NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE08-038: HYDRAULIC BRAKE HOSE CHAFING/LEAKING
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE08-038 on June 4, 2008 and closed it on August 4, 2008. NHTSA's investigations file lists the 2004–2009 Blue Bird Vision for it and links recall 08V-312 to it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE08-038 (also written PE08038)
- Investigation type
- Preliminary Evaluation The first stage of most defect investigations: NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation gathers basic information about a possible safety defect, including from the manufacturer.
- Status
- Closed August 4, 2008
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Blue Bird Body Company
- Component
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic — Foundation Components — Hoses, Lines/Piping, and Fittings
- Recall linked by NHTSA
- 08V-312: HYDRAULIC BRAKE HOSE CHAFFING, reported
- Vehicles and equipment
- 2004–2009 Blue Bird Vision
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE08-038.
IN APRIL, 2008, ODI RECEIVED A LETTER FROM THE MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL ALLEGING THAT THEIR FIELD INSPECTORSWEREFINDING HYDRAULIC BRAKE HOSES THAT WEREBEING CUT OR CRUSHED BY THE SHARP EDGES OF THE BUS BODY AT THE FIREWALL.THEY ALSO SUPPLIED INFORMATION ON ONE BUS THAT EXPERIENCED TOTAL BRAKE LOSS DUE TO THE BRAKE HOSE BEING CUT. FURTHER FIELD WORK BY ODI INCREASED THENUMBER OF COMPLAINTS TO A TOTAL OF SEVEN.AFTER DISCUSSIONS WITH ODI AND FURTHER REVIEW OF FIELD INCIDENTS, BLUE BIRD HAS DECIDED TO INITIATE A SAFETY RECALL TO INSPECT, REPLACE AND OR REPOSITION THE BRAKE HOSES OF CONCERN. THIS RECALL ACTION RESOLVES THE ISSUES RAISED BY THIS INVESTIGATION. ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE08-038. A listed model year means only that an investigation names it; it says nothing about any particular vehicle. Model years with a try.vin recall page link to that page's NHTSA investigations section.
What an NHTSA investigation is
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) looks into possible safety defects in vehicles and equipment, often after owner complaints. An investigation usually starts as a Preliminary Evaluation, or as a Recall Query when it concerns whether an existing recall covers the right vehicles or fixes the problem, and ODI can upgrade it to a more detailed Engineering Analysis. A Defect Petition asks NHTSA to open an investigation, and Audit and Equipment Queries are administrative investigations into whether companies complied with federal vehicle safety requirements, such as reporting, recall and certification rules.
An open investigation is not a finding that a safety defect exists, and NHTSA can close one without a recall.
To see whether a specific vehicle has an open recall, enter its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Free VIN check: decode a VIN to see its year, make and model.
Sources
NHTSA's investigation record for PE08-038
Investigation details come from NHTSA's investigations file, which try.vin imports once a day. The investigation types are described from the U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General's May 2023 report on NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation, NHTSA's petition rules (49 CFR Parts 552 and 557) and NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation procedures. How try.vin reads NHTSA investigations.