IllustrationTHE PLUNGER ON THE TRIMARK DOOR HANDLE/LOCK MECHANISM BROKE INTERNALLY, LOCKING US OUTSIDE OF OUR MOTOR HOME. THE MOTOR HOME WAS PARKED. DOOR WAS UNABLE TO BE OPEN FROM INSIDE OR OUTSIDE.
2018 Forest River Forester
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Forester years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 1 of 1 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Structure. Review the 1 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
0 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports
What owners actually said
1 reportsOfficial recalls
318V527000 · Equipment:recreational Vehicle/trailer
Aug 13, 2018
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2019 Coachmen Work and Play and Adrenaline recreational trailers, 2018-2019 Forest River Forester and XLR recreational trailers and 2018 Forest River Rockwood recreational trailers. The awning may deploy while moving.
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: If the awning deploys while moving, there would be an increased risk of a crash.
Remedy: Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will replace the awning controller, free of charge. The recall began September 13, 2018. Owners may contact Coachmen customer service at 1-574-825-6302, Forester customer service at 1-574-206-7600, Rockwood customer service at 1-574-642-4053, XLR Toyhauler customer service at 1-574-642-0432, or Lippert customer service at 1-574-538-4514 or recall@lci1.com. Forest River's number for this recall is 51-0715.
17V612000 · Equipment:other:labels; Wheels
Oct 2, 2017
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2018 Forester motorhomes, model FRC3271SF. The Federal Placard may inaccurately state that the vehicle has single rear wheels and tires, when the vehicle is equipped with dual rear wheels and tires. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 120, "Wheels and Rims-Other than Passenger Cars" and fail to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR Part 567, "Certification."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: The Federal Placards may cause the operator to not properly maintain the tires and/or wheels. Failure to maintain the tires may lead to improper handling, potentially increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Forest River will notify owners and will provide a corrected Placard, free of charge. The recall began on October 18, 2017. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-206-7600. Forest River's number for this recall is 34-0528.
Additional source detail variants (2)
Equipment:other:labels
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2018 Forester motorhomes, model FRC3271SF. The Federal Placard may inaccurately state that the vehicle has single rear wheels and tires, when the vehicle is equipped with dual rear wheels and tires. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 120, "Wheels and Rims-Other than Passenger Cars" and fail to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR Part 567, "Certification."
Consequence: The Federal Placards may cause the operator to not properly maintain the tires and/or wheels. Failure to maintain the tires may lead to improper handling, potentially increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Forest River will notify owners and will provide a corrected Placard, free of charge. The recall began on October 18, 2017. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-206-7600. Forest River's number for this recall is 34-0528.
Wheels
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2018 Forester motorhomes, model FRC3271SF. The Federal Placard may inaccurately state that the vehicle has single rear wheels and tires, when the vehicle is equipped with dual rear wheels and tires. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 120, "Wheels and Rims-Other than Passenger Cars" and fail to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR Part 567, "Certification."
Consequence: The Federal Placards may cause the operator to not properly maintain the tires and/or wheels. Failure to maintain the tires may lead to improper handling, potentially increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Forest River will notify owners and will provide a corrected Placard, free of charge. The recall began on October 18, 2017. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-206-7600. Forest River's number for this recall is 34-0528.
17V513000 · Equipment:other:labels
Aug 18, 2017
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2018 Forest River Dynamax, Forester, Sunseeker, and Coachmen Prism vehicles built on Mercedes-Benz Sprinter vans. The affected vehicles have tire labels on the B-pillar that list a tire pressure that is too low. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of 49 CFR Part 567, "Certification."
Consequence & remedy
Consequence: Operating the vehicle with low front tire pressures may result in tire damage, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy: Forest River will notify owners, and authorized Mercedes-Benz or Freightliner Sprinter dealers will inspect and replace the tire pressure label with correct tire inflation pressure, free of charge. The recall began on September 5, 2017. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-854-888-3214. Forest River's number for this recall is 35.55.215-0491.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1PE20021 · Trimark 060-1650 Door Latch Failures
Opened Nov 23, 2020 · Closed Dec 13, 2024
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Equipment
On November 23, 2020, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened PE20021 to investigate allegations of inoperative Trimark THP 060-1650 door lock/latches originally equipped on model years (MY) 2015-2017 Class A and Class C motorhomes.ODI received forty-six Vehicle Owner’s Questionnaires (VOQs) describing consumers being locked in or out of their vehicles.The door latch, containing a die-cast zinc plunger, was produced by Equality during calendar years 2014-2016. The die-cast may become porous and brittle over time and can break without warning, causing the vehicle owner to be unable to open the recreational vehicle door equipped with the latch.If the motorhome does not have any other doors such as some Class A models, occupants could be trapped inside, needing to climb out using the emergency exits. If locked out, owners would be unable to easily get in and retrieve children and pets. ODI analyzed the data provided by Trimark in response to its January 27, 2021 information request letter.Although an elevated failure rate was evident on a specific combination of plunger bolt, door lock/latch assembly and door, the data showed that most failures occurred within the first two years of service on the affected 2015-2017 vehicles.This data suggests that component failures generally would have already occurred.Further, ODI data reflects a downward trend in complaints after calendar year 2018 and for post- MY 2016 vehicles.This downward trend may be attributed Trimark's actions in 2016 such as changes in the manufacturing process of its zinc plunger component for the relevant population and its 2016 decision to switch to a steel plunger. In view of the nature of early-life failure, and failure rate trending downward for model years 2017 and newer, this Preliminary Evaluation (PE) is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to NHTSA.gov.