R134a succeeded R12 almost 30 years ago due to the latter's potential for damaging the ozone layer. In recent years, certain automakers turned to R1234yf. Although it's better for the environment, R1234yf is a flammable refrigerant. Mercedes has recently issued a recall for the G 550 and G 63 over HVAC systems filled with an incorrect refrigerant due to an increased risk of a fire in the event of a crash.
Mercedes-Benz USA doesn't specify R1234yf anywhere in the safety recall report attached below, yet the remedy for this condition is to fill the air conditioning system with R134a. The German automaker became aware of this condition in mid-2023 during a quality audit at the assembly plant.
Before going any further, it should be mentioned that Manga Steyr assembles the G-Class on Merc's behalf in Austria. The contract manufacturer's Graz-based facility is also tasked with assembling the Jaguar I-Pace, E-Pace, BMW Z4, Toyota GR Supra, Fisker Ocean, and W Motors Fenyr SuperSport.
Turning our attention back to the chronology of events leading up to the recall, Mercedes-Benz AG identified a data mismatch between the refrigerant used for a certain vehicle and the intended refrigerant. As highlighted earlier, chances are Magna Steyr filled 'er up with R1234yf instead of R134a.
This finding prompted a thorough analysis, which confirmed that other vehicles had been filled with the flammable refrigerant. After much investigation and many reviews, the Stuttgart-based automaker decided to conduct a recall due to the safety risk posed by the flammable refrigerant.
Photo: Mercedes-Benz
Fortunately for Merc, the contract manufacturer, and the affected owners, the automaker is not aware of any field reports alleging underhood fires or worse. Documents filed with the NHTSA indicate that Magna Steyr introduced a change in the G-Class production procedure on April 12, 2023.
Owners will be informed via first-class mail no later than April 30, 2024, which is almost a year after Magna Steyr corrected the problem at Merc's behest. The iffy refrigerant bears part number A0009890448, whereas R134a is known as A0009890348. For some reason or another, Googling for A0009890448 returned a meager two results for the flammable refrigerant, both from Chinese sites.
Unfortunately, neither page mentions R1234yf refrigerant. Whatever type of refrigerant may have been used in the affected vehicle population, it doesn't really matter because it will be replaced for R134a in the near future. The vehicles in question were assembled for the 2022 and 2023 model years between June 28, 2022 through April 20, 2023.
The grand total is nine vehicles for the US market, namely four units of the G 550 and five units of the G 63. At the moment of reporting, the G-Class retails at $143,000 and $179,000, respectively, excluding the $1,150 destination freight charge.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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