2003 Fleetwood Southwind Problems, Complaints & Recalls
- Compared with other Southwind years
- Far more complaints than other years 1st of 28 for complaints
- Safety recalls
- 8 recalls: check your VIN
- NHTSA crash rating
- Not rated
Owners have filed 24 complaints with NHTSA about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind. That is the most of any Southwind model year in the database (28 years). The most reported problem area is service brakes, hydraulic (13 complaints, 54%), typically at around 25,000 miles. Complaints mention 1 fire. There are 8 safety recalls covering this model year. NHTSA has opened 1 defect investigation involving it.
- 24owner complaints
- 8safety recalls
- 1NHTSA investigations
- 0complaints mentioning a crash
Complaints are unverified owner reports and are not adjusted for sales volume.
Most common 2003 Fleetwood Southwind problems
Complaints grouped by the part of the car owners reported, with the median mileage when the problem happened.
| Problem area | Complaints | Share | Median miles | Owners mention most | Typical repair cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Brakes, Hydraulic | 13 | 54% | 25,000 | — | — |
| Equipment | 2 | 8% | 26,750 | — | — |
| Service Brakes, Air | 2 | 8% | 36,450 | — | — |
| Electrical System | 1 | 4% | 20,000 | — | — |
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 1 | 4% | — | — | — |
| Fuel/propulsion System | 1 | 4% | 27,500 | — | — |
| Service Brakes | 1 | 4% | 54,000 | — | — |
| Suspension | 1 | 4% | 7,828 | — | — |
| Trailer Hitches | 1 | 4% | 17,000 | — | — |
| Unknown or Other | 1 | 4% | — | — | — |
One complaint can list several problem areas, so shares can add up to more than 100%.
Complaints by year received
2003 Fleetwood Southwind recalls (8)
Tap a recall to see the problem, the risk and the fix.
Equipment
Problem: Fleetwood rv is recalling certain model year 2005 and 2006 motorhomes manufactured between july 24, 2004 and march 11, 2005, equipped with norcold model 1200lr, 1200lrim, and 1201lrim refrigerators with serial numbers between 1273701 and 1536607, non-consecutively. A fatigue failure in the section of the cooling unit which contains the refrigerant could allow the liquid solution to slowly leak. If a leak occurs and the refrigerator continues to be operated after solution circulation has ceased the heat source could generate very high temperatures. At such high temperatures, the cooling unit could rupture.
Risk: If a leak occurs and the unit is continues to operate, hydrogen gas may be expelled and can be ignited, resulting in a fire, possibly causing serious injury or death.
Fix: Fleetwood rv will notify owners and the vehicle's refrigerator will be repaired free of charge. The safety recall is expected to begin during september 2009. Owners may contact fleetwood rv at 1-800-509-3418 or norcold's recall center at 1-800-767-9101.
Service brakes, air
Problem: Fleetwood is recalling 509 my 2001-2008 class a motor homes equipped with axles that include bosch zops or zoht pin slide hydraulic disc brakes. When combined with occasional or seasonal vehicle operation may experience calipers sticking in the applied position. This can result in abnormal heat generation at the wheel end causing brake drag. The driver would normally have warning of the brake drag if undetected by the driver.
Risk: The driver would normally detect the brake drag but if undetected the temperature increase at the wheel end can eventually lead to soft pedal conditions due to brake fluid boil, and possible extended stopping distance increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the necessary components free of charge. Workhorse is handling the remedy for this campaign please see 09v-110. The manufacturer has not yet provided an owner notification schedule. Owners may contact workhorse at 1-877-246-7731. Workhorse will conduct the owner and dealer notification.
Equipment:recreational vehicle/trailer
Problem: Fleetwood is recalling 70,101 my 2003-2007 southwind, pace arrow, bounder, flair, storm, fiesta, terra gas class a motor homes; bounder, discovery, providence, excursion, expedition, revolution, american eagle, american heritage, american tradition diesel class a motor homes; jamboree tioga class c motor homes; and prowler, wilderness, terry, mallard, pioneer, pride and triumph conventional and fifth wheel travel trailers equipped with a two-door refrigerators manufactured by the dometic corporation. The refrigerator may have a defect in the boiler tube. Pressurized coolant solution could be released into an area where an ignition source (gas flame) is present.
Risk: If this solution is exposed to an ignition source under certain specific circumstances, it can result in a vehicle fire.
Fix: Fleetwood is working with dometic to repair these refrigerators (please see 08e032). Dometic will repair these refrigerators by installing a secondary burn housing, a thermal fuse, and a melt fuse free of charge. Dometic has retained stericycle inc. To manage this campaign. Stericycle will assist the owner in locating dealerships or service centers and will provide assistance with scheduling of appointments. Owners may contact dometic/stericycle at 1-888-446-5157 or fleetwood at 1-800-322-8216.
Equipment:recreational vehicle/trailer
Problem: Certain motor homes and travel trailers equipped with a two-door refrigerator, manufactured by the dometic corporation, may have a defect in the boiler tube. Pressurized coolant solution could be released into an area where an ignition source (gas flame) is present.
Risk: Release of coolant under certain conditions could ignite and result in a fire.
Fix: Fleetwood will be working with dometic in order to repair these refrigerators (please see 06e076). Dometic will repair these refrigerators by installing a secondary burn housing, a thermal fuse, and a melt fuse free of charge. Dometic has retained stericycle inc. To manage this campaign. Stericycle will assist you in locating dealerships or service centers and will provide assistance with scheduling of appointments. Owners may contact dometic/stericycle at 1-888-446-5157 or fleetwood at 1-800-322-8216.
Electrical system
Problem: Certain motor homes built on workhorse chassis and equipped with actia corporate instrument clusters fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 101 "controls and displays" and no. 105 "hydraulic and electric brake systems." if the brake fail input falls below a voltage of 1.5v, the brake failure lamp and alarm will be activated. Also activation of the abs telltale when the abs is not properly functioning does not always occur.
Risk: At night the instrument cluster lights may fail and the driver may not be able to see the instrument panel gauges and the brake warning light indicator which could increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Workhorse is conducting the owner notification and remedy for this campaign and reprogram the instrument panel cluster free of charge. Owners may contact workhorse at 1-877-246-7731 or fleetwood at 1-800-322-8216.
Trailer hitches
Problem: Certain motor homes equipped with draw tite hitch receivers may be missing one or more welds between the hitch receiver box and the bottom support plate.
Risk: The welds could break, allowing the hitch receiver box and the towed load to separate from the towing vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace the hitch receiver. The recall is expected to begin during august 2004. Owners should contact fleetwood at 1-800-322-8216.
Equipment:recreational vehicle/trailer
Problem: On certain travel trailers equipped with samsung microwave ovens, these ovens were produced with a defective panel. An electrical short can occur between circuit patterns on the membrane panel, especially overlapped by a "jumper" or jump wire. This may cause the oven to activate without pressing any key pads.
Risk: An electrical short can occur causing the oven to activate without pressing any key pads. This could result in excessive heat, smoke, or possibly a fire.
Fix: Samsung will notify customers and repair the panel free of charge. In the meantime, consumers should unplug their microwave, if possible. If the consumer is unable to unplug the microwave, they should leave the door ajar until the panel is replaced. Consumers should never use the microwave oven for storage or leave any towels, paper, cloth or other products in the microwave after use. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact samsung at 800-932-3837 or fleetwood at 1-800-629-8454.
Equipment:mechanical:integrated jack/leveler/stabilizer
Problem: On certain motorhomes built on workhorse chassis, the hydraulic hose operating the leveling jack system was routed so it places the hose too close to the engine exhaust. The hot exhaust can cause the hydraulic hose to melt or abrade, releasing hydraulic fluid.
Risk: If the hydraulic fluid should ignite by an exhaust gas recirculating tube or other heat source, this could cause a fire.
Fix: Dealers will inspect and replace damaged hoses and relocate the affected hydraulic lines. Owner notification is expected to begin october 3, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact fleetwood at 1-800-322-8216.
To see whether a specific car still has an open recall, enter its VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup. You can also decode a VIN here.
NHTSA defect investigations
- Inadvertent slide-out extension movement (PE06005) — opened Jan 20, 2006, closed May 2, 2006.
Recent owner reports
Short excerpts of the latest complaints filed with NHTSA, with personal details removed. Full reports can be searched on NHTSA.gov.
3 times now while driving my brakes have failed. Brakes have gotten hot and overheated. Can smell a burning smell. Abs lights come on. Brake pedal goes to the floor and will not stop. Only way to stop is to shift vehicle to low gear and apply emergency brake which has taken an extremely long time…
What does "the vin you entered cannot be processed at this time. If the vin was entered correctly, please contact your vehicle manufacturer for more information. " mean when i cannot find the true manufacturer?
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 fleetwood southwind. While driving 25 mph, the brake pedal felt spongy when depressed. Approximately one mile later, the abs indicator illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, but was not diagnosed or repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 28,000. The vin…
Generator fuel line from main tank to generator ruptured while vehicle was in motion on an interstate highway.
Recall 09v198000 bought used 2003 southwind motorhome and attempted at several workhorse service centers to get the brake recall performed. Was told by all that workhorse has no calipers to ship and no plans to order any more. How can this be allowed to happen when there are still vehicles that…
Other Fleetwood Southwind years
← 2002 Southwind · 2004 Southwind →
See all Fleetwood Southwind problems by year, every Fleetwood model, or the VIN decoder.
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Frequently asked questions
What are the most common problems with the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind?
Owners most often report service brakes, hydraulic, equipment, service brakes, air problems. The top one, service brakes, hydraulic, accounts for 13 complaints.
Was there a recall on the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind?
Yes, 8 safety recalls. Enter your VIN at NHTSA.gov to check whether the repairs were done on your car.
Was the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind a good year?
Complaint data can't fully answer that, because counts aren't adjusted for sales. Compared with other Southwind model years, the 2003 has far more complaints than most years. Always get a pre-purchase inspection and check the VIN for open recalls.