2022 Forest River Salem Owner Complaints

The contact owns a 2022 Forest River Salem RV. The contact stated that shortly after purchasing the vehicle, the power cord connecting the RV to the shore power outlet only powered a selected number of items, including the microwave. The contact stated that the battery system was unable to maintain power to the refrigerator or the freezer. Additionally, while attempting to disconnect or turn off the battery power to the refrigerator, the television shut off, despite being on a separate circuit. Upon further inspection, the contact discovered that the labels and markings on the fuse box were incorrect. The dealer and the manufacturer were notified of the failure, but the vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unavailable.

NHTSA ID

11750857

Incident

Jul 1, 2026

I am filing a safety complaint regarding a 2022 Forest River Salem Cruise Lite travel trailer, purchased July 21, 2022. At the time of sale, the unit had an open federal safety recall (NHTSA Recall 22V-243) involving a fire/explosion hazard. The recall was not remedied prior to sale. The vehicle was presented for service multiple times, and the recall was not identified or addressed until May 2025. At that time, the manufacturer directed that the recall repair be completed; however, the issue has not been resolved. The manufacturer’s owner portal continues to show the recall as open, despite NHTSA’s system not showing an unrepaired recall for this VIN. The vehicle has been out of service for an extended period and is currently unusable. Request: Investigation into failure to remedy a safety recall within a reasonable time, potential reporting discrepancies regarding recall status, and the sale of a vehicle with an open safety recall.

NHTSA ID

11727803

Incident

May 13, 2025

Tire size: 225/75/R15 We were getting on the highway, but didn't even make it off of the on ramp after having just visually inspecting and checking the tire pressure prior. On the way to where we were leaving we actually had another one of these castle rock tires blow out, so we were planning to stop and get four new tires as there was obviously even less milage on the castle rocks when the first blow out occurred, but didn't we make it that far. Both blow outs caused considerable damage to the unit and there was no apparent cause for them happening.

NHTSA ID

11548559

Incident

Jun 30, 2023

Front window just cracked like a flaw in the manufacture process nothing struck it. Axles are really close together like one maybe put on backwards. I have photos but won’t let me upload

NHTSA ID

11539170

Incident

May 1, 2023

225/75/15

NHTSA ID

11514113

Incident

Mar 26, 2023

The fresh water and waste water holding tanks are not sufficiently supported in the trailer. We have had the black water tank replaced by the dealer because it shifted and fell out of the supports. The fresh water tank is now also showing signs of "sagging" where is should be supported. When inspecting the issue, it was noted that the tanks are only held in place by two support rails running between the main frame, much like a ladder rack or bed frame. The tanks are inserts between these rails and supported by a 2 inch lip on either side of the tank with no central support across the 7 foot span of the tank. This leaves a significant portion of the tank unsupported and subject to bouncing or shifting under normal travel down the highway. The tanks are designed to hold 30 gallons of water in this manner. Forest River has acknowledged that there was a safety recall for this issue on previous year's models but has denied any issue with my particular model year. They have advised that I should simply run a support between the front and back support bars to lift the center of the tank, as this is what they did with the recall previously.

NHTSA ID

11499039

Incident

Dec 20, 2022

FOREST RIVER SALEM LITE. CONSUMER STATED THAT THE CANOPY COVER DOES NOT COVER THE STEPS.

NHTSA ID

11494403

Incident

Nov 21, 2022

The contact owns a 2022 Forest River Salem Laminated Towables Trailer equipped with a Furrion oven, Model Number: F1S17L03A-BL. The contact stated that the stove was leaking gas and failed to ignite as needed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the regulator control valve was replaced; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure.

NHTSA ID

11491615

Incident

Oct 31, 2022

The contact owns a 2022 Forest River Salem Towables. The contact stated that while she was in the RV, she saw smoke. The contact inspected the fuse box and noticed that the fuse box wiring had melted. The wall behind the fuse box was burned and the electrical cord connected to the outside of the RV had also melted; however, the fire alarm failed to alert of the danger. The RV was taken to the dealer who informed the contact that they were unable to duplicate the failure. The dealer sent photos of the failure to the manufacturer and was awaiting a response. The RV was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ID

11488090

Incident

Sep 27, 2022

I have a 2022 Salem FSX170SS. While traveling on our first trip with this vehicle, the fresh water tank fell out of the trailer and dragged on the pavement. I was fortunately traveling through a construction area at low speed and damage was limited to the loss of the tank and underbelly. This same model had a safety recall in 2021 for the very same problem. The remedial action was for the dealer to verify and if necessary correct any installation defects e.g. poorly fitting tank. A cursory examination of the unit quickly revealed that the design is minimal and has near-zero redundancy in the event of a minor installation issue. The weakness presents a clear danger to human injury and death. The fact that I had this problem in 2022 would seem to make it clear that the company's response to this issue is woefully inadequate. I have reported this incident to Transport Canada and there is an open file. An inspector has been to my home to assess the trailer. Because I am not a US resident, I was unable to submit the form (it requires a US address). I therefore used the address of a friend. My actual address is 654 Glen Cedar Cr., Innisfil Ontario Canada L9S2J5.

NHTSA ID

11482876

Incident

Jul 13, 2022

The tongue jack provided by the manufacturer/original dealer on my unit broke within 24 hours of me bringing the unit home. At the time it broke I was already connected to the hitch but it was no longer able to lift up RV off my truck without using a separate jack. Problem was confirmed, inspected, and replaced by a separate electric tongue jack by a separate Camping World facility other than original Camping World dealer.

NHTSA ID

11467131

Incident

Mar 1, 2022

The contact owns a 2022 Forest River Salem Trailer equipped with a Tongue Jack. The contact stated as he was cranking on the tongue jack, the jack failed and dropped 9 inches, causing the front of the trailer to collapse as well. The contact stated that the name of the manufacturer of the tongue jack was not available. Additionally, the model name and serial number were also not available. The dealer and the manufacturer were not made aware of the failure. The contact stated that he replaced the defective tongue jack with a new tongue jack that he purchased from the store. The tongue jack was not diagnosed nor repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 2,000.

NHTSA ID

11437393

Incident

Oct 2, 2021

Mileage

2,000 mi