RoadVitals

1982 GMC School Bus Series

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
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Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
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InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
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Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
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Overview

Our database contains no NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1982 GMC School Bus Series. 1 NHTSA investigation names it.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Safety recalls

No recalls in our database for this model year

That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.

Safety investigations

NHTSA inquiries naming this vehicle. An investigation is not a finding of a defect.

PE87014ClosedPreliminary Evaluation

ENGINE FIRES

Opened Jan 9, 1987
Closed Jul 14, 1987

SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:GM ALLEGES THAT IN ONE INCIDENTA BUS BUILDER IMPROPERLY MOUNTED THE COOLANT RECOVERY BOTTLE, RESULTINGIN ETHYLENE GLYCOL COMING INTO CONTACT WITH AN EXHAUST MANIFOLD ANDIGNITING.THE BUS BODY BUILDER DENIES THE ALLEGATION.IN ADDITION GMIDENTIFIED TWO CHANGES WHICH MAY RELATE TO THE SUBJECT.BEGINNING IN MAY,1983 THE POSITIVE BATTERY CABLE ON G MODELS WAS RE-ROUTED AND ADDITIONALPROTECTION INSTALLED.ALSO EFFECTIVE FEBRUARY, 1985 THE ANTI-DIESELINGWIRE WAS SECURED TO INSURE THAT IT WOULD NOT COME IN CONTACT WITH A GROUND.ANALYSIS:ANALYSIS INDICATES THAT THE ENGINE FIRES CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO AVARIETY OF POSSIBLE CAUSES, AMONG THEM BEING A LACK OF, OR IMPROPERMAINTENANCE, GROUNDING OF A HOT WIRE, COOLANT CONTACT WITH THE EXHAUSTSYSTEM, AND POSSIBLE FUEL LEAKS.IN ADDITION TO GM, EIGHT BUS BODYBUILDERS WERE CONTACTED FOR INPUT ON THE PROBLEM.OF THE EIGHT, THREEREPORTED FIRES INVOLVING SIX BUSSES OVER A SIX YEAR PERIOD.AVAILABLEDATA FOR ALL SIX FIRES HAS BEEN REVIEWED FOR ANY POSSIBLE PATTERN OFFAULT OR DEFECT.THREE OF THE REPORTS DID NOT INCLUDE ANY PROBABLE CAUSEOTHER THAN ENGINE FIRE OF UNSPECIFIED ORIGIN.THIS IS PROBABLY A RESULT OFTHE DIFFICULTY IN IDENTIFYING A FAULT AFTER THE FIRE HAS CONSUMED MANY OFTHE INVOLVED COMPONENTS.IN THE OTHER THREE INCIDENTS, DIFFERENT PROBLEMSWERE ALLEGED TO HAVE CAUSED THE FIRES, WITH NO COMMON CAUSE NOTED.INFIVE OF THE SIX INCIDENTS, MENTALLY AND/OR PHYSICALLY HANDICAPPEDCHILDREN WERE ON THE BUS AT THE TIME OF THE INCIDENT.IN EVERY INCIDENTEVERYONE WAS EVACUATED SAFELY WITH NO REPORTED INJURIES.GENERALLY SOMETYPE OF WARNING WAS GIVEN IN THAT THE DRIVER WOULD SMELL SOMETHING BURNINGOR DETECT SMOKE.PROPOSED ACTION:CLOSE THIS PE.THE AVAILABLE MATERIAL INDICATES THAT THEENGINE FIRES CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO A VARIETY OF POSSIBLE CAUSES.THERE ISNO APPARENT COMMON PATTERN OF DEFECT AT THIS TIME.CONTINUE TO MONITOR THESCHOOL BUS INDUSTRY FOR FUTURE INCIDENTS.===

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Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

No owner complaints recorded for this model year

Either none have been filed with NHTSA, or this vehicle is too new for reports to have accumulated.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

GMC School Bus Series by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
1995100—
1994100—
1990001—
1989001—
1988001—
1987002—
1986002—
1985001—
1984001—
1983001—
1982Viewing001—
1981001—

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.