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 with narrow misses. On time while driving down a windy road. Another time in stop and go traffic and just after the brakes smelled of burning. By the time I pulled over smoke was coming out of the front brakes. I lifted the front wheels off of the ground and the wheels would not turn. I cracked open a brake line and the fluid was boiling. I replaced the front brakes and calipers also both front ABS sensors. Recently for the third time I lost brakes after traffic, a burning smell occurred and brakes went to the floor again this time coming front the rear brakes. Also the ABS light came on. Please help. Also the brake master cylinder has been replaced.
2003 Fleetwood Southwind: brake failure
5 of the 24 complaints about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind describe brake failure.
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 21%
- typical mileage
- 25,000
- recalls
- 1
Brake failure by model year
- 20042
- 20035
- 20001
- 19951
- 19941
- 19931
What owners say
After 100 mile trip, lost braking on my motorhome, with the smell of brake burning, while stopped in traffic, brake pedal went to the floor. Rear wheel liners both sides were too hot to touch. After about 30 minutes, brake fluid cooled off and braking returned. Return trip of 100 miles 3 days later with no problems.
After 75 mile trip, right rear wheel was hot and smoking, no loss of braking, return trip 8 days later no problem.
Brake failure on a 2003 fleetwood workhorse chassis motorhome. Pedal goes to the floor.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 fleetwood southwind. While driving 15 MPH, the front brakes failed as the contact attempted to stop the vehicle and he smelled something burning. When the brakes cooled down, he took the vehicle to a repair shop and the mechanic stated that the pads were worn and the rotors needed to be changed. The vehicle was repaired, however, the failure recurred four months later. The number of cylinders and powertrain were unknown. The current and failure mileages were 24,000.
Related recalls
Service brakes, air
- What is wrong
- 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.
- Remedy
- 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.
Recall number 09V198000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind brake failure
Is brake failure a common problem on the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind?
5 of 24 owner complaints about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind (21%) mention brake failure. The model year with the most reports is 2003.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind?
There is 1 recall and 0 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind
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