- Vehicles
- 526
- Built between
- Jan 2013 – Feb 2013
- Models
- 2
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 24 April 2014
- Repaired
- 69%
- Unrepaired
- 163
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between January 2013 and February 2013. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2014 Blue Bird ALL AmericanBuilt January 2013 to February 2013
- 2014 Blue Bird VisionBuilt January 2013 to February 2013
Repair progress
163 of 526 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q3 2015.
69% repaired — 363 of 526 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
Blue Bird Body Company (Blue Bird) is recalling certain model year 2014 Vision and All American school buses manufactured January 21, 2013, through February 28, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the joint between the rear wheelhousing and body gusset panel may have partially separated during manufacturing. Thus, these vehicles do not conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 221, "School Bus Body Joint Strength."
What could happen
A joint separation between the rear wheelhousing and body gusset panel may increase the risk the injury to bus occupants in the event of a crash.
What gets fixed
Blue Bird will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the joint connections and install a two part adhesive and mechanical fasteners, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on April 24, 2014.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJanuary 2013 to February 2013
- Recall reported to NHTSA11 March 2014
- Owners notified24 April 2014
- Latest repair reportQ3 2015 — 69% 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 11 March 2014.
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 R14XC.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- R14XC
- Recalling manufacturer
- Blue Bird Body Company
- Safety standard
- FMVSS 221
- 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.