Photo: Mercedes-Benz
A favorite of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Sprinter has been called back once again. The chronology of this recall begins more than a year ago, when the commercial vehicle division of Mercedes became aware of a van affected by an electrical issue.
Someone had mistakenly interchanged the starter-generator wiring harness with the wiring harness for the electric power steering, a condition that increases the risk of a thermal incident due to an electrical surge. Mercedes immediately launched an investigation, determining that “a new cable duct version for the connection of the wiring harnesses for the generator and electric power steering system was introduced on May 31st.”
The German automaker from Stuttgart explains that “in the course of this optimization, employees may have inadvertently interchanged the wiring harnesses intended for the generator and the electric power steering system.” Mercedes further notes that it had “implemented additional training concerning the correct assembly process.” Had the workforce been properly trained before the changeover to the new cable duct version, Mercedes wouldn’t have had to save face over this unnecessary blunder.
According to documents filed with the NHTSA, a plat rework campaign was implemented. Mercedes-Benz couldn’t identify a single potentially affected unit in the United States, but come April 2022, a Sprinter that should have been included in the initial population was duly identified.
Further analysis revealed that a couple of Sprinters need to be called back in the United States of America, vans from the 2500 series. The attached report lists production dates of June 7th and June 16th, 2021. Both examples are fitted with a turbo diesel engine, although we don’t know if Merc refers to the four-cylinder unit or the slightly more powerful six-cylinder unit.
Both owners will be notified by first-class mail on August 5th, with dealers instructed to check the connection of the starter-generator wiring harness. If necessary, dealer technicians will correct it at no cost to the customer.
The German automaker from Stuttgart explains that “in the course of this optimization, employees may have inadvertently interchanged the wiring harnesses intended for the generator and the electric power steering system.” Mercedes further notes that it had “implemented additional training concerning the correct assembly process.” Had the workforce been properly trained before the changeover to the new cable duct version, Mercedes wouldn’t have had to save face over this unnecessary blunder.
According to documents filed with the NHTSA, a plat rework campaign was implemented. Mercedes-Benz couldn’t identify a single potentially affected unit in the United States, but come April 2022, a Sprinter that should have been included in the initial population was duly identified.
Further analysis revealed that a couple of Sprinters need to be called back in the United States of America, vans from the 2500 series. The attached report lists production dates of June 7th and June 16th, 2021. Both examples are fitted with a turbo diesel engine, although we don’t know if Merc refers to the four-cylinder unit or the slightly more powerful six-cylinder unit.
Both owners will be notified by first-class mail on August 5th, with dealers instructed to check the connection of the starter-generator wiring harness. If necessary, dealer technicians will correct it at no cost to the customer.
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