RecallRepo

2002 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner Er Recalls

Recalls on record Updated July 2026

The 2002 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner Er has 6 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 131,741 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 1 complaint with NHTSA, most often about the seats. Last updated July 5, 2026.

Recall campaigns

STRUCTURE 16V407000 2016-06-07 717 affected
Defect

Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 1998-2002 Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner Conventional, 2000-2002 Saf-T-Liner ER, 2000-2002 Saf-T-Liner MVP-EF, 2000-2001 CL-960, 1998-1999 Vista, 2000-2002 Saf-T-Liner MVP-ER, and 2000-2002 TL-960 transit buses. In the affected vehicles, the…

Consequence

If the stem corrodes, the door handle could detach from the emergency door opening mechanism, delaying the opening of the door and the evacuation of the bus. In the event of an emergency, this may increase the risk of injury to the bus occupants.

Remedy

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will either replace the stems or protect them against corrosion, free of charge. An interim notice was sent to owners on July 28, 2016. A second notice was mailed to owners on December 9, 2016 Parts are available. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. …

STRUCTURE 16V395000 2016-06-02 24,698 affected
Defect

Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 1998-2002 Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner Conventional, 2000-2002 Saf-T-Liner ER, 2000-2017 Saf-T-Liner MVP-EF, 1998-1999 Vista, 2003 Saf-T-Liner FS65, 2013-2017 Saf-T-liner C2, 2000-2002 Saf-T-Liner MVP-ER, 2013-2017 Saf-T-Liner HDX. In the…

Consequence

If the stem corrodes, the door handle could detach from the emergency door opening mechanism, delaying the opening of the door and the evacuation of the bus. In the event of an emergency, this may increase the risk of injury to the bus occupants.

Remedy

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will either replace the stems or protect them against corrosion, free of charge. An interim notice was sent to owners on July 28, 2016. A second notice was mailed to owners on December 16, 2016. Parts are available. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. …

STRUCTURE 15V432000 2015-07-07 103,038 affected
Defect

Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2002-2013 Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner ER, 2001-2005 Saf-T-Liner Conventional, 2002-2013 Saf-T-Liner MVP-EF, 2013 Saf-T-Liner EFX, 2001-2008 Saf-T-Liner FS65, 2005-2013 Saf-T-Liner C2, 2003-2013 Saf-T-Liner HDX, 2002-2003 Saf-T-Liner MVP-ER,…

Consequence

If the stem corrodes, the door handle could detach from the emergency door opening mechanism, delaying the opening of the door and the evacuation of the bus. In the event of an emergency, this may increase the risk of injury to the bus occupants.

Remedy

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will either replace the stems or protect them against corrosion, free of charge. Daimler issued an interim notification to owners on August 25, 2015. The recall began on December 24, 2015. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-745-8000. DTNA's number for this recall…

STRUCTURE 15V425000 2015-07-06 3,013 affected
Defect

Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2002-2004 Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner ER, 2001-2005 Saf-T-Liner Conventional, 2002-2013 Saf-T-Liner MVP-EF, 2013 Saf-T-Liner EFX, 2001-2008 Saf-T-Liner FS65, 2005-2013 Saf-T-Liner C2, 2003-2013 Saf-T-Liner HDX, 2002-2003 Saf-T-Liner MVP-ER,…

Consequence

If the stem corrodes, the door handle could detach from the emergency door opening mechanism, delaying the opening of the door and the evacuation of the bus. In the event of an emergency, this may increase the risk of injury to the bus occupants.

Remedy

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will either replace the stems or protect them against corrosion, free of charge. An interim notice was mailed to owners on August 28, 2015. The recall began on December 24, 2015. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-745-8000. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-685.

VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL 05V208000 2005-04-27 153 affected
Defect

CERTAIN MY 2002-2005 THOMAS BUILT SAF-T-LINER ER SCHOOL BUSES AND ER TRANSIT BUSES MANUFACTURED BETWEEN NOVEMBER 2002 AND FEBRUARY 2005 AND EQUIPPED WITH JOHN DEERE 8.1L COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS ENGINES MODELS HFN01 AND HFN03. THE ENGINE CONTROL UNIT AND THROTTLE CAN UNEXPECTEDLY SURGE. THESE UNITS FAIL TO CONFORM TO…

Consequence

A SUDDEN ENGINE SURGE COULD POSSIBLY RESULT IN A VEHICLE CRASH.

Remedy

JOHN DEERE WILL NOTIFY THE CUSTOMERS OF FREIGHTLINER/THOMAS BUILT AND WILL UPDATE THE ENGINE CONTROL UNIT SOFTWARE FREE OF CHARGE. OWNERS MAY CONTACT JOHN DEERE AT 1-800-JD-ENGINE.

SUSPENSION 02V320000 2002-12-02 122 affected
Defect

ON CERTAIN SCHOOL AND TRANSIT BUSES EQUIPPED WITH REYCO REAR AXLE AIR SUSPENSIONS, DEFLATED SUSPENSION AIR BAGS COULD CREATE EXCESSIVE DRIVELINE ANGLES CAUSING U-JOINT DAMAGE.

Consequence

THE DRIVE SHAFT COULD FALL OFF OF THE BUS. FOLLOWING VEHICLES COULD THEN RUN OVER THIS OBSTACLE, INCREASING THE RISK OF DAMAGE TO THE FOLLOWING VEHICLE.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL INSTALL AXLE STOPS TO LIMIT REAR SUSPENSION TRAVEL AND FASTENER TORQUE WILL BE CHECKED ON THE SUSPENSION HEIGHT CONTROL ROD. OWNER NOTIFICATION IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING FEBRUARY 2003. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE…

Complaints by component

SEATS
1
Total complaints1

What owners report

Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.

“The driver's seat was defective. The seat frame bent and caused the seat to twist 15 degrees to the right. *nlm a new seat unit was reassembled and installed. *tt”

SEATS · reported 2002-12-01

Defect investigations

Investigation PE07054 Opened 2007-11-09 · closed 2008-03-04

EMERGENCY DOOR HANDLE FAILURE

THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATIONAFTERBECOMING AWARE THAT FLEETS WERE HAVING HANDLE FAILURES ON THE REAR EMERGENCY DOOR EXIT.THE FAILURE RESULTED IN THE DOOR HANDLE SEPARATING FROM THEDOOR LATCH MECHANISM.WHEN THE HANDLE FAILS, THE REAR EMERGENCY EXIT DOOR CAN NOT BE OPENED FROM…

Sources & methodology

Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2002 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner Er as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.