- Vehicles
- 73
- Built between
- Feb 2017 – Jul 2018
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 9 February 2019
- Repaired
- 63%
- Unrepaired
- 27
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between February 2017 and July 2018. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2018-2019 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner C2Built February 2017 to July 2018
- 2018-2019 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner EFXBuilt February 2017 to July 2018
- 2018-2019 Thomas Built Buses SAF-T-Liner HDXBuilt February 2017 to July 2018
Repair progress
27 of 73 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q4 2020.
63% repaired — 46 of 73 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 LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner HDX, C2, and EFX School Buses, equipped with Detroit Axle axles. The affected vehicles may have loose steering tie rod arm bolts.
What could happen
Loose tie rod arm bolts may lead to separation of the tie rod arm, affecting vehicle steering, and increasing the risk of a crash.
What gets fixed
DTNA has notified owners, and dealers will inspect the steering arm and tie rod arm bolts for to make sure that they are properly tightened, installing new fasteners as necessary, free of charge. The recall began February 9, 2019.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtFebruary 2017 to July 2018
- Recall reported to NHTSA19 December 2018
- Owners notified9 February 2019
- Latest repair reportQ4 2020 — 63% 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 19 December 2018.
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 Daimler Trucks at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-802.
Official source
- Manufacturer's recall number
- FL-802
- Recalling manufacturer
- Daimler Trucks North America LLC
- 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.