The defect
ON CERTAIN MY 2005-2007 WANDERLODGE 450 LXI MOTOR HOMES EQUIPPED WITH ARVIN MERITOR AND TRW TIE ROD ENDS, THE TIE ROD ASSEMBLIES WERE PRODUCED WITH STEEL TUBING THAT DID NOT MEET DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS WHICH COULD RESULT IN FAILURE OF THE TIE ROD ASSEMBLY WHEN COACH MILEAGE APPROACHES OR EXCEEDS 100,000 MILES. ALSO THE FRONT AXLE CURB WEIGHT MAY EXCEED THE SPECIFIED 16,000 POUNDS WEIGHT RATING.
The risk
THE EXISTING TIE ROD ASSEMBLIES MAY NOT PERFORM AS DESIGNED AND MAY DEFORM OR FRACTURE WHICH MAY REDUCE STEERING CONTROL AND COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH. IN ADDITION, INSUFFICIENT FRONT TIRE INFLATION PRESSURE REDUCES THE WEIGHT RATING OF THE FRONT TIRES; AND IMPROPER ALIGNMENT OF THE FRONT SUSPENSION CAN CAUSE PREMATURE TIRE WEAR AND SUBSEQUENT DEGRADATION OF THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF ONE OR BOTH OF THE FRONT TIRES.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE LEFT AND RIGHT HAND FRONT TIE ROD ENDS ALONG WITH A CERTIFICATION LABEL STATING THE CORRECT WEIGHT LIMITS. APPROPRIATE REPLACEMENT TIRES WILL BE PROVIDED AND THE FRONT STEERING ALIGNMENT WILL BE CHECKED AND CORRECTED, IF NECESSARY. NEW TIRE DATA DECALS WILL ALSO BE SUPPLIED. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 14, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT BLUE BIRD AT 478-825-2021.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI | 2005, 2006, 2007 |
Components: POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI | 2005 | 2 | 2 |
| Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI | 2006 | 7 | 2 |
| Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI | 2007 | 0 | 1 |
Other power train recalls in 2007
21 of the 587 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2007 concerned the power train; BLUE BIRD BODY COMPANY filed 251 campaigns in all.
| 07V589000 20 Dec 2007 | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. |
| 07V579000 18 Dec 2007 | TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC. |
| 07V554000 7 Dec 2007 | AMERICAN SUZUKI MOTOR CORP. |
| 07V555000 4 Dec 2007 | CHRYSLER LLC |
| 07V523000 6 Nov 2007 | THULE TOWING SYSTEMS LLC |
| 07V498000 24 Oct 2007 | INTERNATIONAL TRUCK & ENGINE CORPORATION |
| 07V453000 26 Sept 2007 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| 07V413000 12 Sept 2007 | DAIMLERCHRYSLER CORPORATION |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2007