01 What makes it unique
The 33CHEF is Wildcat’s rear-kitchen plan, built for couples who cook and work remote. It pairs a rear kitchen with a kitchen island and a tri-fold sofa with a private front king bedroom, opened by three slide-outs, and sleeps four (Cardinal markets it as sleeping two to four). At a 1,885-pound dry pin it carries the lowest pin weight in the profiled line. It rides the full Wildcat build: a 2-inch vacuum-bonded aluminum-framed sidewall structure, a one-piece molded fiberglass front cap, a PVC roof membrane with a lifetime warranty, a heated and enclosed underbelly with 12-volt tank heat pads and sectioned ABS armor, and 4-point automatic leveling.
Forest River publishes a 10,558-pound UVW, a 3,327-pound CCC and a 13,885-pound GVWR (the published GVWR equals UVW plus CCC exactly), against the profiled line’s lowest dry pin of 1,885 pounds. An 18,000-BTU ducted air conditioner (a 45,000-BTU three-A/C system is optional here, with a third 13,500-BTU unit available), a 35,000-BTU furnace, a 5,000-BTU electric fireplace, a 60,000-BTU tankless water heater, a 16-cubic-foot 12-volt refrigerator, a 21-inch 2-in-1 oven range, a 30-inch over-the-range microwave and a 60-gallon fresh tank are standard, under two power awnings (15 and 11 feet) with a 200-watt rooftop solar prep.
US street pricing has commonly run in the mid-to-low $60,000s and as low as the high $50,000s on closeouts. It is the rear-galley, work-from-the-road Wildcat. For a couple who wants a rear kitchen with an island and a private front king bedroom on the line’s lowest pin — towed behind a properly rated three-quarter-ton or larger truck — the 33CHEF is the line’s cook’s plan. It is sold as the Cardinal 33CHEF under a sister badge.
02 Full specifications
Dimensions
- Exterior length
- 38' 3"
- Exterior width
- 8' 0"
- Exterior height
- 13' 3"
- Interior height
- 6' 5"
Weights
- Dry / unit base weight (UVW)
- 10,558 lbs
- GVWR (max loaded)
- 13,885 lbs
- Net cargo / payload (CCC)
- 3,327 lbs
- Dry pin (hitch) weight
- 1,885 lbs
Capacities
- Fresh water
- 60 gal
- Grey water
- 76 gal
- Black water
- 38 gal
- Refrigerator
- 16 cu ft 12V
Construction
- Frame
- 2" vacuum-bonded aluminum-framed sidewalls · high-density block-foam insulation · welded aluminum structure
- Walls
- Laminated aluminum-framed walls · one-piece molded fiberglass front cap · residential fiberglass roof & floor insulation
- Roof
- PVC roof membrane (lifetime warranty) · 5" arched roof rafters · 6′ 5" upper-deck height
- Underbelly
- Heated & enclosed underbelly · 12V tank heat pads · sectioned ABS underbelly armor · 5/8" T&G plywood floor
Running gear
- Axles
- 2 (tandem) · per-axle GAWR not separately published *
- Hitch
- Fifth-wheel (in-bed) · 4-point automatic leveling · 200W rooftop solar prep
- Brakes
- Electric · self-adjusting · 50-amp service
- Tires
- Aluminum wheels · outside shower · dual 20-lb LP
Galley & bath
- Cooktop
- 21" 2-in-1 oven range · 30" OTR microwave · 60K tankless water heater
- Refrigerator
- 16 cu ft 12V
- A/C
- 18,000 BTU ducted (45K 3-A/C optional)
- Water heater
- 60,000-BTU tankless · on-demand
Sleeping & layout
- Sleeps
- 4
- Slides
- 3
- Entries
- 1
- Awnings
- 2 (15' & 11')
- Primary bed
- King 66×80
03 The Wildcat floorplan family
Wildcat is Forest River's mid-profile affordable-luxury fifth wheel — a step above the brand's own value-mid Arctic Wolf and a step below its premium-mainstream Sandpiper. Six of the most distinct 2026 floorplans are profiled here in full. The 33CHEF on this page is highlighted; each other plan links to its own page.
| Floorplan | Nominal | Sleeps | Notable |
|---|---|---|---|
| 32LIVE | 36 ft | 4 | Rear living + kitchen island + front bedroom, lightest and shortest, lowest GVWR |
| 33CHEF | 38 ft | 4 | Rear kitchen + front bedroom, couples who cook and work remote, lowest pin |
| 402BEDS | 42 ft | 8 | Two queen bedrooms + two full baths, dual entry, unique family plan |
| 36MB | 43 ft | 10 | Mid-bunk + loft family plan, fireplace, longest awning, highest pin |
| 35CRIB | 43 ft | 8 | Rear bunkhouse + front queen + two full baths, tallest in the line |
| 36FUN | 43 ft | 8 | Rear king master + front bunkhouse suite + two full baths, dual entry |
| 37GALLEY | 43 ft | 6 | Front kitchen + king suite + bath-and-a-half, galley-and-entertainment |
| 37PUB | 43 ft | 4 | Front living + kitchen island + bath-and-a-half, the front-living sibling |
| 35FL | 43 ft | 6 | Front entertainment/living + rear bedroom, biggest cargo capacity, four slides |
| 37BEST | 44 ft | 10 | Bunk beds + bath-and-a-half + dual entry, heaviest, longest, highest GVWR |
Wildcat is Forest River's mid-profile affordable-luxury fifth wheel — a step above the brand's own value-mid Arctic Wolf and a step below its premium-mainstream Sandpiper. Ten of the most distinct 2026 retail floorplans are profiled here in full; only two Dealer Stock Only plans (34CRIB, 35FUN) are listed on the hub but not profiled. Every plan is built on a 2-inch vacuum-bonded aluminum-framed sidewall structure with a one-piece molded fiberglass front cap, a PVC roof membrane with a lifetime warranty, residential fiberglass roof and floor insulation, a heated and enclosed underbelly with 12-volt tank heat pads and sectioned ABS armor, seamless roto-cast holding tanks, 4-point automatic leveling, a 50-amp service, a 35,000-BTU furnace, an 18,000-BTU ducted air conditioner (a 45,000-BTU three-A/C system is standard on most plans), a 60,000-BTU tankless water heater, a 16-cubic-foot 12-volt refrigerator, a 5,000-BTU electric fireplace, a 60-gallon fresh tank line-wide and a 200-watt rooftop solar prep. Hitch weight, UVW, CCC and GVWR are published per plan; the published GVWR equals UVW plus CCC exactly on every profiled plan. The numeric per-axle GAWR is not separately published for Wildcat. UVW is a factory estimated average; real loaded pin weights run higher — always weigh the loaded coach and confirm against your truck's payload and rear-axle ratings. Wildcat is badge-engineered as the Cardinal under a sister badge.
04 What owners & reviewers report
Rear kitchen for couples who cook
A rear galley with a kitchen island and a private front king bedroom, opened by three slide-outs — a couple’s coach built around the kitchen rather than the living room.
Lowest dry pin in the profiled line
At a 1,885-pound dry pin it carries the lowest pin weight of the six profiled plans — the friendliest of the profiled set on hitch loading.
Larger grey capacity than the entry plan
A 76-gallon grey tank (versus 38 on the 32LIVE) supports longer dry-camping stints between dumps — a real galley-and-shower water budget.
Third A/C is optional on this plan
Like the 32LIVE, the 45,000-BTU three-A/C system is optional rather than standard on the 33CHEF; the base build is an 18,000-BTU ducted unit. Confirm the A/C configuration on the specific unit if full cooling matters.
05 How it compares
The rear-living sibling — the lightest, shortest plan in the line, built around a rear living room instead of a rear galley.
The bigger front-living plan — four slides, a rear bedroom and the line’s biggest cargo capacity at a higher weight.
Forest River’s value-mid full-size fifth wheel a tier below — a lighter, lower-priced coach with a leaner equipment package.