SINCE last Saturday, Daimler AG’s unit in the United States, Mercedes-Benz USA started recalling a total of 1.29 million of its vehicles what were sold since 2016.
The decision was based on the fear of the vehicles’ software might fail to give out an accurate location of the vehicle in the event of a crash.
According to a filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the recall covers some 2016-2021 model year CLA-Class, GLA-Class, GLE-Class, GLS-Class, SLC-Class, A-Class, GT-Class, C-Class, E-Class, S-Class, CLS-Class, SL-Class, B-Class, GLB-Class, GLC-Class, and G-Class vehicles.
While the German automaker plans to issue a software update that will be installed by dealers or over-the-air soon, Mercedes-Benz USA also said that currently, it is neither aware of any case of material damage nor personal injury in connection with the issue.
The automaker said “a temporary collapse of the communication module’s power supply caused by a crash might lead to the vehicle’s position during a potential emergency call being incorrect.”
Mercedes-Benz added that “other functions of the automatic and manual emergency call function remain fully operational.”
Mercedes-Benz in Europe in October 2019 launched an investigation based on a report from the Mercedes-Benz eCall centre of a single instance in the European market where the automatic eCall system relayed an inaccurate vehicle position.
After a lengthy investigation reviewing various software combinations of the communication module, the company’s research showed additional similar events where the vehicle position transmitted was incorrect. – Feb 15, 2021
