For those who attended the MOC virtual rally today, you will have heard Sam Lengerich, Montana Product Manager, answer the question about the Anderson Ultimate Hitch (AUH) - does it void the frame warranty? Basically, yes.

The background on this is that based on this forum and a number of threads regarding the AUH, I reached out in the past couple of weeks to both Sam and to Lippert support.
-Sam replied that they currently had no information that Lippert would void the frame warranty.
-but Lippert replied "We advise against the use of any adapters or extensions on the king pin of the pin box. The Andersen hitch is considered an adapter. The use of one of these may cause damage to the upper deck that LCI may not be able to assist in."
So, Lippert didn't actually use the words "void the warranty", but strongly hinted at that. I sent this over to Sam last week for clarification on how this impacts the warranty, and he was on it.

Now, as of today and as per the answer that Sam gave during the MOC virtual rally, my takeaway is that the Anderson Ultimate Hitch is not recommended as it could cause issues with the frame, and that neither Montana nor Lippert would stand behind such issues as part of the frame warranty.

Anderson Hitch does have a guarantee on their website that says they will pay for any needed frame repairs. That may be enough for others to continue to use the AUH. I think for me, I am looking for alternatives for the AUH that I have used for years. I have reached out to our dealer to see if they can get a Reese GooseBox pin box as an alternative. I confirmed that the GooseBox pin box IS warranty approved by both Montana and Lippert. (and is the only "non standard / goose ball type" hitch approved)

I must say that I continue to be impressed with the responsiveness of Montana, and Sam in particular. We have had RV's for many years and many brands. This is our first Montana and the first time that I know who the product manager is, and that he personally answers any and all questions; including answering these questions last week during the annual industry shutdown. I must give full marks for that!

I hope the above is helpful to any who are using or considering using the AUH.

Brad