If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a million times: You don’t want your vehicle to catch on fire. For that reason, Mercedes-Benz is recalling more than 354,000 vehicles.
Mercedes announced Thursday the recall of 354,434 model year 2015 to 2017 C-Class, E-Class, and CLA cars and GLA and GLC SUVs that may contain a starter that can overheat.
According to a notice [PDF] posted with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, under certain conditions the engine and transmission won’t turn over.
If the driver attempts to start the engine repeatedly despite the engine not cranking, the very high electric current draw might lead to overheating of the starting current limiter
An overheated current limiter could melt nearby parts, potentially igniting and leading to a fire.
In all, the Associated Press reports that Mercedes is aware of 30 fires related to the issue. No injuries have been reported.
Mercedes says it became aware of the issue in June 2016, launching an initial investigation based on reports from consumers of thermal damage related to the starters. The carmaker determined in August 2016 that, in the analyzed cases, the starting current limiter was damaged due to electrical overload.
Owners of the affected vehicles will be notified by Mercedes in March and again when parts become available in July 2017. Dealers will install an additional fuse in the electrical line to the starter.
by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist