- Vehicles
- 361
- Built between
- Apr 2011 – Mar 2012
- Models
- 5
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- NHTSA investigation
- Owners notified
- 16 August 2012
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between April 2011 and March 2012. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2010-2012 Turtle Top OdysseyBuilt April 2011 to March 2012
- 2011 Turtle Top Odyssey LTBuilt April 2011 to March 2012
- 2011-2012 Turtle Top Odyssey XLBuilt April 2011 to March 2012
- 2010-2012 Turtle Top Terra TransportBuilt April 2011 to March 2012
- 2011-2012 Turtle Top VanterraBuilt April 2011 to March 2012
What the defect is
Turtle Top is recalling certain model year 2010 through 2012 commercial buses manufactured from April 1, 2011, through March 25, 2012, equipped with Specialty Manufacturing Inc. (SMI) Prolo roof hatches. Increased friction between the rear plate assemblies, p/no. 009327, and the nylon rear pop-up support, p/no. 008956, may result in an opening force of the Prolo roof hatches that exceeds federal standard requirements. Thus, these hatches fail to conform to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 217, "Bus Emergency Exits and Window Retention and Release."
What could happen
In the event of an emergency, passengers' exit from the bus may be hindered possibly resulting in injury to the vehicle occupants.
What gets fixed
Turtle Top will notify owners. SMI will provide service kits along with repair instructions to dealers and owners, free of charge. The safety recall began on August 16, 2012.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtApril 2011 to March 2012
- Recall reported to NHTSA11 July 2012
- Owners notified16 August 2012
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 11 July 2012.
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 Turtle Top at 1-574-831-4349 or SMI at 1-800-951-7867.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- TURTLE TOP
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 217
- 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
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.