Coachmen Industries, Inc. Shareholders Overwhelmingly Approve Sale of RV Group's Assets

MIDDLEBURY, Ind., Dec. 19, 2008 -- Coachmen Industries, Inc. today announced the results of its Special Meeting of shareholders. "Coachmen shareholders overwhelmingly approved the agreement signed on November 20th for the sale of Coachmen's Recreation Vehicle business to Forest River, Inc. with a rate of over 99% in favor of the transaction," announced Rick Lavers, CEO of Coachmen. The sale was approved by Coachmen's board of directors last month.

Lavers added: "Based upon the approval of the shareholders today, we anticipate that the agreement with Forest River will be completed before the end of the year. Our Company will emerge from this transaction as a systems- built housing company with a growing specialty vehicle business. Our headquarters will remain in Elkhart County."

"We are grateful to our shareholders for endorsing what we believe will be a very sound business transaction for both companies. It is now management's task to build on this new foundation to make the restructured company profitable in economic conditions that continue to present enormous challenges," concluded Lavers.

Coachmen Industries, Inc. is one of America's leading manufacturers of systems-built homes and commercial buildings, with prominent subsidiaries in each industry. The Company's well-known brand names include ALL AMERICAN HOMES(R) and MOD-U-KRAF(R) and is one of the nation's largest producers of systems-built homes, and also a major builder of commercial structures. Coachmen is also entering the specialty bus business through a joint venture to manufacture the ARBOC Mobility series of ADA compliant buses. Coachmen Industries, Inc. is a publicly held company with stock listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker COA.