The defect
Blue Bird is recalling certain 2013 model year Vision conventional school buses manufactured from August 27, 2012, to November 06, 2012. The castle nut that attaches the drag link to the steering arm may not have been torqued to the proper specifications.
The risk
Improperly torqued drag link castle nuts could cause excessive movement at the drag link to steering arm connection which could lead to potential separation of the drag link from the steering arm and loss of steering control, which may increase the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Blue Bird will notify owners, and dealers will check the torque on the drag link castle nuts. Any vehicle where the castle nuts are found to be loose will also have its steering arm inspected for wear. The recall began on December 28, 2012. Owners may contact Blue Bird at 1-478-822-2242.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Blue Bird Vision | 2013 |
Components: STEERING:LINKAGES:DRAG:LINK:CONNECTION
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 Vision | 2013 | 2 | 25 |
Other steering recalls in 2012
21 of the 583 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2012 concerned the steering; Blue Bird Body Company filed 162 campaigns in all.
| 12V587000 14 Dec 2012 | Taylor-Dunn Manufacturing Company |
| 12V548000 21 Nov 2012 | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) |
| 12V537000 14 Nov 2012 | Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing |
| 12V507000 17 Oct 2012 | Navistar, Inc. |
| 12V453000 14 Sept 2012 | WINNEBAGO INDUSTRIES INC. |
| 12V430000 4 Sept 2012 | AUTOMOBILI LAMBORGHINI |
| 12V422000 29 Aug 2012 | FORD MOTOR COMPANY |
| 12V399000 10 Aug 2012 | DUCATI NORTH AMERICA |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2012