The 2006 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner has 1 NHTSA recall campaign affecting an estimated 25,643 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
STEERING07V2890002007-07-0325,643 affected
Defect
CERTAIN FREIGHTLINER SCHOOL BUSES AND TRUCKS MANUFACTURED FROM OCTOBER 23, 2004, TO MARCH 21, 2006. DURING THE STEERING COLUMN MANUFACTURING PROCESS TWO WELDS MAY HAVE BEEN MISSING.
Consequence
COLUMNS WITH TWO WELDS MISSING MAY FATIGUE AND FRACTURE AND ALLOW THE STEERING WHEEL TO PROGRESSIVELY BE MOVED OUT OF ITS NORMAL POSITION WHICH MAY CAUSE THE STEERING TO RESPOND DIFFERENTLY THAN EXPECTED. IF THIS CONDITION IS IGNORED, A CRASH MAY OCCUR.
Remedy
FREIGHTLINER WILL NOTIFY OWNERS AND INSPECT AND REPAIR THE AFFECTED VEHICLE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 30, 2007. OWNERS CAN CONTACT FREIGHTLINER AT 1-800-547-0712.
Complaints by component
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
1
Total complaints1
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The bus quit running, start running without turning the ignition, and they have numerous other electrical malfunctions. The biggest consequence is when the bus quits running while there is a bus load of students on. This leads to students being late to school or home. Furthermore, they lose power…”
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 2006 Thomas Built Saf-T-Liner as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.