RVRESOLVE

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
MONACO COACH / SIGNATURE 2006-2008
Manufacturer : MONACO COACH CORPORATION
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V481000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 10, 2007
Component: SEATS
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 53
Summary:
CERTAIN CLASS A MOTOR HOMES EQUIPPED WITH DRIVER SEATS BUILT BY VILLA INTERNATIONAL FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 207, "SEATING SYSTEMS." THE LOWER SLIDE RAILS OF THE AIR SUSPENSION CAN FAIL.
Consequence:
IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH, SEPARATION OF THE SEAT FROM THE SEAT PEDESTAL MAY LEAD TO PERSONAL INJURY OF THE VEHICLE OCCUPANTS.
Remedy:
MONACO IS WORKING WITH VILLA TO INSTALL TWO REINFORCEMENT TETHERS BETWEEN THE FRONT OF THE SEAT PEDESTAL AND THE TOP OF THE AIR SUSPENSION FREE OF CHARGE. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT YET PROVIDED AN OWNER NOTIFICATION SCHEDULE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MONACO AT 1-800-685-6545.
Notes:
CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

(10-26) 08:06 PDT WASHINGTON (AP) --
One way to get decent coverage in this rough-and-tumble city is to arrange to have your own employees interrogate you at your news conference.
That would seem to be the strategy of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, much maligned for its sluggish response to Hurricane Katrina over two years ago.
FEMA scheduled an early afternoon news briefing on only 15 minutes notice to reporters here Tuesday to talk about its handling of assistance to victims of wildfires that were ravaging much of Southern California.
But because there was so little advance notice for the event held by Vice Adm. Harvey E. Johnson, the deputy FEMA administrator, the agency made available an 800 number so reporters could call in. And many did, although it was a listen-only arrangement, The Washington Post reported Friday.
It said that at the news conference itself, some FEMA employees played the role of reporter, asking questions of Johnson — queries described as soft and gratuitous.
"I'm very happy with FEMA's response," Johnson said in reply to one query from a person the Post said was an agency employee, not an independent journalist.
Asked about this, Mike Widomski, FEMA's deputy director of public affairs, said, "We had been getting mobbed with phone calls from reporters, and this was thrown together at the last minute."

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
KES / AUCTION TOPPER 1999-2003
Manufacturer : KES, INC.
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V494000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 17, 2007
Component: EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 62
Summary:
ON CERTAIN TRUCK CAMPER, AND HORSE TRAILERS EQUIPPED WITH A TWO-DOOR REFRIGERATOR MANUFACTURED BY THE DOMETIC CORPORATION, THESE REFRIGERATORS 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.
Consequence:
RELEASE OF COOLANT UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS COULD IGNITE AND RESULT IN A FIRE.
Remedy:
KES 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 THE OWNER IN LOCATING DEALERSHIPS OR SERVICE CENTERS AND WILL PROVIDE ASSISTANCE WITH SCHEDULING OF APPOINTMENTS. OWNERS MAY CONTACT DOMETIC AT 1-888-446-5157, STERICYCLE AT 1-317-860-1163, OR KES AT 1-800-433-4159.
Notes:
CUSTOMERS MAY CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153); OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
R-VISION / TOWN & COUNRY TOURING 2008
R-VISION / TRAIL-LITE B+ 2007-2008
R-VISION / TRAIL-LITE CLASS 2007
Manufacturer : R-VISION
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V492000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 15, 2007
Component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 10
Summary:
CERTAIN MOTOR HOMES BUILT ON GM CHASSIS FAIL TO CONFORM TO THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, "LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT." THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM (ABS) MODULE IS PROGRAMMED INCORRECTLY. WHEN THE BRAKES ARE APPLIED, THE STOP LAMPS WILL ILLUMINATE. WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL IS RELEASED AND THE STOP LAMPS ARE NO LONGER ILLUMINATED BUT THE REAR BRAKES MAY STILL BE APPLIED. THE BRAKE MAY RELEASE AFTER A FEW SECONDS OR AFTER THE NEXT FIRM BRAKE PEDAL APPLICATION.
Consequence:
IF THE REAR BRAKES ARE STILL APPLIED AFTER RELEASE OF THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE DRIVER MAY NOTICE A SUBSTANTIAL DRAG WHEN DRIVING AND MAY NEED TO DEPRESS THE GAS PEDAL FURTHER THAN USUAL TO CONTINUE VEHICLE MOVEMENT. A VEHICLE DRIVEN WITH THE BRAKES APPLIED CAN CAUSE OVERHEATING OF THE BRAKES, RESULTING IN INCREASED STOPPING DISTANCE WHICH COULD RESULT IN A CRASH.
Remedy:
R-VISON IS WORKING WITH GM WHO WILL REPROGRAM THE ABS MODULE FREE OF CHARGE (PLEASE SEE 07V342). OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438, GMC AT 1-866-996-9643 OR R-VISION AT 574-268-2111.
Notes:
GM RECALL NO. 07177. CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
ITASCA / ELLIPSE 2006-2008
ITASCA / SUNCRUISER 2007-2008
Manufacturer : WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES, INC.
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V491000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 12, 2007
Component: EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 645
Summary:
CERTAIN MOTOR HOMES FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 108, 'LAMPS, REFLECTIVE DEVICES, AND ASSOCIATED EQUIPMENT.' THE REAR AND REAR-SIDE RED REFLECTORS ARE LOCATED ABOVE THE 60-INCH HEIGHT LIMIT.
Consequence:
NON-STANDARD SIDE MARKER AND REFLECTOR LIGHTS COULD REDUCE VISIBILITY OF VEHICLES AND INCREASE THE POTENTIAL FOR A CRASH.
Remedy:
DEALERS WILL ADD REFLEX REFLECTORS IN COMPLIANT LOCATIONS FREE OF CHARGE. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT YET PROVIDED AN OWNER NOTIFICATION SCHEDULE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT WINNEBAGO AT 641-585-3535.
Notes:
WINNEBAGO RECALL NO. 107. CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION¿S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
NEWMAR / KING AIRE 2008
NEWMAR / LONDON AIRE 2006-2007
Manufacturer : NEWMAR CORPORATION
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V490000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 10, 2007
Component: SEATS
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 13
Summary:
CERTAIN DIESEL BUS MOTOR HOMES EQUIPPED WITH DRIVER SEATS BUILT BY VILLA INTERNATIONAL FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 207, "SEATING SYSTEMS." THE LOWER SLIDE RAILS OF THE AIR SUSPENSION CAN FAIL.
Consequence:
IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, SEPARATION OF THE SEAT FROM THE SEAT PEDESTAL MAY LEAD TO PERSONAL INJURY.
Remedy:
NEWMAR IS WORKING WITH VILLA TO INSTALL TWO REINFORCEMENT TETHERS BETWEEN THE FRONT OF THE SEAT PEDESTAL AND THE TOP OF THE AIR SUSPENSION FREE OF CHARGE. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT YET PROVIDED AN OWNER NOTIFICATION SCHEDULE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NEWMAR AT 574-773-7791.
Notes:
CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
NATIONAL RV / NATIONAL RV 2001
Manufacturer : NATIONAL RV, INC.
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V488000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 01, 2007
Component: VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL
Potential Number Of Units Affected :
Summary:
ON CERTAIN CLASS A MOTOR HOMES BUILT ON FORD CHASSIS, THE SPEED CONTROL DEACTIVATION SWITCH MAY, UNDER CERTAIN CONDITIONS, LEAK INTERNALLY AND THEN OVERHEAT, SMOKE, OR BURN.
Consequence:
THIS COULD RESULT IN AN UNDERHOOD FIRE.
Remedy:
FORD IS CONDUCTING THIS RECALL AND WILL INSTALL A FUSED WIRING HARNESS INTO THE SPEED CONTROL SYSTEM FREE OF CHARGE (PLEASE SEE 07V-336). OWNERS MAY CONTACT FORD AT 1-800-444-3311 OR NATIONAL RV AT 951-436-3000.
Notes:
FORD RECALL NO. 05S28. CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.

RV Business
Monday, October 22, 2007

In the wake of last Thursday’s F-3 tornado that tore through Nappanee, Ind., around 10:30 p.m., recreational vehicle builders Gulf Stream Coach Inc. and Franklin Coach Co. Inc. headed into the work week with plans of getting back to business.

Franklin Coach, a small, family-owned company which operates across U.S. 6 from Gulf Stream on Nappanee's east side, lost its manufacturing facility in the storm. Representatives told RV Business today (Oct. 22) that they hoped to reopen their office at a satellite location by Wednesday and are looking for a temporary factory in the area to resume production as soon as possible.

“That’s the plan so far. We’re in this for the long haul,” said Lori Barnaby, office manager, who was staffing the company’s switchboard this morning at her home in nearby Bremen.

Claude Donati, vice president of sales for Gulf Stream, reported that the company’s eight major manufacturing facilities received “minimal damage,” and that it was looking to start shipping product today. Gulf Stream’s sister company, manufactured housing builder Fairmont Homes, also received some damage.

“Our biggest roadblock has been infrastructure,” Donati told RV Business this morning. “We have heard that we’ll be back on commercial electric in a few hours. The phone lines have been sporadic, but it sounds like they’re making progress there. Also, all the main thoroughfares in town are open again.

“It’s important for us to start communicating with our customers. We want to let people know of our situation and that we’re working through this.”

Donati said that Gulf Stream did lose “three or four supply and support buildings” to the storm, but that the lamination facility was in operation. The company also continued to assess damage on the storage lots and Donati estimated that 100 to 120 units had been damaged.

Barnaby said Franklin Coach co-owners Steve and Rick Abel, whose father, Paul, founded the company in 1945, were meeting with their insurance carrier and bankers this morning to arrange the company’s rebuilding efforts. They also were being aided by Nappanee Mayor Larry Thompson in its search for a new facility.

Only a few finished trailers survived the tornado, said Barnaby, who spent all day Friday and part of Saturday searching the ruins for records and other salvageable items. Some of the company’s 60 employees were on site today cleaning up, she said.

According to Barnaby, the company intends to eventually rebuild on the site, once it is cleared. The company manufactures travel trailers, fifth wheels and park models.

Barnaby also reported that the storm created a bizarre situation at the plant, noting, “The oldest part of the building stood but everything around it didn’t.” Founder Paul Abel’s office and his original drafting table remained intact, “down to the pen, pencil and papers just as they were at the close of business on Thursday,” Barnaby said.

Donati also commented on the capricious nature of the storm. “If the storm went ¼ mile to the south, that would have put it right in path of three of our main facilities,” he said. “We dodged a bullet.”

Bob Ashley
RV Business
Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Elkhart, Ind.-based RV and marine supplier TekModo LLC recently announced the introduction of a colorable sidewall material that is highly dent resistant and “designed to replace laminated fiberglass,” according to one of the company's co-founders.

“It will be one-piece and it is colorable, including metallic finishes, and it is highly impact resistant,” said Mary Wetzel, TekModo co-managing partner. “You can take a baseball bat to it without it cracking.”

The new product – called SpectraLite – is designed to be used in combination with TekModo's CosmoLite base, a fiber-reinforced thermoplastic material the company has offered for the last year as lightweight, water-resistant RV flooring. The color infusion was developed with technical support from DuPont Co., Wilmington, Del., using DuPont's Surlyn resin – a colorless material used on the covers of golf balls – as a key component.

“Not many materials can withstand continued high impact events like a golf ball strike,” said Marc LaCounte, another TekModo co-managing partner. “Surlyn is a natural fit for protecting an RV sidewall surface.”

An added benefit is that the technology does not involve products using formaldehyde, which has become an RV industry concern, according Wetzel, a former Chrysler executive.

Available in 9-foot coiled widths, SpectraLite will be laminated to the lightweight CosmoLite substructure and offered as a coiled product beginning in the second quarter of 2008 at a cost competitive with laminated fiberglass, according to LaCounte. “SpectraLite looks like a new automotive finish, and it can be had on any towable or motorhome," he said.

Four Winds International, Elkhart, Ind., along with Pilgrim International Inc., and Coachmen Recreational Vehicle Co. LLC, both of Middlebury, Ind., are working with TekModo to develop RV applications for SpectraLite.

“Our goal is to replace fiberglass, luan, wood and aluminum in our units with composites,” confirmed C. Dave Hoefer, Pilgrim chairman. “(SpectraLite) will take an extreme amount of weight out. It's seamless and there is zero memory to it when it lays out."

Flooring made from TekModo's CosmoLite will “be standard immediately” in the Pilgrim Lite 1500 series, Hoefer said.

RV Business
Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Three months after the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) halted the sale of travel trailers to survivors of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita over possible risks from formaldehyde and promised a health study, none of the 56,000 occupied units have been tested.

The New York Times reported that at a Congressional hearing on the trailers in July, R. David Paulison, FEMA’s administrator, said the agency and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) “are scheduled to begin Phase 1 of the study in the Gulf Coast next week.”

But the first teams did not reach New Orleans and Mississippi until the end of September, and then began only a baseline assessment of unoccupied trailers, laying the groundwork for the full-scale study, said a CDC spokeswoman in Atlanta, Bernadette Burden.

One result of the delay in the testing is that the agency has postponed a plan to charge rent on the trailers beginning in March. The rent was intended to encourage people displaced by the hurricanes to move into nonsubsidized housing.

Before sales were halted over the safety questions, 10,839 of the trailers were auctioned off by the General Services Administration and 819 more were sold directly to occupants by the emergency agency from July 2006 to July 2007, raising potential liability issues.

“It’s different now,” said Mary Margaret Walker, an agency spokeswoman. “The idea of asking people to pay rent for units with health concerns doesn’t seem to make sense.” She said the change had not been announced.

This week, the agency announced a program of relocation subsidies, up to $4,000 a household, to encourage storm victims to return home to the Gulf states or seek permanent housing elsewhere.

But problems with the trailers have dealt further setbacks to self-sufficiency efforts: 4,110 people living in FEMA trailers have asked to be relocated because of health concerns, the agency said. Among these, 771 have been moved to alternative housing, 546 have been given rent subsidies to live elsewhere and 83 have been moved back into hotels and motels at government expense.

At the height of relief efforts after the 2005 storms, the emergency agency was providing 134,502 trailers of various sizes up to mobile homes. The number of trailers still deployed was 55,785, Walker said. The agency paid about $10,000 each for the trailers, from eight manufacturers, she said.

Kathy Munson, a spokeswoman for Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., Riverside, Calif., said dealers commonly aired out the trailers before selling them, which dissipated the formaldehyde. “FEMA ordered so many, they were at staging areas all sealed up and not aired out, and that causes fumes to get worse,” Munson said.

Charles Green, a CDC spokesman, said that testing was expected to start at the end of this month or early November in at least 300 occupied trailers in Mississippi and 300 in Louisiana. Teams will spend about an hour in each trailer using a portable pump to take air samples. The occupants would also be asked questions about pets, smoking habits and the use of pesticides.

Make / Models : Model/Build Years:
FOREST RIVER / SALEM 2008
FOREST RIVER / WILDWOOD 2008
Manufacturer : FOREST RIVER, INC.
NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 07V487000 Mfr's Report Date : OCT 01, 2007
Component: EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 263
Summary:
CERTAIN TRAVEL TRAILERS FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF PART 567, "CERTIFICATION." THE LABEL LOCATED ON THE LOWER ROADSIDE FRONT OF THE UNIT CONTAINS AN IMPROPER LISTING OF THE TIRE AND RIM.
Consequence:
THERE MAY BE CONFUSION AS TO THE PROPER REPLACEMENT TIRE IF IT IS NECESSARY.
Remedy:
DEALERS WILL MAIL THE CORRECTED FEDERAL COMPLIANCE TAG AND TIRE LOAD INFORMATION TO THE DEALERS OR RETAIL CUSTOMERS. THEY CAN BE PLACED OVER THE INCORRECT LABEL AFTER CLEANING THE SURFACE WITH ALCOHOL. CUSTOMERS WILL HAVE THE OPTION FOR DEALERS TO INSTALL THE LABEL FREE OF CHARGE. THE MANUFACTURER HAS NOT YET PROVIDED AN OWNER NOTIFICATION SCHEDULE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FOREST RIVER AT 574-534-3167.
Notes:
CUSTOMERS MAY ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.