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1997 Winnebago Brave

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 1 of 3 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Parking Brake. Review the 1 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 1 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

0 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports

What owners actually said

3 reports
15,800 miles · Jun 15, 2018
Unknown Or Other

THE SPARE TIRE HOIST MALFUNCTIONED AND ALLOWED THE SPARE TIRE TO LOWER ITSELF DOWN TO THE ROAD. FORTUNATELY, NOTICED THE SPARE TIRE DANGLING BY THE WIRE ALMOST ON THE ROAD WHEN I WAS STOPPED GETTING GAS. WAS ABLE TO UNHOOK THE SPARE FROM THE WIRE AND STORE THE SPARE INSIDE THE MOTOR HOME. SEEMS TO BE SIMILAR TO PROBLEM ON 199…

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THE SPARE TIRE HOIST MALFUNCTIONED AND ALLOWED THE SPARE TIRE TO LOWER ITSELF DOWN TO THE ROAD. FORTUNATELY, NOTICED THE SPARE TIRE DANGLING BY THE WIRE ALMOST ON THE ROAD WHEN I WAS STOPPED GETTING GAS. WAS ABLE TO UNHOOK THE SPARE FROM THE WIRE AND STORE THE SPARE INSIDE THE MOTOR HOME. SEEMS TO BE SIMILAR TO PROBLEM ON 1995 WINNEBAGOS FOR WHICH A RECALL WAS ISSUED. COULD HAVE BEEN CATASTROPHIC FOR CAR FOLLOWING IF SPARE HAD RELEASED BY ITSELF WHILE I WAS TRAVELLING TRIED TO GET WINNEBAGO TO FIX IT BUT THEY SAID IT WAS MY PROBLEM.

NHTSA ODI #11102190

Mileage unknown · May 15, 2002
Power Train

CONSUMER REQUESTS RECALL REPAIRS ON HIS P-30 CHASSIS MOTOR HOME WHICH IS ROLLING FORWARD WITH PARKING BRAKES APPLIED, CONSUMER WAS TOLD BY DEALER NOT TO PARK ON HILLS. *TT THE LOCAL CHEVY DEALER FOUND THAT THE TRANSMISSION SEALS WERE DEFECTIVE AND THAT THE AUTO BRAKE SYSTEM NEVER WORKED. THEY REPLACED THE DEFECTIVE SEALS, THE…

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CONSUMER REQUESTS RECALL REPAIRS ON HIS P-30 CHASSIS MOTOR HOME WHICH IS ROLLING FORWARD WITH PARKING BRAKES APPLIED, CONSUMER WAS TOLD BY DEALER NOT TO PARK ON HILLS. *TT THE LOCAL CHEVY DEALER FOUND THAT THE TRANSMISSION SEALS WERE DEFECTIVE AND THAT THE AUTO BRAKE SYSTEM NEVER WORKED. THEY REPLACED THE DEFECTIVE SEALS, THE BRAKE SHOES AND ADJUSTED THE SYSTEM. FOR THE FIRST TIME, CONSUMER EXPLAINS, THE PARKING SYSTEM HOLDS. *JG

NHTSA ODI #562290

Mileage unknown · Aug 4, 2001
Parking Brake

JULY 16, 2001 RECEIVED LETTER FROM CHEVROLET DIVISION-GENERAL MOTORS REGARDING CRASHES CAUSED BY AUTO BRAKE/PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM NOT HOLDING WHEN VEHICLES PARKED. MY AUTO BRAKE/PARKING BRAKE INEFFECTIVE SINCE VEHICLE FIRST DELIVERED, DEALER EXPLAINED AS SLOP/LAG IN TRANSMISSION PARK POSITION. RECENTLY I DISCOVERED VEHICLE DOES…

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JULY 16, 2001 RECEIVED LETTER FROM CHEVROLET DIVISION-GENERAL MOTORS REGARDING CRASHES CAUSED BY AUTO BRAKE/PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM NOT HOLDING WHEN VEHICLES PARKED. MY AUTO BRAKE/PARKING BRAKE INEFFECTIVE SINCE VEHICLE FIRST DELIVERED, DEALER EXPLAINED AS SLOP/LAG IN TRANSMISSION PARK POSITION. RECENTLY I DISCOVERED VEHICLE DOES NOT ACTUALLY HAVE A PARKING PAWL IN TRANSMISSION, IT WAS REMOVED AT SOME TIME BY CHEVROLET. HAVE CALLED CHEVROLET CUSTOMER SEVICE, THEN HAVE BEEN NO HELP AND PEOPLE ARE NOT TRAINED TO FIELD CALLS FROM CUSTOMERS REGARDING MOTOR HOMES. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS CONDITION. ONE OF THEIR SUGGESTIONS IN THEIR LETTER WAS TO AVOID PARKING ON HILLS. THIS HARD TO DO IN MAJORITY OF CAMPGROUNDS. CHEVROLET CUSTOMER SERVICE ALSO REFUSES TO PROVIDE PHONE NUMBER FOR PEOPLE WITH EXPERIENCE ON MOTORHOMES, AND PER THEM THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO CALL.*AK

NHTSA ODI #749799

Official recalls

1

10V525000 · Equipment

Oct 26, 2010

WINNEBAGO IS RECALLING CERTAIN RECREATIONAL VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH 1200-SERIES NORCOLD REFRIGERATORS. THE POPULATION OF REFRIGERATORS BEING ADDRESSED CONTAINS EITHER A SENSING ALGORITHM OR THERMAL SWITCH TO SHUT OFF POWER TO THE REFRIGERATOR WHEN HIGH TEMPERATURES ARE DETECTED IN ORDER TO PREVENT A POTENTIAL FIRE. THE RESPONSE TIMES OF THE SENSOR ALGORITHM AND THERMAL SWITCH DEVICES TO STOP POWER ARE NOT SUFFICIENT.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: THE SENSING ALGORITHM OR THERMAL SWITCH INSTALLED TO SHUT OFF POWER TO THE REFRIGERATOR WHEN HIGH TEMPERATURES ARE DETECTED DUE TO A POSSIBLE HYDROGEN GAS LEAK MAY NOT SHUT OFF IN SUFFICIENT TIME TO PREVENT A FIRE.

Remedy: WINNEBAGO IS WORKING WITH NORCOLD TO IDENTIFY AND NOTIFY ANY AFFECTED OWNERS. OWNERS WILL BE INSTRUCTED TO CONTACT NORCOLD DEALERS TO RECEIVE THE REMEDY FREE OF CHARGE. PLEASE SEE NORCOLD'S DEFECT REPORT 10E-049 FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. THE RECALL BEGAN DURING DECEMBER 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT NORCOLD AT 1-800-767-9101 OR WINNEBAGO AT 1-641-585-3535.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.