- Vehicles
- 1,938
- Built between
- May 1989 – May 1997
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Equipment
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 30 April 1998
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between May 1989 and May 1997. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- Aqua Hot 411Built February 1996 to May 1997
- Aqua Hot 431Built May 1989 to March 1997
What the defect is
Equipment description: heating systems used on motor homes. The fiberglass insulating material located under the burner head on the floor of the aqua-hot heating system enclosure as well as on the back side of the access doors for the electric heating element and thermostats can become soaked with fluids (ethylene glycol and/or diesel fuel), increasing the risk of an electrical short.
What could happen
This condition can result in a fire in the vehicle.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL REMOVE THE INSULATION MATERIAL FROM BENEATH THE HEATING SYSTEM AS WELL AS FROM BEHIND THE CONTROL THERMOSTAT AND HEATING ELEMENT ACCESS COVERS.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtMay 1989 to May 1997
- Recall reported to NHTSA23 April 1998
- Owners notified30 April 1998
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 23 April 1998.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- VEHICLE SYSTEMS, INC.
- Recall initiated by
- ODI
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Vsi began notifying owners on april 30, 1998.OWNERS who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact the motor home company or vehicle systems at 1-303-857-2901.ALSO contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.