Emergency door handle failure

What NHTSA investigated

The office of defects investigation opened this preliminary evaluationafterbecoming aware that fleets were having handle failures on the rear emergency door exit.the failure resulted in the door handle separating from thedoor latch mechanism.when the handle fails, the rear emergency exit door can not be opened from outside the bus.the failure results from corrosion of the exterior door handle around the securing roll pin and square drive latch mechanism, causing the protective finish to chip and flake.continued corrosion weakens the handle and eventually the handle may break while trying to open the exit door.odi was concerned that during an emergency, a person outside of the bus would break the door handle while trying to open the emergency exit door,potentially delaying evacuation of the bus.under the safety recall, the aluminum handles will be replaced with a more robust handle.the recall action resolves the issues raised by this investigation. Accordingly, this investigation is closed.

The recall that followed

1. Thomas Built Buses — Structure: Hinge and Attachments08V08700026 February 2008243,435 vehicles

Vehicles covered

Source

From NHTSA’s investigation file, rebuilt daily. To report a problem with your own vehicle, go to nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem. All open investigations.