WINNEBAGO Complaints

While driving on the Interstate at 70 mph, there was without any warning sudden bang simultaneous with the vehicle leaching severely to the right and at the same time trying to spin clockwise. As I tried to gain control it felt like the vehicle was going to roll side to side. We were pulling a Jeep Wrangler 4 wheels down behind and it was all I could do to avoid the adjacent traffic. I finally was able to crash the vehicle on the right shoulder of the road. We discovered both passenger rear tires had blown out at the same time. There had been no warning from the Tire Pressure Monitoring system. We recently completed the Valve Stem Extension Recall and had what were discovered as damaged rims replaced at that time. The Tire Pressure Monitoring system was intermittently not registering but Freightliner and Winnebago were not in agreement as to whom was responsible for warranty repair. We are the third Winnebago Horizon from a Facebook Group of fifteen or so Horizon units so far that have had crashes from this AFTER the valve extension recall has been completed. THIS IS A SYSTEMIC PROBLEM THAT IS NOT BEING CORRECTED WITH THE RECALL! I am an Engineer and a retired ER Physician - I can tell you that someone is going to get killed from this. It is sudden and catastrophic. My wife and I are lucky to be alive and I am so thankful that I didn’t kill other people. Very little shakes me after 29 years of Emergency Medicine. I am shook and afraid to drive this unit.

We were traveling from Ashland NE to Argyle TX (heading home) on I 35 South in Oklahoma when both of the rear passenger side tires exploded and shredded. At the time, I was passing a semi-truck and I was in the left lane. I could hardly control the RV but got lucky and managed to maneuver it to the shoulder without rolling or causing an accident with other vehicles, and we managed to walk away unscathed (at least physically). We escaped major injuries but of course talk about the trauma we experienced. What if I wasn’t able to get the RV safely to the side of the road? What if our RV rolled and we caused a pile up on the interstate? What if we got hurt or caused others to get hurt, or worse? Our trust has been broken. The insurance company towed the RV to the nearest Freightliner Dealer and they have been very helpful in assessing the issue as well as fixing the damages to get our coach back in working order. The component which failed was the tire stem as described in their recall. We were not notified of this recall by mail or email – we only heard of it when we were in getting an oil change at the Freightliner in Dallas. They then took care of rectifying the recall issue, at least that is what they told us. Obviously, whatever was done as a fix to the recall issue was not successful and/or a proper fix. Safety of my family and others on the road at the moment of the explosion was at risk. The Freightliner Dealer said that was the issue and they are going to fix it. The vehicle has been inspected by Freightliner. Absolutely no warning message or other symptoms of the problem prior to the failure. Our RV has only 10k miles on it, but had a recall from Freightliner about the wheel issue and I was told that it was fixed: RECALL STABILIZER MISSING 3737 3/9/21 INSPECTED VALVE STEM EXTENSIONS AND STABILIZER AND PASSENGER SIDE REAR MISSING STABILIZER ANDnEXTENSION DAMAGED, REMOVED EXTENSION AND INSTALLED NEW ONE WITH NEW STABILIZER

The contact owns a 1998 Winnebago Itasca travel trailer. The contact stated that after parking the RV, the RV would inadvertently roll forward or backward. The contact applied the parking brakes and exited the RV to chock the wheels. The RV was not diagnosed nor repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 86,000.

The contact owns a 2015 Freightliner XC. The contact stated that the fuel line fractured which resulted in fuel spilling all over the engine compartment. The vehicle was towed, diagnosed, and repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 28,000.

The contact owns a 2019 Winnebago Micro Minnie. The contact stated that the two bolts holding up the water tank fractured, causing the water tank to detach from the trailer. The contact stated that there was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a local dealer nor independent mechanic to be diagnosed. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Every time after driving the vehicle from 5 to 10 miles get a “Service AdvanceTrac” message on console followed by “Hillside Driver Assist Disabled” and the cruise control is disabled.

Upon the advice of fellow Rialta owners, I did an inspection of the rear axle. Upon inspection, I found a crack in the axle casting. This will lead to a catastrophic failure and severe injury or death. The rear axle was manufactured with a weak point and this is where the crack is forming. If the axle breaks at highway speeds, it put everyone on the road in danger. I have reported to fellow Rialta owners who have experience in this and they confirmed it was a crack and will fail. I sent pictures to a local RV shop who does work on my Rialta and they confirmed a welded gusset will need to be installed to reinforce the weak axle. The vehicle is available for inspection upon request, however, to avoid potential deaths, I will have the gussets installed by a local shop to reinforce the axle. This has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police, or insurance representative. There were no warnings or symptoms, just a proactive inspection on my part.

The contact owns a 2013 Winnebago Vista. The contact stated that a crack had formed on the lower passenger’s side of the windshield without warning. The crack to the windshield obstructed his vision while driving. The contact took the vehicle to an independent mechanic who informed him that a significant amount of rust had formed around the windshield frame therefore, the windshield could not be replaced. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 39,200.

The contact owns a 2004 Winnebago Journey travel trailer. The contact stated that there was a propane odor detected about a year ago but the propane leakage was recently found at the weld joints where there was a stress crack. The local dealer and Gander RV & Outdoors of Nashville (2614 Music Valley Dr, Nashville, TN 37214) were made aware of the failure and both dealers informed the contact that the propane tank needed to be replaced. The propane tank was not replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to two different dealers. The contact was relating the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 04V114000 (Equipment). The failure mileage was 110,000.

Entry door to vehicle will fail to work to open door from outside. locking you out from the outside. The door handle will pull out as usual but not engage the mechanism that will open the door. If you leave a widow open you can crawl though and open from inside other wise a locksmith will have to come out. I believe it is trimark handle