2019 Newmar Dutch Star Owner Complaints

The digital dash is delaminating and makes it hard to see all of the safety items displayed on the dash. Everything is distorted, this is a SAFETY ISSUE. This is a know issue that occurs on many Freightliner products. ( The chassis is Freightliner ) Freightliner will not accept any responsibility beyond the normal warranty timeframe. Freightliner wants $ 7,000.00 ~ for the repair and then how long will this last?? I appears that this is a major issue for Freightliner chassis, and you have to do is google it and many posts come up discussing this problem. Apparently auto manufactures know how to make a digital dash that does not delaminate.

NHTSA ID

11697973

Incident

Jul 10, 2025

The Freightliner chassis under this motorhome uses a Power Distribution Module (PDM) that is a fuse panel "block" that powers several coach items, from taillights, brake lights, engine cooling, air conditioning and several other components. The PDM intermittently fails as it can't support the amount of power it must distribute without overheating and shutting off several components as you drive. Especially dangerous is the lost of rear brake and taillights. The PDM was recalled by Freightliner and was replaced with the same item. I'm only guessing that they thought they had a bad batch and replacing it with another would solve the issue. The replacements failed and they recalled the product again. This time, they left the failed PDM in place and removed several circuits from the unit and ran them outside of the PDM with their own fuses. Again, I think the idea was to reduce how much amperage the unit had to handle. This bypass repair is still failing on some coaches, and Freightliner is refusing to cover the repair under the initial recall.

NHTSA ID

11620605

Incident

Oct 18, 2021

The area on the dash where you read all the gauges is delaminating. This is a hazard as the gauges are hard to see and affected

NHTSA ID

11611246

Incident

Aug 1, 2024

The Freightliner instrument cluster (ICU) screen delaminates and makes it difficult to read the gauges. This issue appears to happen with a lot of 2019 models. Freighter refuses to assist and the cost is $5700 for the cluster + labor.

NHTSA ID

11603226

Incident

Jul 3, 2023

The contact owns a 2019 Newmar Dutch Star RV. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed and attempting to accelerate, he heard an abnormal clunking sound coming from the rear of the RV. No warning lights were illuminated. The RV was taken to an independent mechanic, who determined that the rear differential bolts had become loosened and required to be torqued back to specs. The RV was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was 16,600.

NHTSA ID

11548416

Incident

Sep 22, 2023

Mileage

16,600 mi

Multiple double pane windows are fogging. The driver’s side window fogging between the double pane glass, is causing visibility problem’s creating a safety hazard.

NHTSA ID

11508791

Incident

Sep 20, 2022

The contact owns a 2019 Newmar Dutch Star RV. The contact stated while driving 10 MPH, he heard an abnormally loud sound before the steering wheel seized. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to park safely on the side of the road. Upon inspecting the RV, he noticed the steering hose had separated from the fitting. The contact towed the RV to an independent mechanic where the RV was being serviced. The RV was not yet diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was 19,140.

NHTSA ID

11481429

Incident

Aug 25, 2022

Mileage

19,140 mi

Vehicle was operating normally when dash lights up with bars stating "check Engine and Low DEF." My dash (digital) locked up and I could not access any error codes. I checked my DEF tank and it was 80% full. I contacted Freightliner Custom Chassis who advised that it needed to go to a dealer. They gave me two dealers, one 30 miles away and the other was 60 miles. Contacted both. Neither on could say if the engine would go into de-rate mode and leave me stranded. I asked for a mobile tech and neither had one. I was five miles from my destination and made it there. I found a mobile tech on my own who came out and assessed that the def system indicated a malfunction. He worked with it for hours and finally got the codes to clear and I was able to make it home. This system has been problematic from the start. This failure of this system can leave the vehicle stranded on the side of the road, cause it to decelerate in traffic lanes creating a safety issue for other drivers and passengers in the vehicle. This is an industry wide known problem yet nothing has been done to resolve the issue.

NHTSA ID

11476652

Incident

Jul 18, 2022

DEF sensors failed and we had no assurance that we could drive safely to a repair center before the engine computer shut us down in the middle of nowhere. This DEF issue has resulted in untold waste of time and money. Also personal safety is of NO concern to the EPA. Please resolve this Safety issue now!

NHTSA ID

11427356

Incident

Jun 10, 2020

The contact owns a 2019 Newmar Dutch Star Spartan Motor Chassis RV. The contact stated while driving 45 mph, there were several unknown warning lights illuminated. The RV was driven to the dealer to be diagnosed. The contact was informed of the DEF head (Diesel Exhaust Fluid) failure. The dealer was able to clear the error code but stated that the failure recurred, and the engine degraded the speed on the RV. The mechanic recommended that the RV not be driven. The RV was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 5,409.

NHTSA ID

11426115

Incident

Jul 21, 2021

Mileage

5,409 mi

The Shaw DEF head failed. Started engine and received MIL light - Emissions. Checked codes and saw "SPN 3031 FMI 9-Abnorm. Update Rate" - "Aftertreatment 1 Diesel Exhaust Fluid Tank Temperature". It should be noted that the motorhome was in my enclosed shop, no excessive temperature. It was started in the morning after setting overnight. Knowing that this could potentially derate engine, I contacted Spartan & a local repair facility. Was able to get DEF Head replaced. I am the original owner of the motorhome. Fortunately this happened while preparing for 3-week trip (at home) and not on road.

NHTSA ID

11425564

Incident

Oct 8, 2020

The seats that are installed on the front passenger side have I’ll positioned seatbelts. There is no adjustment for it. I’ve reported it to the dealership and they said they hear it all the time but there is nothing they can do. The seatbelt crosses the chest such that the seatbelt anchors at the top of the seat crossing the neck. Should an accident occur, the seatbelt will be across the neck. This could result in a devastating injury. If I were short, I could understand the positioning but I am 5’8”. I took photos and are attached.

NHTSA ID

11418126

Incident

May 22, 2021

WHILE DRIVING MOTORHOME GOT FLASHING CHECK ENGINE LIGHT AND DEF WARNING MESSAGE. STOPPED VEHICLE AND CALLED SPARTAN (THE CHASSIS MANUFACTURE) WAS TOLD TO NOT DRIVE VEHICLE AS THE DEF HEAD HAD FAILED AND A REPLACEMENT WAS NEEDED. SCHEDULED REPLACEMENT WORK. VEHICLE HAD 3,000 MILES ON IT WHEN THIS HAPPENED. I WAS TOLD THAT THE VEHICLE WOULD BE LIMITED TO 5MPH IS I ATTEMPT TO DRIVE IT FURTHER.

NHTSA ID

11362911

Incident

Jul 4, 2020

Mileage

3,000 mi

MY VEHICLE IS BUILD ON A FREIGHTLINER CHASSIS AND HAS AN OPTIVIEW DIGITAL DASH. WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT THE DASH DISPLAY LIGHTS CANNOT BE DIMMED.

NHTSA ID

11355180

Incident

Aug 30, 2018

Mileage

300 mi

WHILE DRIVING, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. MOMENTS LATER, ANOTHER CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AND THE DEF GAUGE WENT FROM F TO E AND TURNED RED WITH AN ALARM. WE WERE ABOUT 5 MILES FROM OUR DESTINATION. I CALLED NEWMAR WHO PUT SPARTAN ON THE PHONE. IT WAS THE DEF SENSOR. I WAS ASKED TO DRIVE ONE HOUR AWAY ON A TWO LANE ROAD TO A DEALER. I REFUSED. WE EXTENDED OUR STAY BY ONE WEEK UNTIL THE PART CAME IN (BACK ORDERED). MOBILE TECHNICIANS CAME AND INSTALLED THE PART. I ASKED IF I SHOULD HAVE A SPARE SENSOR... JUST IN CASE...AND WAS TOLD NO. THE.CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WENT OUT AND IT APPEARS TO BE FIXED.

NHTSA ID

11354120

Incident

Aug 31, 2020

Mileage

4,345 mi

WE EXPERIENCED A WINDOW FLY OFF OUR COACH WHILE DRIVING ON INTERSTATE 40 NEAR WEATHERFORD OK. IT NARROWLY MISSED A SUV BEHIND OUR COACH. WE HAVE HAD TWO OTHER WINDOWS THAT THE OUTER PANE HAS SEPARATED FROM THE INNER PANE. THE HALF BATH WINDOW AND WINDOW ABOVE DRIVERS SIDE WINDOW. IN COMMUNICATING WITH OTHER OWNERS, THERE ARE SEVERAL PEOPLE WHO HAVE EXPERIENCED THE SAME THING. MANY OTHERS HAVE CAUGHT IT BEFORE THERE WAS A COMPLETE SEPARATION. IT IS OBVIOUS THE ADHESIVE THAT LIPPERT (WINDOW MANUFACTURER) IS DEFECTIVE. JAYCO HAS A SIMILAR PROBLEM: JAYCO, INC. (JAYCO) IS RECALLING CERTAIN 2020 MOTORIZED ALANTE, GREYHAWK, MELBOURNE, PRECEPT, REDHAWK, SENECA, ACCOLADE, EMBLEM, ESTEEM, ODYSSEY, QWEST, AND VISION RVS. THE ADHESIVE BOND BETWEEN THE GLASS AND THE METAL HINGE FRAME OF THE FRAMELESS CRANK OUT VENT AND EGRESS WINDOWS MAY FAIL WHICH WOULD THEN ALLOW THE GLASS TO DETACH AND FALL OUT. *TR

NHTSA ID

11328838

Incident

Jul 22, 2019

Mileage

2,000 mi

LIGHT ON INSTRUMENT PANEL WAY TO BRIGHT AT NIGHT..I HAVE TO COVER TO SEE WHILE DRIVING AT NIGHT DUE TO THE GLARE. HEAD LIGHTS PUT OUT VERY LITTLE LIGHT. *TR

NHTSA ID

11323519

Incident

May 1, 2020

I HAVE A 2019 NEWMAR DUTCH STAR DIESEL POWERED MOTOR HOME ON A FREIGHTLINER CHASSIS. IN 2019, THEY WENT TO A DIGITAL DASH. THE DASH DOES NOT DIM DOWN LOW ENOUGH AT NIGHT, WHILE DRIVING. CONSEQUENTLY IT CAN BE BLINDING. SOME HAVE HAD TO BUY A TINTED PANEL TO REDUCE THE BRIGHTNESS WHILE OTHERS ARE COVERING IT WITH A TOWEL. I'VE SUBMITTED A PHOTO OF THE ACTUAL DASH, BUT I DO NOT HAVE ONE SHOWING IT AT NIGHT, AS THE VEHICLE IS IN STORAGE.

NHTSA ID

11322249

Incident

Nov 6, 2019

THE INSTRUMENT LIGHT PANEL (OPTIVIEW) DOES NOT DIM ENOUGH AND IS TOO BRIGHT AT NIGHT MAKING IT VERY DIFFICULT TO SEE OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT. ON A DARK RAINY NIGHT THE GLARE FROM THE INSTRUMENT PANEL MAKES FOR DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITIONS. MY COMPLAINT TO NEWMAR IN APRIL 2019 WAS DEFERRED TO FREIGHTLINER. NOVEMBER OF 2019 FREIGHTLINER SENT TWO TECHNICIANS TO MY HOME WHO SPENT A COUPLE OF HOURS DIAGNOSING AND TAKING PICTURES OF THE PROBLEM. THEY CONCLUDED THE BRIGHTNESS LEVEL OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL DID DIM IN RESPONSE TO THE SWITCH BUT MAY NOT BE CALIBRATED CORRECTLY. THEY CONCLUDED THAT PROBLEM WAS WITH THE SOFTWARE FROM THE OPTIVIEW VENDOR AND THAT THEY WOULD RESEARCH A SOFTWARE UPDATE WITH THEM AND GET BACK TO ME. THEY NEVER GOT BACK TO ME, WOULD NOT RETURN MY CALLS AND SUBSEQUENT COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE BRIGHTNESS HAVE BEEN WRITTEN OFF AS " THIS IS NORMAL". MY SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM HAS BEEN TO AVOID NIGHT DRIVING AND WHEN I MUST DRIVE AT NIGHT I COVER THE PANEL WITH A PAPER TOWEL OR SUN SCREEN. I BELIEVE A SIMPLE SOFTWARE UPDATE WOULD ALLEVIATE THIS POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS CONDITION. *TR

NHTSA ID

11321477

Incident

Dec 8, 2018

LOCKED ENTRY DOOR POPS OPEN WHILE DRIVING. IT HAPPENS ON SMOOTH ROADS, DOESN'T HAVE TO BE A BUMPY ROAD. RV IS AT KNOXVILLE DEALER NOW AND THEY SAY THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH DOOR. THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES; WE TIE THE DOOR SHUT NOW.

NHTSA ID

11311651

Incident

Jan 25, 2020

Mileage

6,000 mi

THE FREIGHTLINER OPTIVIEW INSTRUMENT PANEL ON THIS VEHICLE IS BLINDING WHEN DRIVING AT NIGHT AND WILL NOT DIM DOWN TO A SATISFACTORY LEVEL TO SEE OUT. EVEN WHEN ADJUSTING THE DIM SWITCH ALL THE WAY TO THE LOWEST SETTING, THE GLARE IS SUCH YOU ARE UNABLE TO SEE OUT TO DRIVE SAFELY. LIGHT COMING OFF DASH IS BLINDING YOU! THE ONLY WAY YOU ARE ABLE TO DRIVE THIS VEHICLE AT NIGHT IS COVER THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WITH MULTIPLE SHEETS OF PAPER TO DIM THE GLARE. FREIGHTLINER NEEDS TO FIX THIS ISSUE AND MAKE THE DASH ABLE TO DIM DOWN TO AN ACCEPTABLE VIEWING LEVEL. THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME I DROVE THE VEHICLE AT NIGHT AND WILL BE THE LAST UNTIL THIS IS FIXED. IT IS NOT SAFE.*DT*JB

NHTSA ID

11206966

Incident

Apr 15, 2019

Mileage

1,000 mi

THE DIGITAL DASH IN MY MOTORHOME IS TOO BRIGHT AT NIGHT. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DIM THE PANEL SUFFICIENTLY TO REDUCE GLARE AND REFLECTION FROM THE DASHBOARD ONTO THE WINDSHIELD AND SIDE WINDOWS. THIS IS A SUBSTANTIAL SAFETY HAZARD AS IT PREVENTS BEING ABLE TO SEE ADEQUATELY OUTSIDE THE RV AT DUSK AND AT NIGHT. THIS AFFECTS LANE CHANGES, THE ABILITY TO SEE THE MIRRORS WHILE BACKING AND OTHER OPERATIONAL FACETS. EVEN WHILE STANDING STILL THE VISIBILITY TO OUTSIDE IS POOR. THE INSTRUMENT PANEL SHOULD BE ABLE TO DIM ALL THE WAY TO DARK OR AT LEAST VERY CLOSE TO DARK. THE DISTRACTION FROM THE BRIGHT LIGHT WILL EVENTUALLY BE A PRIMARY COLLISION FACTOR OR BE A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTING FACTOR TO A COLLISION. CONSIDERING THIS IS A 51,000 POUND VEHICLE WITH GCWR RATING OF 66,000 POUNDS, THE CONSEQUENCES OF A COLLISION DUE TO POOR VISIBILITY FROM THE BRIGHT DASH COULD BE EXTREMELY SEVERE.

NHTSA ID

11155746

Incident

Oct 4, 2018

Mileage

800 mi

THE DIGITAL DASH IS TOO BRIGHT FOR NIGHT TIME DRIVING. THE SCREEN HAS THE ABILITY TO BE LOWERED, BUT EVEN AT ITS LOWEST SETTING, IT IS FAR TOO BRIGHT. IT CAUSES LOSS OF NIGHT VISION, AND THE INABILITY TO SAFELY DRIVE. THE ONLY CORRECTION THAT CAN BE MADE IS TO COVER THE SCREEN, LOSING ALL ABILITY TO SEE IMPORTANT GAUGES.*DT*JB

NHTSA ID

11155595

Incident

Nov 16, 2018

Mileage

2,200 mi