COACHMEN
INDUSTRIES, INC.
 2831
Dexter Drive • P.O. Box 3300 • Elkhart, Indiana 46514 • 574/266-2500 • Fax
574/266-2559
 
 NEWS
RELEASE
 
 For
immediate release Monday, February 2, 2009
 
 Coachmen
Wins Liability Portion of Lawsuit Against
Crane Composites, Inc.
 
 Elkhart, IN-Coachmen Industries, Inc.
(NYSE:COA) today announced that it and four of its RV operating subsidiaries
(Coachmen) received a favorable verdict against Crane Composites, Inc.
f/k/a Kemlite for breach of contract and multiple warranty claims arising from
the sale of defective sidewall material to Coachmen.
 
 All of
the counts alleged in the original complaint were found in favor of
Coachmen.  The remaining phase of the trial will determine the amount of
damages payable on this liability judgment.  In its complaint, Coachmen has
asserted claims for warranty-related expenses in excess of $19 million and total
potential claims of over $85 million.
 
 “We
are very pleased with the overwhelming victory in the liability phase and are
cautiously optimistic about the final outcome of this matter” states Todd
Woelfer, General Counsel of Coachmen.
  It is
anticipated that the final phase of the trial will be conducted in the Fall of
2009.  There can be no assurance about the amount or timing of any
damages that Coachmen may realize from the final phase of the
trial.
 
 Coachmen
Industries, Inc. is one of America's premier manufacturers of systems-built
construction, as well as specialty vehicles. Through ALL AMERICAN HOMES® and
MOD-U-KRAF®, the Company is one of the nation's largest producers of
systems-built homes, and also a major builder of commercial and multi-family
residential structures with its ALL AMERICAN BUILDING SYSTEMSTM products.
Coachmen Industries, Inc. is a publicly held company with stock listed on the
New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker COA.
 
 This
release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Investors are cautioned not to place
undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which are inherently uncertain.
Actual results may differ materially from that projected or suggested due to
certain risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, the potential
fluctuations in the Company's operating results, increased interest rates the
availability for floorplan financing for the Company's builders and
corresponding availability of cash to Company, uncertainties and timing with
respect to sales resulting from recovery efforts in the Gulf Coast,
uncertainties regarding the impact on sales of the disclosed restructuring steps
in housing and building segments, the ability of the company to generate taxable
income in future years to utilize deferred tax assets and net operating loss
carry-forwards available for use, the impact of performance on the valuation of
intangible assets, the availability and the price of gasoline, price volatility
of raw materials used in production, the Company's dependence on suppliers, the
availability and cost of real estate for residential housing, the supply of
existing homes within the company's markets, the impact of home values on
housing demand, the impact of sub-prime lending on the availability of credit
for the broader housing market, the ability of the Company to perform in new
market segments where it has limited experience, adverse weather conditions
affecting home deliveries, competition, government regulations, legislation
governing the relationships of the Company with its builders, dependence on
significant customers within certain product types, consolidation of
distribution channels, consumer confidence, uncertainties of matters in
litigation, current litigation relating to and Congressional inquiry surrounding
the Company's use of components containing formaldehyde in its products, further
developments in the war on terrorism and related international crises, oil
supplies, and other risks identified in the Company's SEC filings. All
litigation is speculative with no assurance of any recovery.
  For more
information:
 
 Thomas
Gehl
                  
                  Colleen
      ZuhlSecretary
                  
                  Chief Financial
      Officer574-266-2531