- Vehicles
- 4,800
- Built between
- May 1995 – Mar 2001
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 10 June 2002
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between May 1995 and March 2001. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1996-2001 Thomas MVP ERBuilt May 1995 to March 2001
- 1995 Thomas Built Buses MVP ERBuilt May 1995 to March 2001
What the defect is
On certain school buses, misalignment of the fan drive system components can cause premature belt and pulley bearing wear.
What could happen
If the school bus is disabled by a cooling system failure and is stalled on the side of the road, an increased risk of a crash resulting in injury to a school bus occupant could occur.
What gets fixed
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE FAN BELT, IDLER PULLEY, AND BELT TENSIONER AND THE PULLEY'S LASER WILL BE ALIGNED. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN JUNE 10, 2002.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtMay 1995 to March 2001
- Recall reported to NHTSA20 March 2002
- Owners notified10 June 2002
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 20 March 2002.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Manufacturer contact
Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- VON 49
- Recalling manufacturer
- FREIGHTLINER CORPORATION
- Recall initiated by
- ODI
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's auto safety hotline at 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.