W900L crack in frame near front axle spring hanger

Lots of kw's around here have done this...... Most seem to crack behind the rear front spring hanger on the passenger side.......It's kinda got me worried. At least I've got the 11-5/8 x 3/8 one....

There are no inexpensive ways out of this problem. I've heard of a company that sells replacement frame rails ( much cheaper than stock) that are already drilled to spec. But haven't had time to check them out.


http://www.pgadams.com

 

if you are still looking for a w900 i got one im thinking of selling.
it has 50k on inframe and was tunes by Kurt should put down 800 RWH with a 2 year 200k mile warrnty and a rebuilt 13 speed with 4 thousand miles it was upgraded to the 2050 gears on the top side

 

Any reason you want a heavy truck?

 

I think that was a typical thing of these trucks. My bosses truck is a 99 w900, although its a daycab, had the same issue, the neighbor up the road had the same problem as well. The bosses truck was fixed under warranty, so I haven't a clue what the cost was.

If you have the cash to fix it with a KW framerail, I think they did make some changes to the rail to prevent such problems.

 

Crack in a frame is a killer,, You will need to have the damaged area double framed with an inset,,

Some where some time the truck was overloaded a lot.. this truck had a hole in the flange that corroded and caused the frame to crack and fail when it was towed

One of the best truck frame shops on the east coat is Middleton And Meads in Baltimore,,one in the west is Mason Diesel Service is Aurora Utah,,this is about the most serious problem you can have,,if not repaired correctly any accident caused by a improper repair could land you in jail,,really operation of a truck that was not fixed properly..trucks with improper on non approved repairs have no resale value and future liability is on you, do it right

 

anyone know the years that kw w900l's had the cracking frame issues? I am looking at a couple of 1998's as i type this. well not as i type but i am quite interested to know.

thanks in advance

 

if your still interested in the truck i would find a reputable frame shop to inspect the frame repair that has been done and get there opinion on it, weather the frame repair is good or if its not good what it would take to fix it properly if. this is something i would want a expert opinion on before purchase.

 

The frame cracking is a big deal. But if fixed correctly it should be a none issue, it is caused because Kenworth was not smart enough to put a drip tube on the A/C evaporator and all that moisture dripping down on the frame collects the dust and dirt and rusts the frame thin then it cracks. usually this is caused because it was not kept clean and it had mud and dirt sitting up in there holding the moisture against the frame.
my 2 cents worth