Blue Bird Body Company: Equipment Adaptive/Mobility
Blue Bird Body Company reported this defect to federal regulators on Apr 5, 2010 and put the number of vehicles at risk at 1,622. The repair is free for as long as the recall stands.
The defect
BLUE BIRD HAS NOTIFIED NHTSA ABOUT A DEFECT IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2008 THROUGH 2011 ALL AMERICAN, CONVENTIONAL, AND MICRO BIRD SCHOOL BUSES MANUFACTURED FROM DECEMBER 13, 2007 THROUGH JANUARY 18, 2010 EQUIPPED WITH RICON MODEL S OR K SERIES PUBLIC USE WHEELCHAIR LIFTS. THE RESTRAINT BELT ON THESE LIFTS WAS DESIGNED TO PREVENT THE LIFT FROM MOVING, UNLESS THE TONGUE OF THE BELT IS FULLY ENGAGED AND LATCHED IN THE BUCKLE. RICON HAS DISCOVERED, HOWEVER, THAT IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THE OPERATOR TO INSERT THE BELT TONGUE INTO THE BUCKLE WITHOUT FULLY ENGAGING THE LATCHING MECHANISM. IN THIS CASE, THE RESTRAINT BELT WOULD APPEAR TO BE LATCHED, AND THE OPERATOR COULD RUN THE LIFT. IF THE RESTRAINT BELT TONGUE IS NOT FULLY ENGAGED INTO THE RESTRAINT BELT BUCKLE, AND LATCHED, THE LIFT MAY OPERATE WITH AN OCCUPANT ON THE PLATFORM.
The risk
THE USER OF THE LIFT COULD BE INJURED SHOULD THE LIFT MOVE WITHOUT THE RESTRAINT BELT PROPERLY BUCKLED.
The remedy
BLUE BIRD IS WORKING WITH RICON AND RICON WILL BE HANDLING THE REMEDY FOR THIS CAMPAIGN. PLEASE SEE RICON'S DEFECT REPORT 09E-060. RICON WILL PROVIDE CUSTOMERS WITH A WARNING DECAL AND A DVD-BASED TRAINING AID. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT RICON AT 1-818-267-3000 OR BLUE BIRD AT 1-478-822-2242.
12 model years covered
Newest first| Vehicle | Complaints | Recalls | Fires | Crashes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 Blue Bird All American | 0 | 35 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 Blue Bird Conventional | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 Blue Bird Micro Bird | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 Blue Bird All American | 0 | 42 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 Blue Bird Conventional | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 Blue Bird Micro Bird | 0 | 12 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 Blue Bird All American | 3 | 33 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 Blue Bird Conventional | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 Blue Bird Micro Bird | 0 | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 Blue Bird All American | 4 | 32 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 Blue Bird Conventional | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0 |
| 2008 Blue Bird Micro Bird | 0 | 16 | 0 | 0 |
What this page is, and what to do next
A recall is not an opinion. It is a Part 573 report a manufacturer is required by federal law to file once it decides a defect poses an unreasonable risk to safety, and it commits them to repairing the vehicle at no cost to the owner. The three passages above are the manufacturer’s own wording as published by NHTSA.
This page describes the campaign. It cannot tell you whether one particular car has already been through the shop — that is tracked by VIN, and only the manufacturer knows it. Check yours at nhtsa.gov/recalls or with a franchised dealer, quoting campaign number 10V133000.
Full record for the 2011 Blue Bird All American → · Recalls carrying a do-not-drive advisory → · Where this data comes from →