Frenchy, “ we put new tires and brakes on your bus” . I was very happy! The idea of climbing those hills and curves this winter in the near bald state mine were in had me really worried.
My daily pre-trip has inspection was a actually fun for a change instead of a write up threatening accidents and trouble etc.
The new pads seemed really noisy but hey, if you have to stop a 30,000 pound bus filled with kids maybe you’d take a little noise getting seated too. But it didn’t settle down.
Then some Yahoo Cowboy driving a Semi with an over width load dove in front of my bus obviously had missed his exit, just as I had floored it getting onto the freeway.
On the bridge over another freeway I had to dive bomb the brakes and steer violently to the right, heading right off the middle span. Luckily I missed him by a cat whisker.
Now though the right front brake sounded like it was grinding rocks so I babied it into the school lot and dumped my students off. I pulled out of line and crawled underneath
Yep! The mechanic put the brake pad in backwards. Metal on rotor!!
They made the guilty mechanic bring me a fresh bus and he had to drive it back to the barn.
Do you have an evidence of long term studies that show brake pads put in properly aren't dangerous?
Did he bring you a change of shorts?
Appleseed said:
Did he bring you a change of shorts?
No but he should have brought me something for my ears. High school kids get on the bus and 12 nano seconds are asleep. Slamming on the brakes and sudden swerving tends to wake them up or send them tumbling into the aisle. Girls scream, guys bellow and demand Answers, they then shout at each other trying to figure out what so rudely woke them up.
Luckily for me the few non sleepers explained ( repeatedly ) to enough people that they were pretty calm by the time I dropped them off.
If that had resulted in an actual crash, that mechanic very likely would have been in deep doodoo with the State Patrol bus inspectors. Good thing you were the one at the wheel for the save.
If that resulted in a crash that injured or killed people the mechanic would likely need to find a new job, the school district would get sued and the tax payers of the district would have to pay out big money because... you know... that makes sense...
Somewhere, some genius bureaucrat is writing a mandate to stencil the words "This side towards rotor" on every brake pad made from this day forward.
The guilty mechanic should be flogged.
In reply to 1988RedT2 :
Mistakes happen. Our mechanics spend most of their time driving routes. We ( and every school bus company ) are desperately short of drivers so they start at 6:00am and may not be finished until 6:30 some nights with very little ( if any) time to work on the buses.
Not only mechanics but office staff and even the owners wife drive buses.
Perhaps some of the drivers should help out in the shop....
