Vehicle recall 05V208000 · April 27, 2005
Thomas ER and SAF-T-Liner ER
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…
Source: NHTSA data as of September 22, 2026. Last refreshed Sep 23, 2026, 2:43 AM UTC.
- Summary
- 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 federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 124, accelerator control systems.
- 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.
- Notes
- Customers may also contact the national highway traffic safety administration's vehicle safety hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to http://www.safercar.gov.
Recall details
- NHTSA campaign
- 05V208000
- Reported to NHTSA
- April 27, 2005
- Filed by
- FREIGHTLINER LLC
- Manufacturer campaign
- FL-450
- Vehicles potentially affected
- 153
- Initiated by
- the manufacturer
- Components
- Vehicle speed control
Vehicles covered
As listed by NHTSA. A recall usually covers only some vehicles of each model and year, often a production date range.
Has your Thomas been repaired?
Recalls here come from NHTSA’s records for the model and year. Not every vehicle of a model is included in every recall, and this site can’t see whether a repair has been done. Only a VIN lookup can tell you that.
NHTSA’s VIN search doesn’t show recalls that were already repaired, recalls more than 15 years old, or some small manufacturers’ recalls. A Thomas dealer can also check your VIN. Recall repairs are free.