The Recall Desk
SevereNHTSA·10V561000·Announced 2010-11-15

Startrans Recalls School Buses Due to Blower Motor Fire Risk

Startrans is recalling 2003-2007 MFSAB school activity buses because a short circuit in the evaporator can cause a fire.

What this means for you

Illness, injury, or structural failure has been reported. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.

Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a vehicle defect that can result in a fire, which meets the rubric criteria for 'significant injury/property-damage reports' or structural vehicle defects, warranting a Severe rating.

Plain-English summary

Startrans Bus Corporation is recalling certain model year 2003-2007 MFSAB school activity buses equipped with Trans/Air TA73 evaporators. The recall involves 53 vehicles.

The evaporator uses a power resistor to regulate blower speed. If a short occurs in the low or medium speed circuit while the blower is in high speed, the supply voltage feeds back through the resistor to ground. This does not draw enough current to trip the fuse, causing the resistor temperature to rise until it melts. This overheating can ignite the plastic blower housing, resulting in a fire.

Trans/Air, in cooperation with Startrans, will install a thermal shutdown device in series with the speed resistors at no charge. The safety recall began on January 7, 2011. Owners may contact the Trans/Air Warranty and Service Center at 1-800-673-2446 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.

The recalled product

Product
STARTRANS MFSAB
Brand
STARTRANS
Manufacturer
STARTRANS BUS CORPORATION
Category
Vehicle — School Bus
Hazard
Affected units
53

Is your product affected?

Check your packaging against the codes below. If any of them match, the product is part of this recall.

Model numbers (1)

  • MFSAB

Distribution

Distributed nationwide across the United States.

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