NEWMAR Complaints

DIGITAL DASH DOES NOT DIM SUFFICIENTLY AT NIGHT. THE DASH IS SO BRIGHT THAT THE REFLECTED LIGHT FROM THE DASH BOUNCES OFF THE DRIVER AND BACK ON THE WINDSHIELD WHICH CAUSES A GLARE THAT MAKES IT DIFFICULT TO SEE THROUGH THE WINDSHIELD. I HAVE PLACED A DARK FILM OVER THE DISPLAY FOR NIGHT DRIVING AFTER A CLOSE CALL AT A INTERSECTION IN ARIZONA. STOPPED AT A FOUR WAY STOP WITH TWO LANES IN ALL DIRECTION AND VERY LITTLE OUTSIDE STREET LIGHTING. AS I MADE A LEFT TURN THE GLARE COMPLETELY BLOCKED THE LANES I WAS TURNING INTO. I NARROWLY MISSED A LIGHT POLE AND RAN OVER A LANE DIVIDER WHICH I COULD NOT SEE. LUCKILY NO DAMAGE BUT I DID NOT TAKE THE MOTORHOME OUT AT NIGHT AGAIN TILL I PLACED DARKENING FILM OVER THE SCREEN.

THE INSTRUMENT LIGHT PANEL (OPTIVIEW) DOES NOT DIM ENOUGH AND IS TOO BRIGHT AT NIGHT MAKING IT VERY DIFFICULT TO SEE OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT. ON A DARK RAINY NIGHT THE GLARE FROM THE INSTRUMENT PANEL MAKES FOR DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. MY COMPLAINT TO NEWMAR IN APRIL 2019 WAS DEFERRED TO FREIGHTLINER. NOVEMBER OF 2019 FREIGHTLINER SENT TWO TECHNICIANS TO MY HOME WHO SPENT A COUPLE OF HOURS DIAGNOSING AND TAKING PICTURES OF THE PROBLEM. THEY CONCLUDED THE BRIGHTNESS LEVEL OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL DID DIM IN RESPONSE TO THE SWITCH BUT MAY NOT BE CALIBRATED CORRECTLY. THEY CONCLUDED THAT PROBLEM WAS WITH THE SOFTWARE FROM THE OPTIVIEW VENDOR AND THAT THEY WOULD RESEARCH A SOFTWARE UPDATE WITH THEM AND GET BACK TO ME. THEY NEVER GOT BACK TO ME, WOULD NOT RETURN MY CALLS AND SUBSEQUENT COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE BRIGHTNESS HAVE BEEN WRITTEN OFF AS " THIS IS NORMAL". MY SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN TO AVOID NIGHT DRIVING AND WHEN I MUST DRIVE AT NIGHT I COVER THE PANEL WITH A PAPER TOWEL OR SUN SCREEN. I BELIEVE A SIMPLE SOFTWARE UPDATE WOULD ALLEVIATE THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS CONDITION. *TR

LOCKED ENTRY DOOR POPS OPEN WHILE DRIVING. IT HAPPENS ON SMOOTH ROADS, DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A BUMPY ROAD. RV IS AT KNOXVILLE DEALER NOW AND THEY SAY THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH DOOR. THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES; WE TIE THE DOOR SHUT NOW.

WHILE DRIVING ON I-5 DOING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH THE FRONT PRIVACY SHADE UNRAVELLED AND COMPLETELY BLOCKED THE DRIVERS FORWARD VISIBILITY. I PULLED OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE INTERSTATE ROLLED UP THE SHADE AND DUCT TAPED IT TO THE FRONT TV. ONCE I HAD MY WINTER DESTINATION I CONTACTED NEWMAR AND I WAS TOLD THERE HAD BEEN A RECALL FOR THIS SPECIFIC PROBLEM. LATER THAT SAME DAY THE SAME NEWMAR REP CALLED BACK TO INFORM ME THAT THE RECALL WAS FOR 2008 ESSEX MODELS NOT MY 2007 ESSEX. AT THAT TIME THE REP TOLD ME HOW TO REMOVE THE PRIVACY SHADE AND THAT WHEN I WAS ABLE TO TAKE THE MOTORHOME TO A NEWMAR DEALER. NEWMAR WOULD PARTICIPATE IN CORRECTING THE PROBLEM. AS OF TODAY NEWMAR IS NOW DISAVOWING ANY RESPONSIBILITY IN THE REPAIR. MYSELF AND MY WIFE COULD HAVE BEEN SERIOUSLY HURT OR KILLED DURING THE EVENT. TO BE TOLD BY NEWMAR RECALLED THE VERY NEXT YEAR MODEL FOR THE SAME SPECIFIC PROBLEM SEEMS ONLY COINCIDENTAL.

WHILE ON A DOWNGRADE WITH THE ENGINE BRAKE ENGAGED AND IN 4TH GEAR, AT ABOUT 1900 RPM, THE SIDE MOUNTED FAN EXPLODED SENDING PLASTIC AND METAL PARTS OUT THE REAR OF THE MOTORHOME SHOWERING THE VEHICLE BEING TOWED AND ANOTHER VEHICLE FOLLOWING BEHIND. UPON INSPECTION THE FAN, WHICH IS DRIVEN BY A HYDRAULIC PUMP, WAS SUPPOSED TO BE ATTACHED BY TWO BOLTS TO A CROSS BAR BETWEEN THE RADIATOR AND THE ENGINE. THE BOLT HOLES IN THE HYDRAULIC PUMP WERE ELONGATED AND BOTH BOLTS HAD SHEARED OFF ALLOWING THE PUMP TO FALL DOWN WHICH RESULTED IN THE FAN BLADES HITTING THE CHASSIS FRAME AND CAUSING THE FAN TO BOUNCE AROUND THE COMPARTMENT HITTING THE RADIATOR AND PIPING AND THE INTERCOOLER PIPING. THIS HYDRAULIC SYSTEM IS ALSO PART OF THE POWER STEERING SYSTEM. UPON BEING TOWED BACK TO RAPID CITY, SD THERE WAS ANOTHER DUTCHSTAR (A 2000) AT THE FREIGHTLINER DEALER WITH THE SAME FAILURE. REPLACEMENT PARTS CONSISTED OF A HYDRAULIC DRIVE MOTOR, RADIATOR AND INTERCOOLER PLUS ALL THE REPLACEMENT FLUIDS FOR BOTH. I RETAINED THE HYDRAULIC DRIVE MOTOR IF NEEDED. IF THE FAN HAD SEVERED THE HYDRAULIC LINE THAT WOULD HAVE DISABLED THE STEERING SYSTEM WITH LOSS OF THE ABILITY TO STEER. ALSO IF THERE WERE NOT A VEHICLE BEING TOWED THAT TOOK THE BLOW OF MOST OF THE PARTS COMING OFF THE ENGINE THE VEHICLE BEING DRIVEN AND FOLLOWING BEHIND COULD HAVE RECEIVED SIGNIFICANT DAMAGE AND POSSIBLE RESULTED IN AN ACCIDENT.

THE FREIGHTLINER OPTIVIEW INSTRUMENT PANEL ON THIS VEHICLE IS BLINDING WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT AND WILL NOT DIM DOWN TO A SATISFACTORY LEVEL TO SEE OUT. EVEN WHEN ADJUSTING THE DIM SWITCH ALL THE WAY TO THE LOWEST SETTING, THE GLARE IS SUCH YOU ARE UNABLE TO SEE OUT TO DRIVE SAFELY. LIGHT COMING OFF DASH IS BLINDING YOU! THE ONLY WAY YOU ARE ABLE TO DRIVE THIS VEHICLE AT NIGHT IS COVER THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WITH MULTIPLE SHEETS OF PAPER TO DIM THE GLARE. FREIGHTLINER NEEDS TO FIX THIS ISSUE AND MAKE THE DASH ABLE TO DIM DOWN TO AN ACCEPTABLE VIEWING LEVEL. THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME I DROVE THE VEHICLE AT NIGHT AND WILL BE THE LAST UNTIL THIS IS FIXED. IT IS NOT SAFE.*DT*JB

SAFETY ISSUE WITH 3-STEP ELECTRIC STEPS ON 2018 NEWMAR BAY STAR MOTORHOMES; STEPS ARE ONLY INCHES OFF THE GROUND WHEN EXTENDED AND WILL NOT STOP EXTENDING IF THEY COME DOWN ON TOP OF A FOOT, PET OR OTHER OBJECT. CONSUMER STATED THE STEP WHEN OPEN WAS ONLY 2 INCHES OFF THE GROUND AS YOU CAN SEE IN THE ATTACHED PHOTO, AND THAT IS WHY THE STEP WAS PARTIALLY DAMAGED WHEN IT OPENED WHILE WE WERE DRIVING.*DT CONSUMER STATED RV DEALERSHIP THAT RECENTLY WORKED ON THE RV STEP SAID HE NEVER SEEN RV STEPS THAT CAME THAT CLOSE TO THE GROUND, AND COULD SEE WHERE THERE WAS A SAFETY ISSUE. VIN NOT VALID. MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED.*JB

THE DIGITAL DASH, EVEN AT THE DIMMEST SETTING, IS SO BRIGHT IT IMPAIRS NIGHT VISION AND MAKES NIGHT DRIVING DANGEROUS. A FREIGHTLINER REPRESENTATIVE I SPOKE TO SAID THAT THIS IS A COMMON COMPLAINT AND MOST DRIVERS JUST PUT A RAG OVER IT AT NIGHT.

THE FREIGHTLINER CHASSIS IN MY MOTORHOME INCLUDES A DIGITAL INSTRUMENT PANEL. AT NIGHT THE INSTRUMENT PANEL WILL NOT DIM ENOUGH, CAUSING GLARE AND MAKING IT DIFFICULT TO SEE OUT OF THE WINDSHIELD. I BELIVE THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE THAT SHOULD BE ADDRESSED.

THE FREIGHTLINER DIGITAL DASH IS TOO BRIGHT FOR NIGHT TIME DRIVING. THERE IS NO WAY TO TURN DOWN THE BRIGHTNESS OF THE DISPLAY ENOUGH TO SAFELY DRIVE AT NIGHT. THE BRIGHTNESS OF THE DISPLAY RUINS NIGHT VISION. IT CAN BE ADJUSTED, BUT NOT NEARLY DIM ENOUGH TO MAKE IT USABLE AT NIGHT.