CSR

Forest River · NHTSA safety record

2020 Forest River Cherokee

Every safety complaint, recall and defect investigation the US government holds on this vehicle.

14

Complaints

0

Crashes

1

Fires

0

Injuries

0

Deaths

Owners of the 2020 Forest River Cherokee have filed 14 safety complaints with NHTSA between October 2019 and July 2025. The most complained-about system is the body structure, named in 5 of them (36%). The typical failure was reported at 228 miles, the median across the 6 complaints that gave an odometer reading.

NHTSA has issued 7 recalls covering this vehicle.

Recalls (7)

STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS

24V003000 · January 5, 2024

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2020 Cherokee travel trailers. The draw bar locking mechanism may break, which can cause the front end of the trailer to contact the road.
The risk
A trailer that contacts the road during transit increases the risk of a crash or injury.
The remedy
Dealers will replace the Ice Hose swing arm draw bars, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 5, 2024. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-574-825-4995. Forest River's number for this recall is 95-1705.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 302 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

20V654000 · October 26, 2020

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2019-2021 Cherokee recreational trailers. The shore cord inlet wiring insulation may not have been sufficiently stripped back, causing a poor connection with the set screw.
The risk
A poor electrical connection can increase the risk of a fire.
The remedy
Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will remove the inlet, and rewire or replace the inlet completely if necessary, free of charge. The recall began November 23, 2020. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-260-499-2100. Forest River's number for this recall is 17D-1201.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 9,261 vehicles across all model years covered

EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE/TRAILER

20V075000 · February 12, 2020

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Surveyor, NO BO, Cherokee, R. POD, Clipper, Viking, Independence, Puma and East to West trailers. The spare tire carrier U-bolts may fail allowing the spare tire carrier and spare tire detach from the vehicle.
The risk
If the spare tire carrier and spare tire detach from the vehicle while in motion, it can become a road hazard and increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will replace U-bolts, free of charge. The recall began March 20, 2020. Owners may contact Surveyor, NO BO, R. and POD customer service at 1-574-642-3119, Independence, Viking, and Clipper customer service at 1-269-467-4600, Puma customer service at -574-642-0606, East and West customer service at 1-574-264-6664 or Cherokee customer service at 1-877-426-5337. Forest River's number for this recall is 51-1133.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 4,464 vehicles across all model years covered

TRAILER HITCHES

19V844000 · November 25, 2019

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2018-2020 Cascade and Cherokee travel trailers. The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) of the vehicle exceeds the GVWR of the trailer hitch coupler, potentially resulting in the coupler failing and the trailer detaching.
The risk
A trailer that detaches from the tow vehicle can increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Forest River will notify owners and dealers will replace the coupler, free of charge. The recall began February 17, 2020. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-260-499-2100 or 1-541-995-3447. Forest River's number for this recall is 64-1114.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 328 vehicles across all model years covered

EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE/TRAILER

19V785000 · November 1, 2019

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2020 Cherokee Alpha Wolf Travel Trailers. The wire supplying the 12V power for the refrigerator may have been connected incorrectly to the circuit breaker.
The risk
The incorrectly connected wire may not have overcurrent protection, allowing the wire to melt, increasing the risk of fire.
The remedy
Forest River has notified owners, and dealers will correct the wiring, free of charge. The recall began November 19, 2019. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-260-499-2100. Forest River's number for this recall is 76-1109.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 154 vehicles across all model years covered

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING

19V668000 · September 20, 2019

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2020 Cherokee trailers, models CKT16BF-D, CKT16BFH-D, CKT16GR-D and CKT16GRH-D. The protective paneling may not have been installed around the distribution panel, allowing the distribution panel wiring to be exposed in a storage compartment, which can lead to damage to the panel and wiring.
The risk
Damaged distribution panel wiring can increase the risk of electrical shock or fire.
The remedy
Forest River will notify owners, and dealers will install a divider in the storage compartment to ensure the distribution panel wiring is protected, free of charge. The recall began October 9, 2019. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-260-499-2100. Forest River's number for this recall is 17D-1089.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 53 vehicles across all model years covered

EQUIPMENT:OTHER:LABELS

19V453000 · June 14, 2019

The defect
Forest River, Inc. (Forest River) is recalling certain 2019-2020 Cherokee trailers, model CKT294BH. The Federal Placard states incorrect Cargo Carrying Capacity (CCC) and Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) information, which may result in the trailer being overloaded.
The risk
An operator may rely on the incorrect Placard information and overload the trailer causing a loss of control and increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Forest River has notified owners, providing replacement placards that contain accurate Gross Vehicle Weight Rating and Cargo Carrying Capacity information, free of charge. The recall began June 24, 2019. Owners may contact Forest River customer service at 1-541-995-3447. Forest River's number for this recall is 64-1033.

Forest River, Inc. · up to 70 vehicles across all model years covered

What owners report

Complaints naming each system. One complaint can name several, so these add up to more than 14.

STRUCTURE 5 36%
TIRES 4 29%
SUSPENSION 3 21%
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 2 14%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 14%
EQUIPMENT 1 7%
SERVICE BRAKES 1 7%
WHEELS 1 7%

When the complaints arrived

By the year NHTSA received them, which is not the year the failures happened. They peaked in 2020 at 4.

2019 2020 2025
2019 to 2025

In owners' own words

Quoted from NHTSA's complaint file. These are unverified accounts by the people who filed them, not findings of fault.

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

fire

The contact owned a 2020 Forest River Cherokee. The contact stated that while inside the vehicle, while it was parked in the driveway, an abnormal chemical odor was emitting from the interior and exterior of the vehicle. In addition, afterward, a fuel-burning odor was emitted from the interior and exterior of the vehicle. The contact exited the vehicle and noticed black smoke emitting from the battery area. No warning lights were illuminated. The fire department was called and extinguished the fire. The fire department informed the contact that the fire may have started due to a failure of the solar connection. The front end of the vehicle was consumed by the fire. The insurance company was

NHTSA complaint 11672371, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

SERVICE BRAKES

towed · 250 miles

I PURCHASED A FOREST RIVER WOLF PUP TRAVEL TRAILER JULY 2019. IT WAS DOCUMENTED TO HAVE A 30 GAL FRESH WATER TANK. AFTER PURCHASE I FIND OUT IT HAS 20 GAL FRESH TANK. THE TRAILER WEIGHT LABEL FIXED TO TRAILER STATES WEIGHT INCLUDES WEIGHT OF 30 GAL FRESH WATER CAPACITY. BASED ON THE INCORRECT WEIGHT LISTED, I DO NOT KNOW ACTUAL WEIGHT OF TRAILER MAKING ACCURATE LOADING IMPOSSIBLE. THIS IS A BIG SAFETY ISSUE. CONTACTED MANUFACTURE AND THEY ADMIT CHANGE IN TANK SIZE BUT DID NOT NOTIFY PURCHASER AT TIME OF SALE. THEY STATE CHANGE MADE MID 2019. SO, EVERY WOLF PUP TRAILER SOLD AFTER MID 2019 MAY HAVE INACCURATE WEIGHT LABELS. TO ME, IT LOOKS LIKE THEY LABEL TRAILER WITHOUT IN FACT WEIGHING AS

NHTSA complaint 11331869, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

STRUCTURE:BODY
There are 2 major defects that we would like to make the NHTSA aware of and feel that the manufacturer should issue a recall and have these issues properly fixed. Our 2020 Forest River camper/ice house has a structural defect and the entire camper is breaking away from the frame. We had this confirmed by a service company that specializes in RV frames/wheel alignment. Our camper has had structural issues within 2 years of owning it. We are the original owners (bought Aug 2020) and the camper's wheel well is bowing, the exterior walls on the camper are bowing/wavy, interior walls are bowing/wavy. We have made attempts to work with Forest River to fix this major structural issue, but they

NHTSA complaint 11561005, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

TIRES
Was driving at speed 60-65 mile per hour and tire blew out caused severe damage to the trailer.

NHTSA complaint 11531239. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

TIRES
Castle Rock ST225/75R15 as originally equipped on 2020 Wolf Pup travel trailer. Approximately 4000-5000 miles total on tire. Properly inflated and visually inspected prior to trip. Load estimated at 70% of rating. Tire explosively failed without warning at highway speed. Second tire same brand/model/age/conditions failed in similar circumstance approximately 45 miles later. Wheels destroyed, trailer damaged. Debris showered onto roadway putting others at risk. Control of vehicle and trailer also became a risk to self and others on road. Continued safety risk as I was forced to change tire on side of interstate. Remnant of tires available for inspection on request.

NHTSA complaint 11523350. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

TIRES
This warning and complaint pertains to recreational vehicle tires, Castle Rock/Lionshead ST 225/75R15. Three tires blew up, exploded, causing damage to the side and underside of the RV. The 4th shows signs of delamination. The tires have a DOT number JUL T. The tires were on an RV purchased new in 2020, less than 3 years old, with less than 5000 miles on them. They were properly inflated at 80 PSI and monitored with temperature and pressure sensors, which gave no warnings. The first tire exploded January 11, 2023. Tires 2 and 3 exploded January 16. The 4th did not explode but it clearly shows signs of delamination. One trip, 4 defective tires within 1000 miles, something is wrong. We have

NHTSA complaint 11507023, quoted in part. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

TIRES

2,000 miles

The contact owns a 2020 FOREST RIVER Cherokee equipped with Castle Rock Radial ST22, Size: 205/75/r14 DOT Number: JUJTYMT2418. The contact stated while at a standstill the passenger front tire exploded without warning. The manufacturer was informed of failure and the contact is awaiting a response. The failure mileage was approximately 2,000.

NHTSA complaint 11436448. Filed by an owner and not verified by NHTSA or by us.

Compare

Other years of the Forest River Cherokee

Model year Complaints Recalls Deaths
2022 23 6
2021 49 3
2019 9 6
2018 14 8
2017 11 6

Other 2020 Forest River models

Every Forest River on this site — 30 vehicles, 428 recall campaigns and 0 open investigation s.

If this is your car and a dealer keeps failing to fix it, your state's lemon law may require the manufacturer to replace it or buy it back. What each state asks for , read from the statutes.

Where these numbers come from

A complaint is one owner's account and has not been verified by NHTSA or by us. A vehicle with more complaints is not necessarily worse: models that sold in larger numbers collect more of them. How this is counted.

Compiled and maintained by
Independent developer and analyst