- Vehicles
- 1,747
- Built between
- Jul 2013 – Oct 2013
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 10 December 2013
- Repaired
- 81%
- Unrepaired
- 333
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between July 2013 and October 2013. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2014 Blue Bird ALL AmericanBuilt July 2013 to October 2013
- 2014 Blue Bird ConventionalBuilt July 2013 to October 2013
Repair progress
333 of 1,747 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q1 2015.
81% repaired — 1,412 of 1,747 reported
- Scrapped or exported
- 2
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 Corporation (Blue Bird) is recalling certain model year 2014 All American and Conventional school buses manufactured July 2, 2013, through October 3, 2013 and equipped with front suspension bolts marked with a "ZY" code on the bolt head. Due to a problem in the bolt manufacturing process, the bolts that hold the front suspension may break.
What could happen
A broken suspension bolt would require greater steering input to control the bus, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
Blue Bird will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the front suspension bolts. Any bolts with a "ZY" code will be replaced free of charge. The recall began on December 10, 2013.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJuly 2013 to October 2013
- Recall reported to NHTSA31 October 2013
- Owners notified10 December 2013
- Latest repair reportQ1 2015 — 81% 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 31 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 1-478-822-2242. Blue Bird's number for this recall is R13WR.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- R13WR
- 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.