Blue Bird

Body numbers

All Blue Bird buses as far back as the 1960s bear an alphanumeric body number on a data plate mounted to the bulkhead above the windshield. The number consists of 5 or 6 digits preceded by an alpha prefix correlated to the manufacturing plant:

Each plant had its own numeric sequence that progressed in parallel until MY2009, when body numbers shifted to a new series starting at 400000 with numbers from different assembly plants interspersed. As of MY2024, these numbers are in the 530000 series. Body numbers are not correlated to the VIN except on Type D buses built prior to 1989.

1980-early 1989

Few older Type D buses survive, and little detailed information survives about them. Nevertheless, it is known that Blue Bird adopted the uniform 17-digit VIN format for its Type D products early on, even before the start of the 1981 model year:

1BABZCMA1AF048005

Positions 1-3 and 11: Manufacturer and assembly plant

Blue Bird's Canadian plant in Brantford also built the All American (aka All Canadian) in this timeframe, but I have yet to confirm the VIN format of a Canadian-built bus.

Positions 4 and 6: Model

Position 5: Series (Body length)

This seemingly-inscrutable code was linked to the four-digit "body series number," which was simply the length of the body in feet and inches. This correlated with capacity, as well as wheelbase and window count.

The above system was used until partway through the 1987 model year. At that point the code was replaced by a modified system, as described in the 1989-present section below.

Position 7: Engine

Not an exhaustive list:

Position 8: Brake system

Position 9: Checksum

0-9 or X, calculated from the other digits.

Position 10: Model year

Blue Bird in the 1980s scheduled its model year transitions fairly late, typically between August and November.

Positions 12-17: Production sequence

Through the duration of the 1980s, Blue Bird correlated the last five digits of the VIN to the last five digits of the body number. This continued until MY1989, when Fort Valley body numbers were in the 80000 series.

1989-present

In 1989, Blue Bird changed its VIN format to incorporate the chassis number.

1BAADCSA3KF033102

Positions 1-3 and 11: Manufacturer and assembly plant

Fort Valley-coded VINs appeared on all buses built on Blue Bird chassis, regardless of the plant of body assembly.

Positions 4 and 6: Model

Position 5: Series (Body length)

In mid-1987 the series code was simplified to denote ranges of body lengths, rather than specific lengths. This code continued to correlate with capacity, as well as wheelbase and window count:

Position 7: Engine

Several code letters have been reassigned over the years, as engine options have come and gone:

Position 8: Brake system

Position 9: Checksum

0-9 or X, calculated from the other digits.

Position 10: Model year

Blue Bird continued to maintain fairly late model year cutoffs into the early 1990s...but this changed as time progressed. By MY1997, new model years started to debut in April of the year before. By MY2002 the cutoff had been pushed forward to February, then 2004 model buses defied logic by entering production in October 2002. By MY2019, new model years were starting to appear as early as August two calendar years before...meaning that Blue Bird's "year inflation" is now the worst in the industry.

Positions 12-17: Production sequence

From this point forward, the VIN began to reflect the serial number of the chassis, not the body, bringing Blue Bird into accordance with industry and government conventions. This happened roughly around chassis number 030000.

Blue Bird's chassis numbers are part of a perpetual series that continues from one model year to the next (with a small amount of numeric overlap between years, due to discrepancies between planned and actual production order). Serials racked their way up to 099999 in MY2001, then jumped forward to 200000. Upon reaching 399999 in MY2024, the series then jumped all the way to 800000 to avoid conflicting with blocs reserved for body numbers.

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©2021-23 Andrew Turnbull.