page_title: Blue Bird All American
section_title: Second generation (1957-1989)
hierarchical_section_title: Blue Bird All American / Second generation (1957-1989)
caption_attribution_description: some more photos from my 2001 vacation in Florida
context_page_description: The Blue Bird All American is a series of buses produced by American bus manufacturer Blue Bird Corporation. Originally developed as a Type-D school bus, since its 1948 introduction, Blue Bird has produced versions of the All American for a variety of applications, ranging from the Blue Bird Wanderlodge luxury motorhome to buses for law enforcement use.
  While the All American is not the first transit-style school bus, it is the longest-produced model line that is currently in production; six generations have been produced since 1948. Since 1952, Blue Bird has used a proprietary chassis for the All American; the company would later use this practice for the TC/2000 and Vision buses. The model line is produced in both front-engine and rear-engine configurations.
  The current version of the All American was introduced in 2012 for 2014 production; other major updates were introduced in 1952, 1957, 1989, 1999, and 2008. Over its 71 years of production, nearly all examples of the All American have been assembled in Fort Valley, Georgia. From the 1960s to the 1980s, the model line was produced in South America, using locally sourced chassis.
context_section_description: For 1957, along with the Blue Bird Conventional, the body of the All American was given a ground-up redesign.  To better accommodate older students and adult passengers walking inside the bus standing up, the roof was raised upward several inches, matched with flatter sides.  The drivers' compartment was completely redesigned; to reduce blind spots, the entry door glass was enlarged and the windshield was made panoramic, nearly wrapping from the entry door to the driver window.
  In 1958, after federal legislation permitted their use on road vehicles, quad headlights were added to the All American; in various forms, the All American would use quad headlights through 2013.
  In 1961, Blue Bird expanded the All American product line by introducing a rear-engine "pusher" configuration.  Developed largely to secure bids in areas where rear-engined buses were favored, Blue Bird initially outsourced the chassis for the All American Rear Engine to GMC.  For 1962, to further improve forward visibility, the windshield was enlarged further, with two versions offered: a 4-pane flat glass version (standard) or a 2-pane curved glass (optional).  For 1967, the roofline of the All American underwent a slight revision.  To better accommodate the 8-lamp warning systems coming into use, the curved roof cap used since the 1930s was replaced by a flat, vertically-oriented design.  For 1968, the bodywork below the windshield was revised, including a new (larger) grille, vertically-stacked headlamps, and a reduction of the amount of chrome trim.
  During the 1970s, the All American underwent several changes; centered around compliance with the introduction of safety regulations, few changes were externally visible.  To comply with regulations introduced for 1977 production, the body panels and internal structure were strengthened; as a passive restraint system, high-back padded passenger seats were added.  To match the front roof cap, Blue Bird changed the rear roof cap to a vertical design (borrowing bodywork from the Wanderlodge).
  In contrast to the first All Americans, which offered a maximum of 60-passenger seating, by the end of the 1970s, an All American could be equipped to seat 90 passengers.  Alongside its rear-engine counterpart, the front-engine All American was sold with both gasoline and diesel engines.  As an effect of the 1970s fuel crises, fuel economy concerns led to widespread adoption of diesel engines in high-capacity school buses.
  The All American evolutionary changes during the 1980s, centered around updates to powertrain supplier.  In 1981, Ford discontinued its Super Duty V8; the Chevrolet 427 cubic-inch V8 became the sole gasoline-powered engine offering.  Alongside the rear-engine version, the front-engine All American was produced with diesel engines supplied by Caterpillar, Cummins, and Detroit Diesel.  As a design change, in 1982, a drop-sash window was added to the rearmost row of seats, replacing a fixed pane of glass (available as an option for several years).
  After using second-party chassis from multiple manufacturers since 1961, Blue Bird commenced production of a proprietary chassis for the rear-engine All American for 1988.
caption: 1980s All American Forward Engine in use as a police bus
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