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Navistar, Blue Bird School Buses Recalled

By Joe Benton
ConsumerAffairs.com

August 22, 2008
Two school bus manufacturers are recalling almost 28,000 vehicles, both school buses and commerical buses, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Navistar International is recalling 24,977 school and commercial buses because of potential stalling and a condition characterized as "hard starting."

The recall involves buses built in 2002 and 2008. They are the 2002, 2004 and 2008 IC/BE; the 2003 to 2008 IB/CE; the 2003 to 2008 IB/HC; the 2003 to 2005 and 2007 to 2008 IC/RE; the 2006 RESB; the 2002 to 2008 International/3200 and the 2002 to 2008 International/3300.

The "hard start" or stalling is caused by damaged terminals in a fuse connector that is part of the fuel injector system, according to the NHTSA Web site. "The terminals may have been damaged during electrical continuity testing in the manufacturing process," the agency reported.

The federal safety agency is "aware of 7 events of school buses where the fuse for the electronic control module has overheated and burned the fuse holder. The condition may result in a no-start, hard-start, erratic engine performance behavior or stalling," the safety agency reported.

NHTSA warned school bus operators that "these conditions could result in a vehicle crash, possibly resulting in personal injury."

Navistar plans to notify bus owners of the problem but has not yet scheduled any buses involed in the recall for repairs.

Bus owners can contact Navistar at 1-800-448-7825.

Blue Bird is recalling 2,503 of the 2006 to 2008 All American, Conventional and Micro Bird school and commercial buses because the wheelchair lift fails to comply with federal safety requirements.

NHTSA warned that the "anti-stow interlock" on the lifts may fail to detect the presence of a wheelchair because a sensing switch on the wheelchair platform is not adjusted to the proper sensitivity level.

"The lift could stow even though someone or something is still on the lift," federal safety regulators warned, "resulting in serous injury to the person remaining on the lift."

Owners of Blue Bird buses included in the recall can contact the company at 1-478-822-2242.

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