AI DamageHoliday Rambler Admiral SE: problems, complaints, bulletins
Summary for the Holiday Rambler Admiral SE across 4 model years: 12 owner complaints and 0 NHTSA service bulletins, plus repair videos. Pick a year for details.
Model years
What fails most often
- 1 Service brakes 75% of all complaints
- 2 Steering 17% of all complaints
- 3 Structure 8% of all complaints
- 4 Suspension 8% of all complaints
- Service brakes: 9 complaints (75% of all).
- Steering: 2 complaints (17% of all).
- Structure: 1 complaints (8% of all).
- Suspension: 1 complaints (8% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 12 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
The contact stated the brakes failed and he had to use two feet on the brake pedal in order to stop the vehicle. The contact took the vehicle to a workhorse dealer but was told the vin was not included in any of the recalls for the workhorse brake failure. The failure mileage was 10 and the current mileage was 6,000.
The contact stated that while driving 40 mph and attempting to stop the vehicle, the brake caliper locked causing the brake pads to overheat. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where the brake pads, hose and calipers were replaced. The contact had not driven the vehicle since it was repaired in june 2009.
When the previous failure occured in june 2009, it involved the passenger side rear brake, and I experienced a complete loss of braking due to vapoization of the brake fluid. Fortunately, I was able to bring the unit to a stop without incident, which could have been catastrophic under different circumstances.
2005 w 20 workhorse rv. Bosch brake system. Brakes locked up. Vehicle stranded. After cool down, could drive about a mile before lock up again. Took 4.5 hours using this procedure to get back home. Rv went in for repairs but center would only replace one caliper.
While driving on florida turnpike a short distance from home experienced vibration in right front wheel pulled over and determined that the right front brake was extremely hot with the distinctive odor of hot brakes. The other wheels also were warm .determined that the right front was locked up.
Driving home from pocono, pa, our 2003 holiday rambler motorhome with a workhorse w20 serial , built on 9/02 developed overheating rear brakes. We were towing a trailer with 4 wheel electric brakes and weighting about 3700#. Failure occurred about 1.5 hrs into our trip. Coach has approximately 15k miles.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
What to check before buying
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Steering. Steering play, power assist, rack and tie rods after a wheel impact.
- Structure. Rails, pillars, panel gaps, signs of pulling or welding.
- Suspension. Wheel alignment, control arms, subframe, even tire wear.
Other models of this make
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.