FOREST RIVER Complaints

LTR FM DONALD LUCAS (ND) RE THE DEFECTIVE SPARE TIRE HOLDING MECHANISM WHICH SLIDE OUT ON HIS 2000 CARDINAL FIFTH WHEEL RV. *MR THE CONSUMER BELIEVED THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE SYSTEM DESIGNED TO RETAIN THE SPARE TIRE. THE SYTEM DAMAGED THE SPARE TIRE SUCH THAT THE TIRE WAS CONSIDERED UNRELIABLE FOR USE BY BOTH THE TIRE DEALER AND TIRE MANUFACTURER. THE CONSUMER THINKS THE COMPANY SHOULD RECALL AND CORRECT THE SPARE TIRE MECHANISM. ONLY THREE SCREWS WERE USED TO HOLD THE SLIDE MECHANISM. IN ALL 75% FEWER SCREWS WERE USED TO HOLD THE SLIDE OUT FLOOR IN PLACE THAN WERE FOUND ON OTHER RV'S ON THE SALES LOTS. THE LACK OF SCREWS CAUSED THE FLOOR OF THE SLIDE OUT TO BECOME DETACHED FROM THE SLIDE OUT ITSELF. *SCC *NLM *CB *JB

FORD MOTOR COMPANY ON ITS V/10 TRANSMISSIONS KNOWINGLY HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE TORQUE CONVETERS, AND NOT TELLING THE PUBLIC, OR CORRECTING THE PROBLEM. *LA

I HAD 2 TIRE SEPARATIONS OR BLOW OUTS ON THE CARLISLE TIRES ON MY TRAVEL TRAILER. IN MY TOWING MIRROR I NOTICED SMALL CHUNKS OF TIRE COMING OFF, THEN IMMEDIATELY THE TIRE BLEW OUT. THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO WARNING WHEN THE 2ND TIRE BLEW OUT. TIRES WERE LESS THAN 2 YEARS OLD WITH LESS THAN 2,000 MILES ON THEM, PROPERLY INFLATED, SHOWED NO SIGNS OF DRY ROT, WEAR OR APPARENT DEFECTS. TRAVEL TRAILER SUSTAINED DAMAGE FROM 2ND BLOW OUT. *LA

SECOND INCIDENT OF TREAD SEPARATION OF TIRES ON TRAVEL TRAILER. FIRST BEING IN THE SPRING OF THIS YEAR. TIRES ARE ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT TIRES FROM FOREST RIVER TRAILER COMPANY. TRAILER IS A 2000 YEAR MODEL WITH OVER TWO THIRDS TREAD DEPTH LEFT ON THE TIRES. THE OTHER TWO OEM TIRES THAT WERE STILL ON THE GROUND AT THE TIME OF THIS FAILURE HAVE SIGHS OF TREAD FAILURE. THE TIRES ARE CARLISLE ST205 75RX15. *JB

HAVE HAD 3 FAILURE SINCE PURCHASING THIS ENCLOSED CAR . IN AUGUST A BUBBLE FORMED ON THE LEFT REAR TIRE AND WAS WARRANTIED BEFORE FAILURE. THE NEXT OCCURRED ON SEPTEMBER 27 WHILE TRAVELING AT 70 MPH. A CAR WAS IN THE TRAILER. THE RIGHT REAR TIRE BLEW OUT AND BUSTED THE TRL FLOOR CAUSING $750 OF DAMAGE. THE CAR WAS NOT DAMAGED. THE THIRD OCCURRENCE WAS ON JANUARY 2, 03. AGAIN A CAR WAS IN THE TRAILER AND I WAS TRAVELING AT 70 MPH. THIS TIME THE RIGHT FRONT TIRE BLEW OUT. NO DAMAGE WAS DONE TO THE TRAILER. THIS IS A 24' 10,000 LB TRL, TO MY KNOWLEDGE THE TRL HAS NEVER BEEN OVERLOADED. *AK *CB *NLM

WHILE DRIVING BETWEEN 5 AND 10 MPH AN EXPLODING NOISE WAS HEARD AND THE WINDSHIELD SHATTERED. THE WINDSHIELD WAS NOT HIT BY ANY FOREIGN OBJECTS, IT JUST SHATTERED. *AK

WHILE DRIVING MY FOREST RIVER INC. REFLECTIONS MOTORCOACH AT NIGHT IN IDAHO, I LOST ALL OF MY DASH LIGHTS, SWITCHES ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF DASH QUIT AND THE HEADLIGHTS WENT OUT. AT OTHER TIMES I HAVE LOST THE TAILLIGHTS,BRAKE LIGHTS. THE HEAD LIGHTS WOULD NOT STAY ADJUSTED AND THIS WAS KNOWN BEFORE THE COACH LEFT THE PLANT BECAUSE OF A POOR DESIGN IN THE BRACKETS. THE AIR BRAKES COULD ONLY BE DRAINED OF MOISTURE BY CRAWLING UNDER THE COACH AS THE CABLES ATTACHED TO THE VALVES WERE NEVER BROUGHT TO THE OUTSIDE OF THE COACH. THE STEP COVER FAILED SO THE STEPS LEADING OUTSIDE THE COACH COULD NOT BE COVERED WITHOUT SUBSTANTIAL PROBLEMS. THESE STEPS WERE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE PASSENGER SEAT. THE SLIDE OUT ROOM HYDRAULIC SYSTEM FAILED AND THE EMERGENCY PROCEDURES FOR RETRACTING THE ROOM WERE NOT PROPER REQUIRING THE COACH TO BE DRIVEN OVER 50 MILES WITH THE ROOM EXTENDED APPROXIMATELY 18 INCHES OUTSIDE THE COACH. THIS COACH WAS DETERMINED TO BE A LEMON BY THE COURT IN OREGON. THE DATE BELOW IS THE DAY THE PROBLEMS STARTED AND THIS COACH HAS BEEN IN AND OUT OF THE SHOP ON A CONSISTENT BASIS SINCE THAT TIME FOR NUMEROUS OTHER FAILURES. *NLM

BELT SHIFT/CAP SEPARATION..............I AM A SERVICE MANAGER AT A CAMPER DEALERSHIP,WE SELL 80 TO 85 UNITS A MONTH.I HAVE FOUR CAMPERS HERE WITH SEPARATED TIRES AND DAMAGE AND TWO TO THREE THAT HAVE CALLED IN WITH DAMAGE FROM SEPARATED TIRES.SOME OF MY CUSTOMERS PURCHASED A NEW CAMPER AND WENT TO DISNEY WORLD WHICH FROM HERE IS ABOUT 656 MILES AND HAD THREE OF FOUR TIRES ON THE GROUND SEPERATE.CARLISLE TIRES HAVE A PROBLEM AND WITH SUCH A LOAD ON THESE TIRES FROM A CAMPER ITS A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE MORE THAN CAMPER DAMAGE HAPPENS.I HAVE FIVE TIRES HERE OF OF A YEAR AND A HALF OLD CAMPER THE TIRES HAVE BETWEEN 7/32 AND 9/32 AND THEY ARE SEPERATING AND AS I SAID NEW TIRES ARE DOING THE SAME.THE TIRES I HAVE HERE ARE DOT CODES:DBHHJ124400,DBHHJ124400,DBHHJ124700,DBHHJ124400 AND DBHHJ120101. THESE TIRES ARE ON FOREST RIVER WILDCAT CAMPERS AND THE TIRES ARE ST225/75/15 SIZE. *AK

WHILE DRIVING ON HALF A TANK AND WITHOUT WARNING VEHICLE WILL STALL, RESULTING IN COMPLETE SHUTDOWN. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED.*AK THE CAUSE FOR STALLING OF THE VEHICLE WAS DUE TO STEEL FILINGS AND GRASS IN FUEL TANK CAUSING PUMP TO CEASE WORKING. *YH

VEHICLE PULLS AND LEANS TO LEFT, WHEN DRIVING IT GOES ALL OVER THE ROAD. DEALER DETERMINED REAR SUSPENSION SPRINGS WERE TOO LIGHT FOR WEIGHT OF VEHICLE. MANUFACTURER REFUSED TO REMEDY THE PROBLEM. CONSUMER HAD SUSPENSION SPRINGS REPLACED AT HIS EXPENSE.*AK *NLM