2000 Thomas Conventional: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2000 Thomas Conventional
No owner has filed a defect report with NHTSA about the 2000 Thomas Conventional. That is not a clean bill of health — it usually means few were sold, or the year is too new for problems to have surfaced.
Recalls on the 2000 model year
NHTSA has issued 7 recall campaigns covering the 2000 Thomas Conventional, affecting an estimated 8,157 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover seat belts, seat belts:front:buckle assembly, electrical system:wiring and seats. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
SEAT BELTS
2,371 vehicles 2002-10-31- Defect
- On certain school or transit buses with passenger seat belts with retractors, the cover halves for the retractable portion of the belt can separate completely and release the seat belt connector. If this occurs, one of the load bearing pins in the connector could separate from the connector and render the seat belt unusable. In the event of a crash, the seat occupant would not be properly restrained resulting in an injury. The seat belt supplier, amsafe, will provide a snap on "over-cover" to owners to prevent the seat belt cover from separating.
- Consequence
- If this occurs, one of the load bearing pins in the connector could separate from the connector and render the seat belt unusable. In the event of a crash, the seat occupant would not be properly restrained resulting in an injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will provide a plastic outer cover that snaps over the existing cover on units in the field and will replace broken seat belts free of charge. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact thomas built at 336-841-5924 or amsafe at 574-266-8330.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY
129 vehicles 2001-06-26- Defect
- Vehicle description: school and transit buses equipped with safety belt assemblies produced by am-safe. On some seat belts, the buckle and connector may unlatch during a collision.
- Consequence
- Serious injury or death could occur if the vehicle occupant is not properly restrained.
- Remedy
- Am-safe notified thomas built's customers to return their vehicle to an authorized dealer to have the seat belts repaired free of charge. Owner notification began september 21, 2000. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact thomas built at 1-336-889-4871.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING
16,165 vehicles 2001-06-26- Defect
- Vehicle description: school buses. The main body power supply wire from the chassis can chafe on the chassis (cowl) sheet metal panel, causing arcing and could result in a fire.
- Consequence
- If the bus catches on fire, possible injury or death to the vehicle occupants can occur.
- Remedy
- Owners will be provided with inspection and remedy procedures to be used in correcting this condition. Owner notification began september 14, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact thomas built at 336-889-4871.
SEATS
37 vehicles 2000-11-17- Defect
- Vehicle description: certain school buses equipped with kinedyne l series button track seating, fail to comply with fmvss no. 222, ""school bus passenger seating and crash protection." incorrect fasteners were used to secure the button track to the bus floor.
- Consequence
- In the event of a crash, the seat occupant may not be properly restrained, increasing the risk of personal injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the incorrect fasteners with the correct attachment hardware.
UNKNOWN OR OTHER
11,500 vehicles 2000-11-03- Defect
- Vehicle description: certain school buses equipped with a storage compartment overhead to the left of the driver fail to meet fmvss no. 222, "school bus passenger seating and crash protection."
- Consequence
- Contact with this storage compartment does not meet the impact zone requirements of the standard.
- Remedy
- Dealers will add padding to the sides of the storage compartment. Owner notification began february 8, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact thomas built at 1-336-889-4871.
SEATS
6,500 vehicles 2000-11-03- Defect
- Vehicle description: certain school buses and transit buses equipped with national seating's series 93b-sb driver seat. A bracket attaching the gas spring shock to the height adjuster of the seat can deform and break. This bracket is located at the top of the height adjuster.
- Consequence
- If the bracket is not replaced after deforming, and is allowed to break, its breaking will result in a sudden drop of the driver's seat, increasing the risk of loss of control of the vehicle and a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the seat base and add reinforcement to the seat assembly
VISIBILITY:REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICES:EXTERIOR
53 vehicles 2000-11-03- Defect
- Vehicle description: certain school buses built on navistar chassis and equipped with safety cross fixed position cross view mirrors fail to meet the requirements of fmvss no. 111, "rearview mirrors." a bracket supplied with the mirror assembly was manufactured incorrectly. The entire top surface of one or more cylinders described in the standard is not visible with the mirror system when using the incorrect bracket.
- Consequence
- The school bus driver may not be able to see certain portions of the bus, increasing the risk of a crash or personal injury to persons near the bus.
- Remedy
- Thomas built sent service personnel to replace the entire mirror assembly on the affected buses.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
Every year of the Thomas Conventional
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Why this page is short
A model year needs about 8 reports before percentiles mean anything, and this one does not have them. Complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road, so a thin page usually means a rare car, a new car, or a car whose owners do not file.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed