NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Preliminary Evaluation PE15-035: Front Tire Overload
- Closed
NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation opened Preliminary Evaluation PE15-035 on November 16, 2015 and closed it on March 2, 2016. NHTSA's investigations file lists the Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI and Wanderlodge for it.
Updated daily from NHTSA's investigations file
Key facts
- NHTSA number
- PE15-035 (also written PE15035)
- 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 March 2, 2016
- Opened
- Closed
- Vehicle or equipment manufacturer
- Blue Bird Body Company
- Component
- Tires
- Vehicles and equipment
- Blue Bird Wanderlodge M450 LXI and Wanderlodge
A recall appears here only when NHTSA's investigations file links one to the investigation; NHTSA's summary or record can name others.
NHTSA's summary
As NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation wrote it for Preliminary Evaluation PE15-035.
As detailed in the opening resume for this investigation dated November 16, 2015, Blue Bird Corporation (BBC) conducted recall 07V-586 with two subsequent amendments to address overloaded front axles and tires on the subject vehicles.
Following the remedy installations, NHTSA received nine petitions and seven consumer complaints (many from the same owners who had filed petitions) alleging the remedial actions taken by BBC were inadequate.
At the time, NHTSA was aware of two consumer complaints and three crashes of vehicles that received the 07V-586 recall remedy.
One of the complaints was similar to the petitions in that it focused on utility loss and not safety issues.
The second complaint (received May 2014) described a crash that occurred in May 2013 that was also identified in media reports. The second and third crashes occurred in August 2013 and January 2015. All three crashes allegedly resulted from failure of one of the front tires.
During this investigation, NHTSA requested information from BBC including details about the three referenced crashes and if they were aware of any additional failures.
BBC responded that they were not aware of any other failures and had only received crash information on one of the incidents from sources other than NHTSA.In order to understand why the tires failed prior to or during each of the three crashes, NHTSA attempted to collect as much information about each incident as possible.
This included insurance documents, photographs, police accident reports, vehicle weights, maintenance history, and the failed tires.
In the case of two of the crashes, not enough information could be obtained to determine the exact cause of the tire failure and crash.
In the case of the third crash, the tire was collected and analyzed.
This analysis found that the tire failed as a result of impact damage and not overloading.
In October 2015, BBC initiated a customer service campaign (S15YF) where owners would be notified that BBC would replace the front wheels and tires on the subject vehicles.
This action was taken to address owner concerns that the ride comfort in the vehicle was bad and that tire pressure was difficult to maintain at the required 130psi.
The new wheels and tires installed by BBC increased the load capacity of the tire, allowing owners to carry the maximum load of the coach at a lower tire pressure.
At the time of the closing of this investigation, NHTSA does not have the necessary evidence to establish the existence of an unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety in the subject vehicles.
NHTSA is not aware of any front axle failures in the subject vehicles for any reason. The single tire failure crash where sufficient evidence had been preserved resulted from the vehicle striking an object damaging the tire.
The action taken by BBC to increase the load capacity of the tires on the subject vehicles addresses the safety concerns prompting this investigation.
This investigation is closed.
The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that no safety-related defect exists.
The agency may take further action if warranted by the circumstances.
Vehicles and equipment listed for this investigation
NHTSA's investigations file lists these vehicles and equipment for Preliminary Evaluation PE15-035. 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.
Blue Bird
All Blue Bird recallsWhat 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 PE15-035
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.