RoadVitals

2003 National Rv Dolphin Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
9
Latest Jun 15, 2009
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
2
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Jun 10, 2003

What this page shows

Our database holds 9 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2003 National Rv Dolphin. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–9 of 9

Brakes
Filed Jun 15, 2009

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NATIONAL DOLPHIN RV. THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN EXPERIENCING BRAKE FAILURE EVER SINCE IT WAS PURCHASED. THE DEALER REPAIRED THE FRONT BRAKES UNDER WARRANTY. THE REAR BRAKES WERE ALSO REPAIRED. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL NOTICE FOR THE BRAKES, BUT THE DEALER STATED THAT HIS VEHICLE WAS EXCLUDED FROM THE RECALL REPAIR SINCE THE REPAIRS WERE PREVIOUSLY PERFORMED. THE NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 50,000.

NHTSA ID
10273909
Incident
Jul 12, 2005
Mileage
15,000 mi
Brakes
Filed Nov 17, 2008

MILEAGE: 23640 BRAKES ON MY RV (WORKHORSE W22 2003 CHASIS) LOCKED UP, OVERHEATED, AND DASH ABS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. REPLACED LEFT FRONT AND REAR WHEEL SENSORS. MILEAGE: 23765 DATE:11-7-07 - BRAKES AGAIN LOCKED UP, OVERHEATED, AND ABS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. REPLACED ABS CONTROL MODULE, WHEEL SENSORS, FRONT HUB SEALS, FRONT BRAKE PADS, FLUSH BRAKE SYSTEM, ADD NEW FLUID, & BLEED SYSTEM. MILEAGE:31990 DATE:10-15-08 - FRONT BRAKES DRAGGING, OVERHEATED, ABS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. REPLACE FRONT ROTORS, CALIPERS, HUB SEALS, PADS, WHEEL SENSORS, FLUSH, REPLACE FLUID, AND BLEED BRAKE SYSTEM. MILEAGE:33052 DATE: 10-30-08 - FRONT BRAKES DRAGGING, OVERHEATING, ABS WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. FRONT BRAKES CHECKED & HAD NO DAMAGE. REPLACED WHEEL SENSOR, CLEARED CODE, CHECKED SYSTEM,ETC. *TR

NHTSA ID
10249044
Incident
Aug 14, 2007
Mileage
23,640 mi
Brakes
Filed Aug 28, 2007

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 NATIONAL RV DOLPHIN. WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH, THE VEHICLE PULLED TO THE RIGHT. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE FRONT BRAKE WAS NOT RELEASING. BOTH FRONT BRAKES WERE REPLACED. WHILE DRIVING 50 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL EXTENDED TO THE FLOOR WHEN DEPRESSED. THE EMERGENCY BRAKE WAS APPLIED TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE DEALER REPLACED THE REAR BRAKES BECAUSE THE CALIPERS OVERHEATED AND BECAME STUCK. THE BRAKES WERE LESS THAN 20% WORN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 15,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 32,000.

NHTSA ID
10200997
Incident
Jul 1, 2005
Mileage
15,000 mi
Fuel system
Filed Jan 26, 2007

TL* - THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FUEL LINE ON THE 2003 DOLPHIN LX MOTOR HOME STARTED LEAKING GAS ABOVE THE FUEL TANK. THE CONTACT HAS THE FUEL TANK AND THE REPAIR INVOICES. THE CONTACT ALSO HAD THE FUEL TANK WITH THE CRACKS IN IT. *AK UPDATED 02/22/07.*JB

NHTSA ID
10180831
Incident
Jan 15, 2007
Mileage
37,000 mi
Body & structure
Filed May 20, 2004

THE CONSUMER INDICATED THAT DUE TO THE ANGLE OF THE FRONT WINDSHIELD, SUN LIGHT REFLECTED ON THE WINDSHIELD WHICH CAUSED A GLARE IN THE EXTERIOR REAR VIEW MIRROR. THIS RESULTED IN POOR OR NO VISIBILITY. *AK *SC *JB

NHTSA ID
10071963
Incident
Jun 17, 2003
Mileage
2,364 mi
BrakesDriver assistanceVisibility
Filed Jan 5, 2004

WHILE DRIVING AT ANY SPEED BRAKES OVERHEATED, AND IT TOOK LONGER TO STOP. DEALER REPLACED BRAKE PADS/SPEEDOMETER, AND WINDSHIELD WIPER MOTOR.*AK

NHTSA ID
10053377
Incident
Jan 5, 2004
Electrical
Filed Sep 23, 2003

THE PCM/TCM FUSE BLEW WHEN ACCELERATING AT LOW SPEEDS. THIS CAUSED ENGINE FAILURE, WHICH RESULTED IN THE VEHICLE STALLING WHILE DRIVING. DEALERSHIP REPLACED THE FUSE 3 TIMES, BUT THE PROBLEM CONTINUED. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS UNDETERMINED. *AK INCIDENT WAS TRACED TO A CHAFFED WIRE ON A METAL CLAMP WITHIN ENGINE COMPARTMENT. *PH *JB

NHTSA ID
10034248
Incident
Mar 3, 2003
Mileage
587 mi
Electrical
Filed Aug 15, 2003
Fire reported

WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH CONSUMER NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE FIRE WAS PUT OUT BY CONSUMER. THE AMOUNT OF DAMAGE AND CAUSE HAD NOT BEEN DETERMINED. *AK *JB

NHTSA ID
10022320
Incident
Apr 23, 2003
Mileage
3,070 mi
BrakesTransmission
Filed Jun 10, 2003
Fire reported

WHILE TRAVELING AT HIGHWAY SPEED WITHOUT ANY INDICATION VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE. *AK THE VEHICLE WAS NINE WEEKS OLD WHEN THE VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE. THE SOURCE OF THE FIRE WAS A FLAMMABLE FLUID. THERE WAS A LIQUID TRAIL ABOUT ONE FOOT WIDE AND 100 YARDS LONG ON THE ROAD WHICH LEAD UP TO THE MOTORHOME. IT WAS DIFFICULT TO DETERMINE THE EXACT CAUSE OF THE FIRE. THE FAILURE WAS NARROWED DOWN TO EITHER THE TRANSMISSION OR THE BRAKE LINE. *SCC *NLM

NHTSA ID
10022797
Incident
Apr 23, 2003
Mileage
3,073 mi

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .