Blue Bird preliminary evaluation PE10018
Engine Compartment Fires. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this preliminary evaluation about the fuel injection system on 3 model years (2008–2010). Opened May 27, 2010, closed Jul 9, 2010 after 43 days. It led to safety recall 10E025000, 10V289000, 10V290000, 10V310000, 10V314000, 10V398000. became a recall
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThis investigation was opened after ODI became aware of four engine compartment fires allegedly related to fuel leakage from the engine's fuel injector system. ODI conducted field examinations and communicated the identified concerns to Blue Bird. ODI also had discussions with Caterpillar, the engine manufacturer. On June 28th, 2010, Blue Bird filed two safety defect reports with NHTSA to address fuel lines that may crack at the fastening point to the common fuel rail. Safety recall campaign 10V-289 involves 3,686 school buses and safety recall campaign 10V-290 involves 103 non-school bus vehicles. The subject vehicles were equipped with the Caterpillar C-7-07 engine and it was determined that clamping of the #5 fuel line to the #6 fuel line and assembly stresses caused the #6 fuel line to fail. The remedy consist of replacing the #5 and #6 fuel lines and adding a new clamp to # 5 fuel line. Simultaneously with Blue Bird's decision to conduct the above recalls, Caterpillar Inc. filed a safety recall (10E-025) with NHTSA to perform the same remedy on 5,920 C7 series engines. Blue Bird engines are included in the Caterpillar recall. These recalls resolve the issues raised by this investigation. Therefore, this investigation is closed.
A Preliminary Evaluation is the first formal stage: NHTSA has decided the complaints and other information it screened are worth a closer look, and asks the manufacturer for its own data on the condition. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one became a recall. The campaign page carries the manufacturer’s filed defect, risk and remedy, the build window and every model year covered; whether one specific vehicle is included is settled by VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2008 Blue Bird Vision; 2009 Blue Bird Vision; 2010 Blue Bird Vision.
A vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs PE10018 a recall?
No — it is the investigation that led to one. Recall 10E025000, 10V289000, 10V290000, 10V310000, 10V314000, 10V398000 is the campaign; its page carries the remedy.
Is PE10018 still open?
No. It closed on Jul 9, 2010 and led to recall 10E025000, 10V289000, 10V290000, 10V310000, 10V314000, 10V398000.
Which vehicles does PE10018 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 3 model years: 2008 Blue Bird Vision, 2009 Blue Bird Vision, 2010 Blue Bird Vision. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.