2023 Winnebago Ekko Electrical Problems

After starting the vehicle I noticed an unusual whine. After a few seconds of idling I noticed that it smelled like something was on fire. I turned off the vehicle and began looking for smoke. I did not find it. After a little research I discovered that it is a very well known failure that the Balmar alternator on Winnebago EKKOs fails catastrophically, sometimes catching on fire. I followed instructions to disable the Balmar. I let the vehicle cool completely. I restarted the vehicle and let it idle for a long while and the whine and the smell never returned. I used the Lithionics app to confirm that the batteries were not being charged while the engine was idling.

NHTSA ID

11749007

Incident

Jul 8, 2026

We had reported on Sat, 3/21/26 to Winnebago that we noticed our Balmar alternator had stopped charging the battery the night before on Fri, 3/20/26 during a 2.5 hour trip to Sebastapol, CA. We drove to Santa Clara, recharged batteries with shore power and then drove to Santa Cruz, CA. This morning on Sun 3/22/26, our 2nd Balmar Alternator installed by NIRVC/Las Vegas in Mar-April 2024 under the 174 Recall caught on fire. Fortunately, we were idling in a parking lot before getting on the freeway, and could hear the whining noise, smell the burning alternator, and see the smoke coming out of the engine before the fire grew too large. We were able to extinguish the fire and keep the damage limited to the Balmar alternator. Had we gotten out onto Highway 17, ours and others lives could have been severely impacted, as we likely would not have noticed nor been able to deal with the fire as quickly. We have unplugged the 4-pin wire plug from the Balmar regulator. Once we restarted the engine, a piece of plastic came flying out, and then everything started spinning freely. We were able to drive home. We have reported the fire to Winnebago and are awaiting communication as to next steps. We have video footage of the fire and vehicle is available for inspection.

NHTSA ID

11726205

Incident

Mar 22, 2026

Balmar alternator began smoking and emitting a burning smell, also began discharging the house batteries. This condition caused us to be disabled along the roadway and entailed crawling under the vehicle to disconnect the wiring from the alternator. Unable to get immediately repaired as no Balmar replacement parts were available from Winnebago. Repairs completed December 2024 by dealer. Additional Service Campaign 75-09 on Balmar alternators May 20, 2025 to cut charging rate by approximately 50% to prevent overloading. This service also completed by dealer August 18, 2025

NHTSA ID

11712318

Incident

Sep 23, 2024

Reference NHTSA Safety Recall 23V-234 Just experience failure of second Balmar alternator at about 26,000 miles. Replacement of first failure was done in conjunction of above referenced safefy recall. Work was performed in March of 2024. Subsequent to the above referenced recall Winnebago issued a Service Campaign (75-09) to derate (adjust/lower alternator output settings)in order to reduce the risk of overloading the alternator. The service campaign work was completed in June 2025. Numerous other Ekko owners have experience multiple Balmar alternator failures including some that have caught on fire. I was aware of the early warning signs of problems (high pitched whine that varies with RPM's and alternator output that drops to near zero) and proactively unplugged/disconnected the alternator before potentially serious consequences arose. My situation, and those of other Ekko owners clearly shows there is a design and/or quality issue that requires corrective action.

NHTSA ID

11698603

Incident

Nov 1, 2025

There is a Balmar alternator installed on my Winnebago EKKOs that failed by smoking and burning. Winnebago replaced it with the same piece of equipment and it too has failed. They will again replace with another Balmar putting me at risk of fire and failure. This is totally unacceptable! Please help all us EKKO owners force Winnebago to solve this with a safe solution. Some owners have had 6 Balmars replaced! This is a known problem that is not being resolved.

NHTSA ID

11697235

Incident

Oct 23, 2025

The winnebago EKKO has a secondardy alternator (Balmer brand) that charges the coach Lithium battery. There is an existing Winnebago recall regarding this component , Winnebago #174 and I originally had the Balmer alternator fail in summer 2023 and it was repaired by Winnebago under the #174 recall. The Balmer alternator has now failed again as of January 2025, and is appearing to heat beyond normal. The symptom of this failure, is lack of charging of the battery during engine operation, as well as tripping of the main coach power breaker. I have disconnected the alternator to prevent any safety issues such as over heating. Others will same vehicle have reported safety issues such as overheating and potential fire. I have reported this to Winnebago customer service. But I have not had the vehicle yet inspected by Winnebago or other service center, but have an appointment with Winnebago factory service on May 12, 2025.

NHTSA ID

11643960

Incident

Jan 6, 2025

Since I have picked up my Winnebago Ekko (motorhome) on [XXX] from Lichtsinn RV in Forest City, Iowa (1 mile from the factory) it has had numerous electrical fires in the kitchen and also has had no fewer than the 4 separate strains of mold growing throughout the motorhome as evidenced by the results of the mold test I did last spring. Although I have notified Winnebago Customer Care, Winnebago's CEO (Michael Happe), Lichtsinn RV and the Iowa Attorney General's office (where I have an open investigation for also being forced to pay an additional $25,000+ at the closing table or walk away after two years of waiting when I was told it would be six months) last spring when I emailed them the results, there has been NO response yet from anyone at Winnebago or Lichtsinn RV regarding these issues. I have made a video on YouTube showing the fire and mold / mold test results that will show what has been happening in my RV for most of the time I've owned it: [XXX] Finally, I should also note that I am [XXX] and am covered by the ADA Act; I can furnish proof. Because most of my health problems stem from an [XXX], the fact that Winnebago and Lichtsinn RV have left me in such a bad position with the mold in my Ekko is completely unacceptable to me. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ID

11632228

Incident

Aug 15, 2023

Second Balmar alternator failure - this failure occurred after the recall was performed for this same issue by Winnebago at their factory. Originally purchased Sept 2022, first Balmar alternator replaced Sept 2023 along with the recall 174 being accomplished at the factory. Second failure occurred Dec 2024 after 17k miles since the recall was accomplished. This appears to be a continuing issue as many other Ekko owners have reported multiple Balmar alternator failures. Symptoms prior to the failure was erratic charging and then subsequent tripping of the 250 Amp breaker. I was unable to restore charging and disconnected the alternator at the controller to prevent any additional issues.

NHTSA ID

11631649

Incident

Dec 15, 2024

The contact owns a 2023 Winnebago Ekko RV built on a 2022 Ford Transit Chassis. The contact stated that the RV blind spot monitoring system had become inoperable. The contact stated that the red light on the passenger's side and the driver's side of the windshield had failed to illuminate, and the alarm failed to sound while there was another vehicle in the blind spot. The RV was taken to an RV dealer, where the blind spot monitoring system was replaced; however, the failure recurred approximately 3 months later. The RV was taken to a second dealer, Lichtsinn RV (505 IA-9 East, Forest City, IA 50436), where it was diagnosed that the exterior modules of the blind spot monitoring system were susceptible to water damage, which caused the interior of the modules to become wet and to fail. The dealer determined that the modules needed to be replaced. The RV was then taken to the first dealer, where the parts were replaced; however, the failure persisted. The RV was not repaired. The manufacturer was initially notified of the failure but had become unreachable. The failure mileage was approximately 3,000.

NHTSA ID

11629830

Incident

Dec 10, 2024

Mileage

3,000 mi

Balmar whine has indicate to be the first step before fire starting in the engine compartment

NHTSA ID

11618782

Incident

Oct 8, 2024

We believe our Balmar (the second alternator that powers our Lithium batteries) failed and then created enough heat to either have a small fire or produce copious amounts of toxic smoke. This is a known problem with the Winnebago EKKOs. There has been one round of recalls for the Balmar re-wiring which we had done at the Winnebago Factory Center in Forest City, IA on November 21, 2023. We were in the parking lot at Whole Foods in Jackson, Wyoming when this happened. We opened the hood when we smelled the plastic burning smell and smoke was pouring out. People were gathering and telling us to call 911 to get the fire department out. We decided to discharge the fire extinguishers provided with our EKKO (a Kidde ABC model). If the whole thing caught fire, obviously other people and cars parked next to us would have been in danger. Yesterday, we heard a new “whine” coming from our engine and noticed that our app that measures the power coming into the lithium batteries was fluctuating way more than usual and so we suspected the system was starting to fail. We had no idea it would fail so quickly and so dangerously.

NHTSA ID

11618348

Incident

Oct 6, 2024

After completion of NHTSA Campaign Number 23V-234, the Balmar alternator charging system on my EKKO has twice shutdown and gone into a locked state which also trips the 250A house breaker in the RV. This state disables all charging while the engine is running and also disables the house 12V system due to the breaker trip. The locked state is supposedly triggered by an alternator over temperature condition. The NHSTA campaign previously replaced this entire Balmar charging system and its wiring, however, there are still clearly issues with the post-recall system as it fails and shuts down. The safety issue here is that the Balmar system over temperature condition can lead to a fire. Winnebago has not been helpful and refers me to Balmar. Balmar is entirely non-responsive and does not answer any calls or emails via their support mechanisms.

NHTSA ID

11617345

Incident

Aug 31, 2024

The Winnebago installed under hood generator (Balmar brand) produced a burnt, smokey smell immediately upon starting the engine on September 22nd. The previously 3 days when the vehicle was started and driven a whining type notice was coming from the generator. This was the first time any noise from the Balmar generator was given... 18,000 miles had been put on the vehicle during the last 11 months without issues. Since this is a well known issue with the Winnebago Ekkos I knew to pull the 4 pin connection to the house battery system to prevent any fires or other issues. With the Balmar being disconnected from the battery system there is no noise or burnt smell coming from the Balmar generator. And vehicle could be driven. As mentioned, Winnebago is well aware of this issue and said they had fixed the problem when I purchased this camper RV in 2023. No one has looked at the vehicle yet but I will have Winnebago or the dealer look at it when I can get it scheduled.

NHTSA ID

11616519

Incident

Sep 22, 2024

Have completed work for: NHTSA SAFETY RECALL 23V-234, had failure AFTER recall. Vehicle has 16250 miles on it. Balmer alternator failed, heavy smoke, very bad smell, no fire visible. disconnected 4pin control wire Reported to Balmer and Winnebago.

NHTSA ID

11591405

Incident

May 23, 2024

Last August 2023 we had Recall 174 completed at Winnebago’s factory service center. This was for the Balmar 2nd alternator, Regulator, and wiring harness. This morning around 6:45am upon starting the vehicle I smelled smoke. Since this is common when the alternator fails I checked our lithionics battery app to discovery we were not inputting any amperage to our house batteries from the 2nd alternator. It had burned up and failed once again (had failed last year, recall was done to fix it, and has worked since August 2023). We are not the first owners who have had the recall done and have the system fail again.

NHTSA ID

11588042

Incident

May 10, 2024

The Balmar alternator gets very hot and emits very loud high-pitched whine. Others who have reported this heat/sound without further action have reported the alternator has caught on fire.

NHTSA ID

11534875

Incident

Jul 26, 2023

The balmar regulator/ 2nd alternator is failing and presenting a fire hazard based off of Winnebago’s own reports and other owners who have experienced fires to their Ekkos. Because of this we have had to spend a considerable amount of money getting another safe charger option (dc - dc charger wired properly and safely unlike winnebagos 2nd alternator/balmar regulator) from the primary alternator installed since we cannot rely on or use the 2nd alternator with the balmar regulator without threat of fire, serious injury, or possible death. We have not been advised on what to do to prevent this and Winnebago is not providing an actual remedy in a timely fashion (or financially reasonable to us as a owner, as we have to pay out of pocket to travel 3000 miles round trip for this repair when it is available). They need to provide guidance immediately as this is a life threatening hazard and remedy it as soon as possible, while not putting the owners lives at risk and providing compensation for owner traveling thousands of miles for the fix.

NHTSA ID

11534830

Incident

Apr 21, 2023