Business Combination Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

– ACQUISITION ACTIVITIES

January 1, 2017,

we completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets and certain liabilities of

Smeal pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement dated

December 12, 2016.

This acquisition brings significant scale to our Emergency Response Vehicles segment, expands the geographic reach of our dealer network and adds complementary products to our existing emergency response product portfolio.

Sales and operating income included in our results since the

January 1, 2017

acquisition are as follows:

	Year Ended December 31, 2017
Net sales	$	124,669
Operating income		2,070

The above operating income amounts include a

one

-time charge to cost of products sold of

$189

for the

year ended

December 31, 2017

related to the fair value step-up of inventories acquired from Smeal and sold during the period.

Pro forma Results of Operation (Unaudited)

The following table provides unaudited pro forma net sales and results of operations for the years ended

December 31, 2017

and

2016,

as if Smeal had been acquired on

January

2016.

The unaudited pro forma results reflect certain adjustments related to the acquisition, such as changes in the depreciation and amortization expense on the Smeal assets acquired resulting from the fair valuation of assets acquired, expenses incurred to complete the acquisition and the impact of acquisition financing. The pro forma results do

not

include any anticipated cost synergies or other effects of the integration of Smeal. Accordingly, such pro forma amounts are

not

necessarily indicative of the results that actually would have occurred had the acquisition been completed on the date indicated, nor are they indicative of the future operating results of the combined company.

	Year s Ended
	Dec ember 31, 2017		Dec ember 31, 2016
Net sales	$	707,098	$	656,292

Net earnings attributable to Spartan Motors, Inc.	$	18,792	$	4,964

Diluted net earnings per share	$	0.54	$	0.14

Purchase Price

Allocation

The total purchase price paid for our acquisition of Smeal was

1,513,

subject to a net working capital adjustment and the tax gross-up payment described below. The consideration paid consisted of

$28,903

in cash, net of cash acquired of

$3,825,

and the forgiveness of certain liabilities owed by the former owners of Smeal to the Company in the amount of

$7,391.

Pursuant to the purchase agreement, the sellers

may

receive additional consideration in the form of a tax gross-up payment, which is payable

later than

April 1, 2018,

and is

not

expected to exceed

$1,394.

The consideration paid is subject to certain post-closing adjustments, including a net working capital adjustment that we expect to finalize in the

first

quarter of

2018.

Smeal has been a significant chassis customer of Spartan USA. The price paid pursuant to the purchase agreement was the subject of arm's length negotiation between Smeal and us.

This acquisition was accounted for using the purchase method of accounting with the purchase price allocated to the assets purchased

and liabilities assumed based upon their estimated fair values at the date of acquisition. Identifiable intangible assets include trade-names and certain non-patented technology. The excess of the purchase price over the estimated fair values of the net tangible and intangible assets acquired of

$11,456

was recorded as goodwill. During

2017,

we made certain adjustments to our purchase price allocation to adjust inventory, other current assets, accrued warranty and other liabilities, which resulted in a

$1,787

increase in goodwill. We recorded an estimate for contingent consideration related to the tax gross-up payment, valued in accordance with accounting guidance for business combinations and fair value measurements at

$1,394.

The allocation of purchase p

rice to assets acquired and liabilities assumed is as follows:

Cash	$	3,825
Accounts receivable		6,523
Inventory		61,716
Other current assets		662
Property, plant and equipment		5,773
Intangible assets		3,900
Goodwill		11,456
Total assets acquired		93,855

Accounts payable		3,941
Customer prepayments		42,929
Accrued warranty		3,689
Other liabilities		1,783
Total liabilities assumed		52,342

Total purchase price	$	41,513

Contingent Consideration

Pursuant to the purchase agreement, the former owners of Smeal

may

receive additional consideration in the form of a tax gross-up payment. The purchase agreement specifies that Spartan will make a payment to the former owners of Smeal to cover certain state and federal tax liabilities for the tax year ending

December 31, 2017

that result from the transaction. The payment is expected to be $

1,394.

Goodwill Assigned

The acquisition resulted in the recognition of

1,456

of goodwill, which is expected to be deductible for tax purposes.

Goodwill consists of expected synergies resulting from the acquisition and the estimated value of the workforce employed.

Key areas of expected cost savings include an expanded dealer network; complementary product portfolios; manufacturing and supply chain work process improvements; and the elimination of redundant corporate overhead.

Financing for the Acquisition

Our acquisition of Smeal was financed using

$32,800

borrowed from our existing

$100,000

line of credit, as set forth in the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, dated as of

October 31, 2016,

as amended by a First Amendment on

December 1, 2017,

and among us and our affiliates, as borrowers; certain lenders; Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as Administrative Agent; and Wells Fargo Securities, LLC, as Sole Lead Arranger and Sole Bookrunner.

Acquisition Related Expenses

During

2017

and

2016,

we recorded pretax charges totaling

$868

and

$882

for legal expenses and other transaction costs related to the acquisition. These charges, which were expensed in accordance with the accounting guidance for business combinations, were recorded in “Selling, general and administrative” and reflected within the “Other” column in the business segment tables in Note

16,

Business Segments

Note 3 - Inventories

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Inventory Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

– INVENTORIES

Inventories are summarized as follows:	December 31,
	201 7			201 6

Finished goods	$	15,539		$	12,743
Work in process		15,980			14,063
Raw materials and purchased components		48,092			35,458
Reserve for slow-moving inventory		(1,919	)		(3,368	)

Total Inventory	$	77,692		$	58,896

We also have a number of demonstration units as part of our sales and training program. These demonstration units are included in the “

Finished goods” line item above, and amounted to

$7,435

and

$3,558

December

31,

2017

and

2016.

When the demonstration units are sold, the cost related to the demonstration unit is included in Cost of products sold on our Consolidated Statements of Operations. The decrease in the reserve during

2017

is the result of disposals of obsolete inventory and reduction of the reserve associated with this inventory.

Note 4 - Restructuring Charges

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Restructuring and Related Activities Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

– RESTRUCTURING CHARGES

During the

year ended

December 31, 2017,

we incurred restructuring charges related to a company-wide initiative to streamline operations and integrate our Smeal acquisition. During

2016

and

2015,

we incurred restructuring charges related to the relocation of our Ocala, Florida manufacturing operations to our Charlotte, Michigan and Brandon, South Dakota facilities, along with efforts undertaken to upgrade production processes at our Brandon, South Dakota and Ephrata, Pennsylvania locations.

Restructuring charges included in our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the

year ended

December 31, 2017,

broken down by segment, are as follows:

	December 31, 2017
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles		Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other		Total
Cost of products sold
Accrual for severance	$	97	$	43	$	30	$	-	$	170
Production relocation		-		38		-		-		38

General and Administrative
Accrual for severance		547		367		79		51		1,044
Total restructuring	$	644	$	448	$	109	$	51	$	1,252

During the

years ended

December 31, 2016

and

2015,

we incurred restructuring charges related to efforts undertaken to upgrade production processes at our Brandon, South Dakota and Ephrata, Pennsylvania locations.

Restructuring charges included in our Consolidated Statements of Operations for the year

s ended

December 31, 2016

and

2015,

which were all related to our Emergency Response Vehicles segment, are as follows:

	December 31, 2016		December 31, 2015
Cost of products sold
Inventory impairment	$	-	$	345
Production relocation /equipment impairment		136		174
Accrual for severance		-		-
Total cost of products sold		136		519

General and Administrative
Manufacturing process reengineering		959		2,336
Accrual for severance		-		-
Total general and administrative		959		2,336
Total restructuring	$	1,095	$	2,855

The following table provides a summary of the compensation related charges incurred during the

year ended

December 31, 2017

as part of our restructuring initiatives, along with the related outstanding balances to be paid in relation to those expenses, which is reflected within Accrued compensation and related taxes on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

	Severance
Balance January 1, 2017	$	-
Accrual for severance		643
Payments and adjustments made in period		(201	)
Balance March 31, 2017		442
Accrual for severance		325
Payments and adjustments made in period		(540	)
Balance June 30, 2017		227
Accrual for severance		232
Payments and adjustments made in period		(366	)
Balance September 30, 2017		93
Accrual for severance		14
Payments and adjustments made in period		(95	)
Balance December 31, 2017	$	12

There were

compensation related charges incurred during the

years ended

December 31, 2016

2015.

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

– GOODWILL AND INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Goodwill

We test goodwill for impairment at the reporting unit level on an annual basis as of

October 1,

or whenever an event or change in circumstances occurs that would more likely than

not

reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying amount.

See “Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets” within Note

General and Summary of Accounting Policies

for a description of our accounting policies regarding goodwill and other intangible assets.

As described in Note

Acquisition Activities,

we acquired substantially all of the assets and related liabilities of Smeal on

January 1, 2017.

The difference between the consideration paid and the acquisition-date fair value of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed was recognized as goodwill, as disclosed in the table below.

The goodwill at Smeal was evaluated as part of the annual assessment which occurred as of

October 1, 2017,

since there was

triggering event necessitating an earlier evaluation.

During the

second

quarter of

2017,

operations related to the manufacturing of our Reach delivery vehicle were reassigned to our Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment from our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment to reflect the information and reports that our chief operating decision makers use to allocate resources to and assess the performance of our operating segments. As a result, a portion of the goodwill assigned to our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment was reassigned to our Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment using a relative fair value approach.

December 31, 2017,

we had recorded goodwill at our Fleet Vehicles and Services, Emergency Response Vehicles and Specialty Chassis and Vehicles reportable segments. The Fleet Vehicles and Services and Emergency Response Vehicles reportable segments were

determined to be reporting units for goodwill impairment testing, while the reporting unit for the goodwill recorded in the Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment was determined to be limited to the Reach Manufacturing component of that reportable segment. The goodwill recorded in these reporting units was evaluated for impairment as of

October

2017

using a discounted cash flow valuation.

December 31, 2016,

we had recorded goodwill at our Fleet Vehicles and Services reportable segment, which was al

so determined to be a reporting unit for goodwill impairment testing. The goodwill recorded in the Fleet Vehicles and Services reporting unit was evaluated for impairment as of

October

2016

using a discounted cash flow valuation.

The estimated fair va

lues of our Fleet Vehicles and Services, Emergency Response Vehicles and Reach reporting units exceeded their carrying value by approximately

232%,

91%

and

62%,

respectively at

October 1, 2017,

indicating that the goodwill was

not

impaired. Based on the discounted cash flow valuations at

October 1, 2017,

an increase in the weighted average cost of capital (“WACC”) used for these reporting units of

500

basis points would

not

result in impairment. As discussed in Note

General and Summary of Accounting Policies

, there are significant judgments inherent in our impairment assessments and discounted cash flow analyses. These discounted cash flow analyses are most sensitive to the WACC assumption.

Our

goodwill by reportable segment is as follows:

	Fleet Vehicles and Services					Emergency Response Vehicles				Specialty Vehicles and Chassis				Total
	December 31,					December 31,				December 31,				December 31,
	2017			2016		2017		2016		2017		2016		2017		2016
Goodwill, beginning of year	$	15,961		$	15,961	$	-	$	-	$	-	$	-	$	15,961	$	15,961
Acquisition of Smeal		-			-		11,456		-		-		-		11,456		-
Reassignment of goodwill		(638	)		-		-		-		638		-		-		-
Goodwill, end of year	$	15,323		$	15,961	$	11,456	$	-	$	638	$	-	$	27,417	$	15,961

Other Intangible Assets

Fleet Vehicles and Services segment intangible assets

December 31, 2017,

we had other intangible assets associated with our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment, including customer and dealer relationships, non-compete agreements, an acquired product development project and a trade name. The non-compete ag

reement, acquired product development project and certain other intangible assets are being amortized over their expected remaining useful lives based on the pattern of estimated after-tax operating income generated, or on a straight-line basis. Our Utilimaster trade name has an indefinite life, and is

not

amortized. We test our trade name for impairment at least annually, and test other intangible assets for impairment if impairment indicators are present.

We tested our Utilimaster trade name for imp

airment, as of

October 1, 2017

and

2016,

by estimating the fair value of the trade name based on estimates of future royalty payments that are avoided through our ownership of the trade name, discounted to their present value. The estimated fair value of our Utilimaster trade name at

October 1, 2017

exceeded its carrying cost by

545%.

Accordingly, there was

impairment recorded on this trade name. Based on the discounted cash flow valuation at

October 1, 2017,

an increase in the WACC used for this impairment analysis of

500

basis points would

not

result in impairment of the trade name.

Emergency Response Vehicles segment intangible assets

With the acquisition of Smeal, we acquired other intangible assets besides goodwill. We recorded

$3,900

in intangible assets from the acquisition. The intangible assets consist of unpatented technology and various trade names. The unpatented technology will be amortized using the straight-line method over its estimated remaining useful life of

years, consistent with the pattern of economic benefits estimated to be received. The trade names are considered to have indefinite lives, and as such will

not

be amortized but will be tested for impairment annually or if events or changes in circumstances indicate that it is more likely than

not

that the trade names are impaired.

tested our Smeal trade name for impairment, as of

October 1, 2017,

October 1, 2017

exceeded its carrying cost by

136%.

Accordingly, there was

impairment recorded on this trade name. Based on the discounted cash flow valuation at

October 1, 2017,

an increase in the WACC used for this impairment analysis of

500

basis points would

not

result in impairment of the trade name.

The following table provides information regarding

our other intangible assets:

	As of December 31, 2017						As of December 31, 2016
	Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization		Net		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization		Net
Customer and dealer relationships	$	6,170	$	3,709	$	2,461	$	6,170	$	3,348	$	2,822
Acquired product development project		1,860		1,514		346		1,860		1,167		693
Unpatented technology		1,500		150		1,350		-		-		-
Non-compete agreements		400		400		-		400		400		-
Backlog		320		320		-		320		320		-
Trade Names		5,270		-		5,270		2,870		-		2,870
	$	15,520	$	6,093	$	9,427	$	11,620	$	5,235	$	6,385

recorded

$858,

$708

and

$872

of intangible asset amortization expense during

2017,

2016

and

2015.

The estimated remaining amortization associated with finite-lived intangible assets is expected to be expensed as follows:

	Amount

2018	$	816
2019		449
2020		423
2021		399
2022		375
Thereafter		1,695
Total	$	4,157

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

+ References + Details

Note 6 - Property, Plant and Equipment

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Property, Plant and Equipment Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- PROPERTY, PLANT AND EQUIPMENT

Property, plant and equipment are summarized by major classifications as follows:

	December 31,
	201 7			201 6

Land and improvements	$	7,754		$	8,049
Buildings and improvements		66,227			63,418
Plant machinery and equipment		39,800			34,879
Furniture and fixtures		22,285			12,954
Vehicles		3,063			2,912
Construction in process		1,770			7,876
Subtotal		140,899			130,088
Less accumulated depreciation		(85,722	)		(76,972	)
Total property, plant and equipment, net	$	55,177		$	53,116

We recorded depreciation expense of $

9,055,

$7,195

and

$6,565

during

2017,

2016

and

2015.

There were

capitalized interest costs in

2017

2016.

Construction in progress includes

$790

and

$6,624

December 31, 2017

and

2016

for the implementation of our ERP system. The decrease construction in progress in

2017

was the result of our

first

phase of implementation that was completed during the year.

Additional phases of implementation are expected to go live in

2018

through

2020.

We review our long-lived assets that have finite lives for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts

may

not

be recoverable.

When reviewing long-lived assets for impairment, we group our long-lived assets with other assets and liabilities at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities. During the

three

months ended

September 30, 2016,

we determined that an asset group related to certain locations of our Emergency Response Vehicles segment

may

be impaired due to operating losses recorded in recent years, along with uncertainty regarding future financial performance at these locations. Accordingly, we conducted an impairment test on this asset group as of

September 30, 2016

by comparing the non-discounted cash flows expected to result from the use and eventual disposition of the asset group with its carrying value, resulting in a determination that the asset group was impaired.

We estimated the fair value of our tangible long-lived assets of this asset group based on assessments or recent sale prices of similar assets. Impairment charges recorded within Cost of goods sold in the Consolidated Statement of Operations to adjust the

carrying cost of these long-lived tangible assets to their estimated fair value at

September 30, 2016

were

$406

for machinery and equipment.

additional charges were recorded in

2016

or for the year ended

December 31, 2017.

Note 7 - Leases

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Leases of Lessee Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- LEASES

We lease certain office equipment, computer hardware, manufacturing equipment and manufacturing and warehouse space under operating lease agreements.

Building leases generally provide that we pay the cost of utilities, insurance, taxes and maintenance. Rent expense for the years ended

December

31,

2017,

2016

and

2015

was

$2,989,

$3,086

and

$2,876.

Future minimum operating lease commitments under non-cancelable leases are as follows:

Year	Future Minimum Operating Lease Payments
201 8	$	2,494
201 9		1,915
20 20		1,674
202 1		1,483
202 2		149
Thereafter		-

Total	$	7,715

We lease

certain office equipment, computer hardware and material handling equipment under capital lease agreements. Cost and accumulated depreciation of capitalized leased assets included in machinery and equipment are

$728

and

$548,

respectively, at

December

31,

2017.

Future minimum capital lease commitments under non-cancelable leases are as follows:

Year	Future Minimum Capital Lease Payments
201 8	$	70
201 9		59
20 20		26
202 1		26
202 2		21
Thereafter		-

Total lease obligations, including imputed interest		202

Less imputed interest charges		(13	)

Total outstanding capital lease obligations	$	189

Note 8 - Taxes on Income

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Income Tax Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- TAXES ON INCOME

Income taxes consist of the following:

	Year Ended December 31,
	2017			2016			2015
Current (credit):
Federal	$	3,809		$	2,203		$	(520	)
State		255			563			253
Total current		4,064			2,766			(267	)
Deferred (credit):
Federal		(1,743	)		(2,666	)		3,994
State		(2,231	)		-			1,153
Total deferred		(3,974	)		(2,666	)		5,147
Total taxes on income	$	90		$	100		$	4,880

The current tax expense amounts

2016

and

2015

differ from the actual amounts payable to the taxing authorities due to the tax impact associated with stock incentive plan transactions under the plans described in Note

13,

Stock Based Compensation

. These adjustments were an addition of

$123

and

$44

2016

and

2015.

These adjustments to current taxes on income were recognized as adjustments of additional paid-in capital. Commencing

January 1, 2017,

all such adjustments are recognized as current taxes on income.

December 22, 2017,

the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “

Tax Act”) was enacted. The Tax Act makes broad and complex changes to the U.S. tax code that impact the Company, most notably a reduction of the U.S. corporate income tax rate from

percent to

percent for tax years beginning after

December 31, 2017.

Other changes provided by the

2017

Tax Act include, but are

not

limited to the acceleration of depreciation for certain assets placed into service after

September 27, 2017.

Prospective changes beginning in

2018

from the Tax Act include: additional limitations on executive compensation, the repeal of the domestic manufacturing deduction and capitalization of research and development expenditures.

The SEC staff issued Staff Accounting Bulletin

No.

118

(“

SAB

118”

), which provides guidance on accounting for the tax effects of the Tax Act. We recognized the income tax effects of the Tax Act in our

2017

financial statements in accordance with SAB

118,

in the reporting period in which the Tax Act was signed into law. We did

not

identify items for which the income tax effects of the Tax Act have

not

been completed and a reasonable estimate could

not

be determined as of

December 31, 2017.

In accordance with SAB

118,

we have recorded a provisional amount of

$2,

963

of the deferred tax expense in connection with the re-measurement of certain deferred tax assets and liabilities and we will continue to refine the measurement of the net deferred tax balance during the preparation of the

2017

tax return as additional guidance and information become available.

Differences between the expected income tax expense derived from applying the federal statutory income tax rate to earnings from continuing operations before taxes on income and the actual tax expense are as follows:

	Year Ended December 31,
	2017						2016						2015
	Amount			Percentage			Amount			Percentage			Amount			Percentage

Federal income taxes at the statutory rate	$	5,609			35.00	%	$	2,959			34.00	%	$	(4,284	)		34.00	%
Increase (decrease) in income taxes resulting from:
Deferred income tax re-measurement due to Tax Act		2,963			18.49			-			-			-			-
Other deferred income tax adjustment		(241	)		(1.50	)		(51	)		(0.59	)		(156	)		1.24
Non-deductible compensation		-			-			459			5.27			-			-
Non-deductible NHTSA penalty		-			-			-			-			340			(2.70	)
Other nondeductible expenses		156			0.97			226			2.60			176			(1.39	)
Domestic manufacturing deduction		(504	)		(3.15	)		-			-			-			-
Stock based compensation		(394	)		(2.46	)		-			-			-			-
Worthless stock deduction of dissolved subsidiary		(966	)		(6.03	)
State tax expense, net of federal income tax benefit		547			3.41			68			0.78			(79	)		0.63
Forfeiture of state net operating loss and credit carry-forwards from dissolution of subsidiary		3,039			18.97			-			-			-			-
Valuation allowance adjustment		(9,544	)		(59.56	)		(2,932	)		(33.69	)		9,472			(75.17	)
Unrecognized tax benefit adjustment		314			1.96			129			1.48			(162	)		1.29
Federal research and development tax credit		(753	)		(4.70	)		(801	)		(9.20	)		(364	)		2.89
Other		(136	)		(0.84	)		43			0.50			(63	)		0.48
Total	$	90			0.56	%	$	100			1.15	%	$	4,880			(38.73	)%

Temporary differences which give rise to deferred income tax assets (liabilities)

are as follows:

	December 31,
	2017			2016
Deferred income tax assets:
Warranty reserve	$	3,595		$	7,246
Credit carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit		317			3,199
Inventory costs and reserves		1,792			2,194
Compensation related accruals		663			1,512
Net operating loss carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit		954			1,029
Stock based compensation		1,061			615
Vendor compensation		507			-
Other		409			773
Total deferred income tax assets	$	9,298		$	16,568


Deferred income tax liabilities:
Depreciation	$	(1,230	)	$	(2,294	)
Intangible assets		(574	)		(840	)
Prepaid insurance		(152	)		(522	)
Total deferred income tax liabilities	$	(1,956	)	$	(3,656	)

Net deferred income tax assets	$	7,342		$	12,912
Valuation allowance		(58	)		(9,602	)
Net deferred tax asset	$	7,284		$	3,310

Based upon an assessment of the available positive and negative evidence at

December 31, 2016,

we determined whether sufficient future taxable income would be generated to realize the benefit of the deferred tax assets as of

December 31, 2016

and recorded

a valuation allowance of

$9,602

against a portion of the deferred tax assets. A significant portion of negative evidence considered was the cumulative loss incurred over the

three

-year period ending

December 31, 2016.

During

2017,

the Company determined that based on recent operating results, as well as an assessment of expected future operating results, the realization of its remaining deferred tax assets is more likely than

not.

As a result, the Company reversed substantially the entire valuation allowance during

2017.

The release of the valuation allowance was determined in accordance with the provisions of ASC

740,

“Income Taxes,” which requires an assessment of both positive and negative evidence when determining whether it is more likely than

not

that deferred tax assets are realizable.

December

31,

2017

and

2016,

we had state deferred income tax assets related to state tax net operating loss carry-forwards, of

$1,207

and

$1,560,

which begin expiring in

2019.

Also, as of

December

31,

2017

and

2016,

we had deferred income tax assets related to state tax credit carry-forwards of

$402

and

$4,846,

which begin expiring in

2026.

Due to accumulated losses in several state jurisdictions, we had recorded valuation allowances against certain deferred income tax assets aggregating

$58

and

$4,228

December 31, 2017

and

2016.

During

2017

certain state NOL and credit carry-forwards were forfeited due to the dissolution of a dormant, wholly-owned subsidiary. As of

December 31, 2016,

we had recorded a

100%

valuation allowance against these carry-forwards. Therefore, the resultant adjustment to deferred tax assets of

$3,039

was fully offset by a reduction in the valuation allowance.

A reconciliation of the change in the unrecognized tax benefits (“UTB”) for the

three

years ended

December 31,

201

2016

and

2015

is as follows:

	201 7			201 6			201 5
Balance at January 1,	$	345		$	349		$	481
Increase (decrease) related to prior year tax positions		168			(24	)		(73	)
Increase related to current year tax positions		118			20			91
Settlement		-			-			(110	)
Expiration of statute		(66	)		-			(40	)
Balance at December 31,	$	565		$	345		$	349

As of

December

31,

2017,

we had an ending UTB balance of

$565

along with

$279

of interest and penalties, for a total liability of

$847,

with

$117

recorded as a current liability and

$730

recorded as a non-current liability based on the applicable statutes of limitations. The change in interest and penalties amounted to an increase of

$94

2017,

an increase of

$133

2016,

and a decrease of

$30

2015,

which were reflected in Income tax expense within our Consolidated Statements of Operations.

As of

December 31, 2017,

we are

longer subject to examination by federal taxing authorities for

2013

and earlier years.

We also file tax returns in a number of states and those jurisdictions remain subject to audit in accordance with relevant state statutes. These audits can involve complex issues that

may

require an extended period of time to resolve and

may

cover multiple years. To the extent we prevail in matters for which reserves have been established, or are required to pay amounts in excess of our reserves, our effective income tax rate in a given fiscal period could be impacted. However, we do

not

expect such impacts to be material to our financial statements. An unfavorable tax settlement would require use of our cash and could result in an increase in our effective income tax rate in the period of resolution. A favorable tax settlement could result in a reduction in our effective income tax rate in the period of resolution. We do

not

expect the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits to significantly increase or decrease over the next

twelve

months.

Note 10 - Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENT LIABILITIES

Under the terms of

our credit agreement with our banks, we have the ability to issue letters of credit totaling

$20,000.

December

31,

2017

and

2016,

we had outstanding letters of credit totaling

$754

and

$1,599

related to certain emergency response vehicle contracts and our workers compensation insurance.

December

31,

2017,

we and our subsidiaries were parties, both as plaintiff and defendant, to a number of lawsuits and claims arising out of the normal course of our business. In the opinion of management, our financial position, future operating results or cash flows will

not

be materially affected by the final outcome of these legal proceedings.

Spartan-Gimaex joint venture

February

2015,

Spartan USA and Gimaex Holding, Inc. mutually agreed to begin discussions regarding the dissolution of the Spartan-Gimaex joint venture. In

June 2015,

Spartan USA and Gimaex Holding, Inc. entered into court proceedings to determine the terms of the dissolution. In

February 2017,

by agreement of the parties, the court proceeding was dismissed with prejudice and the judge entered an order to this effect as the parties agreed to seek a dissolution plan on their own.

dissolution terms have been determined as of the date of this Form

-Q. Costs associated with the wind-down will be impacted by the final dissolution agreement. In accordance with accounting guidance, the costs we have accrued so far represent the low end of the range of the estimated total charges that we believe we

may

incur related to the wind-down. While we are unable to determine the final cost of the wind-down with certainty at this time, we

may

incur additional charges, depending on the final terms of the dissolution, and such charges could be material to our future operating results.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) penalty

July 2015,

we entered into a settlement agreement with the NHTSA pertaining to our early warning and defect reporting. Under the terms of the agreement we will pay a fine of

$1,000

in equal installments over

three

years, and will complete performance obligations including compliance and regulatory practice improvements, industry outreach, and recalls to remedy safety defects in certain of our chassis. The following table presents the charges recorded in the Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations during the

year ended

December 31, 2015

as a result of this agreement:

Cost of products sold	$	1,269
Selling, general and administrative		1,000
	$	2,269

Chassis Agreements

Our

Fleet Vehicles and Services segment assembles van and truck bodies onto original equipment manufacturer (“OEM”) chassis. The majority of such OEM chassis are purchased directly by our customers from the OEM and drop-shipped to our facilities. We are a bailee of most other chassis under converter pool agreements with the OEMs, as described below. Chassis possessed under converter pool agreements are invoiced to the customer by the OEM or its affiliated financial institution based upon the terms of the converter pool agreements. On an annual basis, we purchase and take title to an immaterial number of chassis that ultimately are recorded as sales and cost of sales.

Converter pool chassis obtained from the OEMs are based upon estimated future requirements and, to a lesser extent, confirmed orders from customers. Although each manufacturer’s agreement has different terms and conditions, the agreements generally provide that the manufacturer will provide a supply of chassis to be maintained at our production facility under the conditions that we will store such chassis, will

not

make any additions or modifications to such chassis and will

not

move, sell or otherwise dispose of such chassis, except under the terms of the agreement. The manufacturer does

not

transfer the certificate of origin to us and, accordingly, we account for the chassis in our possession as bailed inventory belonging to the manufacturer.

We are

party to chassis bailment inventory agreements with General Motors Company (“GM”) and Chrysler Group, LLC (“Chrysler”) which allow GM and Chrysler to draw up to

$10,000

against our revolving credit line for chassis placed at our facilities. As a result of these agreements, there was

$57

and

$784

outstanding on our revolving credit line at

December 31, 2017

and

2016.

Under the terms of the bailment inventory agreements, these chassis never become our property, and the amount drawn against the credit line will be repaid by a GM or Chrysler dealer at the time an order is placed for

one

of our bodies, utilizing a GM or Chrysler chassis. As such, the chassis, and the related draw on the line of credit, are

not

reflected in the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets. See Note

Debt

, for further information on our revolving line of credit.

Warranty Related

We provide limited warranties against assembly/construction defects

for periods generally ranging from

two

years to the life of the product. These warranties generally provide for the replacement or repair of defective parts or workmanship for a specified period following the date of sale. The end users also

may

receive limited warranties from suppliers of components that are incorporated into our chassis and vehicles.

Our policy is to record a provision for the estimated cost of warranty-related claims at the time of the sale and periodically adjust the provision and liability to reflect actual experience. The amount of warranty liability accrued reflects

our best estimate of the expected future cost of honoring our obligations under the warranty agreements. Historically, the cost of fulfilling our warranty obligations has principally involved replacement parts and labor for field retrofit campaigns. Our estimates are based on historical experience, the number of units involved and the extent of features and components included in product models.

Certain warranty and other related claims involve matters of dispute that ultimately are resolved by negotiation, arbitration or litigation.

Material warranty issues can arise which are beyond the scope of our historical experience. We provide for any such warranty issues as they become known and are estimable. It is reasonably possible that additional warranty and other related claims could arise from disputes or other matters beyond the scope of our historical experience.

Changes in

our warranty liability during the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016

were as follows:

	201 7			201 6
Balance of accrued warranty at January 1	$	19,334		$	16,610
Warranties issued during the period		7,539			5,705
Cash settlements made during the period		(13,854	)		(10,265	)
Changes in liability for pre-existing warranties during the period, including expirations		1,560			7,284
Assumed warranties outstanding at Smeal on January 1, 2017		3,689			-
Balance of accrued warranty at December 31	$	18,268		$	19,334

Note 11 - Compensation Incentive Plans	12 Months Ended
Note 11 - Compensation Incentive Plans	Dec. 31, 2017
Notes to Financial Statements
Compensation and Employee Benefit Plans [Text Block]	NOTE 1 1 - COMPENSATION INCENTIVE PLANS We sponsor defined contribution retirement plans which cover all associates who meet length of service and minimum age requirements. Our matching contributions vest over 5 years and were $ 1,055, $796 and $707 in 2017, 2016 and 2015. These amounts are expensed as incurred. The Spartan Motors, Inc. Incentive Compensation Plan encompasses a quarterly and an annual bonus program. The quarterly program covers certain of our full-time employees. The cash bonuses paid under the quarterly program are equal for all participants. Amounts expensed for the quarterly bonus were $2,193, $3,298 and $1,898 for 2017, 2016 and 2015. The annual bonus provides that executive officers and certain designated managers may earn cash bonuses based on our achievement of pre-defined financial and operational objectives. Amounts expensed for the annual bonus were $4,890, $6,470 and $1,789 for 2017, 2016 and 2015.

Note 12 - Debt

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Debt Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- DEBT

Long-term debt consists of the following:

	December 31, 201 7			December 31, 201 6
Line of credit revolver ( 1):	$	17,800		$	--
Capital lease obligations (See Note 7 – Leases )		189			139
Total debt		17,989			139
Less current portion of long-term debt		(64	)		(65	)
Total long-term debt	$	17,925		$	74

(

)

December 1, 2017,

we entered into a First Amendment to the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement") by and among us, certain of our subsidiaries, Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as administrative agent ("Wells Fargo"), and the lenders party thereto consisting of Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and PNC Bank (the "Lenders"). Under the Credit Agreement, we

may

borrow up to

$100,000

from the Lenders under a

three

-year unsecured revolving credit facility. The credit facility matures

October 31, 2019,

following which we have the option to renew the credit facility, subject to lender approval, for

two

successive

one

-year periods with an ultimate maturity date of

October 31, 2021.

may

also request an increase in the facility of up to

$35,000

in the aggregate, subject to customary conditions. This line carries an interest rate of the higher of either (i) the highest of prime rate, the federal funds effective rate plus

0.5%,

or the

one

month adjusted LIBOR plus

1.00%;

or (ii) adjusted LIBOR plus margin based upon our ratio of debt to earnings from time to time. In

January 2017,

we borrowed

$32,800

from our credit line to fund our acquisition of Smeal. At

December 31, 2017

we had outstanding borrowings of

$17,800

against our credit line. We had

drawings against this credit line as of

December 31, 2016.

During the year ended

December 31, 2017,

and in future years, our revolving credit facility was utilized, and will continue to be utilized, to finance commercial chassis received under chassis bailment inventory agreements with GM and Chrysler. This funding is reflected as a reduction of the revolving credit facility available to us equal to the amount drawn by GM and Chrysler. See Note

10,

Commitments and Contingent Liabilities

for further details about these chassis bailment inventory agreements. The applicable borrowing rate including margin was

3.0%

(or

one

-month LIBOR plus

1.5%

) at

December

31,

2017.

Under the terms of the primary line of credit agreement, as amended, we are required to maintain certain financial ratios and other financial conditions, which limited our available borrowings under our line of credit to a total of approximately

$66,400

$73,600

December 31, 2017

and

2016.

The agreement also prohibits us from incurring additional indebtedness; limits certain acquisitions, investments, advances or loans; limits our ability to pay dividends in certain circumstances; and restricts substantial asset sales. At

December

31,

2017

and

2016,

we were in compliance with all covenants in our credit agreement.

Note 13 - Stock Based Compensation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Text Block]

NOTE

- STOCK BASED COMPENSATION

We have stock incentive plans covering certain employees and non-employee directors. Shares reserved for stock awards under these plans total

2,856,250.

Total shares remaining available for stock incentive grants under these plans totaled

2,057,290

Dec

ember

31,

2017.

We are currently authorized to grant new stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, stock appreciation rights and common stock under our Stock Incentive Plan of

2016.

Stock Options and Stock Appreciation Rights.

Granted options and Stock Appreciation Rights (SARs) are generally exercisable for a period of

years from the grant date. The exercise price for all options and the base price for all SARs granted have been equal to the market price at the date of grant. Dividends are

not

paid on unexercised options or SARs. SARs have historically been settled with shares of common stock upon exercise.

We receive a tax deduction for certain stock option exercises during the period the options are exercised, generally for the excess of the fair value of the stock on

the date of exercise over the exercise price of the options. As required, we report any excess tax benefits in our Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows as operating cash flows. Excess tax benefits derive from the difference between the tax deduction and the fair market value of the option as determined by the Black-Scholes valuation model.

options were granted in

201

2016

2015,

and there was

related compensation expense nor income tax benefit recognized in the corresponding income statements. We have had

outstanding options since

December 31, 2015.

The total intrinsic value of options exercised during years ended

December

31,

2017,

2016

and

2015,

were

$0,

and

$0.

SARs activity for the year ended

December

31,

2017

is as follows:

	Total Number of SARs (000)			Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Total Intrinsic Value		Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term (Years)
SARs outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2016		93		$	3.20
Granted and vested		-			-
Exercised		(61	)		3.20
Cancelled		(32	)		3.20
SARs outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2017		-		$	-	$	-		-

SARs were granted in

201

2016

2015,

and there was

related compensation expense nor income tax benefit recognized in the corresponding income statements. The total intrinsic value of SARs exercised during the years ended

December

31,

2017,

2016

and

2015

was

$305,

$14

and

$0.

Restricted Stock Awards.

We issue restricted stock, at

cash cost, to our directors, officers and key employees. Shares awarded entitle the shareholder to all rights of common stock ownership except that the shares are subject to the risk of forfeiture and

may

not

be sold, transferred, pledged, exchanged or otherwise disposed of during the vesting period, which is generally

three

five

years. The unearned stock-based compensation related to restricted stock awards, using the market price on the date of grant, is being amortized to compensation expense over the applicable vesting periods. Cash dividends are paid on unvested restricted stock grants and all such dividends vest immediately.

We receive an excess tax benefit or liability during the period the restricted shares vest. The excess tax benefit (liability)

is determined by the excess (shortfall) of the market price of the stock on date of vesting over (under) the grant date market price used to amortize the awards to compensation expense. As required, any excess tax benefits or liabilities are reported in the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows as operating cash flows.

Restricted stock activity for the year ended

December

31,

2017,

is as follows:

	Total Number of Non - vested Shares (000)			Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Weighted Average Remaining Vesting Life (Years)
Non -vested shares outstanding at December 31, 2016		666		$	4.25
Granted		822			7.65
Vested		(299	)		4.53
Forfeited		(61	)		6.60
Non -vested shares outstanding at December 31, 2017		1,128			6.53		0.89

The weighted-average grant date fair value of non

-vested shares granted was

$7.65,

$4.01

and

$4.86

for the years ended

December

31,

2017,

2016

and

2015.

During

201

2016

and

2015,

we recorded compensation expense, net of cancellations, of

$3,536,

$1,536

and

$1,198,

related to restricted stock awards and direct stock grants. The total income tax benefit recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations related to restricted stock awards was

$1,238,

$538

and

$419

for

2017,

2016

and

2015.

For the years ended

December 31, 2017,

2016

and

2015,

restricted shares vested with a fair market value of

$1,356,

$1,248

and

$1,528.

When the fair value of restricted shares is lower on the date of vesting than that previously expensed for book purposes, an excess tax liability is booked. As of

December

31,

2017,

we had unearned stock-based compensation of

$4,399

associated with these restricted stock grants, which will be recognized over a weighted average of

0.89

years.

Employee Stock Purchase Plan

We instituted an employee stock purchase plan (“ESPP”) beginning on

October 1, 2011

whereby essentially all employees who meet certain service requirements can purchase our common stock on quarterly offering dates at

95%

of the fair market value of the shares on the purchase date. A maximum of

750,000

shares are authorized for purchase until the ESPP termination date of

February 24, 2021,

or earlier termination of the ESPP. During the years ended

December 31, 2017

and

2016,

we received proceeds of

$98

and

$86

for the purchase of

9,000

and

13,000

shares under the ESPP.

Note 14 - Shareholders Equity

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Stockholders' Equity Note Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

– SHAREHOLDERS EQUITY

October 2011,

our Board of Directors authorized the repurchase of up to

million shares of the Company’s common stock. In

April 2016,

our Board of Directors authorized the repurchase of up to

million additional shares of our common stock, and terminated the

October 2011

authorization effective

June 30, 2016.

The following table represents our purchases of our common stock during the years ended

December 31, 2017

and

2016

under these share repurchase programs.

Share purchase programs				201 7				201 6
Authorized amount (shares ) (000)	Date approved by board	Program termination date		Shares purchased (000)		Purchase value		Shares purchased (000)		Purchase value		Remaining shares allowable to be purchased
1,000	October, 2011		June 30, 2016		-	$	-		422	$	2,000		-
1,000	April, 2016		N/A		-	$	-		-	$	-		1,000

Note 16 - Business Segments

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Segment Reporting Disclosure [Text Block]

NOTE

- BUSINESS SEGMENTS

We identify our reportable segments based on our management structure and the financial data utilized by our chief operating decision makers to assess segment performance and allocate resources among our operating units.

We have

three

reportable segments: Fleet Vehicles and Services, Emergency Response Vehicles, and Specialty Chassis and Vehicles.

As a result of a realignment of our operating segments completed during the

second

quarter of

2017,

certain fleet vehicles are now manufactured by our Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment and sold via intercompany transactions to our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment, which then sells the vehicles to the final customer. Segment results from prior periods are shown reflecting the estimated impact of this realignment as if it had been in place for those periods.

Another realignment of our operating segments was completed during the

second

quarter of

2016,

whereby aftermarket parts and accessories related to emergency response vehicles, which were formerly reported under the Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment, are now included in the Emergency Response Vehicles segment. Segment results from

2015

are shown reflecting the change. Appropriate expense amounts are allocated to the

three

reportable segments and are included in their reported operating income or loss.

Beginning in

2017,

we evaluate the performance of our reportable segments based on Adjusted EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA is defined as earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, as adjusted by other adjustments made in order to present com

parable results from period to period. These adjustments include restructuring charges and items related to our acquisition of Smeal, such as expenses incurred to complete the acquisition, the impact of fair value adjustments to inventory acquired from Smeal, and the impact on the timing of the recognition of gross profit for our chassis that are utilized by our recently acquired Smeal operations. We exclude these items from earnings when presenting our Adjusted EBITDA measure because we believe they will be incurred infrequently and/or are otherwise

not

indicative of a segment's regular, ongoing operating performance. For those reasons, Adjusted EBITDA is also used as a performance metric for our executive compensation program, as discussed in our proxy statement for our

2017

annual meeting of shareholders, which proxy statement was filed with the SEC on

April 13, 2017.

Our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment consists of our operations at our Bristol, Indiana location, and beginning in

2018

certain operatio

ns at our Ephrata, Pennsylvania location, along with our operations at our up-fit centers in Kansas City, Missouri and Saltillo, Mexico and focuses on designing and manufacturing walk-in vans for the parcel delivery, mobile retail, and trades and construction industries, and the production of commercial truck bodies, and distributes related aftermarket parts and accessories.

Our

Emergency Response Vehicles segment consists of the emergency response chassis operations at our Charlotte, Michigan location and our operations at our Brandon, South Dakota; Snyder and Neligh, Nebraska; Delavan, Wisconsin; and Ephrata, Pennsylvania locations, along with our Spartan-Gimaex joint venture. This segment engineers and manufactures emergency response chassis and apparatus and distributes related aftermarket parts and accessories.

Our

Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment consists of our Charlotte, Michigan operations that engineer and manufacture motor home chassis, defense vehicles and other specialty chassis and distribute related aftermarket parts and assemblies.

The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described, or referred to, in Note

General and Summary of Accounting Policies

. Assets and related depreciation expense in the column labeled “Eliminations and Other” pertain to capital assets maintained at the corporate level. Eliminations for inter-segment sales are shown in the column labeled “Eliminations and other”. Segment loss from operations in the “Eliminations and other” column contains corporate related expenses

not

allocable to the operating segments. Interest expense and Taxes on income are

not

included in the information utilized by the chief operating decision makers to assess segment performance and allocate resources, and accordingly, are excluded from the segment results presented below.

Sales to customers outside the United States were

$81,157,

$31,716

and

$40,058

for the years ended

December

31,

2017,

2016

and

2015,

11.5%,

5.4%

and

7.3%,

respectively, of sales for those years. All of our long-lived assets are located in the United States.

Sales and other financial information by business segment are as follows:

Year Ended

December

31,

201

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles		Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	207,666	$	-	$	5,657	$	(5,657	)	$	207,666
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		293,559		-		-			293,559
Motor home chassis sales		-		-		124,584		-			124,584
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-		18,416		-			18,416
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		43,429		9,291		10,153		-			62,873
Total sales	$	251,095	$	302,850	$	158,810	$	(5,657	)	$	707,098
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,361	$	2,342	$	1,314	$	2,920		$	9,937
Adjusted EBITDA		26,958		3,192		14,058		(12,881	)		31,327
Segment assets		60,550		133,546		33,700		73,368			301,164
Capital expenditures		562		1,364		386		3,028			5,340

Year Ended

December

31,

201

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles			Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	206,248	$	-		$	5,347	$	(5,347	)	$	206,248
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		175,730			-		-			175,730
Motor home chassis sales		-		-			97,999		-			97,999
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-			21,074		-			21,074
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		72,141		7,251			10,334		-			89,726
Total sales	$	278,389	$	182,981		$	134,754	$	(5,347	)	$	590,777
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,185	$	1,143		$	789	$	2,786		$	7,903
Adjusted EBITDA		31,237		(7,542	)		8,334		(9,159	)		22,870
Segment assets		65,277		77,887			28,825		71,305			243,294
Capital expenditures		2,011		1,558			6,842		2,999			13,410

Year Ended

December

31,

201

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles			Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	193,772	$	-		$	2,996	$	(2,996	)	$	193,772
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		187,127			-		-			187,127
Motor home chassis sales		-		-			103,264		-			103,264
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-			13,849		-			13,849
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		33,911		6,093			12,398		-			52,402
Total sales	$	227,683	$	193,220		$	132,507	$	(2,996	)	$	550,414
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,308	$	914		$	730	$	2,485		$	7,437
Adjusted EBITDA		17,569		(8,689	)		8,833		(5,538	)		12,175
Segment assets		70,491		76,030			24,032		60,118			230,671
Capital expenditures		1,323		1,010			859		1,703			4,895

The table below presents the reconciliation of our consolidated income before taxes to total segment Adjusted EBITDA.

Adjusted EBITDA is

not

a measurement of our financial performance under GAAP and should

not

be considered as an alternative to net income. Adjusted EBITDA

may

have limitations as an analytical tool and should

not

be considered in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under GAAP. In addition, although we have excluded certain charges in calculating Adjusted EBITDA, we

may

in the future incur expenses similar to these adjustments, despite our assessment that such expenses are infrequent and/or

not

indicative of our regular, ongoing operating performance. Our presentation of Adjusted EBITDA should

not

be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or infrequent items.

	Year Ended December 31, 2017			Year Ended December 31, 2016			Year Ended December 31, 2015
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	$	44,208		$	32,029		$	17,713
Add (subtract):
Interest expense		(864	)		(410	)		(365	)
Depreciation and amortization expense		(9,937	)		(7,903	)		(7,437	)
Restructuring expense		(1,252	)		(1,095	)		(2,855	)
Acquisition expense		(1,354	)		(882	)		-
Impact of intercompany chassis shipments to Smeal		(2,073	)		-			-
Recall expense		368			(3,457	)		(8,600	)
Impact of inventory fair value step-up		(189	)		-			-
Joint venture expenses		(2	)		(14	)		(1,015	)
Asset impairment		-			(406	)		(2,234	)
NHTSA settlement		-			-			(2,269	)
Unallocated corporate expenses		(12,881	)		(9,159	)		(5,538	)
Consolidated income (loss) before taxes	$	16,024		$	8,703		$	(12,600	)

Note 17 - Related Party Transactions	12 Months Ended
Note 17 - Related Party Transactions	Dec. 31, 2017
Notes to Financial Statements
Related Party Transactions Disclosure [Text Block]	NOTE 17 – RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS On January 1, 2017, we completed the acquisition of substantially all of the assets and certain liabilities of Smeal Fire Apparatus Co., Smeal Properties, Inc., Ladder Tower Co., and U.S. Tanker Co. pursuant to an Asset Purchase Agreement dated December 1 2, 2016 (see Note 2, Acquisition Activities for further information). As of December 31, 2016, the total amount of receivables due from the former owners of Smeal was $7,391 . This balance was forgiven as part of the acquisition on January 1, 2017. Sales to the former owners of Smeal were $30,748 and $32,600 in 2016 and 2015. John Forbes , who retired from Spartan Motors on June 30, 2017, served as the President of our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment as well as on the Board of Directors of Patrick Industries, Inc. During the year ended December 31, 2016, we made purchases of $4,009 from subsidiaries of Patrick Industries, Inc. for parts used in the manufacture of our products. These purchases were made through a competitive bid process at arms-length. Purchases made from Patrick Industries, Inc. during John Forbes employment at Spartan Motors during 2017 were immaterial. Richard Dauch, who serves on the Spartan Motors Board of Directors, is the Chief Executive Officer of Accuride, Inc. During the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, we made purchases of $698 and $836 from Accuride Distributing, a subsidiary of Accuride, Inc., for parts used in the manufacture of our products. These purchases were made through a competitive bid process at arms-length.

Note 18 - Quarterly Financial Data (Unaudited)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Quarterly Financial Information [Text Block]

NOTE

- QUARTERLY FINANCIAL DATA (UNAUDITED)

Summarized quarterly financial data for the years ended

December

31,

2017

and

2016

is as follows (full year amounts

may

not

sum due to rounding):

	201 7 Quarter Ended									201 6 Quarter Ended
	Mar 31			June 30		Sept 30		Dec 31		Mar 31		June 30		Sept 30		Dec 31
Sales	$	167,075		$	169,739	$	189,215	$	181,068	$	133,726	$	162,537	$	148,664	$	145,850

Gross profit		16,394			19,501		28,651		24,689		15,820		20,807		18,010		17,890

Restructuring charges		642			325		232		52		339		227		304		224

Net earnings (loss) attributable to Spartan Motors, Inc.		(1,098	)		1,124		13,470		2,439		543		4,379		2,745		942

Basic net earnings (loss) per share		(0.03	)		0.03		0.38		0.07		0.02		0.13		0.08		0.03

Diluted net earnings (loss) per share		(0.03	)		0.03		0.38		0.07		0.02		0.13		0.08		0.03

Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	Dec. 31, 2017
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Consolidation, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Principles of Consolidation . The consolidated financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our wholly owned subsidiary, Spartan USA. All intercompany transactions have been eliminated.
Consolidation, Subsidiaries or Other Investments, Consolidated Entities, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Non-Controlling Interest At December 31, 201 7, Spartan USA held a 50% share in Spartan-Gimaex, however, due to the management and operational structure of the joint venture, Spartan USA was considered to have had the ability to control the operations of Spartan-Gimaex. Accordingly, Spartan-Gimaex is reported as a consolidated subsidiary of Spartan Motors, Inc., within the Emergency Response Vehicles segment.
Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Use of Estimates . In the preparation of our financial statements in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), management uses estimates and makes judgments and assumptions that affect asset and liability values and the amounts reported as income and expense during the periods presented. Certain of these estimates, judgments and assumptions, such as the allowance for credit losses, warranty expenses, impairment assessments of tangible and intangible assets, and the provision for income taxes, are particularly sensitive. If actual results are different from estimates used by management, they may have a material impact on the financial statements.
Revenue Recognition, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Revenue Recognition . We recognize revenue in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification Topic (“ASC”) 605. Accordingly, revenue is recognized when title to the product and risk of ownership passes to the buyer. In certain instances, risk of ownership and title passes when the product has been completed in accordance with purchase order specifications and has been tendered for delivery to the customer. On certain customer requested bill and hold transactions, revenue recognition occurs prior to the products being delivered to the buyer. We enter into such transactions when there is a valid business reason and the buyer has committed to the purchase. At the time revenue is recognized, the customer has been notified that the products have been completed according to their specifications, the products have passed all of our quality control inspections and are ready for delivery and the customer has accepted all of the risks of ownership. All sales are shown net of returns, discounts and sales incentive programs, which historically have not been significant. Rebates for certain product sales, which are known and accrued at time of sale, are reflected as a reduction of revenue. Service revenue is immaterial at less than one percent of total sales. The collectability of any related receivable is reasonably assured before revenue is recognized.
Business Combinations Policy [Policy Text Block]	Business Combinations . When acquiring other businesses, we recognize identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their acquisition date fair values, and separately from any goodwill that may be required to be recognized. Goodwill, when recognizable, is measured as the excess amount of any consideration transferred, which is measured at fair value, over the acquisition date fair values of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed. Acquisition gain, when recognizable, is measured as the excess of the acquisition date fair values of the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed over the acquisition date fair value of any consideration transferred. Accounting for such acquisitions requires us to make significant assumptions and estimates and, although we believe any estimates and assumptions we make are reasonable and appropriate at the time they are made, unanticipated events and circumstances may arise that affect their accuracy, which may cause actual results to differ from those estimated by us. When necessary, we will adjust the values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed against the goodwill or acquisition gain, as initially recorded, for a period of up to one year after the acquisition date. Costs incurred to effect an acquisition, such as legal, accounting, valuation or other third -party costs, as well as internal general and administrative costs incurred are charged to expense in the periods incurred.
Shipping and Handling Cost, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Shipping and Handling of Products . Costs incurred related to the shipment and handling of products are classified in cost of products sold. Amounts billed to customers for shipping and handling of products are included in sales.
Cash and Cash Equivalents, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Cash and Cash Equivalents include cash on hand, cash on deposit, treasuries and money market funds. We consider all investments purchased with an original maturity of three months or less to be cash equivalents.
Trade and Other Accounts Receivable, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Accounts Receivable . Our receivables are subject to credit risk, and we do not typically require collateral on our accounts receivable. We perform periodic credit evaluations of our customers’ financial condition and generally require a security interest in the products sold. Receivables generally are due within 30 to 60 days. We maintain an allowance for customer accounts that reduces receivables to amounts that are expected to be collected. In estimating the allowance for doubtful accounts, management makes certain assumptions regarding the risk of uncollectable open receivable accounts. This risk factor is applied to the balance on accounts that are aged over 90 days: generally, this reserve has an estimated range from 10 - 25%. The risk percentage applied to the aged accounts may change based on conditions such as: general economic conditions, industry-specific economic conditions, historical and anticipated customer performance, historical experience with write-offs and the level of past-due amounts from year to year. However, generally our assumptions are consistent year-over-year and there has been little adjustment made to the percentages used. In addition, in the event there are certain known risk factors with an open account, we may increase the allowance to include estimated losses on such “specific” account balances. The “specific” reserves are identified by a periodic review of the aged accounts receivable. If there is an account in question, credit checks are made and there is communication with the customer, along with other means to try to assess if a specific reserve is required. The inclusion of the “specific” reserve has caused the greatest fluctuation in the allowance for doubtful accounts balance historically. Past due accounts are written off when collectability is determined to be no longer assured.
Inventory, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Inventories are stated at the lower of first -in, first -out cost or net realizable value. Estimated inventory allowances for slow-moving inventory are based upon current assessments about future demands, market conditions and related management initiatives. If market conditions are less favorable than those projected by management, additional inventory allowances may be required.
Property, Plant and Equipment, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Property, Plant and Equipment is stated at cost and the related assets are depreciated over their estimated useful lives on a straight-line basis for financial statement purposes and an accelerated method for income tax purposes. Cost includes an amount of interest associated with significant capital projects. Estimated useful lives range from 20 years for buildings and improvements, 3 to 15 years for plant machinery and equipment, 3 to 7 years for furniture and fixtures and 3 to 5 years for vehicles. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of the lease term or the estimated useful life of the asset. Maintenance and repair costs are charged to earnings, while expenditures that increase asset lives are capitalized. We review our property, plant and equipment, along with all other long-lived assets that have finite lives, including finite-lived intangible assets, for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts may not be recoverable. Assets held-for-sale are recorded at the lower of historical depreciated cost or the estimated fair value less costs to sell. See Note 6, Property , Plant and Equipment for further information on our property and equipment.
Related Party Transactions Policy [Policy Text Block]	Related Party Transactions . We purchase certain components used in the manufacture of our products from parties that could be considered related to us because one or more of our executive officers or board members is also an executive officer or board member of the related party. See Note 17, Related Party Transactions , for more information regarding our transactions with related parties.
Goodwill and Intangible Assets, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets . Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of a business combination over the fair value of the net assets acquired. Goodwill and intangible assets deemed to have indefinite lives are not amortized, but are subject to impairment tests on an annual basis, or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. Goodwill is allocated to the reporting unit from which it was created. A reporting unit is an operating segment or sub-segment to which goodwill is assigned when initially recorded. We review indefinite lived intangible assets annually for impairment by comparing the carrying value of those assets to their fair value. Other intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives and are tested for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts may not be recoverable. We perform our annual goodwill and indefinite lived intangible assets impairment test as of October 1 and monitor for interim triggering events on an ongoing basis. For goodwill we first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. Under authoritative guidance, we are not required to calculate the fair value of a reporting unit unless we determine that it is more likely than not that the fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. We have the option to bypass the qualitative assessment and proceed to a quantitative impairment test. I f we elect to bypass the qualitative assessment for a reporting unit, or if after completing the assessment we determine that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, we perform a quantitative impairment test, whereby we compare the fair value of a reporting unit with its carrying amount, including goodwill. The fair value of the reporting unit is determined by estimating the future cash flows of the reporting unit to which the goodwill relates, and then discounting the future cash flows at a market-participant-derived weighted-average cost of capital (“WACC”). In determining the estimated future cash flows, we consider current and projected future levels of income based on our plans for that business; business trends, prospects and market and economic conditions; and market-participant considerations. If the fair value of a reporting unit exceeds its carrying amount, goodwill of the reporting unit is considered to not be impaired. If the carrying amount of the reporting unit exceeds its estimated fair value, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to the excess, up to the carrying value of the goodwill. We evaluate the recoverability of our indefinite lived intangible asset s, which consist of our Utilimaster and Smeal trade names, based on estimates of future royalty payments that are avoided through our ownership of the trade names, discounted to their present value. In determining the estimated fair value of the trade names, we consider current and projected future levels of revenue based on our plans for Utilimaster and Smeal, business trends, prospects and market and economic conditions. Significant judgments inherent in these assessments and analyses include assumptions about macroeconomic and industry conditions, appropriate sales growth rates, WACC and the amount of expected future net cash flows. The judgments and assumptions used in the estimate of fair value are generally consistent with the projections and assumptions that are used in current operating plans. Such assumptions are subject to change because of changing economic and competitive conditions. The determination of fair value is highly sensitive to differences between estimated and actual cash flows and changes in the related discount rate used to evaluate the fair value of the reporting units and trade names. See Note 5, Goodwill and Intangible Assets, for further details on our goodwill and other intangible assets.
Standard Product Warranty, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Warranties . Our policy is to record a provision for the estimated cost of warranty-related claims at the time of the sale, and periodically adjust the warranty liability to reflect actual experience. The amount of warranty liability accrued reflects management’s best estimate of the expected future cost of honoring our obligations under the warranty agreements. Expense related to warranty liabilities accrued for product sales, as well as adjustments to pre-existing warranty liabilities, are reflected within Cost of products sold on our Consolidated Statements of Operations. Our estimates are based on historical experience, the number of units involved and the extent of features and components included in product models. See Note 10, Commitments and Contingent Liabilities , for further information regarding warranties.
Deposits from Customers [Policy Text Block]	Deposits from Customers . We sometimes receive advance payments from customers for product orders and record these amounts as liabilities. We accept such deposits when presented by customers seeking improved pricing in connection with orders that are placed for products to be manufactured and sold at a future date. Revenue associated with these deposits is deferred and recognized upon shipment of the related product to the customer.
Research and Development Expense, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Research and Development . Our research and development costs, which consist of compensation costs, travel and entertainment, administrative expenses and new product development among other items, are expensed as incurred.
Income Tax, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Taxes on Income . We recognize deferred income tax assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates for the effect of temporary differences between the book and tax bases of recorded assets and liabilities. Deferred tax liabilities generally represent tax expense recognized for which payment has been deferred, or expenses which have been deducted in our tax returns but which have not yet been recognized as an expense in our financial statements. We establish valuation allowances for deferred income tax assets in accordance with GAAP, which provides that such valuation allowances shall be established unless realization of the income tax benefits is more likely than not. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which those temporary differences become deductible. At each reporting period, we consider the scheduled reversal of deferred tax liabilities, available taxes in carryback periods, tax planning strategies and projected future taxable income in making this assessment. We recognize the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities. The determination is based on the technical merits of the position and presumes that each uncertain tax position will be examined by the relevant taxing authority that has full knowledge of all relevant information. Although we believe the estimates are reasonable, no assurance can be given that the final outcome of these matters will not be different than what is reflected in the historical income tax provisions and accruals. Interest and penalties attributable to income taxes are recorded as a component of income taxes. See Note 8, Taxes on Income , for further details on our income taxes.
Earnings Per Share, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Earnings (Loss) Per Share . Basic earnings per share is based on the weighted average number of common shares, share equivalents of stock appreciation rights (“SAR”s) and participating securities outstanding during the period. Diluted earnings per share also include the dilutive effect of additional potential common shares issuable from stock options and are determined using the treasury stock method. Basic earnings per share represents net earnings divided by basic weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period, including the average dilutive effect of our SARs outstanding during the period determined using the treasury stock method. Diluted earnings per share represents net earnings divided by diluted weighted average number of common shares outstanding, which includes the average dilutive effect of our stock options outstanding during the period. Our unvested stock awards are included in the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations, unless a net loss is reported, in which situation unvested stock awards are excluded from the number of shares outstanding for both basic and diluted earnings per share calculations. See Note 15, Earnings Per Share, for further details.
Share-based Compensation, Option and Incentive Plans Policy [Policy Text Block]	Stock Incentive Plans . Share based payment compensation costs for equity-based awards is measured on the grant date based on the fair value of the award at that date, and is recognized over the requisite service period, net of estimated forfeitures. Fair value of stock option and stock appreciation rights awards are estimated using a closed option valuation (Black-Scholes) model. Fair value of restricted stock awards is based upon the quoted market price of the common stock on the date of grant. Our incentive stock plans are described in more detail in Note 13, Stock Based Compensation
Fair Value of Financial Instruments, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Fair Value . We are required to disclose the estimated fair value of our financial instruments. The carrying value at December 31, 2017 and 2016 of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate their fair value due to their short-term nature. The carrying value of variable rate debt instruments approximate their fair value based on their relative terms and market rates.
Reclassification, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Reclassifications . Certain immaterial amounts in the prior periods’ financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the current period’s presentation. These reclassifications had no impact on previously reported Net earnings (loss), Total assets, Total shareholders’ equity or cash flows.
Segment Reporting, Policy [Policy Text Block]	Segment Reporting. We identify our reportable segments based on our management structure and the financial data utilized by the chief operating decision makers to assess segment performance and allocate resources among our operating units. We have three reportable segments: Fleet Vehicles and Services, Emergency Response Vehicles and Specialty Chassis and Vehicles. More detailed information about our reportable segments can be found in Note 16, Business Segments
Supplemental Disclosures of Cash Flow Policy [Policy Text Block]	Supplemental Disclosures of Cash Flow Information. Cash paid for interest was $619, $309 and $374 for 2017, 2016 and 2015. Cash paid (received) for income taxes, net of refunds, was $0, $2,232 and $( 18 ) for 2017, 2016 and 2015. Non-cash investing in 2017 included $7,391 forgiveness of accounts receivable in conjunction with our acquisition of Smeal. See Note 2 for further information about this acquisition.
New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]	New Accounting Standard s In February 2017 the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2017 - 05, Other Income-Gains and Losses from the Derecognition of Nonfinancial Assets (Subtopic 610 - 20 ) (“ASU 2017 - 05” ). ASU 2017 - 05 is intended to provide guidance for when gains and losses on nonfinancial assets should be applied to a financial asset by defining the term “nonfinancial asset”. ASU 2017 - 05 will go into effect when the revenue standard issued in ASU 2014 - 09 becomes effective. We believe that the adoption of the provisions of ASU 2017 - 05 will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In January 2017, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2017 - 04, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other (Topic 350 ): Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment (“ASU 2017 - 04” ). ASU 2017 - 04 eliminates the requirement to determine the fair value of individual assets and liabilities of a reporting unit to measure goodwill impairment. Under the amendments in the new ASU, goodwill impairment testing will be performed by comparing the fair value of the reporting unit with its carrying amount and recognizing an impairment charge for the amount by which the carrying amount exceeds the reporting unit’s fair value, up to the carrying amount of the goodwill. The new standard is effective for annual and interim goodwill impairment tests in fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, and should be applied on a prospective basis. Early adoption is permitted for annual or interim goodwill impairment testing performed after January 1, 2017. Our adoption of ASU 2017 - 04 for our goodwill impairment testing performed as of October 1, 2017 did not have an impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In January 2017, the FASB issued A ccounting Standards Update 2017 - 01, Business Combinations (Topic 805 ): Clarifying the Definition of a Business (“ASU 2017 - 01” ), which provides guidance to entities to assist with evaluating when a set of transferred assets and activities (collectively, the "set") is a business and provides a screen to determine when a set is not a business. Under the new guidance, when substantially all of the fair value of gross assets acquired (or disposed of) is concentrated in a single identifiable asset, or group of similar assets, the assets acquired would not represent a business. Also, to be considered a business, an acquisition would have to include an input and a substantive process that together significantly contribute to the ability to produce outputs. The new standard is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2017, and should be applied on a prospective basis to any transactions occurring within the period of adoption. Early adoption is permitted for interim or annual periods in which the financial statements have not been issued. The adoption of the provisions of ASU 2017 - 01 had no impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In August 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2016 - 15, Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230 ) (“ASU 2016 - 15” ). ASU 2016 - 15 is intended to reduce diversity in current practice regarding the manner in which certain cash receipts and cash payments are presented and classified in the cash flow statement. ASU 2016 - 15 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. We early adopted ASU 2016 - 15, effective with the third quarter of 2017, which did not have an impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows through December 31, 2017. In June 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2016 - 13, Financial Instruments – Credit Losses: Measurement of Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (“ASU 2016 - 13” ). ASU 2016 - 13 is intended to introduce a revised approach to the recognition and measurement of credit losses, emphasizing an updated model based on expected losses rather than incurred losses. The provisions of this standard are effective for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019 and early adoption is permitted. We believe that that the adoption of the provisions of ASU 2016 - 13 will not have a material impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In March 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2016 - 09, Compensation – Stock Compensation (“ASU 2016 - 09” ). ASU 2016 - 09 simplifies the accounting for a stock payment’s tax consequences by requiring the recognition of the income tax effects of awards in the income statement when the awards vest or are settled. It also allows a company to elect to account for forfeitures as they occur rather than on an estimated basis and revises the classification of certain tax payments related to stock compensation on the statement of cash flows. ASU 2016 - 09 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2016, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. Our adoption of ASU 2016 - 09 for the year ending December 31, 2017 resulted in a reduction of income tax expense of $394, which under previous accounting guidance would have been recorded to additional paid in capital. In February 2016, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2016 - 02, Leases (“ASU 2016 - 02” ). The new standard establishes a right-of-use (“ROU”) model that requires a lessee to record a ROU asset and a lease liability on the balance sheet for all leases with terms longer than 12 months. Leases will be classified as either finance or operating, with classification affecting the pattern of expense recognition in the income statement. The new standard is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2018, including interim periods within those fiscal years. A modified retrospective transition approach is required for lessees for capital and operating leases existing at, or entered into after, the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented in the financial statements, with certain practical expedients available. We are currently evaluating the impact of our pending adoption of ASU 2016 - 02 on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. Upon adoption, we expect to recognize right of use assets and liabilities on the consolidated statement of financial position for leases currently classified as operating leases. In July 2015, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2015 - 11, Inventory (Topic 330 ) – Simplifying the Measurement of Inventory (“ASU 2015 - 11” ). ASU 2015 - 11 requires entities that measure inventory using the FIFO or average cost methods to measure inventory at the lower of cost or net realizable value to more closely align the measurement of inventory in GAAP with International Financial Reporting Standards. Net realizable value is defined as estimated selling price in the ordinary course of business less reasonably predictable costs of completion and disposal. ASU 2015 - 11 is effective for public business entities for fiscal years, and for interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2016. Our adoption of ASU 2015 - 11 did not have an impact on our consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows. In May 2014, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update 2014 - 09, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606 ) (“ASU 2014 - 09” ). Subsequently the FASB provided additional guidance to clarify certain aspects of the standard in Accounting Standards Updates No. 2016 - 08 , Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606 ), Principal versus Agent Considerations (Reporting Revenue Gross versus Net) ; No. 2016 - 10, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606 ), Identifying Performance Obligations and Licensing ; and No. 2016 - 12, Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606 ), Narrow-Scope Improvements and Practical Expedients . ASU 2014 - 09, as amended is based on the principle that revenue should be recognized to depict the transfer of goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. The new standard also requires additional disclosure about the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from customer contracts, including significant judgments and changes in judgments and assets recognized from costs incurred to obtain or fulfill a contract. ASU 2014 - 09 is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, including interim periods within that reporting period, and may be applied retrospectively to each prior period presented or retrospectively with the cumulative effect recognized as of the date of initial application. We substantially completed our assessment of the impacts of the new revenue standard during the fourth quarter. We have determined that the adoption of ASU 2014 - 09 will result in a change in the timing of revenue recognition for a significant portion of our contracts. For contracts related to substantially all of our Emergency Response Vehicle segment sales, certain of our Fleet Vehicles and Services segment sales, and certain of our Specialty Chassis and Vehicles segment sales (primarily related to our contract manufacturing operations), we will recognize revenue over time (during the production period) rather than at the point in time that the product is delivered to the customer. These contracts meet the criteria for recognizing revenue over time contracts either because 1 ) our performance creates or enhances an asset that the customer controls, or 2 ) our performance does not create an asset with an alternative use (due to significant customization of our products), and, based on our rights under the contract, we have an enforceable right to payment for our performance completed to date during the production period. We expect to utilize the practical expedient to not recognize the effects of financing when we receive customer deposits for contracts that will be fulfilled in less than one year. We expect that the disclosures in the notes to our consolidated financial statements related to revenue recognition will be significantly expanded under the new standard, specifically regarding the quantitative and qualitative information about performance obligations, and changes in contract assets and liabilities. We adopted ASU 2014 - 09 as of January 1, 2018 using the modified retrospective approach. As a result, in the first quarter of 2018 we expect to record a transition adjustment to increase retained earnings by approximately $4,900, reflecting the cumulative impact for the accounting change. This adjustment reflects the acceleration of approximately $38,000 in revenues and $33,100 in cost of products sold. We are unable to precisely quantify the impact to revenue, gross profit or net income for future periods since revenue and gross profit recognized in those periods will depend on the actual production levels in those periods, but we expect the increase in revenue, gross profit and net income from recognizing revenue on these contracts over time in 2018 to be similar to the amounts included in the transition adjustment.

Note 2 - Acquisition Activities (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Business Combination, Pro Forma Information, Financial Information of Acquiree since Acquisition Date, Actual [Table Text Block]

	Year Ended December 31, 2017
Net sales	$	124,669
Operating income		2,070

Schedule of Recognized Identified Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed [Table Text Block]

Cash	$	3,825
Accounts receivable		6,523
Inventory		61,716
Other current assets		662
Property, plant and equipment		5,773
Intangible assets		3,900
Goodwill		11,456
Total assets acquired		93,855

Accounts payable		3,941
Customer prepayments		42,929
Accrued warranty		3,689
Other liabilities		1,783
Total liabilities assumed		52,342

Total purchase price	$	41,513

Smeal Acquisition [Member]

Business Acquisition, Pro Forma Information [Table Text Block]

	Year s Ended
	Dec ember 31, 2017		Dec ember 31, 2016
Net sales	$	707,098	$	656,292

Net earnings attributable to Spartan Motors, Inc.	$	18,792	$	4,964

Diluted net earnings per share	$	0.54	$	0.14

Note 3 - Inventories (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Inventory, Current [Table Text Block]

Inventories are summarized as follows:	December 31,
	201 7			201 6

Finished goods	$	15,539		$	12,743
Work in process		15,980			14,063
Raw materials and purchased components		48,092			35,458
Reserve for slow-moving inventory		(1,919	)		(3,368	)

Total Inventory	$	77,692		$	58,896

Note 4 - Restructuring Charges (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Restructuring Reserve by Type of Cost [Table Text Block]

	December 31, 2017
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles		Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other		Total
Cost of products sold
Accrual for severance	$	97	$	43	$	30	$	-	$	170
Production relocation		-		38		-		-		38

General and Administrative
Accrual for severance		547		367		79		51		1,044
Total restructuring	$	644	$	448	$	109	$	51	$	1,252

	December 31, 2016		December 31, 2015
Cost of products sold
Inventory impairment	$	-	$	345
Production relocation /equipment impairment		136		174
Accrual for severance		-		-
Total cost of products sold		136		519

General and Administrative
Manufacturing process reengineering		959		2,336
Accrual for severance		-		-
Total general and administrative		959		2,336
Total restructuring	$	1,095	$	2,855

Restructuring and Related Costs [Table Text Block]

	Severance
Balance January 1, 2017	$	-
Accrual for severance		643
Payments and adjustments made in period		(201	)
Balance March 31, 2017		442
Accrual for severance		325
Payments and adjustments made in period		(540	)
Balance June 30, 2017		227
Accrual for severance		232
Payments and adjustments made in period		(366	)
Balance September 30, 2017		93
Accrual for severance		14
Payments and adjustments made in period		(95	)
Balance December 31, 2017	$	12

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Goodwill [Table Text Block]

	Fleet Vehicles and Services					Emergency Response Vehicles				Specialty Vehicles and Chassis				Total
	December 31,					December 31,				December 31,				December 31,
	2017			2016		2017		2016		2017		2016		2017		2016
Goodwill, beginning of year	$	15,961		$	15,961	$	-	$	-	$	-	$	-	$	15,961	$	15,961
Acquisition of Smeal		-			-		11,456		-		-		-		11,456		-
Reassignment of goodwill		(638	)		-		-		-		638		-		-		-
Goodwill, end of year	$	15,323		$	15,961	$	11,456	$	-	$	638	$	-	$	27,417	$	15,961

Schedule of Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Table Text Block]

	As of December 31, 2017						As of December 31, 2016
	Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization		Net		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization		Net
Customer and dealer relationships	$	6,170	$	3,709	$	2,461	$	6,170	$	3,348	$	2,822
Acquired product development project		1,860		1,514		346		1,860		1,167		693
Unpatented technology		1,500		150		1,350		-		-		-
Non-compete agreements		400		400		-		400		400		-
Backlog		320		320		-		320		320		-
Trade Names		5,270		-		5,270		2,870		-		2,870
	$	15,520	$	6,093	$	9,427	$	11,620	$	5,235	$	6,385

Schedule of Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Future Amortization Expense [Table Text Block]

	Amount

2018	$	816
2019		449
2020		423
2021		399
2022		375
Thereafter		1,695
Total	$	4,157

Note 7 - Leases (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Future Minimum Rental Payments for Operating Leases [Table Text Block]

Year	Future Minimum Operating Lease Payments
201 8	$	2,494
201 9		1,915
20 20		1,674
202 1		1,483
202 2		149
Thereafter		-

Total	$	7,715

Schedule of Future Minimum Lease Payments for Capital Leases [Table Text Block]

Year	Future Minimum Capital Lease Payments
201 8	$	70
201 9		59
20 20		26
202 1		26
202 2		21
Thereafter		-

Total lease obligations, including imputed interest		202

Less imputed interest charges		(13	)

Total outstanding capital lease obligations	$	189

Note 8 - Taxes on Income (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Components of Income Tax Expense (Benefit) [Table Text Block]

	Year Ended December 31,
	2017			2016			2015
Current (credit):
Federal	$	3,809		$	2,203		$	(520	)
State		255			563			253
Total current		4,064			2,766			(267	)
Deferred (credit):
Federal		(1,743	)		(2,666	)		3,994
State		(2,231	)		-			1,153
Total deferred		(3,974	)		(2,666	)		5,147
Total taxes on income	$	90		$	100		$	4,880

Schedule of Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation [Table Text Block]

	Year Ended December 31,
	2017						2016						2015
	Amount			Percentage			Amount			Percentage			Amount			Percentage

Federal income taxes at the statutory rate	$	5,609			35.00	%	$	2,959			34.00	%	$	(4,284	)		34.00	%
Increase (decrease) in income taxes resulting from:
Deferred income tax re-measurement due to Tax Act		2,963			18.49			-			-			-			-
Other deferred income tax adjustment		(241	)		(1.50	)		(51	)		(0.59	)		(156	)		1.24
Non-deductible compensation		-			-			459			5.27			-			-
Non-deductible NHTSA penalty		-			-			-			-			340			(2.70	)
Other nondeductible expenses		156			0.97			226			2.60			176			(1.39	)
Domestic manufacturing deduction		(504	)		(3.15	)		-			-			-			-
Stock based compensation		(394	)		(2.46	)		-			-			-			-
Worthless stock deduction of dissolved subsidiary		(966	)		(6.03	)
State tax expense, net of federal income tax benefit		547			3.41			68			0.78			(79	)		0.63
Forfeiture of state net operating loss and credit carry-forwards from dissolution of subsidiary		3,039			18.97			-			-			-			-
Valuation allowance adjustment		(9,544	)		(59.56	)		(2,932	)		(33.69	)		9,472			(75.17	)
Unrecognized tax benefit adjustment		314			1.96			129			1.48			(162	)		1.29
Federal research and development tax credit		(753	)		(4.70	)		(801	)		(9.20	)		(364	)		2.89
Other		(136	)		(0.84	)		43			0.50			(63	)		0.48
Total	$	90			0.56	%	$	100			1.15	%	$	4,880			(38.73	)%

Schedule of Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities [Table Text Block]

	December 31,
	2017			2016
Deferred income tax assets:
Warranty reserve	$	3,595		$	7,246
Credit carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit		317			3,199
Inventory costs and reserves		1,792			2,194
Compensation related accruals		663			1,512
Net operating loss carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit		954			1,029
Stock based compensation		1,061			615
Vendor compensation		507			-
Other		409			773
Total deferred income tax assets	$	9,298		$	16,568


Deferred income tax liabilities:
Depreciation	$	(1,230	)	$	(2,294	)
Intangible assets		(574	)		(840	)
Prepaid insurance		(152	)		(522	)
Total deferred income tax liabilities	$	(1,956	)	$	(3,656	)

Net deferred income tax assets	$	7,342		$	12,912
Valuation allowance		(58	)		(9,602	)
Net deferred tax asset	$	7,284		$	3,310

Schedule of Unrecognized Tax Benefits Roll Forward [Table Text Block]

	201 7			201 6			201 5
Balance at January 1,	$	345		$	349		$	481
Increase (decrease) related to prior year tax positions		168			(24	)		(73	)
Increase related to current year tax positions		118			20			91
Settlement		-			-			(110	)
Expiration of statute		(66	)		-			(40	)
Balance at December 31,	$	565		$	345		$	349

Note 9 - Transactions With Major Customers (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedules of Concentration of Risk, by Risk Factor [Table Text Block]

201 6				201 5
Sales		Accounts Receivable (at year end)		Sales		Accounts Receivable (at year end)

$	70,954	$	7,169	$	78,749	$	8,512

Note 10 - Commitments and Contingent Liabilities (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Loss Contingencies by Contingency [Table Text Block]

Cost of products sold	$	1,269
Selling, general and administrative		1,000
	$	2,269

Schedule of Product Warranty Liability [Table Text Block]

	201 7			201 6
Balance of accrued warranty at January 1	$	19,334		$	16,610
Warranties issued during the period		7,539			5,705
Cash settlements made during the period		(13,854	)		(10,265	)
Changes in liability for pre-existing warranties during the period, including expirations		1,560			7,284
Assumed warranties outstanding at Smeal on January 1, 2017		3,689			-
Balance of accrued warranty at December 31	$	18,268		$	19,334

Tabular disclosure of the loss contingencies that were reported in the period or disclosed as of the balance sheet date.

+ References

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+ Details

Note 12 - Debt (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Long-term Debt Instruments [Table Text Block]

	December 31, 201 7			December 31, 201 6
Line of credit revolver ( 1):	$	17,800		$	--
Capital lease obligations (See Note 7 – Leases )		189			139
Total debt		17,989			139
Less current portion of long-term debt		(64	)		(65	)
Total long-term debt	$	17,925		$	74

Tabular disclosure of long-debt instruments or arrangements, including identification, terms, features, collateral requirements and other information necessary to a fair presentation. These are debt arrangements that originally required repayment more than twelve months after issuance or greater than the normal operating cycle of the entity, if longer.

+ References

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef
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-Paragraph 1
-Subparagraph (SX 210.5-02.22)
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+ Details

Note 13 - Stock Based Compensation (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Stock Appreciation Rights Award Activity [Table Text Block]

	Total Number of SARs (000)			Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Total Intrinsic Value		Weighted Average Remaining Contractual Term (Years)
SARs outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2016		93		$	3.20
Granted and vested		-			-
Exercised		(61	)		3.20
Cancelled		(32	)		3.20
SARs outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2017		-		$	-	$	-		-

Schedule of Share-based Compensation, Restricted Stock and Restricted Stock Units Activity [Table Text Block]

	Total Number of Non - vested Shares (000)			Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value		Weighted Average Remaining Vesting Life (Years)
Non -vested shares outstanding at December 31, 2016		666		$	4.25
Granted		822			7.65
Vested		(299	)		4.53
Forfeited		(61	)		6.60
Non -vested shares outstanding at December 31, 2017		1,128			6.53		0.89

Note 16 - Business Segments (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2017

Schedule of Segment Reporting Information, by Segment [Table Text Block]

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles		Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	207,666	$	-	$	5,657	$	(5,657	)	$	207,666
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		293,559		-		-			293,559
Motor home chassis sales		-		-		124,584		-			124,584
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-		18,416		-			18,416
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		43,429		9,291		10,153		-			62,873
Total sales	$	251,095	$	302,850	$	158,810	$	(5,657	)	$	707,098
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,361	$	2,342	$	1,314	$	2,920		$	9,937
Adjusted EBITDA		26,958		3,192		14,058		(12,881	)		31,327
Segment assets		60,550		133,546		33,700		73,368			301,164
Capital expenditures		562		1,364		386		3,028			5,340

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles			Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	206,248	$	-		$	5,347	$	(5,347	)	$	206,248
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		175,730			-		-			175,730
Motor home chassis sales		-		-			97,999		-			97,999
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-			21,074		-			21,074
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		72,141		7,251			10,334		-			89,726
Total sales	$	278,389	$	182,981		$	134,754	$	(5,347	)	$	590,777
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,185	$	1,143		$	789	$	2,786		$	7,903
Adjusted EBITDA		31,237		(7,542	)		8,334		(9,159	)		22,870
Segment assets		65,277		77,887			28,825		71,305			243,294
Capital expenditures		2,011		1,558			6,842		2,999			13,410

	Segment
	Fleet Vehicles and Services		Emergency Response Vehicles			Specialty Chassis and Vehicles		Other			Consolidated
Fleet vehicles sales	$	193,772	$	-		$	2,996	$	(2,996	)	$	193,772
Emergency response vehicles sales		-		187,127			-		-			187,127
Motor home chassis sales		-		-			103,264		-			103,264
Other specialty vehicles sales		-		-			13,849		-			13,849
Aftermarket parts and accessories sales		33,911		6,093			12,398		-			52,402
Total sales	$	227,683	$	193,220		$	132,507	$	(2,996	)	$	550,414
Depreciation and amortization expense	$	3,308	$	914		$	730	$	2,485		$	7,437
Adjusted EBITDA		17,569		(8,689	)		8,833		(5,538	)		12,175
Segment assets		70,491		76,030			24,032		60,118			230,671
Capital expenditures		1,323		1,010			859		1,703			4,895

Schedule of Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization [Table Text Block]

	Year Ended December 31, 2017			Year Ended December 31, 2016			Year Ended December 31, 2015
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	$	44,208		$	32,029		$	17,713
Add (subtract):
Interest expense		(864	)		(410	)		(365	)
Depreciation and amortization expense		(9,937	)		(7,903	)		(7,437	)
Restructuring expense		(1,252	)		(1,095	)		(2,855	)
Acquisition expense		(1,354	)		(882	)		-
Impact of intercompany chassis shipments to Smeal		(2,073	)		-			-
Recall expense		368			(3,457	)		(8,600	)
Impact of inventory fair value step-up		(189	)		-			-
Joint venture expenses		(2	)		(14	)		(1,015	)
Asset impairment		-			(406	)		(2,234	)
NHTSA settlement		-			-			(2,269	)
Unallocated corporate expenses		(12,881	)		(9,159	)		(5,538	)
Consolidated income (loss) before taxes	$	16,024		$	8,703		$	(12,600	)

Note 1 - General and Summary of Accounting Policies (Details Textual) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended									12 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Noncontrolling Interest, Ownership Percentage by Parent		50.00%								50.00%
Number of Reportable Segments										3
Interest Paid										$ 619,000	$ 309,000	$ 374,000
Income Taxes Paid, Net										0	2,232,000	18,000
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)										90,000	100,000	4,880,000
Revenue, Net		$ 181,068,000	$ 189,215,000	$ 169,739,000	$ 167,075,000	$ 145,850,000	$ 148,664,000	$ 162,537,000	$ 133,726,000	707,098,000	590,777,000	550,414,000
Cost of Goods Sold										617,655,000	$ 518,113,000	$ 502,783,000
Accounting Standards Update 2016-09 [Member]
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)										(394,000)
Accounting Standards Update 2014-09 [Member] \| Scenario, Forecast [Member]
Cumulative Effect on Retained Earnings, before Tax	$ 4,900,000
Revenue, Net	38,000,000
Cost of Goods Sold	$ 33,100,000
Smeal Acquisition [Member]
Accounts Receivable, Amount Forgiven										$ 7,391,000
Maximum [Member]
Percentage of Service Revenue										1.00%
Maximum [Member] \| Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										15 years
Maximum [Member] \| Furniture and Fixtures [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										7 years
Maximum [Member] \| Vehicles [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										5 years
Minimum [Member] \| Building and Building Improvements [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										20 years
Minimum [Member] \| Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										3 years
Minimum [Member] \| Furniture and Fixtures [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										3 years
Minimum [Member] \| Vehicles [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life										3 years

Note 2 - Acquisition Activities (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Jan. 01, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Business Combination, Inventory Fair Value Step-up		$ 189
Payments to Acquire Businesses, Net of Cash Acquired		28,903
Goodwill, Acquired During Period		11,456
Proceeds from Lines of Credit				$ 15,244
Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.and PNC Bank [Member] \| Line of Credit [Member]
Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity	$ 100,000
Smeal Acquisition [Member]
Business Combination, Inventory Fair Value Step-up		189
Business Combination, Consideration Transferred	41,513
Payments to Acquire Businesses, Net of Cash Acquired	28,903
Cash Acquired from Acquisition	3,825
Business Combination, Consideration Transferred, Forgiveness of Liabilities	7,391
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration Arrangements, Range of Outcomes, Value, High	1,394
Goodwill, Acquired During Period	11,456	1,787
Business Combination, Contingent Consideration, Liability	1,394
Smeal Acquisition [Member] \| Selling, General and Administrative Expenses [Member]
Business Combination, Separately Recognized Transactions, Additional Disclosures, Acquisition Cost Expensed		$ 868	$ 882
Smeal [Member] \| Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A.and PNC Bank [Member] \| Line of Credit [Member]
Proceeds from Lines of Credit	$ 32,800

Note 2 - Acquisition Activities - Sales and Operating Income (Loss) Included in Results Since Acquisition (Details) - Smeal Acquisition [Member] $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
Net sales	$ 124,669
Operating income	$ 2,070

Note 2 - Acquisition Activities - Smeal Acquisition Pro Forma Information (Details) - Smeal Acquisition [Member] - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Net sales	$ 707,098	$ 656,292
Net earnings attributable to Spartan Motors, Inc.	$ 18,792	$ 4,964
Diluted net earnings per share (in dollars per share)	$ 0.54	$ 0.14

Note 2 - Acquisition Activities - Smeal Purchase Price Allocation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Jan. 01, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Goodwill	$ 27,417		$ 15,961	$ 15,961
Smeal Acquisition [Member]
Cash		$ 3,825
Accounts receivable		6,523
Inventory		61,716
Other current assets		662
Property, plant and equipment		5,773
Intangible assets		3,900
Goodwill		11,456
Total assets acquired		93,855
Accounts payable		3,941
Customer prepayments		42,929
Accrued warranty		3,689
Other liabilities		1,783
Total liabilities assumed		52,342
Total purchase price		$ 41,513

Note 3 - Inventories - Summary of Inventories (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Finished goods	$ 15,539	$ 12,743
Work in process	15,980	14,063
Raw materials and purchased components	48,092	35,458
Reserve for slow-moving inventory	(1,919)	(3,368)
Total Inventory	$ 77,692	$ 58,896

Note 4 - Restructuring Charges (Details Textual) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Restructuring Charges	$ 52,000	$ 232,000	$ 325,000	$ 642,000	$ 224,000	$ 304,000	$ 227,000	$ 339,000	$ 1,044,000	$ 959,000	$ 2,336,000
Employee Severance [Member]
Restructuring Charges									$ 0	$ 0

Note 4 - Restructuring Charges - Restructuring Charges Included in Consolidated Statements of Operations (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									$ 208	$ 136	$ 519
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative	$ 52	$ 232	$ 325	$ 642	$ 224	$ 304	$ 227	$ 339	1,044	959	2,336
Total restructuring									1,252	1,095	2,855
Accrual Of Severance [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									170
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative									1,044
Production Relocation Costs [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									38
Delivery and Service Vehicles [Member]
Cost of products sold
Total restructuring									644
Delivery and Service Vehicles [Member] \| Accrual Of Severance [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									97
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative									547
Delivery and Service Vehicles [Member] \| Production Relocation Costs [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold										136	519
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative										959	2,336
Total restructuring									448	1,095	2,855
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member] \| Accrual Of Severance [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									43
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative									367
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member] \| Inventory Impairment [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold											345
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member] \| Production Relocation Costs [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									38	136	174
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member] \| Manufacturing Process Reengineering [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative										$ 959	$ 2,336
Specialty Chassis and Vehicles [Member]
Cost of products sold
Total restructuring									109
Specialty Chassis and Vehicles [Member] \| Accrual Of Severance [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold									30
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative									79
Specialty Chassis and Vehicles [Member] \| Production Relocation Costs [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold
Other Segments [Member]
Cost of products sold
Total restructuring									51
Other Segments [Member] \| Accrual Of Severance [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, general and admininstrative									51
Other Segments [Member] \| Production Relocation Costs [Member]
Cost of products sold
Restructuring charges, cost of products sold

Note 4 - Restructuring - Summary of Compensation Related Charges (Details) - Employee Severance [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017
Balance	$ 93	$ 227	$ 442
Accrual for severance	14	232	325	643
Payments and adjustments made in period	(95)	(366)	(540)	(201)
Balance	$ 12	$ 93	$ 227	$ 442

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
	Oct. 01, 2017	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015	Jan. 01, 2017
Goodwill, Impairment Loss	$ 0
Increase in WACC Basis Points	5.00%
Amortization of Intangible Assets		$ 858	$ 708	$ 872
Unpatented Technology [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Asset, Useful Life		10 years
Trade Names [Member]
Increase in WACC Basis Points	5.00%
Utilimaster [Member] \| Trade Names [Member]
Reporting Unit, Percentage of Fair Value in Excess of Carrying Amount	545.00%
Impairment of Intangible Assets, Indefinite-lived (Excluding Goodwill)	$ 0
Smeal Acquisition [Member]
Business Combination, Recognized Identifiable Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed, Intangible Assets, Other than Goodwill					$ 3,900
Smeal Acquisition [Member] \| Trade Names [Member]
Reporting Unit, Percentage of Fair Value in Excess of Carrying Amount	136.00%
Increase in WACC Basis Points	5.00%
Impairment of Intangible Assets, Indefinite-lived (Excluding Goodwill)	$ 0
Delivery and Service Vehicles [Member]
Reporting Unit, Percentage of Fair Value in Excess of Carrying Amount	232.00%
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member]
Reporting Unit, Percentage of Fair Value in Excess of Carrying Amount	91.00%
Reach [Member]
Reporting Unit, Percentage of Fair Value in Excess of Carrying Amount	62.00%

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets - Goodwill by Reportable Segment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Goodwill, beginning of year	$ 15,961	$ 15,961
Acquisition of Smeal	11,456
Reassignment of goodwill
Goodwill, end of year	27,417	15,961
Delivery and Service Vehicles [Member]
Goodwill, beginning of year	15,961	15,961
Acquisition of Smeal
Reassignment of goodwill	(638)
Goodwill, end of year	15,323	15,961
Emergency Response Vehicles [Member]
Goodwill, beginning of year
Acquisition of Smeal	11,456
Reassignment of goodwill
Goodwill, end of year	11,456
Specialty Chassis and Vehicles [Member]
Goodwill, beginning of year
Acquisition of Smeal
Reassignment of goodwill	638
Goodwill, end of year	$ 638

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets - Other Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	$ 6,093	$ 5,235
Net carrying amount, finite-lived	4,157
Gross carrying amount, intangible assets	15,520	11,620
Net carrying amount, intangible assets	9,427	6,385
Customer Relationships [Member]
Gross carrying amount, finite-lived	6,170	6,170
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	3,709	3,348
Net carrying amount, finite-lived	2,461	2,822
Acquired Product Development Project [Member]
Gross carrying amount, finite-lived	1,860	1,860
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	1,514	1,167
Net carrying amount, finite-lived	346	693
Unpatented Technology [Member]
Gross carrying amount, finite-lived	1,500
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	150
Net carrying amount, finite-lived	1,350
Noncompete Agreements [Member]
Gross carrying amount, finite-lived	400	400
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	400	400
Net carrying amount, finite-lived
Order or Production Backlog [Member]
Gross carrying amount, finite-lived	320	320
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived	320	320
Net carrying amount, finite-lived
Trade Names [Member]
Accumulated amortization, finite-lived
Gross carrying amount, indefinite-lived	$ 5,270	$ 2,870

Note 5 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets - Estimated Remaining Amortization Associated With Finite-lived Intangible Assets (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
2018	$ 816
2019	449
2020	423
2021	399
2022	375
Thereafter	1,695
Total	$ 4,157

Note 6 - Property, Plant and Equipment (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Depreciation		$ 9,055	$ 7,195	$ 6,565
Interest Costs Capitalized		0	0
Cost Of Goods Sold [Member] \| Machinery & Equipment [Member]
Impairment of Long-Lived Assets Held-for-use	$ 406
Enterprise Resource Planning System [Member]
Construction in Progress, Gross		$ 790	$ 6,624

Note 6 - Property, Plant and Equipment - Summary of Property, Plant, and Equipment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 140,899	$ 130,088
Less accumulated depreciation	(85,722)	(76,972)
Total property, plant and equipment, net	55,177	53,116
Land and Land Improvements [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	7,754	8,049
Building and Building Improvements [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	66,227	63,418
Machinery and Equipment [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	39,800	34,879
Furniture and Fixtures [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	22,285	12,954
Vehicles [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	3,063	2,912
Construction in Progress [Member]
Property, plant and equipment, gross	$ 1,770	$ 7,876

Note 7 - Leases (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
Note 7 - Leases (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Operating Leases, Rent Expense	$ 2,989	$ 3,086	$ 2,876
Capital Leased Assets, Gross	728
Capital Leases, Lessee Balance Sheet, Assets by Major Class, Accumulated Depreciation	$ 548

Note 7 - Leases - Future Minimum Operating Lease Commitments Under Non-cancelable Operating Lease (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
2018	$ 2,494
2019	1,915
2020	1,674
2021	1,483
2022	149
Thereafter
Total	$ 7,715

Note 7 - Leases - Future Minimum Capital Lease Commitments Under Non-cancelable Capital Leases (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017 USD ($)
2018	$ 70
2019	59
2020	26
2021	26
2022	21
Thereafter
Total lease obligations, including imputed interest	202
Less imputed interest charges	(13)
Total outstanding capital lease obligations	$ 189

Note 8 - Taxes on Income (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2018	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Adjustment to Additional Paid in Capital, Income Tax Effect from Share-based Compensation, Net			$ 123	$ 44
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, at Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate, Percent		35.00%	34.00%	34.00%
Income Tax Expense (Benefit), Continuing Operations, Adjustment of Deferred Tax (Asset) Liability		$ 2,963
Deferred Tax Assets, Valuation Allowance		58	$ 9,602
Deferred Tax Assets, Operating Loss Carryforwards, State and Local		1,207	1,560
Deferred Tax Assets, Tax Credit Carryforwards		317	3,199
Valuation Allowance, Deferred Tax Asset, Increase (Decrease), Amount		(3,039)
Unrecognized Tax Benefits		565	345	$ 349	$ 481
Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Income Tax Penalties and Interest Accrued		279
Unrecognized Tax Benefits Including Income Tax Penalties And Interest Accrued		847
Unrecognized Tax Benefits Including Income Tax Penalties And Interest Accrued, Current		117
Unrecognized Tax Benefits Including Income Tax Penalties And Interest Accrued, Noncurrent		730
Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Period Increase (Decrease)		94	133	$ (30)
Domestic Tax Authority [Member]
Deferred Tax Assets, Tax Credit Carryforwards		402	4,846
State and Local Jurisdiction [Member]
Deferred Tax Assets, Valuation Allowance		$ 58	$ 4,228
Scenario, Forecast [Member]
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, at Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate, Percent	21.00%

Note 8 - Taxes on Income - Income Tax from Continuing Operations (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Current (credit):
Federal	$ 3,809	$ 2,203	$ (520)
State	255	563	253
Total current	4,064	2,766	(267)
Deferred (credit):
Federal	(1,743)	(2,666)	3,994
State	(2,231)		1,153
Total deferred	(3,974)	(2,666)	5,147
Total taxes on income	$ 90	$ 100	$ 4,880

Note 8 - Taxes on Income - Income Tax Reconciliation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Federal income taxes at the statutory rate, amount	$ 5,609	$ 2,959	$ (4,284)
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, at Federal Statutory Income Tax Rate, Percent	35.00%	34.00%	34.00%
spar_IncreaseDecreaseInIncomeTaxesResultingFromAbstract
Deferred income tax re-measurement due to Tax Act, amount	$ 2,963
Deferred income tax re-measurement due to Tax Act	18.49%
Other deferred income tax adjustment, amount	$ (241)	$ (51)	$ (156)
Other deferred income tax adjustment	(1.50%)	(0.59%)	1.24%
Non-deductible compensation, amount		$ 459
Non-deductible compensation		5.27%
Non-deductible NHTSA penalty, amount			$ 340
Non-deductible NHTSA penalty			(2.70%)
Other nondeductible expenses, amount	$ 156	$ 226	$ 176
Other nondeductible expenses	0.97%	2.60%	(1.39%)
Domestic manufacturing deduction, amount	$ (504)
Domestic manufacturing deduction	(3.15%)
Stock based compensation, amount	$ (394)
Stock based compensation	(2.46%)
Stock based compensation	2.46%
Worthless stock deduction of dissolved subsidiary, amount	$ (966)
Worthless stock deduction of dissolved subsidiary	(6.03%)
Worthless stock deduction of dissolved subsidiary	6.03%
State tax expense, net of federal income tax benefit, amount	$ 547	$ 68	$ (79)
State tax expense, net of federal income tax benefit	3.41%	0.78%	0.63%
Forfeiture of state net operating loss and credit carry-forwards from dissolution of subsidiary, amount	$ 3,039
Forfeiture of state net operating loss and credit carry-forwards from dissolution of subsidiary	18.97%
Valuation allowance adjustment, amount	$ (9,544)	$ (2,932)	$ 9,472
Valuation allowance adjustment	(59.56%)	(33.69%)	(75.17%)
Unrecognized tax benefit adjustment, amount	$ 314	$ 129	$ (162)
Unrecognized tax benefit adjustment	1.96%	1.48%	1.29%
Federal research and development tax credit, amount	$ (753)	$ (801)	$ (364)
Federal research and development tax credit	(4.70%)	(9.20%)	(2.89%)
Federal research and development tax credit	4.70%	9.20%	2.89%
Other, amount	$ (136)	$ 43	$ (63)
Other	(0.84%)	0.50%	0.48%
Income Tax Expense (Benefit)	$ 90	$ 100	$ 4,880
Total	0.56%	1.15%	(38.73%)

Note 8 - Taxes on Income - Deferred Income Taxes (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Deferred income tax assets:
Warranty reserve	$ 3,595	$ 7,246
Credit carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit	317	3,199
Inventory costs and reserves	1,792	2,194
Compensation related accruals	663	1,512
Net operating loss carry-forwards, net of federal income tax benefit	954	1,029
Stock based compensation	1,061	615
Vendor compensation	507
Other	409	773
Total deferred income tax assets	9,298	16,568
Deferred income tax liabilities:
Depreciation	(1,230)	(2,294)
Intangible assets	(574)	(840)
Prepaid insurance	(152)	(522)
Total deferred income tax liabilities	(1,956)	(3,656)
Net deferred income tax assets	7,342	12,912
Valuation allowance	(58)	(9,602)
Net deferred tax asset	$ 7,284	$ 3,310

Note 8 - Taxes on Income - Reconciliation of the Change in the Unrecognized Tax Benefits (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Balance at beginning of year	$ 345	$ 349	$ 481
Increase related to prior year tax positions	168
Decrease related to prior year tax positions		(24)	(73)
Increase related to current year tax positions	118	20	91
Settlement			(110)
Expiration of statute	(66)		(40)
Balance at end of year	$ 565	$ 345	$ 349

Note 9 - Transactions with Major Customers - Information about Major Customers (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Sep. 30, 2017	Jun. 30, 2017	Mar. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Sep. 30, 2016	Jun. 30, 2016	Mar. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Sales revenue, net	$ 181,068	$ 189,215	$ 169,739	$ 167,075	$ 145,850	$ 148,664	$ 162,537	$ 133,726	$ 707,098	$ 590,777	$ 550,414
Customer A [Member]
Sales revenue, net										70,954	78,749
Accounts receivable					$ 7,169					$ 7,169	$ 8,512

Note 10 - Commitments and Contingent Liabilities (Details Textual) - USD ($)
$ in Thousands

1 Months Ended

12 Months Ended

Jul. 31, 2015

Dec. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2016

Dec. 31, 2015

Letters of Credit Outstanding, Amount

$ 754

$ 1,599

Litigation Settlement, Amount Awarded to Other Party

$ 2,269

Litigation Settlement, Amount Awarded to Other Party

^[1]

17,800

NHTSA [Member]

$ 1,000

Letter of Credit [Member]

Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity

20,000

Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | GM [Member]

Line of Credit Facility, Capacity Available for Trade Purchases

10,000

$ 57

$ 784

[1]

On December 1, 2017, we entered into a First Amendment to the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement (the "Credit Agreement") by and among us, certain of our subsidiaries, Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, as administrative agent ("Wells Fargo"), and the lenders party thereto consisting of Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and PNC Bank (the "Lenders"). Under the Credit Agreement, we may borrow up to $100,000 from the Lenders under a three-year unsecured revolving credit facility. The credit facility matures October 31, 2019, following which we have the option to renew the credit facility, subject to lender approval, for two successive one-year periods with an ultimate maturity date of October 31, 2021. We may also request an increase in the facility of up to $35,000 in the aggregate, subject to customary conditions. This line carries an interest rate of the higher of either (i) the highest of prime rate, the federal funds effective rate plus 0.5%, or the one month adjusted LIBOR plus 1.00%; or (ii) adjusted LIBOR plus margin based upon our ratio of debt to earnings from time to time. In January 2017, we borrowed $32,800 from our credit line to fund our acquisition of Smeal. At December 31, 2017 we had outstanding borrowings of $17,800 against our credit line. We had no drawings against this credit line as of December 31, 2016. During the year ended December 31, 2017, and in future years, our revolving credit facility was utilized, and will continue to be utilized, to finance commercial chassis received under chassis bailment inventory agreements with GM and Chrysler. This funding is reflected as a reduction of the revolving credit facility available to us equal to the amount drawn by GM and Chrysler. See Note 10, Commitments and Contingent Liabilities for further details about these chassis bailment inventory agreements. The applicable borrowing rate including margin was 3.0% (or one-month LIBOR plus 1.5%) at December 31, 2017.

Proceeds from Lines of Credit

The carrying value as of the balance sheet date of the current and noncurrent portions of long-term obligations drawn from a line of credit, which is a bank's commitment to make loans up to a specific amount. Examples of items that might be included in the application of this element may consist of letters of credit, standby letters of credit, and revolving credit arrangements, under which borrowings can be made up to a maximum amount as of any point in time conditional on satisfaction of specified terms before, as of and after the date of drawdowns on the line. Includes short-term obligations that would normally be classified as current liabilities but for which (a) postbalance sheet date issuance of a long term obligation to refinance the short term obligation on a long term basis, or (b) the enterprise has entered into a financing agreement that clearly permits the enterprise to refinance the short-term obligation on a long term basis and the following conditions are met (1) the agreement does not expire within 1 year and is not cancelable by the lender except for violation of an objectively determinable provision, (2) no violation exists at the BS date, and (3) the lender has entered into the financing agreement is expected to be financially capable of honoring the agreement.

+ References + Details

Note 10 - Commitments and Contingent Liabilities - Changes Warranty Liability (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016
Balance of accrued warranty	$ 19,334	$ 16,610
Warranties issued during the period	7,539	5,705
Cash settlements made during the period	(13,854)	(10,265)
Changes in liability for pre-existing warranties during the period, including expirations	1,560	7,284
Assumed warranties outstanding at Smeal on January 1, 2017	3,689
Balance of accrued warranty	$ 18,268	$ 19,334

Note 11 - Compensation Incentive Plans (Details Textual) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2017	Dec. 31, 2016	Dec. 31, 2015
Defined Contribution Plan Company Matching Contributions Vesting Period	5 years
Defined Contribution Plan, Employer Discretionary Contribution Amount	$ 1,055	$ 796	$ 707
Economic Value Add Plan [Member] \| Quarterly Bonus [Member]
Compensation	2,193	3,298	1,898
Economic Value Add Plan [Member] \| Annual Bonus [Member]
Compensation	$ 4,890	$ 6,470	$ 1,789

Note 12 - Debt (Details Textual) - USD ($)
$ in Thousands

1 Months Ended

12 Months Ended

Dec. 01, 2017

Jan. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2016

Dec. 31, 2015

$ 15,244

Line of Credit Facility, Current Borrowing Capacity

^[1]

17,800

66,400

73,600

Well Fargo Bank and JPMorgan Chase Bank [Member] | Revolving Credit Facility [Member]

Line of Credit Facility, Maximum Borrowing Capacity

$ 100,000

Debt Instrument, Term

3 years

Line of Credit Facility, Potential Increase Borrowing Capacity

$ 35,000

Debt Instrument Reference Rate Term

30 days

Line of Credit Facility, Interest Rate at Period End

$ 17,800

$ 0

3.00%

Well Fargo Bank and JPMorgan Chase Bank [Member] | Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | Smeal Acquisition [Member]

Proceeds from Lines of Credit

$ 32,800

Well Fargo Bank and JPMorgan Chase Bank [Member] | Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | Federal Funds Effective Swap Rate [Member]

Debt Instrument, Basis Spread on Variable Rate

0.50%

Well Fargo Bank and JPMorgan Chase Bank [Member] | Revolving Credit Facility [Member] | London Interbank Offered Rate (LIBOR) [Member]

Debt Instrument, Basis Spread on Variable Rate

1.00%

1.50%

[1]

Note 12 - Debt - Schedule of Long-term Debt (Details) - USD ($)
$ in Thousands

Dec. 31, 2017

Dec. 31, 2016

Capital lease obligations (See Note 7 – Leases)

^[1]

$ 17,800

189

139

Total debt

17,989

139

Less current portion of long-term debt

(64)

(65)

Total long-term debt

$ 17,925

$ 74

[1]