1998 MCI 102A3 Recalls, Complaints & Safety

SUSPENSION:FRONT:CONTROL ARM:UPPER BALL JOINT

Defect Description

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: TRANSIT COACHES. THE TIE ROD BALL JOINT COTTER PIN AND NUT MAY BE MISSING OR THE NUT MAY BE LOOSE.

Consequence

THE TIE ROD BALL JOINT COULD SEPARATE INCREASING THE RISK OF A VEHICLE CRASH.

Remedy

DEALERS WILL INSPECT THE BALL JOINT TORQUE AND RETIGHTEN ANY LOOSE PARTS OR REPLACE ANY MISSING PARTS.

296 vehicles affected

Manufacturer: MOTOR COACH IND., INC.

UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Defect Description

VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: TRANSIT COACHES EQUIPPED WITH WHEEL CHAIR LIFTS. AN INSTRUCTION LABEL IDENTIFYING THE LOCATION OF THE EMERGENCY EXIT WAS OMITTED FROM THE WHEEL CHAIR SEATING POSITION LOCATED ON THE CURB SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. THIS DOES NOT COMPLY WITH REQUIREMENTS OF FMVSS NO. 217, "BUS WINDOW... Read more

Consequence

IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH OR OTHER EMERGENCY, PASSENGERS LOCATED IN THIS SEATING POSITION WILL NOT HAVE THE INFORMATION TO FIND PROPER ACCESS TO THE EMERGENCY EXIT.

Remedy

OWNERS WILL BE PROVIDED WITH A LABEL AND INSTALLATION INSTRUCTIONS.

547 vehicles affected

Manufacturer: MOTOR COACH IND., INC.

No complaints found for this vehicle.

Technical Service Bulletins — 1998 MCI 102A3

5 manufacturer communications from 3 unique bulletins. TSBs describe known problems and recommended fixes from the manufacturer.

Most Affected Components

Component	Bulletins
980000 UNKNOWN OR OTHER	2
102000 POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION	1
103000 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION	1
103100 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)	1

980000 UNKNOWN OR OTHER

MOTOR COACH INDUDSTRIES: INFORMATION ON REPLACING THE COOLANT PUMP THAT MAY HAVE A PROBLEM. *RM

102000 POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION

MOTOR COACH INDUSTRIES SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. THERE MAY BE A HARSH DOWNSHIFT, RPM FLARE, OR THE TRANSMISSION MAY LOCK. *RM

103000 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION

MOTOR COACH INDUSTRIES SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. THERE MAY BE A HARSH DOWNSHIFT, RPM FLARE, OR THE TRANSMISSION MAY LOCK. *RM

103100 POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:CONTROL MODULE (TCM/PCM/TECM)

MOTOR COACH INDUSTRIES SERVICE CAMPAIGN: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. THERE MAY BE A HARSH DOWNSHIFT, RPM FLARE, OR THE TRANSMISSION MAY LOCK. *RM

980000 UNKNOWN OR OTHER

There are no Manufacturer Communications in accordance with 49 CFR 579.5 to report for April 2024 for Motor Coach Industries.

NHTSA Safety Investigations — MCI 102A3

Investigations opened by NHTSA into potential safety defects. These are separate from recalls and may or may not result in a recall.

EA — Closed — Model Year: 1992

MCI Drive Shaft Safety Loop Failures

In the fall of 2011, network contacts made ODI aware of four (4) incidents of drive shaft failure on the subject buses involving a loss of vehicle control.Two of the incidents were relatively low speed non-crash events; and two resulted in motor coach rollovers.All four events showed signs of a comm... on failure mode.The incidents and crashes studied during this investigation all resulted from a series of complex events that began with the the yoke journal ears on the drive shafts fracturing.Once the drive shaft failed. it was not adequately contained by a drive shaft safety loop or structure.The spinning and unrestrained drive shaft caused severe damage to components on the steerable tag axle at the rear of the vehicle and created a forced steering condition.Once the rear of the bus was being forcibly steered by the tag axle, the driver lost control of the vehicle.These conclusions are based on the forensics evidence and testing conducted by the Vehicle Research and Test Center (VRTC).The VRTC test report is attached to this closing resume that provides details on how the test center was able to conclusively identify the defective components on the buses and demonstrate the sequence of events that caused the buses to crash.Prior to the drive shaft failure events, there were no indications of improper maintenance or that maintenance was required that would have prevented the incidents.Additionally, the U-joints on the incident vehicles were found to be in good working condition at the time of the failure. Finally, records of driver interviews indicated a sudden onset of the failure with no warning.Following the VRTC testing, MCI issued recall 14V-335 involving certain model year 1993-1995 102DL3 motor coaches manufactured November 1992 to January 1995, and 2006 and 2008 D4505 motor coaches manufactured June 2005 to April 2008.The affected buses are equipped with a drive shaft with a compressed length of 30 inches or less (allowing it to escape containment if it fails), a steerable trailing tag axle equipped with a system that changes the axle caster when the vehicle is in reverse travel and no electronic stability control (ESC).Recall 14V-335 addresses the concerns of this investigation.The ODI report cited above can be viewed at www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/owners/SearchNHTSAID: ODI Number 10447575.Read more

MCI 102A3 — All Years Overview

Complete safety history for the MCI 102A3 across all model years (1992–1998).

4 Total Recalls

0 Total Complaints

1 Investigations

0 Reported Crashes

0 Reported Fires

0 Reported Deaths

MCI 102A3 — Year by Year

Compare recalls and complaints across model years. Click any year to see full details.

Year	Recalls
1998 (current)	2
1993	1	View
1992	1	View

Other MCI Models

Model	Recalls	Complaints
102B3	0	0	View
102C3	0	0	View
102D	0	0	View
102D3	0	0	View
102D3ISTV	0	0	View
102DL	0	0	View
102DL3	0	0	View
102DL3SS	0	0	View