Winnebago VIN Decoder & VIN Check — Models, Recalls, Specs, MPG & Safety
“A Way Forward”
Winnebago Industries, Inc. is an American manufacturer of recreational vehicles, commercial vehicles, marine boats and outdoor equipment, headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota (corporate) with primary RV manufacturing in Forest City, Iowa. Founded in 1958 by John K. Hanson and a group of Forest City businessmen as Winnebago Industries (taking the name from the local Winnebago tribe), the company became publicly traded in 1966 and was the first US-listed RV manufacturer.
Winnebago produces Class A, Class B and Class C motorhomes, travel trailers and fifth wheels under the Winnebago, Grand Design (acquired 2016), Newmar (acquired 2019, since divested to Thor Industries 2024), Chris-Craft Boats (acquired 2018) and Barletta Boats (acquired 2021) brands. The Winnebago-branded Class A Adventurer, Class A Vista, Class B Travato (Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis), Class B+ View, Class C Forza and Solis Class B+ represent core product lines. Winnebago Industries became the second-largest US RV manufacturer in 2017-2019 before slipping behind Forest River.
Winnebago Industries trades on the New York Stock Exchange under WGO. Recall data for every Winnebago VIN (across all subsidiary brands) sold in the US is reported to NHTSA. ForCar.org decodes any Winnebago Industries VIN to surface trim, factory options, open recalls and original delivery price.
Winnebago at a glance
- Founded
- 1958
- Founder
- John K. Hanson
- Headquarters
- Eden Prairie, MN (corporate) / Forest City, IA (RV mfg)
- Stock ticker
- NYSE: WGO
- First public RV maker
- Yes (1966 IPO)
- Sub-brands
- Winnebago, Grand Design, Chris-Craft, Barletta
- Iconic Class B
- Travato (Mercedes Sprinter)
- US RV rank
- #3 by units (after Forest River, Thor)
- Basic warranty
- 2 years / 24,000 miles
- Powertrain warranty
- 3 years / 36,000 miles
Decode any Winnebago VIN
Enter a 17-character VIN below to retrieve the trim, factory options, original window-sticker MSRP and any open NHTSA recall affecting that specific vehicle. ForCar.org pulls the same dataset that Winnebago dealers use to notify owners of safety recalls.
VIN Decoder
Signature Winnebago technology
Winnebago heritage
John K. Hanson founded Winnebago Industries in February 1958 in Forest City, Iowa, by reorganizing his Modernistic Industries (a small Iowa furniture manufacturer) into a travel trailer business. The 1966 IPO made Winnebago the first publicly traded US RV manufacturer. The 1975 Class A Brave was the brand's breakthrough product. Winnebago survived multiple industry downturns and acquired Grand Design in 2016 ($500M), Chris-Craft Boats in 2018, Newmar in 2019 ($344M), and Barletta Boats in 2021 — building a multi-segment outdoor recreation conglomerate.
Market position
Winnebago Industries competes in the US RV market against Forest River (Berkshire Hathaway) and Thor Industries. The Winnebago-branded RVs target mid-market positioning, while Grand Design (acquired 2016) handles premium travel trailers and fifth wheels, and Newmar (now divested) handled premium Class A motorhomes. The Chris-Craft Boats and Barletta Boats divisions diversify Winnebago into marine markets. Combined RV unit volume runs approximately 4-5% of US RV sales, well behind the 35-40% market shares of Forest River and Thor.
New-vehicle warranty
WINNEBAGO VIN Decoder — Free VIN Check Video Guide
Watch our quick WINNEBAGO VIN decoder walkthrough. Learn how to decode any WINNEBAGO VIN number to get full vehicle history, recall alerts, specifications, fuel economy (MPG), safety ratings, and known problems — completely free on ForCar.org.
All Winnebago models (23)
Frequently asked questions
When was Winnebago founded and by whom?
Winnebago was founded in 1958 by John K. Hanson and is headquartered in Forest City, USA.
Where is the VIN on a Winnebago vehicle?
The 17-character VIN appears in four standard locations: dashboard at the windshield base (driver side), driver-side door jamb sticker, the engine bay (firewall or engine block stamping), and the vehicle's title, registration and insurance documents.
How many Winnebago models can ForCar.org decode?
ForCar.org indexes 23 Winnebago nameplates. Any 17-character Winnebago VIN is decoded against the NHTSA dataset to return trim, factory options, open recalls and original window-sticker MSRP.
What is the Winnebago warranty?
Basic: 2 years / 24,000 miles. Powertrain: 3 years / 36,000 miles (chassis dependent).
How to check Winnebago recalls by VIN?
Enter your VIN in the decoder above. ForCar.org queries NHTSA's open-recall dataset for that specific VIN and returns any safety recalls or Technical Service Bulletins (TSBs) that affect your vehicle.
Disambiguation: This page covers Winnebago Industries, Inc. (the publicly traded RV and outdoor recreation company) — not the Winnebago Native American tribe (after which the company is named) or Winnebago, Wisconsin (a small US city).
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