The purpose of this complaint is to call attention to a design defect of the 2003 blue bird conventional/cv200 school bus that has resulted in both major injuries and death. The design defect is that during rear end collisions, passenger compartment intrusion is more likely due to the relatively high bumper height of 24.5 inches. This means that if a vehicle collides with the rear of the bus, serious injury is likely to occur when the incoming vehicle wedges underneath the bus. In general, school buses make frequent stops along the flow of traffic so the conditions for this defect as well as potential serious injury and death are alarmingly favorable. To my knowledge, nothing has been done to correct this 'failure' in design.
The worst 2003 Blue Bird Conventional problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
- Body1
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Body1
Recalls 6
Other: school bus stop arm assembly
- What is wrong
- Certain school buses originally sold in or currently registered in the following states: alaska, colorado, connecticut, delaware, idaho, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, montana, nebraska, nevada, new hampshire, new jersey, new mexico, new york, north dakota, ohio, oregon, pennsylvania, rhode island, south dakota, tennessee, utah, vermont, virginia, washington, west virginia, wisconsin, wyoming, and the district of columbia. In extremely cold weather, the microswitches used internally to position the stop arm sign in the open and closed positions may malfunction, causing the sign to open or close in an improper position, or to not open at all.
- Risk
- Should the stop arm not perform properly, a child or pedestrian may be endangered by passing vehicles should the motorist not stop at the correct location.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will notify its customers and replace the original switch with a switch pack that is not sensitive to extreme cold weather and will inspect to ensure the microswitch heater wiring is properly connected free of charge. The recall began on august 12, 2005. Owners may contact blue bird at 478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 05V239000 · Recall details
Other: school bus stop arm assembly
- What is wrong
- Certain blue bird 2002 through 2006 my all american, conventional, minibird, microbird, vision, and tc2000 school buses originally sold in or currently registered in states other than the following states: alaska, colorado, connecticut, delaware, idaho, illinois, indiana, iowa, kansas, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, montana, nebraska, nevada, new hampshire, new jersey, new mexico, new york, north dakota, ohio, oregon, pennsylvania, rhode island, south dakota, tennessee, utah, vermont, virginia, washington, west virginia, wisconsin, wyoming, and the district of columbia. In extremely cold weather, the microswitches used internally to position the sign in the open and closed positions may malfunction, causing the sign to open or close in an improper position, or to not open at all.
- Risk
- Should the stop arm not perform properly, a child or pedestrian may be endangered by passing motorists should the motorist not stop at the correct location.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will notify all its customers of this campaign. For those buses operated in or near any of the states listed above, blue bird is encouraging the bus owners to obtain the replacement switch. For those buses operated in the warmer states, blue bird will replace the switch upon owner request. For those customers who request the remedy, blue bird will replace the original switch with a switch pack that is not sensitive to extreme cold weather and will inspect to ensure the microswitch heater wiring is properly connected. The safety improvement campaign began on august 12, 2005. Owners may contact blue bird at 478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 05V251000 · Recall details
Engine and engine cooling
- What is wrong
- Certain 2002-2006 my blue bird all american school and transit buses, conventional school buses, and commercial series transit buses manufactured between december 21, 2002, and february 24, 2005. These buses are equipped with webasto coolant heaters, model dbw 2010, assembled with webasto burner tubes, p/n 303046/26533a manufactured between november 2002 and february 2005. The stainless steel burner tube is made out of a material that is not to specification and could fail prematurely.
- Risk
- Should the burner tube fail, the coolant heater could overheat, possibly resulting in a fire.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will notify its customers and replace the burner tubes free of charge. The recall began on march 31, 2005. Owners may contact blue bird at 478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 05V074000 · Recall details
Tires: markings
- What is wrong
- Certain my 2003 thru 2005 blue bird micro bird and conventional school buses. These buses do not have the tire load range on both the tire information label and certification decal as required by federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 120, tire selection and rims for motor vehicles other than passenger cars.
- Risk
- Omission of the tire load range may lead to the installation of tires with load ranges not appropriate for vehicle use. A failure occurring in tires due to inappropriate load range may result in loss of control of the vehicle and a crash can occur.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will mail to final stage manufacturers, certification decals with the tire load rating indicated to its customers. The recall began on may 6, 2005. Owners may contact blue bird at 478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 05V036000 · Recall details
Equipment adaptive/mobility
- What is wrong
- Certain blue bird 1999-2005 all american, tc/2000, micro bird, vision, conventional, and commercial series school buses equipped with sure-loc wheelchair securement systems and manufactured between february 17, 1999, and august 13, 2004. Certain sure-lok wheelchair tie-down securement assemblies p/n 8625-13. The sprocket teeth of the retractor assembly may be out of alignment causing the load pawl not to fully seat in the sprocket teeth.
- Risk
- In the event of a vehicle crash, the wheelchair may not be adequately secured possibly resulting in injuries.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will notify its customers and replace the defective part free of charge. The recall began september 21, 2004. Owners who take their buses to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact at blue bird at 478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 04V426000 · Recall details
Seats
- What is wrong
- On certain school buses equipped with optional seat belts or seat belt "ready" seats, some belts were installed with only two bolts rather than the required three (3) bolts.
- Risk
- These seats could detach from the wall side attachment points in the event of a vehicle crash, increasing the risk of injury to the seat occupant.
- Remedy
- Blue bird will furnish to distributors and owners, parts and instructions necessary to install the missing bolt free of charge. Owner notification is expected to on november 3, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact blue bird at 1‑478‑822‑2242.
Recall number 03V364000 · Recall details
Technical service bulletins for the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional 2
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
What 2003 Blue Bird Conventional owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Compare the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional
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Questions about the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional
Is the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional reliable?
Owners have filed 1 complaint about the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional, close to a typical Conventional model year.
What is the most common problem with the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional?
Body and structure, with 1 complaint.
How many recalls does the 2003 Blue Bird Conventional have?
6 recalls, covering other, engine and engine cooling and tires.
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