Blue Bird Recalls School Buses Due to Roof Hatch Handle Defect
Blue Bird is recalling 2018-2020 Vision and All American school buses because the roof emergency exit handle may break, preventing easy opening during an emergency.
What this means for you
Our assessment, not the agency’s: severity 4/5 (Severe).
The hazard poses a serious risk of illness, injury, or structural failure. Stop using the product immediately and contact the manufacturer for a refund or repair.
Our severity reasoning: The recall involves a structural vehicle defect affecting emergency egress, which aligns with the rubric criterion for 'structural vehicle defect' or 'significant injury' risk.
Plain-English summary
Blue Bird Body Company is recalling certain 2018-2020 Vision and All American school buses equipped with Specialty Manufacturing Prolo roof emergency exit hatches. The recall involves 1,737 vehicles.
Due to a manufacturing issue, the roof hatch external handle may unexpectedly break under reasonable use. If the handle breaks, the hatch cannot be easily opened from outside the vehicle in the event of an emergency, which increases the risk of injury. These vehicles fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 217, "Bus Emergency Exits and Window Retention and Release."
Blue Bird will notify owners, and Specialty dealers will replace the outer handle free of charge. The recall began on August 21, 2019. Owners may contact Blue Bird customer service at 1-478-822-2242 or the NHTSA Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
The recalled product
- Product
- BLUE BIRD ALL AMERICAN, VISION, VISION SCHOOL BUS, ALL AMERICAN SCHOOL BUS
- Brand
- BLUE BIRD
- Manufacturer
- Blue Bird Body Company
- Category
- Vehicle — School Bus
- Affected units
- 1,737
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 (4)
- ALL AMERICAN
- VISION
- VISION SCHOOL BUS
- ALL AMERICAN SCHOOL BUS
Distribution
Distributed nationwide across the United States.
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