The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Forest River Berkshire, 2012-2017 Forest River Charleston, 2013-2015 Coachmen Cross Country and Pathfinder, and 2014-2015 Glaval Synergy motorhomes built on Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation (FCCC) chassis. The power steering hose on the affected vehicles may be routed incorrectly, and, as a result, the hose may rub against the power stud on the starter motor, possibly causing electrical arcing and a power steering fluid leak.
The risk
Electrical arcing in the presence of leaking power steering fluid can increase the risk of a fire.
The remedy
Forest River will notify owners, and Freightliner dealers will reroute the power steering hose to provide proper clearance, free of charge. The recall began on April 13, 2018. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712, Forest River customer service at 1-574-295-2117, Coachmen customer service at 1-574-825-8212, or Glaval customer service at 1-574-343-5167. Forest River's number for this recall is 51-0665.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Coachmen Cross Country | 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| Coachmen Pathfinder | 2013, 2014, 2015 |
| Forest River Berkshire | 2016, 2017 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017 |
| Glaval Bus Synergy | 2014, 2015 |
Components: STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:HOSE, PIPING, AND CONNECTIONS
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coachmen Cross Country | 2013 | 0 | 2 |
| Coachmen Cross Country | 2014 | 0 | 1 |
| Coachmen Cross Country | 2015 | 0 | 2 |
| Coachmen Pathfinder | 2013 | 1 | 1 |
| Coachmen Pathfinder | 2014 | 0 | 1 |
| Coachmen Pathfinder | 2015 | 0 | 1 |
| Forest River Berkshire | 2016 | 4 | 7 |
| Forest River Berkshire | 2017 | 0 | 11 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2012 | 0 | 4 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2013 | 0 | 3 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2014 | 0 | 5 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2015 | 0 | 5 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2016 | 1 | 5 |
| Forest River Charleston | 2017 | 0 | 5 |
| Glaval Bus Synergy | 2014 | 0 | 1 |
| Glaval Bus Synergy | 2015 | 0 | 2 |
Other steering recalls in 2018
31 of the 912 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2018 concerned the steering; Forest River, Inc. filed 592 campaigns in all.
| 18V928000 21 Dec 2018 | Prevost Cars, Inc. |
| 18V913000 19 Dec 2018 | Daimler Trucks North America LLC |
| 18V898000 19 Dec 2018 | Porsche Cars North America, Inc. |
| 18V872000 7 Dec 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V850000 29 Nov 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V840000 27 Nov 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V815000 16 Nov 2018 | Autocar, LLC |
| 18V804000 14 Nov 2018 | Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2018