The defect
Spartan Motors, Inc. (Spartan) is recalling certain model year 2006-2013 Advantage, Diamond, Gladiator, and MetroStar emergency vehicles manufactured November 29, 2005, to June 19, 2013. In the affected vehicles, the transmission fluid cooler may fail, allowing the engine coolant to mix with the transmission fluid.
The risk
If the engine coolant mixes with the transmission fluid, the transmission may not shift properly, increasing the risk of a crash.
The remedy
Spartan will notify owners and dealers will install a new transmission fluid cooler, free of charge. Parts are not currently available. Owners were mailed an interim notification on November 25, 2014 and will also be mailed a second letter when parts are available. Parts should be available in mid to late January 2015. The recall began on February 9, 2015. Owners may contact Spartan customer service at 1-517-543-6400. Spartan's number for this recall is 14017.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
| Model | Model years |
|---|---|
| Spartan Advantage | 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 |
Components: POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:COOLING UNIT AND LINES
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spartan Advantage | 2006 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2007 | 0 | 6 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2008 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2009 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2010 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2011 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2012 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Advantage | 2013 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2006 | 0 | 5 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2007 | 0 | 6 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2008 | 0 | 7 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2009 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2010 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2011 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2012 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Diamond | 2013 | 0 | 3 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2006 | 0 | 12 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2007 | 0 | 16 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2008 | 0 | 21 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2009 | 0 | 23 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2010 | 0 | 29 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2011 | 0 | 26 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2012 | 0 | 24 |
| Spartan Gladiator | 2013 | 0 | 29 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2006 | 0 | 6 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2007 | 0 | 7 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2008 | 1 | 12 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2009 | 0 | 15 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2010 | 0 | 19 |
| Spartan Metrostar | 2011 | 0 | 15 |
Other power train recalls in 2014
49 of the 770 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2014 concerned the power train; Spartan Motors, Inc. filed 41 campaigns in all.
| 14V819000 24 Dec 2014 | General Motors LLC |
| 14V811000 22 Dec 2014 | Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. |
| 14V803000 19 Dec 2014 | Nissan North America, Inc. |
| 14V796000 16 Dec 2014 | Chrysler Group LLC |
| 14V789000 15 Dec 2014 | BMW of North America, LLC |
| 14V784000 9 Dec 2014 | Hyundai Motor America |
| 14V779000 8 Dec 2014 | Honda (American Honda Motor Co.) |
| 14V739000 18 Nov 2014 | Volvo Trucks North America |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2014