Toy Hauler Repair and Service
A toy hauler is a trailer built around a hole in the back wall and a floor rated to carry something heavy. Everything that makes it useful also makes it a different repair job: the rear wall is an opening rather than a structure, the load lives behind the axles, and the garage takes abuse that no other part of an RV ever sees. We service toy haulers at our shop at 13788 Oaks Ave in Chino, from ramp door and rear structure work through body, paint, roof, floor and running gear.
What makes toy hauler repair different from other RV repair?
Three things, and they explain nearly every job that comes through the door.
The rear wall is an opening.
On a conventional trailer the back wall is a closed structure that ties the sidewalls together. On a toy hauler it is a doorway most of the width of the coach, with the ramp itself doing part of the structural work when it is closed. That means hinge geometry, latch alignment and the frame around the opening are load-bearing rather than cosmetic, and it means a rear-end impact or a dropped ramp does damage that carries further into the trailer than it looks.
The load is behind the axles.
A garage full of machines puts weight aft of the suspension. That changes tongue weight, it loads the frame in a way the empty trailer never shows you, and over years it is what produces the sag, the cracked welds and the sidewall stress lines we find at the rear.
The garage is a working floor.
Fuel, tie-down loads, tyres, exhaust heat and things sliding into walls. Toy hauler floors and lower walls take physical damage that never happens elsewhere in an RV, and water finds every fastener hole in a floor that has been through that.
Do you repair toy hauler ramp doors?
Yes, and it is the most common reason a toy hauler comes to us.
Ramp doors go wrong in a small number of ways. Hinges wear or tear at their mounting. The cables, springs or gas assists lose their balance so the door drops fast or fights you on the way up. The latches drift out of alignment, which usually means the opening has moved rather than the latch has, and that is worth knowing because tightening the latch treats the symptom. The door skin delaminates, or the frame inside the door corrodes, especially on trailers stored outside in the sun.
We repair the door and the opening as one job, because on a toy hauler they are one system. If the frame around the opening has moved, a new hinge will fail again.
The interior side of the ramp, the seals and the tie-down hardware and how you load, is its own subject and worth its own conversation. This page is about the structure and the repair.
What kind of structural and body work do toy haulers need?
The work we see most often on toy haulers, in order:
Rear wall and rear cap repair after impact, ramp damage or delamination
Frame inspection and repair at the rear, including sag and cracking from years of loaded travel
Sidewall repair where the skin has separated or the lower panel has been damaged from inside the garage
Garage floor repair and replacement, including the subfloor underneath when water has got in around fastener holes
Full and partial paint and refinishing, in our 40-foot enclosed booth
Fiberglass repair and colour matching, so a repaired rear cap does not read as a repaired rear cap
Body and structural work is what this shop was built around. The paint and body page covers the collision and refinishing side in more detail, and if the damage came from an incident there is an insurance claims route we handle in-house.
What else do you service on a toy hauler?
Roof and sealant, which on a toy hauler has an extra seam to fail: the join at the top of the ramp opening moves more than the rest of the roof and it is a common leak origin. Water damage and floor repair, which starts in the garage more often than anywhere else. Running gear: axles, bearings, suspension and brakes, which on a loaded toy hauler wear faster than the same components on an empty trailer of the same size. Onboard generators. House systems: air conditioning, refrigeration, water heaters, plumbing and slide-outs, same as any other RV.
The reason to bring the whole trailer to one shop is that these problems are usually connected. A soft spot in the garage floor and a leak at the ramp seam are the same job. Rear sag and a latch that will not line up are the same job. Splitting them across two shops means nobody sees the pattern.
My toy hauler leaks at the back. Where is it coming from?
Most often, one of four places, and they are worth checking in this order.
The seam above the ramp opening, because the whole rear structure flexes there and sealant fatigues faster at a moving joint than at a static one. The upper hinge line and the fasteners through it. The rear corner joins, where the sidewall, roof and rear cap meet and three different materials have to stay sealed together. And the garage floor edges and any through-floor fasteners, where water that got in at the top finally shows up.
Water in a toy hauler often appears a long way from where it entered, because it travels along the frame and the floor before it reaches anything you can see. That is why we trace it rather than reseal the nearest suspicious joint, and it is also why the visible damage is usually smaller than the actual damage.
How does a toy hauler service visit work?
Bring the trailer to 13788 Oaks Ave in Chino, ideally with the garage empty so we can actually see the floor, the walls and the door mechanism. We walk it with you, look at what you have described plus the things that usually go with it, and quote what we find. Every estimate carries a budget for parts with the final price adjusting to the parts actually used.
You get a drop-off date and a pickup date. Structural and paint work takes the time it takes, and we would rather tell you the real number and hold it than take the trailer in and let it sit.
Do you offer mobile RV repair or house calls?
No. McBride's is an in-shop repair facility at 13788 Oaks Ave in Chino, and we do not send technicians to your location or to a storage lot. Ramp, frame and rear structure work needs the trailer immobilised, supported and lit before anyone can even establish what moved. Bring it to Chino and the whole repair happens under one roof. More on why we work this way is on our in-shop repair page.
Frequently asked questions about RV appliance installation
How big a toy hauler can you take?
We work on full-size fifth wheel toy haulers as well as bumper-pull models, and our booth takes coaches up to 40 feet. If you are unsure about your trailer, call (909) 627-7566 and tell us the length and configuration.
Can you fix a ramp door that will not close square any more?
Usually, and the fix is normally at the opening rather than at the door. We measure the opening before we touch the hardware, because a door that has stopped closing square is telling you something about the structure.
Do I need to empty the garage before I bring it in?
Yes, please, for anything involving the floor, the walls, the ramp or the rear structure. We cannot assess a floor we cannot see, and we are not set up to store your equipment.
Is toy hauler damage usually covered by insurance?
Impact and collision damage often is, and long-term wear or water intrusion usually is not. We handle claims in-house and can tell you early which category your damage is likely to fall into, which saves you filing something that will not go anywhere.
Do you service the generator in the garage?
Yes. Onboard generator diagnosis and repair happens here, and it needs load testing, which is a shop process.
How far do people bring toy haulers from?
Owners come to Chino from Chino Hills, Ontario, Rancho Cucamonga and Montclair, off the 15 and the 91 from Corona, Norco and Eastvale, and down the 57 and the 91 from Yorba Linda and north Orange County. There are very few shops in the Inland Empire that will take on rear structure and paint work on a toy hauler, which is why the drive is normal for this kind of job.
What are your hours?
Monday through Friday, 8 AM to 4 PM, closed weekends.
Grand Design builds toy haulers as well as travel trailers and fifth wheels, and we service all of them at our shop in Chino. See Grand Design RV service and repair.
Hear From Our Satisfied Customers
They are always professional, courteous and they have resolved any and every issue I had.
If the ramp is not sitting right, the rear end has taken a hit, or there is a soft spot in the garage floor, those are all jobs this shop does routinely and most RV shops do not. McBride's RV has been family-owned in Chino since 1967, we have a 40-foot enclosed paint booth and do structural work in-house, and we show you the problem before any work begins. Walk-ins welcome. Call (909) 627-7566 and we will book you in.
McBride's RV Service & Paint, BAR ARD 314817, 13788 Oaks Ave, Chino, CA 91710, (909) 627-7566.