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2021 Forest River Cardinal Recalls & Complaints

6

open safety recalls on record

Critical

2 owner complaints filed · Severity Index 0.00 · updated 2026-08-07

The recalls

Critical20V655000

Equipment:Recreational Vehicle/Trailer:Lpg Systems:Furnace

If exhaust enters the trailer, it can cause carbon monoxide poisoning, which can raises the risk of injury or death.

Remedy & full details

Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will install the correct intake sleeve to allow for proper connection on the furnace, free of charge. The recall began November 6, 2020. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-296-7700. Forest River's number for this recall is 15-1245.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2021 Cardinal fifth wheel trailers. The fresh air intake sleeve for the furnace is too short and does not have proper connection of the furnace to the exterior, allowing furnace exhaust to enter the trailer.

Critical21V988000

Equipment:Electrical:Accessory Generator

Carbon monoxide inside the vehicle can raises the risk of injury or death.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will inspect the generator compartment for proper sealant and apply sealant if necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 5, 2022. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-296-7700. Forest River's number for this recall is 15-1444.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2020-2022 Cardinal fifth wheel recreational vehicles. The generator compartment may not be sealed properly, allowing carbon monoxide to enter the vehicle.

Critical24V272000

Equipment:Electrical

circuit board that overheats raises the risk of a fire.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will disconnect and cut the circuit powering the LED backlights and terminate the wiring, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed by May 14, 2024. Owners may contact Suburban customer service at 1-574-247-9235 option 5; Cardinal & Wildcat customer service at 1-574-296-7700; Cedar Creek customer service at 1-260-593-4000; Columbus customer service at 1-574-821-1487; Continental Cargo customer service at 1-254-420-0171; Dynamax customer service at 1-574-264-6664; Ibex & Nobo customer service at 1-574-6421612; and Sandstorm & Shockwave customer service at 1-909-873-3777. Forest River's number for this recall is 51-1760.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Forest River Cardinal, Wildcat, 2018-2019 Cedar Creek, 2021 Columbus, 2023 Continental Cargo, 2021-2024 Dynamax DX3, Dynamax Dynaquest XL, Dynamax Isata, Forest River IBEX, 2022-2024 Dynamax Europa, Forest River NOBO, 2022-2023 Forest River Sandstorm, Shockwave, Stealth, and 2021-2023 Dynamax Force trailers. The LED backlight circuit board in the cooktop range may fail, causing the board to overheat.

Serious21V141000

Equipment

misaligned furnace flue can allow furnace exhaust to leak into the living space, raises the risk of injury or death.

Remedy & full details

Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will secure the furnace and align the flue, free of charge. The recall began March 24, 2021. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-296-7700. Forest River's number for this recall is 15-1302.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2021 Cardinal CAF345RLX, CAF366DVLE, CAF390FBX and 2021 Wildcat WCF336RLS, WCF368MB vehicles. The furnace flue may become misaligned due to insufficient furnace hold screws that allow movement during travel.

Serious21V145000

Equipment:Recreational Vehicle/Trailer

detached spare tire carrier can raises the risk of a crash or injury.

Remedy & full details

Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will secure the spare tire carrier, free of charge. The recall began March 24, 2021. Owners may contact Forest River Customer Service at 1-574-296-7700. Forest River's number for this recall is 15-1304.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2021 Cardinal and Wildcat Fifth Wheels trailers. The spare tire carrier may be installed incorrectly, allowing it to detach from the vehicle.

Serious22V004000

Tires:Tread/Belt

Belt separation could lead to loss of vehicle control, raises the risk of a crash.

Remedy & full details

Dealers will inspect the tire DOT codes, and replace the tires as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 1, 2022. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-825-4995. Forest River's number for this recall is 51-1449.

Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2021-2022 Prime Time Sanibel, Crusader, Forest River Cardinal, and Continental Cargo fifth wheel trailers, equipped with certain Sailun tires, size ST235/80R16/G. Due to a manufacturing issue, the tires may experience a belt separation.

Complaint volume

2 this model-year 7 median, same year

Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.

What owners reported happened

0Crashes
0Fires
0Injuries
0Deaths

Across 2 complaints. Severity Index 0.00.

Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.

What owners report most

Unknown Or Other1 · 50%Structure1 · 50%
  1. Unknown Or Other — 1 reports
  2. Structure — 1 reports

What to do

  1. Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
  2. Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
  3. Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.

Other model years

1998 (1) · 1999 (1) · 2000 (1) · 2001 (2) · 2002 (2) · 2003 (3) · 2004 (2) · 2005 (2) · 2006 (1) · 2009 (1) · 2010 · 2013 (2) · 2014 (4) · 2015 (1) · 2016 (4) · 2017 (3) · 2019 (1) · 2020 (1) · 2021 · 2023

Numbers in brackets are open recall campaigns for that year.

Questions

Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?

Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.

Do I pay for recall repairs?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.

Why are there complaints but no recalls?

Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.