2020 Forest River Flagstaff problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Tires:tread/Belt (3) · Tires (2) · Service Brakes (1)
Safety recalls (2)
Tires 2019-11-19 · campaign 19V827000 · 9 vehicles
Defect: Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2020 Rockwood RLF8298KS and Flagstaff FLF8529RLS recreational trailers. Due to improper tire clearance, the tire may contact the steel chassis outrigger, possibly resulting in tire failure.
Risk: Tire failure can cause a loss of vehicle control, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will install a new outrigger to achieve the proper tire clearance, and damaged tires will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began December 10, 2019. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-642-8954. Forest River's number for this recall is 10C-1116.
Trailer Hitches:fifth Wheel Assembly 2019-08-02 · campaign 19V570000 · 1,809 vehicles
Defect: Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Flagstaff and Cherokee Arctic Wolf recreational trailers equipped with MORyde Orbital or You Turn Rubber Pin Box Wedge Kits. The pin boxes may have been equipped with bolts 1-3/4" in length when they should be equipped with 2" long bolts.
Risk: The incorrect bolts may allow the rotating pin box to rotate in two places, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the bolts and replace them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began August 27, 2019. Owners may contact MORyde customer service at 1-574-293-1581 or Forest River customer service at 1-574-642-8954 (Flagstaff) or 1-260-499-2100 (Cherokee). Forest River's number for this recall is 51-1065.
Service bulletins (4)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Structure 2021-07-19 · 10C1387 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
helpful document to remove and replace a flush floor slideroom box/floor.
Structure:frame And Members 2020-07-17 · 10G1198 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the sidewall-mounted rail used to hang the griddle bracket and griddle from was mounted to low. the wheel fender interferes with and does not allow the griddle bracket to rest against the vehicle as intended.
Structure 2020-05-06 · 511150 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
as per lippert components, the bonding on certain 3300 series window vents may not be adequate.
Structure 2019-10-22 · 10C1106 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
the manufacturing plant discovered that the fridge might come loose from restraints while in travel mode.
What owners report
2024-10-22 · Service Brakes“when forced to drive over a canvas tent bag, due to traffic and road conditions. the tent bag wrapped around the drive shaft, ripped out the brake lines and the emergency brake lines damaged the master cylinder and damage the emergency brake mechanism in the cab of the rv. there should be protection under the vehicle so that does not happen! the l…”
2024-04-22 · Power Train“3500# axles added to a trailer with a gross weight of 3920#. tires are severely worn on the inside from an undersized axel. possible tire blow out if not corrected. …”
2024-04-14 · Unknown Or Other“the structure supporting the fresh water tank is insufficient to carry the weight when full of water. the 36 inch long support bars sag ~2 inches when the tank is full, and the tank itself sags another 1.5 inches between the bars. there have been numerous accounts of these tanks detaching and falling out while travelling on the highway, posing a ri…”
2023-06-21 · Unknown Or Other“the fabric side wall failed to keep my daughter safe as she slept in the camper. she fell out of the camper onto the hard, cold ground while she was sound asleep. she could have been seriously injured. the velcro on the fabric was secured to the camper frame. …”
2023-06-09 · Tires“subject castle rock radial st 205/75/r14 tire was running 10 degrees f. hotter (around 110 f) than the three sibling tires after about 30 minutes of travel. this had been the case for an earlier trip of approximately 275 interstate miles. all of these tires are original equipment and similarly used and maintained. the tire eventually exploded (s…”
2022-12-30 · Unknown Or Other“the rv came with a heated mattress which i would often used to pre-heat the mattress before going to bed. on 11/23/2022, i turned the mattress heater on level 4 & went out of the camper. after about an hour, the smoke alarm went off & i came into the camper to find a very strong toxic odor. i found the smell was coming from the mattress & immediate…”
2022-10-24 · Tires:tread/Belt“the contact owns a 2020 forest river flagstaff. the contact stated that when he had inspected the rv spare tire prior to a trip, he noticed that the spare had a blister on the tread. the contact stated that the blister extends from the inner side of the tread to the outer and is approximately five inches wide. the tire dot number: jujtymt 2819. the…”
2022-07-29 · Tires:tread/Belt“what component or system failed or malfunctioned, and is it available for inspection upon request -tire. -i will keep the tire until 11/1/22. i will also have the undamaged spare available of the same make and model if needed. this will accompany a separate report with nearly identical language for the other trailer tire that failed about 60 miles…”
2021-11-24 · Tires“st225/75r15 - had blowout on front driver side of rv that has dual axles. after putting spare tire on, i had gone less than 30 minutes down i-75 and had a second blowout on rear passenger tire as i pulled into a camping world to get new spare. after 3rd tire was determined to be bad, ended up replacing all tires with goodyear endurance tires. fortu…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.