- Mercedes just issued several recalls for products ranging from 2022 through this model year.
- Federal standards require hybrids and EVs to make consistent warning noises at low speeds.
- In a second action, the headlights on some models could have an exposed adjustment screw.
Even when a car looks like it costs as much as a suburban house, it’s still subject to the same regulations as everything else on the road. The rules don’t care how many screens you cram inside or how smooth the ride feels at 80 mph.
var adpushup = window.adpushup = window.adpushup || {que:[]};
adpushup.que.push(function() {
if (adpushup.config.platform !== “DESKTOP”){
adpushup.triggerAd(“0f7e3106-c4d6-4db4-8135-c508879a76f8”);
} else {
adpushup.triggerAd(“82503191-e1d1-435a-874f-9c78a2a54a2f”);
}
});
One of those standards is that hybrid and electric vehicles need to emit some noise at low speeds to alert any nearby pedestrians of their presence. Mercedes is learning the hard way that some important details go beyond that simple requirement.
More: The Tech Replacing Your Mirrors Keeps Getting Recalled And It’s Getting Worse
The German automaker is recalling 93 electric vehicles, including the EQE SUV, EQE, EQS SUV, and EQS, along with one lonely S580e 4Matic plug-in hybrid, all for the same reason. According to the recall filings with the NHTSA, these cars could have a reversing sound that isn’t consistent within a model year. That’s right, they don’t just need to make a sound, but that sound has to be consistent across the year model.
Section 5.5 of FMVSS 141 requires that vehicles within the same make, model, model year, body type, and trim level provide the same pedestrian alert. So, even though Mercedes cars make a noise, and that said noise is loud enough, if they’re not consistent, they don’t meet the regulations. As such, Mercedes just recalled 94 cars for this problem to update the noise they make while in reverse.
Another Issue, Another Recall
This isn’t the only recall Mercedes announced this past week. In a totally separate issue, 127 GLCs from 2023 might have improperly installed headlights. The automaker says the headlights could’ve left the factory without caps that cover the horizontal aiming screws. Essentially, a person working on the headlight could adjust it to a setting that falls outside of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards.
Interestingly, this isn’t the first time we’ve heard of such a recall. In 2022, Lamborghini had to recall thousands of Huracans because they too were at risk of missing a cap over their headlight adjustment screws. At least Mercedes isn’t dealing with thousands of GLCs in need of them in this instance.
var adpushup = window.adpushup = window.adpushup || {que:[]};
adpushup.que.push(function() {
if (adpushup.config.platform !== “DESKTOP”){
adpushup.triggerAd(“bb7964e9-07de-4b06-a83e-ead35079d53c”);
} else {
adpushup.triggerAd(“9b1169d9-7a89-4971-a77f-1397f7588751”);
}
});