Photo: Mercedes / edited
More than a year ago, back in January 2022, the peeps at Mercedes-Benz Vans received a notification regarding a potential malfunction of the instrument cluster fitted to the Sprinter. According to assembly plant workers, the instrument cluster would not display the required information after starting up the van.
The Stuttgart-based automaker started investigating this problem, identifying the root cause as being the overloading of the instrument cluster processor. Said processor could be overloaded by a rapid succession of stopping and restarting the vehicle. Rather than develop a software update, Mercedes-Benz Vans determined that said malfunction occurs only during end-of-line testing at the assembly plant, thus concluding its investigation.
Somewhat typical of the German automaker, the people in charge of quality control didn’t do their jobs properly. Merc noted a handful of reports from the field in the summer of 2022, all of them alleging the issue that should have been happening only during end-of-line testing. Mercedes first conducted an analysis in regard to potential environmental factors, then reviewed software and hardware combinations. Better late than never, Merc concluded that the processor may overload in the field as well due to rapid stopping and restarting.
Aware of a single confirmed report from the field in the United States market, the German automaker is calling back a grand total of 6,857 vehicles produced for the 2019 through 2022 model years under the Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner brands. The affected population was manufactured in the period between September 3rd, 2018 and July 30th, 2022, as per the attached document.
The document also reveals that Mercedes introduced a different software for the instrument cluster in September 2022. Both the suspect and remedy software versions come courtesy of Continental AG, the German multinational specialized in a variety of automotive goodies (think brakes, tires, tachographs, and so forth).
Merc blames a deviation in the development process for this problem. Dealers will be instructed to update the instrument cluster software to the latest version, with owners expected to be notified no later than May 1st.
Redesigned from the ground up in 2018 for the 2019 model year, the Sprinter was previously recalled over a wiring harness that may be damaged. Earlier still, just under 53,000 examples of the VS30 series were called back due to a fire risk caused by an inadequate blower motor fuse layout that’s prone to short-circuit.
Riddled with issues ever since its launch in the United States market, the Sprinter is available in four main configurations, beginning with the cargo van and cab chassis. Prospective customers are also presented with crew van and passenger van configurations. The cargo van can be specified with all-electric propulsion as well.
Dubbed eSprinter, the zero-emission variant is equipped with a 113-kWh battery and an electric motor with a standard output of 100 kW and a high output of 150 kW (134 and 201 horsepower). Max range under the WLTP combined test cycle is 400 kilometers (248.5 miles), meaning that the EPA estimate will be slightly worse.
Somewhat typical of the German automaker, the people in charge of quality control didn’t do their jobs properly. Merc noted a handful of reports from the field in the summer of 2022, all of them alleging the issue that should have been happening only during end-of-line testing. Mercedes first conducted an analysis in regard to potential environmental factors, then reviewed software and hardware combinations. Better late than never, Merc concluded that the processor may overload in the field as well due to rapid stopping and restarting.
Aware of a single confirmed report from the field in the United States market, the German automaker is calling back a grand total of 6,857 vehicles produced for the 2019 through 2022 model years under the Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner brands. The affected population was manufactured in the period between September 3rd, 2018 and July 30th, 2022, as per the attached document.
The document also reveals that Mercedes introduced a different software for the instrument cluster in September 2022. Both the suspect and remedy software versions come courtesy of Continental AG, the German multinational specialized in a variety of automotive goodies (think brakes, tires, tachographs, and so forth).
Merc blames a deviation in the development process for this problem. Dealers will be instructed to update the instrument cluster software to the latest version, with owners expected to be notified no later than May 1st.
Redesigned from the ground up in 2018 for the 2019 model year, the Sprinter was previously recalled over a wiring harness that may be damaged. Earlier still, just under 53,000 examples of the VS30 series were called back due to a fire risk caused by an inadequate blower motor fuse layout that’s prone to short-circuit.
Riddled with issues ever since its launch in the United States market, the Sprinter is available in four main configurations, beginning with the cargo van and cab chassis. Prospective customers are also presented with crew van and passenger van configurations. The cargo van can be specified with all-electric propulsion as well.
Dubbed eSprinter, the zero-emission variant is equipped with a 113-kWh battery and an electric motor with a standard output of 100 kW and a high output of 150 kW (134 and 201 horsepower). Max range under the WLTP combined test cycle is 400 kilometers (248.5 miles), meaning that the EPA estimate will be slightly worse.
Google News