The 2004 Thomas Built School Bus has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 634 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 1 complaint with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
SUSPENSION05V2840002005-06-14634 affected
Defect
CERTAIN FREIGHTLINER TRUCKS AND THOMAS SCHOOL BUSES EQUIPPED WITH HOLLAND/NEWAY AIR SUSPENSION SYSTEMS, A TRANSVERSE BEAM CASTING MAY FRACTURE UNDER NORMAL LOADS. IF A CASTING BREAKS WHEN THE VEHICLE IS TRAVELING ON A ROADWAY THERE IS THE POTENTIAL FOR PIECES OF THE CASTING TO BECOME PROJECTILES AND THE SUSPENSION'S…
Consequence
THIS WILL CAUSE SPARKS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY IGNITE AND CAUSE A FIRE.
Remedy
DEALERS WILL INSPECT AND REPLACE THE DEFECTIVE TRANSVERSE BEAM ASSEMBLIES. THE RECALL BEGAN FOR THOMAS BUILT OWNERS ON FEBRUARY 10, 2006; AND FOR FREIGHTLINER OWNERS ON APRIL 14, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT FREIGHTLINER AT 1-800-547-0712.
Complaints by component
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1
1fires
Total complaints1
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“Tl* the contact owns a 2004 thomas school bus body equipped with an international chassis. The contact stated that burning fumes were emitted from under the dashboard and within minutes, the vehicle had become engulfed in flames. There were no injuries and a fire report was filed of the incident.…”
Defect investigations
InvestigationEA07002 Opened 2007-01-30 · closed 2007-07-12
STEERING COLUMN WELD CRACKS
AS A RESULT OF THE ODI INVESTIGATION, FREIGHTLINER HAS AGREED TO RECALL (NUMBER 07V-289) ALL OF THE VEHICLES MANUFACTURED WITH STEERING COLUMNS POTENTIALLY MISSING WELDS.THE RECALL REMEDY WILL INVOLVE INSPECTING THE RECALLED VEHICLES FOR MISSING WELDS AND IF FOUND REPLACE THE STEERING COLUMN.EARLY WARNING AGGREGATE…
InvestigationEA07002 Opened 2007-01-30 · closed 2007-07-12
STEERING COLUMN WELD CRACKS
AS A RESULT OF THE ODI INVESTIGATION, FREIGHTLINER HAS AGREED TO RECALL (NUMBER 07V-289) ALL OF THE VEHICLES MANUFACTURED WITH STEERING COLUMNS POTENTIALLY MISSING WELDS.THE RECALL REMEDY WILL INVOLVE INSPECTING THE RECALLED VEHICLES FOR MISSING WELDS AND IF FOUND REPLACE THE STEERING COLUMN.EARLY WARNING AGGREGATE…
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2004 Thomas Built School Bus as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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