Daimler Trucks North America announced that it is recalling 39 Thomas Saf-T-Liner C2 school buses because of a potential problem with putting the vehicles into "park."

Mike Henry, transportation manager for the Royal Valley School District, has a challenge: Keep 17 International IC, 72-passenger school buses running efficiently in a rural area that consists of 70 percent limestone gravel roads. And cover the 160-mile radius — which means some kids have to travel an hour each way to school — with no downtime.

Some model year 2008 through 2010 multifunctional school activity buses fail to comply with FMVSS 222 because the seat barriers were constructed with the wrong material, reports manufacturer Startrans.

Navistar notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last week that it is recalling 154 IC school buses to fix a high-pressure power steering fluid leak in the engine compartment.

With real-world testing underway, all three major school bus manufacturers have announced initial figures on EPA-compliant 2010 engine orders.