Stallion Info

[BenO]

Has anyone had problems with the mirrors being too low to see out of? They (my dealer) tried to raise them up but they had very little to play with. Was wandering if someone had a work around.

The stallion has been back 2 days and stuff is going down hill already and my dealer is closed till OCT.

Does anyone have the phone number for TBMS? I haven’t been able to get on their web site in the last 2 days.

[Russel with one L]

The phone # for Thoroughbred is 1-888-783-3348. Their email and the web page has been down due to their internet server being down because of hurricane Ike. Please be patient when you call as they have been getting alot of extra calls because of the internet being down.

[BenO]

Thanks Russel, I bet they are busy. I don't normally get too excited unless they give me a major run arround. I always have belived sometimes you just have to let folks try a few times.

I am just wanting some info that the my dealer did know. I was hoping to get some informatin on spec's so I didn't have to remove or disassimble just to get a few numbers or run a few device checks.

Thanks Again.

[Papa Zook]

BenO - You can contact them at : MotorTrike@gmail.com
This is their temporary email address until their server is back up. In the subject line type in "Attention Suzi Crim - Stallion" and it will be forwarded directly to her. She heads up the Stallion Dept until Christie get back to full steam from her maternity leave. Suzi is very helpful and should be able to assist you. Also let me know if there is anything I can help you with. Call Randy (334)792-7444

[Gorilla]

Scooter What is your vehicle # ? My wife has unit 175 and today her brake lights quit. I could not find a blown fuse, so I am thinking the same problem you had. Also does anyone know what the replacement at NAPA might be? Thanks, Ted and MJ

[ben721364]

I get the impression that most if not all of the problems reported here have to do with assembly and that as more are built, such problems will go away. I haven't seen anything to indicate a design or materials flaw beyond what one would expect with a new product.

[kippyg]

i think ben is right when i got mine number 314 had a bad noise in the front end brakes this is brand new i put 1200 miles on it noise geting bad i called tbms the guy told me the front bearing for the brakes where put in wrong this did not happen to all stallions sent new parts all set that guy did not have to tell me anything thats how good it is to deal with them thay back us up i will allways buy from them just wanted to let the forum know how grate tbms are thanks kippy

[Gorilla]

Russel worked on the brake light problem today. It is in fact the switch problem. When the trike was at the factory in Aug they packed in switch with dielectric grease. They did this for the gear shift lever problem. Russel called them today and they said that the grease now needs to be put around where the plug from the harness connects. The grease is not necessary inside the switch as orginally thought. After Russel did his magic the stop lights worked. Well they worked until tonight. Now they only flicker. I am thinking that because of the previous attempts at a fix the damage is done and the switch needs replacement as Scooter has had done. I will be doing this myself, because I am now about 4 hours from Russel.

In response to BEN 721364 I was very aware when I purchased this trike for my wife MJ that I would be encountering teething problems and they really are not serious. We have unit 175. With approx the first 100 going to DEMO's we have APPROX the 75th delivery. As with any very new product unanticapated problems occur. We knew this and accept it. I hear quite a bit of changes that are occuring are to resolve these issues. Thoroughbred is fixing everything and all the problems that I have heard of are not serious issues.

Just a note if someone runs across the Shift lever being locked in Park issue. Until you get it fixed, just leave the lever in (N) and apply the parking brake. To get it out of Park: if you open the front hood, look at the backside of the gear selection mechanism on the inside, side of the mechanism you should see a plunger type part. Push this in while reaching around and move the lever out of Park to (R). NOTE PLEASE NOT DO THIS WITH THE ENGINE RUNNING. You will need the key in the ON position, but DO NOT START the trike, until you are on it and can have the brake applied after you have it out of (P). This will get you going and keep you going until it gets repaired. This is related to the stop light problem also, but not the same. The stop light switch does multiple funchions, light the lights and also allow the gear lever to move.

Ted

[BenO]

Well I got my stallion back tonight from the dealer and I am on my 3rd brake switch replacement.

I have a little better work arround for when it wont come out of park because I dont like leaving it in Neutral.

Go to a hardware store or wla-mart or K-Mart or dollar store and buy a plastic putty knife 2.5 inches wide and vise grips ( smaller the better 5" or less).

When You have used the above instructions on getting it in to neutral you can slide the putty knife between the trip plunger and the frame work and it will wedge behing the white plastic piece.

It will stay there for a good while but it can faal out after a while depends on the road conditions, so I use the small vise grips to clamp it to the frame work and then it wont fall out.

This will allow you to shift it in and out of park. It will only keep the steering wheel from locking in place.

This will hold up for how ever long you need to be able to get to the dealer. It wont cause any damage to any thing doing this.

I am 3 hours away, as some are even farther. I am now carring the putty knife and vise grips in the trunk all the time.

Ben

(P.S. Mattel I will be swapping out the headlights tomorrow night I hope and I will post pics on the front speakers as I will starting that next. The plexiglass has came in for my own version wing which is much diffrent from the cleax ones epect more area will be covered.)

[Gorilla]

BenO Please let us all know how the lights turn out. If it is successful we will need a parts breakdown. I really need to improve the lighting.

MJ and TED

[BenO]

I sure will let everyone know sorry I didn't get it done last night got tied up repairing a Laptop's mother board and the time got away from me. I will try again to night to get the job done.

[Papa Zook]

BenO
Give me a call about the LED lights we talked about last night.

Thanks! Randy (334)790-7878

[Stalloin 146]

Look below the shift lever on the dash and you will see a small plug slightly smaller than a dime. Pop that out and using a screwdriver or a small rod, you can push in on the plastic peice to actavitate the selonoid for the park release. No need to open the hood or use a putty knife. Thanks to Jim at Southwest Trikes for this information. Working for me till I get my new brake switch.

[Gorilla]

Hello all, I took the brake switch off today and did a complete dis***emply. I even took the contact pins out. I did a good clean out of the deielectric grease from the inside of the switch. Gasoline cut it. I removed the contacts and lightly sanded the contacts. I re***empled the switch and put deielectic grease in the top where the harness plug goes in, NONE ON THE INSIDE. I put a little grease along the front of the switch case seam on the outside to try and keep water out of the inside. Re-installed the switch and everything works fine. I will keep you updated if it goes out again.

Ted Unit 175

[Gorilla]

Hello, Anyone have problems with the front pads binding when backing up? At times they drag terribly making a loud noise and even slowing the trike down when you do not have your foot on the brake. Going forward there is not an issue. Solutions? Does anyone know what the application for the front pads came from? The rear is supposed to be Fusion, but I do not know about the fronts.

Thanks,

Ted

[Mattel]

Speaking of front pads I would like to replace mine with ceramic ones to cut down on cleaning.

I have never heard of front pads dragging, you may want to run that by your dealer as a warranty issue.

[Gorilla]

Mattel, The brake dust can build up on the caliper pucks and prevent them retracting the little bit that is required to allow the rotor to move freely. So whem you back up they drag. That's why I would like to change to the dustless pads. Also if the pucks do not retract correctly the pads can wear wrong and help with the dragging problem. Ted

[Mattel]

That is some good information. I would like to start a new thread to list out the part numbers and manufactures for OEM and after market stuff to simplify our lives.

[Mattel]

I have to say Jeff Vey hit it out of the park with this improvement! Being able to go to my local Ford dealer for warranty work is by far the best thing to happen to my Stallion (that is not mounted on my Stallion)!!!!!!!!! A BIG THANK YOU TO TBMS FOR AN IMPROVEMENT THAT PUTS YOU ON PAR WITH THE BIG MANUFACTURERS! The value of your warranty improved with the partnership you forged with Ford. I feel very confident bringing my Stallion into Ford for service. Although I heard this would be coming this year, I did not believe it until this week.

I had a problem with a little leak on my transmission. I cannot make the 3 hour drive to the dealer I purchased my bike without taking a vacation day. Even if I did, they would not be as qualified to repair a Ford transmission as my local Ford Dealer. I emailed some pictures of the problem to Nick at TBMS and asked if he could help. Here is what happened.........

The next day Nick called me back and told me he spoke with the local Ford Dealer Town & Country Ford in Charlotte NC. Nick said he spoke with the service manager Mike McPherson (704)532-3272 and he said to call him to arrange a time to take it in.

I have to hand it to Nick who by far has delivered outstanding customer service time after time, and this time was no exception. TBMS's has a great employee in Nick, I hope to see him in person to shake his hand.

I called Mike at Town & Country Ford and explained the leak, he said bring it in anytime and he will talk care of it.

I drooped by a few days later, and Mike was on top of it. I had to show him how to open the hood, and the things to look out for like the windshield and where the problem was. Mike was great to work with! He worked with TBMS, fixed the leak (it was a bad o-ring at the dipstick mount to the base of the transmission) and he also found out I had blown a tail light. Even though the light was off a Mazda, he ordered the part and installed it without even asking me! I had the usual gathering around the bike as all work stopped as I drove into and a little on the way out of the service bay.

This was truly a great service experience. I am not fortunate to live close to a great TBMS's dealer like some of you, but today as far as service goes, that changed!

Thanks again Jeff and Nick for making this great improvement!

[Mattel]

Here is an inspection item to look for if you do quite a bit of mountain riding. I had my bike in for repairs and even the factory technicians missed this one. Under your trike on the right hand side below the hand brake toward the front where the frame bends up their is a long bolt that on my bike comes into contact with my AC line and after about 7k miles it started to file the ac line.

If you see this contact your dealer and they will order you another line and install a shorter bolt. I called Nick and he sent me out a few shorter bolts. here is a picture.

OO, this one is only for the fiberglass version of the stallion!