- Vehicles
- 393
- Built between
- Not published
- Models
- 4
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 17 December 2013
- Repaired
- 21%
- Unrepaired
- 275
Does this affect my vehicle?
The manufacturer did not publish a build-date range for this recall, so the model and year list below is the only way to tell whether your vehicle is covered.
- 2004-2007 Blue Bird Express 4000
- 2004-2007 Blue Bird Express 4500
- 2003-2006 Blue Bird Ultra LF
- 2004 Blue Bird Ultra LMB
Repair progress
275 of 393 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q1 2015.
21% repaired — 84 of 393 reported
- Owners not reachable
- 17
- Scrapped or exported
- 17
Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.
What the defect is
Blue Bird Body Company (Blue Bird) is recalling certain model year 2004 Ultra LMB, 2003-2006 Ultra LF and 2004-2007 Express commercial buses equipped with Sure Power-brand battery equalizers containing a particular epoxy sealing, aka 'potting', compound. The specific potting compound used in the subject products for insulation was found to be capable of conducting electricity after being exposed to heat.
What could happen
Once electrically conductive, the material is capable of melting and burning, increasing the risk of a fire.
What gets fixed
Blue Bird will notify owners, and dealers will replace the equalizers, free of charge. The recall began on December 17, 2013.
Timeline
- Recall reported to NHTSA17 October 2013
- Owners notified17 December 2013
- Latest repair reportQ1 2015 — 21% repaired
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 17 October 2013.
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 Blue Bird at 1-478-825-2021. Blue Bird's recall number is R13WN.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- R13WN
- Recalling manufacturer
- Blue Bird Body Company
- 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
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to 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.