- Vehicles
- 1,840
- Built between
- Jul 2004 – Aug 2005
- Models
- 1
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 27 August 2005
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between July 2004 and August 2005. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2004-2005 Thomas SAF-T-Liner C2Built July 2004 to August 2005
What the defect is
Certain my 2004 and 2005 thomas built saf-t-liner C2 school buses manufactured between july 2004 and august 26, 2005. The upper steering shaft pinch bolt may not be correctly tightened, resulting in the possible loss of the bolt, allowing joint separation and loss of steering.
What could happen
Sudden loss of steering without warning could result in a vehicle crash, possibly resulting in serious injury or death.
What gets fixed
ALL THOMAS BUILT AND FREIGHTLINER DEALERS AND DIRECT WARRANTY CUSTOMERS WERE CALLED ON AUGUST 26, 2005, AND NOTIFIED NOT TO DRIVE THESE BUSES UNTIL THEY HAVE BEEN INSPECTED. THE REMEDY PROCEDURE CALLS FOR THE INSPECTION OF THE STEERING PINCH BOLTS FOR THE PRESENCE OF TORQUE SEAL. BOLTS WITHOUT TORQUE SEAL WILL BE TIGHTENED TO FACTORY SPECIFICATIONS AND TORQUE SEAL ADDED. FOLLOW UP NOTIFICATION BY MAIL BEGAN AUGUST 27, 2005.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJuly 2004 to August 2005
- Recall reported to NHTSA6 September 2005
- Owners notified27 August 2005
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 6 September 2005.
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 may contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- FL-457
- Recalling manufacturer
- FREIGHTLINER LLC
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
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
Freightliner recall no. FL-457.CUSTOMERS may contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236; (TTY:1-800-424-9153); or go to http://www.safercar.gov.
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.