01 What the Bighorn line is
Bighorn is the luxury tier of Heartland's relaunch — the full-profile fifth wheel above the laminated North Trail and the value Prowler — and on the 10 July 2026 RVUSA probe it carried 140 active listings. The 2026 roster runs seven floorplans from the 36-foot 31RL to the 43-foot-10 39FL and 40DB, with factory Base MSRPs from $107,475 to $134,175, and every plan publishes a weight set that sums to its printed GVWR exactly.
The construction is full-profile luxury hardware: a 102-inch-wide body on a 12-inch I-beam frame with a drop-frame storage bay, a painted fiberglass front cap with automotive clearcoat and LED accents, CoreShield gel-coat laminated sidewalls, the TrussXL truss under an Alpha PVC roof with a limited lifetime warranty, and the ThermaShield zero-to-one-hundred-degree package backed by a 40,000-BTU furnace and dual 15,000-BTU Whisper Quiet air conditioners. The mandatory Premium Package — six-point hydraulic auto-leveling and much of the residential equipment list — is baked into the factory Base MSRP, so the placard prices here already reflect the equipment every unit ships with.
One pricing note, logged rather than hidden: dealer window placards (base plus freight, prep and options) run well above the factory Base MSRP — 39RK placards of $144-146k against its $123,975 base — while advertised street prices run well below it. The factory Base MSRP is the one apples-to-apples figure across the line and it is what the table below shows; confirm both numbers with a dealer. RVUSA's price records also lag the current factory figures by about $2,250 line-wide, and its width field still carries the stale 8-foot figure against the factory's 102 inches — factory figures are used throughout.
02 All seven floorplans, profiled in depth
This is the complete 2026 Bighorn roster — the rear-living 31RL entry, the rear-kitchen 36RK, the middle-den 37MD, the rear-entertainment 38RE (the most-listed Bighorn on the probe day), the five-slide front-living 39FL, the stretched rear-kitchen 39RK and the two-bedroom 40DB. The table is sorted by dry weight.
| Floorplan | Base MSRP | Dry wt | GVWR | Length | Sleeps | Layout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31RL | $107,475 | 13,060 lbs | 16,000 lbs | 36' 0" | 4 | Rear-living entry — shortest, lightest, friendliest pin |
| 36RK | $121,793 | 14,465 lbs | 17,300 lbs | 40' 5" | 4 | Rear-kitchen plan — the galley takes the back wall |
| 39RK | $123,975 | 15,200 lbs | 18,200 lbs | 43' 3" | 4 | Rear U-kitchen, bath-and-a-half — respec’d stretch; best margin |
| 38RE | $128,175 | 15,275 lbs | 17,995 lbs | 42' 6" | 4 | Rear-entertainment quad-slide — most-listed; 137-gal grey |
| 39FL | $134,175 | 15,645 lbs | 17,995 lbs | 43' 10" | 4 | Front-living flagship — five slides, heaviest pin |
| 37MD | $126,225 | 15,650 lbs | 18,100 lbs | 42' 10" | 8 | Middle-den quad-slide — two living zones |
| 40DB | $132,975 | 16,110 lbs | 18,850 lbs | 43' 10" | 8 | Two bedrooms, two full baths — the multi-family flagship |
This is a published-GVWR-clean set: dry weight plus cargo capacity equals the printed GVWR exactly on all seven plans. Three provenance notes, logged. First, RVUSA and the early-2026 print brochure carry a stale weight set on five plans (36RK, 37MD, 38RE, 39FL, 39RK); the June-2026 dealer-network brochure matches the current factory pages to the pound, so the factory figures shown here are tri-source confirmed. Second, the 39RK was respec'd mid-cycle — the early print shows a 40'4″ / 14,080-lb unit, the current factory page and June brochure print the stretched 43'3″ / 15,200-lb three-slide unit shown here. Third, sleeps counts are the factory's “up to” figures; where sources disagree (36RK, 39RK) the factory figure is shown and the conflict logged. Always confirm against the unit's weight sticker and your truck's payload placard before towing.
03 What is deliberately not on this page
Heartland also builds the Bighorn Traveler — a separate, lighter sub-line sold under the Bighorn name with its own distinct floorplans, weights and pricing. It is excluded from this reference rather than mixed in: attributing Traveler weights to Bighorn-proper plans (or the reverse) would corrupt both records, the same reason West-edition twins are excluded elsewhere on this site. The seven plans above are the complete Bighorn-proper roster; a Traveler profile would be its own hub if demand warrants one.
04 How to choose & what to weigh
The 38RE is the plan the market picked
The most-listed Bighorn on the probe day at 31 active listings: a rear entertainment wall, four slides, dual 17-foot and 15-foot awnings and the line's biggest grey capacity at 137 gallons — a full-hookup entertainer's spec on a 15,275-lb dry / 2,970-lb pin ticket.
Front living or rear living is the real fork
The 39FL is the flagship statement — front living room, five slides, the line's top Base MSRP at $134,175 and its heaviest pin at 3,090 lb. The 31RL makes the opposite case: the classic rear-living layout at the entry price ($107,475), the lightest dry weight (13,060 lb) and the gentlest pin in the line (2,405 lb).
The 40DB is the two-household plan
Two bedrooms and two full baths, sleeps up to eight, a 100-gallon black tank and 120 lb of propane — drawn for two couples or a big family full-timing. One equipment note: it is the only Bighorn where the rear 3,000-lb tow hitch is not available.
What to verify on the lot
Pin weight is the whole ballgame: dry pins run 2,405 to 3,090 lb, and a loaded pin will land well above that — run the math against your truck's payload placard, not its tow rating. Cargo margins run 2,350 (39FL) to 3,000 lb (39RK). The line rides 17.5-inch Load Range H commercial tires on 8,000-lb axles (7,000-lb on the 31RL); verify placard prices against the $107,475-$134,175 factory bases, since dealer windows run higher and street deals run lower.
05 What every Bighorn has
06 Where Bighorn sits in the luxury fifth-wheel field
Inside Heartland, Bighorn is the top of the relaunch ladder — the fifth wheel above the laminated North Trail and the value Prowler travel trailers. Across the aisle it fights the crowded full-size luxury class: Keystone's Montana (its stablemate under THOR), Grand Design's Solitude and Forest River's Cedar Creek and Sandpiper all sell at the same lengths and prices. The Bighorn counterargument is equipment honesty: the mandatory Premium Package is priced into the factory Base MSRP rather than stacked on the window, dual Whisper Quiet air conditioners and the 21-cubic-foot GE fridge on an inverter are standard, and the weight table sums to its printed GVWR on every plan.
08 Recalls
NHTSA lists 20 recall campaigns affecting this line. The earliest was reported 28 Sep 2006 and the most recent 9 Oct 2025. 16 of them are matched on NHTSA’s own model field; the other 4 name this line in the recall text and are marked named in text below, which is a weaker match and shown as one.
| Reported | Campaign | Component | What can go wrong |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 Oct 2025 | 25V675000 | Equipment | A murphy bed that falls increases the risk of injury or death. |
| 27 Mar 2024 | 24V236000 | Equipment | A circuit board that overheats increases the risk of a fire. |
| 19 Apr 2023 | 23V278000 | Equipment | Incorrect tire size information can allow an incorrectly sized tire to be installed, increasing the risk of a crash. |
| 8 Aug 2022 | 22V591000 | Equipment | An awning that drops or extends beyond normal operation can increase the risk of injury. |
| 17 Jun 2022 | 22V432000 | Equipment | A gas leak in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire. |
| 28 Aug 2020 | 20V521000 named in text | Equipment | If the landing legs buckle, the trailer will drop unexpectedly, increasing the risk of property damage, personal injury or death. |
| 13 Feb 2020 | 20V084000 named in text | Equipment | In the event of a fire, the smoke detector may not provide adequate warning for the occupants to be able to escape safely, increasing the risk of injury. |
| 12 Jul 2019 | 19V525000 | Electrical system | Overheating of the connection can increase the risk of a fire. |
| 22 Nov 2017 | 17V750000 | Equipment | In the event of a fire, if the fire extinguisher does not function properly, it can increase the risk of injury. |
| 30 Jul 2015 | 15V482000 | Equipment | An owner or operator could rely on the inaccurate information in inflating the tires which could cause under or over inflation which, in turn, could lead to a tire… |
| 3 Apr 2015 | 15V199000 | Equipment | If the room extends while vehicle is in motion, there is an increased risk of a crash. |
| 3 Apr 2015 | 15V198000 | Equipment | If the rivet shears causing the quad step to fail, the step user may fall, increasing the risk of personal injury. |
| 30 Jan 2015 | 15V049000 | Suspension | Improper weight distribution across the axles may result in poor handling, increasing the risk of a crash. |
| 18 Mar 2014 | 14V128000 | Equipment | If the microwave starts on its own and there are contents inside, a fire could result. |
| 7 May 2013 | 13V181000 | Equipment | If motor damage has occurred, it is possible that the awning can unfurl unexpectedly, either while the trailer is at rest or while in transit, increasing the risk… |
| 25 Sep 2012 | 12V470000 named in text | Equipment | A damaged LP hose can lead to an LP leak and fire, increasing the risk of injury or death. |
| 28 Aug 2012 | 12V417000 named in text | Equipment | If the LP supply line is connected incorrectly, the generator may vent liquid propane into the generator compartment. In the presence of an ignition source, the… |
| 8 Oct 2010 | 10V461000 | Power train | These cracks can propagate and cause the spindle TO detach from the axle tube, resulting IN the separation OF the wheel end from the vehicle, creating A road hazard… |
| 1 Aug 2008 | 08V380000 | Equipment | IF this solution IS exposed TO AN ignition source under certain specific circumstances, IT can result IN A vehicle fire. |
| 28 Sep 2006 | 06V370000 | Suspension | Spindle separation from the axle tube can occur, increasing the risk OF A crash. |
Coverage is not complete, and this matters. These campaigns come from two passes over NHTSA’s public record: a query-by-query harvest of the recall API (1,556 queries, of which 0 failed and 242 returned an explicit zero), and a sweep of NHTSA’s complete recall flat file (325,650 rows), which added 46 campaigns the API harvest had missed. It missed them because the roster it worked from was built by a catalog endpoint that refuses most requests, so entire manufacturer names were never asked about — NHTSA files several Forest River sub-brands as makes of their own. Two limits remain: NHTSA sometimes files a roster under a parent name, and some matches below rest on the wording of the recall rather than its model field. Campaigns affecting only pre-2005 units fall outside this catalog’s range and are not listed. This page is a starting point, not a clearance. Check a specific VIN at NHTSA before you buy, and again before you tow.
09 Owner-reported problems
Owners have filed 51 complaints with NHTSA about this line. The earliest was filed 26 Jul 2006 and the most recent 6 Mar 2025. The breakdown below is what those owners actually reported, grouped by the component NHTSA assigned.
Safety outcomes in this set: 4 reports describing a fire and 1 reported injury. These are the owner’s own account of what happened and have not been verified by NHTSA.
What gets reported
| Component group | Reports | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Tires | 21 | 41% |
| Suspension | 7 | 14% |
| Structure | 5 | 10% |
| Wheels | 5 | 10% |
| Equipment | 4 | 8% |
| Electrical system | 3 | 6% |
| Unknown or other | 3 | 6% |
| Power train | 2 | 4% |
| Service brakes, electric | 1 | 2% |
Most recent reports
The most recent 10 owner reports filed on this line, newest first. Wording is NHTSA’s summary of what the owner described.
| Filed | Component | Miles | What the owner reported |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 Mar 2025 | Tires | — | See attached document for complaint. |
| 8 Oct 2024 | Equipment › Recreational vehicle/trailer >… | — | Range is installed in our Heartland RV. Suburban put out a TSB to have silicone placed at wiring connections on stove knobs under stove top. Then they put out a recall to disconnected and cap the wiring for the illumination of the stove knobs and the oven lighting. The range has an issue with the… |
| 9 Jun 2023 | Electrical system | — | The contact owns a 2023 Heartland Bighorn built on a 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter chassis. The contact stated that while the awning was opened, the front passenger’s side the awning fractured. The contact stated that the water tank also filled up with water independently. On another occasion, while… |
| 12 Aug 2021 | Power train › Axle assembly | 44,000 | The contact owns a 2011 Heartland Big Horn. The contact stated that while driving approximately 55 mph when they noticed smoking coming from the left rear-axel. The contact got flagged by another vehicle to pull over. Once they did so the vehicle was then set on fire. The contact stated they put… |
| 14 Jul 2021 | Electrical system | — | -The 30 AMP MPPT solar controller located in the front storage compartment of a Heartland 5th wheel suddenly caught fire filling the RV with acrid smoke and scorching other critical components. The propane tanks are on both sides of the solar controller. The smoke sensors did not alarm and 3 people… |
| 25 Jun 2021 | Suspension | — | The right rear leaf spring hanger started to crack. If the spring hanger would have broken off the tires could have came together creating a potential hazard. Lippert Components is the manufacture of this suspension system. Lippert marketed this system called Correct Track and installed it across… |
| 20 Feb 2021 | Wheels | — | Kept taking tires back because they wouldn't hold air. They finally determined that there was A crack in the wheel. Had it welded per dealer suggestion. Was traveling to tx to winter. Had brand new tires on RV. As I was driving down the road, the wheel and lug nuts just rolled off. We had to be… |
| 15 Jul 2019 | Suspension | — | Tl* the contact owns A 2015 heartland big horn. The contact stated that the remedy for nhtsa campaign number: 15V049000 (suspension) failed because the manufacturer did not provide the proper weight distribution for the axles. As A result, four shocks and springs failed. Wratten trailer sales (9209… |
| 17 Nov 2018 | Wheels | 1,500 | ****note - need info on tires**** I purchased A new 2018 heartland bighorn traveler 39MB fifth wheel RV on 10/11/2017. On 09/17/2018, I discovered A flat tire on this RV, which turned out to be an issue of tread separation rather than A puncture. On 09/20/2018, while still under the one year… |
| 11 Oct 2018 | Unknown or other | 12,000 | Weverything were returning from pennsylvania driving on federal highways the drama on the upper deck cracked and the trailer started coming apart at the lippert built frame. The fifth wheel RV has cracks on the outer walls and the metal frame has at least 1 major crack. Trailer needs to be taken… |
How this count is drawn. A report is counted here only when NHTSA’s own model field names this line. What the owner typed in the description is never used to attribute a report: our line names are ordinary English words, and an owner writing “imagine my surprise when the axle went” or naming the state of Montana is not reporting a Grand Design Imagine or a Keystone Montana. The total does include reports NHTSA filed under this line’s own trim badge — Bighorn Silverado — because it names the same trailer.
Read these as reports, not as findings. Complaints are submitted by owners and NHTSA does not verify them; no complaint here has been confirmed as a defect, and none of them is a recall. The sample is also self-selected — only owners motivated to file appear in it — so a high count tracks how many units a line sold at least as much as how well it was built. Use the pattern, not the total: a component that keeps recurring is worth inspecting on any used unit. File or search complaints at NHTSA.