What Coachmen Nova owners have reported to NHTSA, the service bulletins the manufacturer sent dealers, and any federal defect investigations, by model year. See Coachmen Nova safety recalls or check your VIN.
Complaints owners filed with NHTSA, by the model year of the vehicle. A high count can also mean a popular year, so compare it with how many were sold.
| Year | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Injured | Deaths | TSBs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 2023 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 2022 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2021 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
The vehicle systems named most often in Coachmen Nova complaints (one complaint can name several).
In the owners’ own words, as filed with NHTSA. Unverified reports; NHTSA removes personal details before publishing.
We purchased a new 2025 Coachmen Nova class B camper van on August 28th, 2025 from Olathe Ford RV Center in Kansas. On the drive home from the dealership, the van suffered a complete mechanical failure, shutting down while traveling 70 miles per hour at night on a busy highway. The engine, steering, brakes, lights and emergency blinkers failed, causing the vehicle to lose all control and stop suddenly. We were almost hit by passing semi trucks and cars, who couldn't see us in the dark. I managed to start the engine once, accelerating before it shut down again, and coasting into a parking lot. The vehicle would not start again. The dashboard and lights would only flicker and click (even while…
The contact owns a 2024 Ram Promaster 3500. The contact stated that while driving 65-70 MPH, the brakes independently activated. The cruise control was set to 65â70 MPH when the failure occurred. The contact stated that the vehicle decelerated unexpectedly. The contact stated that the failure occurred while traveling on a busy highway, with the family inside the vehicle. The contact stated that the failure was persistent and had occurred several times while on a trip with the family. The vehicle was converted to a RV. The contact stated that it was a known failure with similar vehicles. The dealer was contacted but provided no assistance. The contact stated that the dealer declined to insp…
The contact owns a 2022 Coachmen Nova RV constructed on a 2021 Ram Promaster 3500 chassis. The contact stated that the passengerâs side awning failed to lock securely. After driving for approximately seven hours in a rainstorm, the awning opened and flipped over the RV. There were no reported injuries. The awning arm then detached. The driver was able to pull over and left the RV on the shoulder. There were no reported injuries. The local dealer was not contacted. The RV was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 6,000.
The contact owns a 2022 Coachmen Nova RV. The contact stated that he received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 23V286000 (Fuel System, Gasoline), and the RV was taken to the dealer, where the recall repair was completed; however, the contact stated that 40 days later, while the RV was parked with the generator running, he smelled a strong gasoline odor. The contact stated that upon inspecting underneath the RV, he noticed that gasoline was leaking significantly from the generator. The contact turned off the generator. The contact was able to drive the RV to the campsite, where it was plugged into an electrical source. The contact stated that he was concerned for his safety because the …
The vehicle is a 2021 Nova C camper van by Forest River. The defective part of the vehicle is the awning. Iâve heard many reports of spontaneous deployment of these awnings and pulled the end cap to check out its condition. To my surprise the motor is loose and the bolts have ground an oval hole in the bracket due to the eccentric movement. The bolts are jammed and the heads slightly stripped, eliminating the possibility of tightening the assembly. I contacted Carefree awning to see if it had been recalled and initially they said yes, that model has been recalled for the Winnebago camper. When I explained my camper was a Nova, they said it was not recalled, but admitted it was the same is…
I parked my 2022 Coachman Nova 20C at the Scenic Overlook on [XXX] at approx 11:15 AM. As I opened the right side sliding door, the CAREFREE, Freedom RM, awning spontaneously extended. The Firefly touchpad next to the door was unresponsive to retracting touch command. Once extended, no attempt to retract the awning myself was effective. No warning of the status of the awning was given. A warning is only given when keys are in the ignition which was not the case. The wind at the overlook caught the awning tossing it up over the vehicle, causing bolts to pop loose. To prevent the awning from flying into passing traffic or scenic spectators in the parking lot, I used a kitchen knife to cut lo…
Oct. 15, 2022 my RV awning randomly deployed and would not retract.
This vehicle is the chassis for a 2022 Coachmen Nova RB. When driving down the road, my Carefree van awning rapidly extended about 8-10 ft on its own. Fortunately, I was on my street and able to drive and park in my driveway. There were no other cars close on the road or it could have caused a serious accident or hit a pedestrian walking along the road. The awning would not retract and I had to contact a technician to manually retract the awning, zip tie it to the van and I removed the fuse. This has happened to a multitude of other camper van owners with this chassis. It is a serious issue and I encourage you to investigate this matter before a fatality or serious injury occurs.
Repair instructions and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about known issues. A TSB is not a recall, and the repair is usually free only while the car is under warranty; ask your dealer for the bulletin number.
Generic instructions for the Truma Combi.
According to FCA Recall B3C/25V720: "The cooling fan may wear prematurely and have inadequate fuse protection, which can lead to a vehicle fire."
According to FCA Recall 25V720: "The cooling fan may wear prematurely and have inadequate fuse protection, which can lead to a vehicle fire."
According to FCA RECALL 25V552/59C/60C: "The rearview camera on your vehicle [1] may have thermal fatigue cracks in the microprocessor solder which can cause the rearview camera to display a blank/black/blue or inverted screen in place of the rearview image. A rearview image that is blank/black/blue or inverted reduces the driver's view of what is behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash. The condition above fails to comply with the requirements of FMVSS No. 571.111 S6.2.6 requires that "The rear visibility system default to the rearview image being visible and meet the requirements
According to FCA recall 25V330: "The Security Gateway Module (SGW) on your vehicle may prevent some communication between vehicle modules, which may result in the rearview image not displaying in a backing event. The vehicle operator may notice that the rearview image is not displayed if attempting to reference the image while backing. A rearview camera image that does not display reduces the driver's visibility of what is behind the vehicle and if not heeded, increases the risk of a crash."
This is a product service bulletin from Global Link concerning counterfeit keys for entry doors being sold on certain websites. Forest River is reporting as we are sharing with the dealer body.
Holding Tank Monitoring System trouble shooting guide for dealers to use for certain tank level sensors and monitors.
According to FCA Recall 66B/24V436: "The radio software on your vehicle may prevent the rearview camera signal from passing through to the media screen. The vehicle operator will notice that the rearview image is not displayed if attempting to reference the image while backing. A rearview camera image that does not display decreases the driver's visibility, increasing the risk of a crash."
According to Mercedes Benz recall 24V225: "The 12V ground connection quick-release fastener might not be fastened properly. The vehicle may lose propulsion without warning."
According to FCA, the driver seat belt buckle may have been built with an incorrect switch sense magnet. Suspect vehicles may incorrectly activate the warning system indicating that the seat belt is unlatched when it is latched. Failure to detect whether an occupant is buckled can impede the seatbelt warning system from deactivating when the belt is properly fastened, potentially leading to reduced seat belt use which can increase the risk of injury in certain crashes.
The Instrument Panel Cluster (IPC) on the affected vehicles may have been built with software and remote starting capability that could prevent the odometer, speedometer, and malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) from displaying after a remote start event. This is a campaign originally issued by FCA under campaign ID: ZA8.
According to a Furrion TSB "TB-220919": Irregular cooling performance has been reported on the identified refrigerators. The refrigerator compressor has been found to stop working and requires a ÃÂâÃÂÃÂÃÂÃÂhard resetÃÂâÃÂÃÂÃÂàby disconnecting power to reset cooling operation. On occasion, disconnecting power does not reset operation and the refrigerator requires service replacement of the control boards. This TSB may not be applicable for some vehicles.
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation public data (complaints, manufacturer communications, investigations), model years 2010 and later. Had a safety problem? Report it to NHTSA.
In complaints filed with NHTSA for model years 2021–2025, owners most often name: unknown or other, electrical system, equipment. 8 complaints are on record.
No. A complaint is an unverified report from an owner. A technical service bulletin (TSB) is the manufacturer telling dealers how to fix a known issue; it is not a safety recall and is usually covered only under warranty. A recall is a formal safety action, and its repair is free.
File a vehicle safety complaint at NHTSA.gov. NHTSA reads every report, and patterns of complaints are what open defect investigations and, eventually, recalls.