NHTSA campaign 16V101000 · manufacturer recall R16YL-NSB

2009 Blue Bird Vision: electrical system recall

Q: Is R16YL-NSB the same recall as 16V101000?

Yes. R16YL-NSB is the number Blue Bird Body Company uses for this campaign in its own paperwork and in the letter it sends owners. 16V101000 is the number NHTSA files it under. One recall, two references — dealers and service departments generally quote the manufacturer's.

Exposure to high current draw may cause the battery cable to overheat, melt the wire insulation and increase the risk of a short circuit and a fire.

critical 2 vehicles affected 100% reported repaired

Also on this page:

What was reported

Source: manufacturer filing, 49 CFR Part 573

Problem Blue Bird Body Company (Blue Bird) is recalling certain model year 2009 Vision transit buses manufactured from November 27, 2007, through February 18, 2008, and equipped with Caterpillar C707 engines. In the affected buses, the positive starter cable may be incorrectly attached to the same Power Distribution Unit (PDU) stud as the battery cable, exposing the smaller battery cable to a higher current draw during cranking. Risk Exposure to high current draw may cause the battery cable to overheat, melt the wire insulation and increase the risk of a short circuit and a fire. Fix Blue Bird will notify owners, and dealers will relocate the starter cable to the chassis power stud. Any damaged battery cables will be replaced. These repairs will be made free of charge. The recall began on March 10, 2016. Owners may contact Blue Bird customer service at 1-478-822-2242. Blue Bird's recall number for this campaign is R16YL-NSB.

Reported to NHTSA Feb 23, 2016 by Blue Bird Body Company, owners notified Mar 10, 2016.

Which vehicles are covered

Source: NHTSA campaign 16V101000

Vehicles built Nov 27, 2007 to Feb 18, 2008 — a VIN outside that window is not part of this campaign even if the year, make and model match.

Model year	On WhichTrim
2009 Blue Bird Vision	—

None of the vehicles this campaign names has a page on WhichTrim: every model year it names is older than the catalogue, which begins at 2016. The campaign record above is complete as filed, and whether one specific vehicle is included is settled by its VIN. Other campaigns on vehicles without a page here →

How much of it has been fixed

Source: manufacturer quarterly report, 49 CFR 573.7

Reported repaired 100%

of the campaign

The final figure: the six quarters of reporting that 49 cfr 573.7 requires have closed.

This is the manufacturer's own cumulative count of vehicles it has inspected and repaired, divided by the vehicles the campaign covers. It files that count with NHTSA every quarter for six consecutive quarters, starting from the quarter in which owners were told a remedy was ready, and then the obligation ends — so a figure on an older campaign is where the count stopped, not where it stands today.

It rarely reaches 100%, and not because the work was not done. The same report asks manufacturers to count vehicles they could not reach at all — exported, stolen, scrapped, or simply never located — and those stay in the denominator. A low number means a lot of these vehicles are still out there unrepaired; it does not tell you which ones.

The federal paperwork

Source: nhtsa.gov

Filed documents

NHTSA has not published the scanned filings for this campaign, or has not published them yet. The campaign record itself is on their site.

Check one specific vehicle

A recall applies to a build range, so year, make and model cannot settle it. NHTSA checks a VIN against the manufacturer's own list and tells you whether the repair is still outstanding on that vehicle.

NHTSA VIN recall lookup →

Campaign 16V101000 · the manufacturer calls it R16YL-NSB

Own one, or run a fleet? Recall Watch checks each VIN against every new NHTSA campaign and emails you when one lands, this one's expansions included. Or take a free one-line alert by model year.

Common questions

Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR Part 573

Is R16YL-NSB the same recall as 16V101000?

Yes. R16YL-NSB is the number Blue Bird Body Company uses for this campaign in its own paperwork and in the letter it sends owners. 16V101000 is the number NHTSA files it under. One recall, two references — dealers and service departments generally quote the manufacturer's.

Does this recall repair cost anything?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to remedy a safety defect or a compliance failure at no charge, for vehicles up to 15 years old measured from the date of first sale. A dealer that asks you to pay for a recall repair is in the wrong.

How do I know whether my vehicle is included?

By VIN, not by model year. This campaign covers vehicles built Nov 27, 2007 to Feb 18, 2008. The manufacturer files a build range with NHTSA and only vehicles inside it are covered, so two identical-looking cars from the same year can differ. NHTSA's own lookup checks a VIN against the manufacturer's list.

What if the repair is not available yet?

It happens, and often. Manufacturers must notify owners when a defect is found even if the parts or the software are not ready, then notify them a second time once the remedy exists. The remedy filed for this campaign is described above.

What did the manufacturer say was wrong?

The problem, risk and fix quoted on this page are the manufacturer's own words as filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR Part 573. WhichTrim does not paraphrase them.

Who started this recall?

NHTSA's record credits the manufacturer. A recall can begin with the manufacturer's own testing, with a defect investigation, or with a compliance test against a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.