Champion CTS-Re recalls

What is wrong

Champion Bus, Inc. (Champion) is recalling certain model year 2009-2015 Crusader, Stacked Rail, and CTS RE vehicles manufactured April 5, 2010, to October 14, 2015, equipped with Recaro Ergo-M Commercial Bus Driver Seats. The affected seats have J-Brackets that may be missing welds which could allow the seat belt anchorage assembly to separate from the J-Bracket.

Risk

If the seatbelt anchorage assembly separates from the J-Bracket, the bus driver may not be properly restrained in the event of a crash increasing their risk of injury.

Remedy

Champion will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the seats to determine if welds are missing. Any J-Bracket that is missing welds will be removed and replaced, free of charge. The recall began on February 25, 2016. Owners may contact Champion customer service at 1‑810‑724‑6474, or Johnson Controls (manufacturer of Recaro seats) customer service at 1‑248‑484‑3203.

Recall number 16V010000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion Bus, Inc. (Champion) is recalling certain model year 2006-2015 Challenger, Defender, Crusader, American, American Coach, American Crusader, Corporal, CTS-FE, CTS-RE, HC American, Platinum Shuttle, and Stacked Rail transit buses manufactured January 1, 2006, to August 25, 2015, equipped with certain model S2005, S2010, S5005, S5010, S5505, and S5510 wheelchair lifts. The affected lifts are equipped with folding link arms that may have pivot holes that are too big, allowing the bearings to move out of position.

Risk

If the bearings move out of position, the stowed platform may have excessive movement resulting in failure of the platform mounting. This failure could cause the wheel chair lift platform to fall out of the vehicle when the doors are opened, increasing the risk of injury for the lift operator.

Remedy

Champion will notify owners, and Ricon will inspect the link arms for damage or for displaced bearings. The platform will be inspected for cracks. Any damaged parts will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began on December 21, 2015. Owners may contact Champion customer service at 1‑810‑724‑1753 extension 415, or Ricon customer service at 1‑800‑322‑2884. Champion's number for this recall is 15E-068. Note: These buses and wheelchair lifts were subject to a similar recall in 2014. All vehicles that received that recall remedy are still affected by this recall as well.

Recall number 15V757000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion Bus, Inc. (Champion) is recalling certain model year 2013-2015 American Crusader, American Coach, Challenger, Crusader, CTS-FE, CTS-RE, Defender, EZ Trans, HCAC, HC, DFUC, LF Transport, Premier, and Spirit transit buses manufactured March 1, 2013, to June 12, 2015. In the affected vehicles, the passenger seat belts may rub against the metal seat frame and fray. As a result, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 209, "Seat Belt Assemblies."

Risk

A frayed seat belt fray may fail to properly restrain the seat occupant in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

Remedy

Champion will notify owners, and dealers will install a plastic sleeve over the metal seat frame, and replace any seat belts that show evidence of fraying, free of charge. The recall began on September 16, 2015. Owners may contact Champion customer service at 1‑810‑724‑1753 extension 562.

Recall number 15V391000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion Bus, Inc. (Champion) is recalling certain model year 2012-2014 American Crusader, Challenger, Crusader, CTS-FE, CTS-RE, Defender, EZ-Street, HC American, HCAC, LF Transport, M1235, Platinum Shuttle, Stacked Rail, and Federal Coach Premier, and Spirit transit buses manufactured January 1, 2012, to October 1, 2014, equipped with certain triangle warning signs manufactured by Imperial Supplies, LLC. Test reports indicate that the triangle warning signs, labeled C&J, may reflect an inadequate amount of light. As such, these triangle warning kits fail to comply with Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 125, "Warning devices."

Risk

Warning triangles that do not properly reflect light may fail to warn others that a vehicle is parked, increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Champion will notify owners to inspect their triangles for production dates between April 2011, to April 2014, and the affected triangles will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began on January 6, 2015. Owners may contact Champion customer service at 1‑810‑724‑6474.

Recall number 14V821000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion Bus, Inc. (Champion Bus) is recalling certain model year 2006-2014 American Coach, American Crusader, Challenger, Corporal, Crusader, CTS-FE, CTS-RE, Defender, HCAC, HC American, Platinum Shuttle, and Stacked Rail transit buses manufactured January 1, 2006, to July 31, 2014, equipped with certain model S2005, S2010, S5005, S5010, S5505, and S5510 wheelchair lifts manufactured by Ricon Corporation. The platform side plate of the affected wheelchair lifts may crack.

Risk

If the platform side plates crack, the lift platform can separate from the lift and come to rest against the vehicle's lift door. When the doors are opened, the platform may fall out, increasing the risk of injury to the lift operator.

Remedy

Champion Bus will notify owners to take buses to a Ricon dealer or service center who will install supplemental platform support bumpers. Any platform that has already started cracking will be replaced, free of charge. The recall began in November 2014. Owners may contact Champion Bus customer service at 1‑810‑724‑6474. Owners may contact Ricon customer service at 1‑800‑322‑2884.

Recall number 14V742000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion Bus is recalling certain model year 2010 American Crusader, American Coach, CTS-FE, CTS-RE, and IC Low Floor buses; and 2009-2010 Challenger and Crusader buses; and 2009-2011 Defender and EZ Trans buses; and 2010-2011 IC High Floor buses. The buses are manufactured from August 1, 2009, through May 19, 2011, and equipped with A&M Systems door headers containing model 3230 circuit boards. Voltage spikes may damage electrical components and electrical circuits, causing the circuit board to develop high resistance.

Risk

High resistance may cause the board to overheat, increasing the risk of a fire.

Remedy

Champion Bus will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the door header and replace any defective circuit board, free of charge. The recall began on October 22, 2013. Owners may contact Champion at 1‑810‑724‑6474.

Recall number 13V422000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion bus has notified the federal safety agency about a defect in certain model year 2008-2010 buses manufactured between september 2007 and february 2010, equipped with certain ricon s series and k series l-model wheelchair lifts, due to a problem in the software that controls the lift's "up" function. If the "up" switch is released before the floor level limit switch is activated, the lift may continue its upward travel for approximately 1 second before stopping. The continued upward travel may overrun the floor level cut off point.

Risk

When the platform overruns the vehicle floor level and stops at an angle from 15-20 degrees, it is possible for a person in a wheelchair to tip over and for someone standing on the platform to fall, possibly resulting in injuries.

Remedy

Champion bus will notify owners and the repairs will be performed by authorized ricon dealers please see ricon's defect report 09e-061. Ricon will provide owners with a bulletin outlining proper wheelchair lift operation and will ship owners a dvd-based training aid to promote proper lift operation. The safety recall is expected to begin during may 2010. Owners may contact ricon customer service at 800- 322-2884, emailing at [email protected].

Recall number 10V131000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion bus has notified the federal safety agency of a defect in certain model year 2007-2010 buses fitted with ricon public use lifts. The restraint belt on these lifts was designed to prevent the lift from moving, unless the tongue of the belt is fully engaged and latched in the buckle. Ricon has discovered, however, that it is possible for the operator to insert the belt tongue into the buckle without fully engaging the latching mechanism. In this case, the restraint belt would appear to be latched, and the operator could run the lift. If the restraint belt tongue is not fully engaged into the restraint belt buckle, and latched, the lift may operate with an occupant on the platform.

Risk

The user of the lift could be injured should the lift move without the restraint belt properly buckled.

Remedy

Champion bus is working with ricon and ricon will be handling the remedy for this campaign. Please see ricon's defect report 09e-060. Ricon will provide customers with a warning decal and a dvd-based training aid. The safety recall began on may 5, 2010. Owners may contact ricon customer service at 800‑322‑2884, emailing at [email protected].

Recall number 10V129000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion bus is recalling 503 my 2005-2007 challenger, crusader, defender, my 2005-2006 corporal, my 2006 cts-re, and my 2007 cts-fe and ic defender transit buses equipped with a ricon platform style wheelchair lift. This lift fails to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 403, "platform lift systems for motor vehicles." the anti-stow interlock may not detect the presence of a wheelchair or mobility aid user. The pressure sensing switch that detects the presence of weight on the platform was not adjusted to the necessary sensitivity level. The lift could stow even though someone or something is still on the lift.

Risk

A lift occupant can be injured should the lift begin to stow unintentionally.

Remedy

Champion bus is working with ricon to correct the wheelchair lift free of charge (please see 07e097). Owners may contact ricon at 1‑818‑267‑3000 or champion bus at 1‑800‑331‑5761.

Recall number 08V490000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion is recalling 68 my 2007-2009 transit buses. The fasteners that are used to hold electrical connectors in place on the roof mounted air conditioner control panel may not be tightened down to the proper torque and/or there may be a possible frayed wire at the connection point.

Risk

If these connections are loose, it could result in overheating and cause a fire.

Remedy

Dealers will inspect the fasteners on the electrical control board and tighten them to the proper torque value if they are found to be loose. The recall began on july 1, 2008. Owners may contact champion bus at 1‑810‑724‑1735.

Recall number 08V326000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Champion bus is recalling 503 my 2005-2008 defender, challenger, cts-re, cts-fe and crusader buses equipped with ricon platform style wheelchair lifts. These buses fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 404, "platform lift installations in motor vehicles." the threshold warning system may not detect the presence of a wheelchair or mobility aid user in a certain spot within the defined threshold area.

Risk

The user of the lift could be injured should the lift move unintentionally.

Remedy

Champion bus is working with ricon to correct the wheelchair lifts free of charge (please see 07e095). Owners may contact ricon at 1‑818‑267‑3000 or champion bus at 1‑937‑596‑6849.

Recall number 08V182000 · Recall details