The Recall Desk
Our severity:SevereNHTSA·10V525000·Announced 2010-10-26

Winnebago Recalls Recreational Vehicles with Norcold Refrigerator Fire Risk

Winnebago is recalling certain recreational vehicles equipped with 1200-series Norcold refrigerators because the safety shut-off mechanism may not prevent a fire from a hydrogen gas leak.

What this means for you

Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 4/5 (Severe).

The hazard poses a serious risk of illness, injury, or structural failure. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.

Our severity reasoning: The recall addresses a structural vehicle defect involving a fire hazard caused by a failure in the safety shut-off mechanism for a potential hydrogen gas leak, which aligns with the 'Severe' criteria for significant injury/property-damage risks.

Plain-English summary

Winnebago Industries, Inc. is recalling certain Itasca and Winnebago recreational vehicles equipped with 1200-series Norcold refrigerators. The affected models include the Horizon, Vectra Grand Tour, Sunova, Chieftain, SunCruiser, Journey DL, Vectra, SunStar, Brave, Sightseer, Ultimate Freedom, Vista, Ellipse, Meridian, Luxor, Ultimate Advantage, Sunrise, SunFlyer, Journey, and Adventurer, manufactured between 1996 and 2011.

The defect involves the safety features designed to shut off power to the refrigerator when high temperatures are detected, which may indicate a hydrogen gas leak. The response times of the sensing algorithm and thermal switch devices are not sufficient to stop power quickly enough to prevent a potential fire.

Winnebago is working with Norcold to identify and notify affected owners. Owners will be instructed to contact Norcold dealers to receive the remedy free of charge. The recall began in December 2010. Owners may contact Norcold at 1-800-767-9101 or Winnebago at 1-641-585-3535.

The recalled product

Product
ITASCA, WINNEBAGO HORIZON, VECTRA GRAND TOUR, SUNOVA, CHIEFTAIN
Brand
ITASCA
Manufacturer
WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES, INC.
Category
Vehicle — Recreational Vehicle
Hazard
Affected units
18,461

Is your product affected?

Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.

Model numbers (20)

  • HORIZON
  • VECTRA GRAND TOUR
  • SUNOVA
  • CHIEFTAIN
  • SUNCRUISER
  • JOURNEY DL
  • VECTRA
  • SUNSTAR
  • BRAVE
  • SIGHTSEER
  • ULTIMATE FREEDOM
  • VISTA
  • ELLIPSE
  • MERIDIAN
  • LUXOR
  • ULTIMATE ADVANTAGE
  • SUNRISE
  • SUNFLYER
  • JOURNEY
  • ADVENTURER

Distribution

Distributed nationwide across the United States.

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