- Vehicles
- 599
- Built between
- Jul 1999 – Feb 2001
- Models
- 7
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- Not yet
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between July 1999 and February 2001. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1999-2001 Champion CGTBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion ChallengerBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion ContenderBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion CrusaderBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion CTSBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion DefenderBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
- 1999-2001 Champion GeneralBuilt July 1999 to February 2001
What the defect is
On certain buses equipped with cp traveling retractor lap (type 1) seat belts, the plastic cover housing the reserve end of the seat belt web can break. If the two halves of the cover completely separate, the connector portion of the belt will detach from the cover. Once detached, the connector rivet can separate from the connector frame causing the frame to become unusable.
What could happen
This condition cannot occur during use, however, the belt will be unsuable and may result in an occupant seating position without a seat belt. In the event of a vehicle crash, an unbelted individual could be seriously injured or killed.
What gets fixed
AMSAFE WILL NOTIFY ITS CUSTOMERS AND PROVIDE A PLASTIC OUTER COVER THAT SNAPS OVER THE EXISTING COVER ON UNITS IN THE FIELD AND WILL REPLACE BROKEN SEAT BELTS FREE OF CHARGE.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJuly 1999 to February 2001
- Recall reported to NHTSA29 October 2002
No owner-notification date has been published yet. Manufacturers normally write to registered owners within 60 days of reporting a recall.
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 29 October 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 amsafe at 574-266-8330 or champion at 810-724-6474.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- CHAMPION BUS, INC.
- 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, customers can 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.