- Vehicles
- 145
- Built between
- Aug 2013 – Nov 2013
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- Not yet
- Repaired
- 47%
- Unrepaired
- 77
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between August 2013 and November 2013. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2013-2015 Thomas Built MinotourBuilt August 2013 to November 2013
- 2013-2015 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner C2Built August 2013 to November 2013
- 2013-2015 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDXBuilt August 2013 to November 2013
Repair progress
77 of 145 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2015.
47% repaired — 68 of 145 reported
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
Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner C2, Saf-T-Liner HDX, and Minotour school buses manufactured August 5, 2013, through November 15, 2013 and equipped with IMMI-brand L9 seat belt buckles. When the button is pressed to release the seat belt, the latch plate can become partially engaged with the buckle, making the seat belt difficult to unlatch. Thus, these vehicles fail to conform to the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 209, "Seat Belt Assemblies."
What could happen
If the latch plate remains partially engaged after the button is pressed, egress from the vehicle could be hindered which would increase the risk of injury in the event of an emergency.
What gets fixed
DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect and replace the seat belt buckles, as necessary, free of charge. The recall is expected to by January 26, 2014.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtAugust 2013 to November 2013
- Recall reported to NHTSA29 November 2013
- Latest repair reportQ2 2015 — 47% repaired
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 November 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 DTNA at 1-800-385-4357. DTNA's number for this campaign is FL-654.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- FL-654
- Recalling manufacturer
- Daimler Trucks North America
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 209
- 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.