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: fire, smoke or burning smell
5 of the 24 complaints about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind describe fire, smoke or burning smell.
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 21%
- typical mileage
- 24,162
- recalls
- 1
Fire, smoke or burning smell by model year
- 20041
- 20035
- 20021
- 19991
- 19981
- 19901
What owners say
Tl* the contact owns a 2003 fleetwood southwind rv. While the contact was driving at approximately between 50-55 MPH, there was a burning smell inside of the vehicle. The brake pedal was applied with no power response. Suddenly, the emergency brake was engaged and the vehicle was able to slow down. The vehicle was coasted to the side of the road. The engine was turned off. The vehicle resumed operation normally. The vehicle was taken to the authorized dealership three times for the identical failures with no repairs. The failure was contributed to the rear brake calipers. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 29,000. Updated 09/01/10. *lj updated 09/14/10
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 fleetwood southwind motor home. While driving 35 MPH, when the contact applied the brakes, the pedal extended to the floorboard and the vehicle began pulling to the right. When the failure occurred there was also a burning smell. After examining the vehicle, the contact saw brake fluid underneath the front passenger side of the vehicle. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the contact was informed that the rear brake calipers needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The current and failure mileages were approximately 16,000.
Tl*the contact owns a 2003 fleetwood southwind w22. On july 3 2007, while driving 45 MPH, the front passenger side of the vehicle shook. The contact smelled something burning and pulled over to the side of the road. He noticed that the brake caliper locked. The failure was repaired at the cost of $837. On february 1, 2008, the driver's side caliper also failed. The contact pulled over and waited until the caliper released. She then drove the vehicle to the dealer and they repaired the failure at the cost of $873. The manufacturer was notified. The current mileage was 25,722 and failure mileage was 24,162. Updated 03-11-08
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
Electrical system
- What is wrong
- Certain motor homes built on workhorse chassis and equipped with actia corporate instrument clusters fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 101 "controls and displays" and no. 105 "hydraulic and electric brake systems." if the brake fail input falls below a voltage of 1.5v, the brake failure lamp and alarm will be activated. Also activation of the ABS telltale when the ABS is not properly functioning does not always occur.
- Risk
- At night the instrument cluster lights may fail and the driver may not be able to see the instrument panel gauges and the brake warning light indicator which could increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Workhorse is conducting the owner notification and remedy for this campaign and reprogram the instrument panel cluster free of charge. Owners may contact workhorse at 1‑877‑246‑7731 or fleetwood at 1‑800‑322‑8216.
Recall number 06V115000 · Recall details
Questions about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind fire or smoke
Is fire, smoke or burning smell a common problem on the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind?
5 of 24 owner complaints about the 2003 Fleetwood Southwind (21%) mention fire, smoke or burning smell. 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.
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