As school transportation departments gear up for the new school year, those with Lion Electric buses have additional challenges: How to address warranties, maintenance and repair concerns in the wake of the company’s financial struggles and recent acquisition by Canadian real estate developer Groupe MACH.

Customers’ worst fears were realized Friday, when Deloitte Restructuring released a letter detailing that all previous warranties for all purchases made outside of Quebec are null and void.

The writing has been on the wall since at least May, said Valerie Tremblay, Green Communities Canada sustainable mobility lead and co-coordinator for the Canadian Electric School Bus Alliance. She noted a press release that stated Lion Electric, now branded as Lion, is focusing exclusively on electric school buses, fully assembled locally and intended for the Quebec market.

“This means the company will no longer manufacture other electric vehicles and will limit electric school bus (ESB) sales to Quebec,” she added.

The impact is immense. Lion Electric has more than 2,200 electric commercial vehicles on the roads across North America, logging more than 62,000 miles a week with more than 32 million driven miles transporting 130,000 children, then company spokesman Patrick Gervais said earlier this year.

Herscher CUSD No. 2 district in Herscher, Illinois, already implemented Plan B ahead of Friday’s confirmation letter about voided warranties, said Superintendent Dr. Richard Decman.

“We are working with alternate vendors at the expense of the school district to help keep our electric buses functional and on the road,” Decman noted. “Currently, six of our 25 (Lion) electric buses need some type of repair.”

Lion ESBs represent half of Herscher’s overall fleet of 50 buses. The district had been given $9.875 million for the purchase of 25 electric buses and the related charging stations.

Herscher CUSD is one of many dealing with similar challenges. What started as an effort to replace old diesel school buses with clean and quieter ESBs has turned into a major challenge, both in dealing with Lion Electric as well as with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus program.

Funded by the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the program was designed to provide $5 billion from fiscal years 2022 to 2026 to replace existing school buses with zero-emission and clean school buses.

To date, 1,039 awards have been issued to 1,344 school districts and nearly $2.785 billion of the total $5 billion has been awarded, replacing 8,936 buses.

Meanwhile, the EPA stopped accepting applications for the 2024 rebate program on Jan. 14. Originally, awards were to be announced by last month. No additional information has been given about their status.

In a response to School Transportation News Friday, EPA said it, “is not able to offer legal advice to school districts regarding their warranty contracts with Lion Electric” and referred the question to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Public Affairs, which also said it could not respond to the matter.

Lion also has not responded to STN requests for input.

Meanwhile, Yarmouth School Department in Maine bought two Lion Electric buses in 2023 with a state of Maine grant reimbursing the purchase 100 percent, said Superintendent Andrew Dolloff. The town’s Climate Action Committee prioritized awareness and action pertaining to climate change and use of renewable energy, he noted, adding a quality ESB program aligns with the town’s goal of being carbon neutral in the coming decade.

But the Lion ESBs often display messages indicating heating, electrical or battery problems, necessitating they be pulled out of service. Dolloff said Lion has not responded to the department’s inquiries regarding repairs.

“We’ve had some sporadic service over the past two years, but as soon as the tech leaves, the buses produce error codes again, and then the technician quits or is released, and we wait a few months for the next response,” said Dolloff, adding the buses did not operate during the 2024-2025 school year.

Dolloff previously told STN, “We have asked for the buses to be replaced, not likely, or for compensation to be made so we can purchase others, also not likely, and have communicated with Maine’s Department of Education and the Governor’s Office, who have reached out to the EPA to see if there might be some relief provided through their grant programs.”

Dr. Andrew Brooks, superintendent of schools for the Wethersfield District #230 in Kewanee, Illinois, told STN earlier this year the purchase last fall of three Lion Electric buses was funded by the EPA. Upon finding out Lion was in financial trouble, he reached out to his service contact, who relayed that he had been laid off.

Brooks said the district would seek another supplier, such as Blue Bird, IC Bus or Thomas Built Buses.

Of Los Angeles Unified School District’s 250 electric buses, 28 — about 11 percent of the district’s electric fleet or 2 percent of its total fleet — are Lion Electric ESBs. A spokesperson said Los Angeles Unified is proactively working with vendor partners that have retained qualified technicians and engineering staff with Lion-specific experience to ensure continuity of maintenance and support of the Lion buses.

Looking ahead, the district is working to include long-term maintenance and support requirements for future electric school buses contracts, helping ensure operational stability and vehicle performance across its fleet.

---

Related: Update: Quebec Government Passes on Saving Lion Electric, Company’s End Imminent
Related: Positive Reinforcement Takes the Wheel: Netradyne Customers Awarded Over 100 Million DriverStars
Related: State Budget Calls for Real-world Range Testing for Electric School Bus Sales

---

As for Group MACH’s decision to only sell ESBs in Quebec, Tremblay noted the shift appears to be driven by two factors. The first is market concentration. Quebec is home to more than 1,000 Lion buses, making it the largest single jurisdiction for ESBs in North America. She said focusing operations locally allows Lion to maintain service and support for this fleet.

The province also offers targeted incentives, up to $240,000 per ESB assembled in Canada. Lion is one of only two companies eligible for this funding, the other being Type A school bus manufacturer Micro Bird. Until recently, Quebec also mandated that all new school bus purchases be electric. Most U.S. states and other Canadian provinces don’t offer the same level of consistent, per-bus subsidies. Without these incentives, Tremblay said Lion lacks confidence in sustained demand outside Quebec.

She also noted Lion’s press release states that maintenance services in Quebec will resume shortly and warranties for Quebec-based vehicles will be honored. But, she added, not honoring warranties outside Quebec and non-existent or minimal maintenance support “has contributed to the company’s assets being undervalued in its recent acquisition.”

For Lion bus owners outside of Quebec, Tremblay advised school bus operators to review purchase agreements to understand Lion’s contractual obligations regarding warranties and service.

They should contact third-party service providers to explore options for ongoing maintenance and repairs and reach out to dealers or manufacturers to confirm whether they offer service support for Lion ESBs in their region, she added.

While school bus contractor First Student can take on Lion warranty work for a fee, a spokesperson said the company will only offer any EV maintenance work on a case-by-case evaluation basis with school districts.

CALSTART is leading an effort to support school districts affected by the ongoing Lion Electric bankruptcy and subsequent ownership changes, noted Stephanie Ly. senior manager of eMobility strategy and manufacturing engagement for the World Resource Institute’s Electric School Bus Initiative.

“They are supported by our Electric School Bus Initiative and the Alliance for Electric School Buses,” she added. “CALSTART held a national forum focused on the Lion Electric issue and has an online form for school districts to fill out if they want to receive any potential future guidance or resources.

Ly advised existing Lion electric bus owners to try to ensure they have as many resources as possible to continue operating and maintaining their buses, including keeping documentation such as training materials, owners’ manuals and similar information.

The post New Owner Voids U.S. Warranties of Lion Electric School Buses appeared first on School Transportation News.