Grand Design RV has reported that the solar charge controller on 16,128 of its 2024 to 2027 Reflection fifth-wheel trailers can choose a 24-volt output on a trailer wired for 12 volts. The extra voltage can damage the trailer’s 7-way bulkhead power center and the circuits around it, and NHTSA’s record says that damage increases the risk of a fire. The company plans to mail owner letters on or about November 16.
Tech news in one quick read: Get the most interesting stories in startups, tech and programming, each with a short TLDR, in one daily email from TLDR.
We may earn a commission if you sign up.
The manufacturer’s filing lists no fires, injuries or deaths, only three earlier reports of heat damage at the power center. The concern is that the damage can build out of sight in a part most owners never open, and the report says thermal damage may occur with little or no warning. Brakes and lights share the same box, so a thermal fault there is not only a fire question.
How a charge controller ends up guessing the wrong voltage
A rooftop solar panel produces a voltage that swings with sunlight, and a charge controller sits between the panel and the batteries to turn that raw output into the steady charge a battery bank can accept. The controller on these trailers is a 60-amp wall-mount unit that can run in either a 12-volt or a 24-volt mode and is meant to detect which one the trailer needs. Grand Design’s testing on August 7, 2026, showed that the auto-detect logic can pick 24 volts on a trailer built as a 12-volt system.
That choice matters because everything downstream is rated for 12 volts. According to the Part 573 defect report, the 24-volt mode exceeds the rating of the protection circuit in the 7-way power center, the box that carries 12-volt power to the trailer brakes and exterior lights. Overvoltage in a circuit that was not built for it turns into heat, and the filing describes thermal damage or degradation of the power center. The consequence field in the NHTSA record spells out the two branches: damage to the power center increases the risk of a fire, while damage to the wider electrical system may cause the trailer brakes or exterior lights to fail, which raises the risk of a crash on the road.
Three reports, a lab test and a safety committee
The first report of thermal degradation at a power center reached Grand Design on August 13, 2025, and a second followed on October 15, 2025, when the company began monitoring. A third report on March 12, 2026, opened a formal product-safety investigation. Over the spring and summer, engineers worked with the power-center supplier, tested a returned unit, and on August 14 opened talks with Furrion, the company involved in the controller’s software. The company’s Product Safety Committee concluded on September 17 that a safety defect exists and directed a recall.
The controller is a Lippert Components part, listed in the filing as model FSCC60PW2, and the population is limited to trailers that have both the auto-detect controller and the 7-way power center. Units built from August 8, 2023, through the production clean point of September 16, 2026, are included. Trailers without auto-detect, or without a 24-volt mode, are excluded. Grand Design says every unit still on hand at the plant was updated before shipment, which is why that September date marks the end of the affected production.
The campaign record, NHTSA campaign 26V616000, carries the same defect language in its summary, and the agency’s open recall dataset lists it under the subject “Solar Controller May Select Incorrect Voltage Output” with Grand Design’s own campaign number, 910068.
The software remedy and what owners are told to check
The fix removes the cause rather than the part. Furrion will supply a free firmware update that eliminates the auto-detect 24-volt mode, leaving the controller able to run only at 12 volts. Owners install it through the controller maker’s app and submit a screenshot showing the firmware version and the trailer’s VIN, according to the filing. NHTSA’s record calls it an over-the-air software update, with lighting inspected and repaired as needed at no charge.
Before towing after the update, owners are told to confirm that the exterior lights and the brakes work. If either fails, the trailer should not be towed and the owner should contact an authorized dealer. A brake or lighting loss can also register as a fault on the tow vehicle’s integrated trailer module. The filing describes no hardware replacement for the power center, so a box that has already been damaged is a dealer matter. That leaves a practical question for owners who have run a solar-equipped Reflection for a year or more: the update stops new overvoltage, but only a working-lights-and-brakes check shows whether earlier damage has already left a mark.
In an acknowledgment letter dated September 29, 2026, NHTSA recall chief Alex Ansley confirmed the scope and Grand Design’s recall number, 910068. Owners can call the company at 1-574-825-9679, and a VIN can be checked on NHTSA’s recall lookup.
This article was produced with the assistance of AI and reviewed by Morning Overview editors prior to publication.
Tech news in one quick read: Subscribe to TLDR →
We may earn a commission if you sign up.
More from Morning Overview
- Doctors warn a silent liver disease now affects one in three American adults
- The FBI told the rest of ShinyHunters to surrender after a 24-year-old was arrested
- Two passengers died at an Ohio toll plaza, and the NTSB now wants the cash lanes shut
- Long use of a common prostate pill is tied to a higher chance of glaucoma
