- Vehicles
- 130
- Built between
- Jan 2013 – Apr 2013
- Models
- 3
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 20 December 2013
- Repaired
- 91%
- Unrepaired
- 12
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between January 2013 and April 2013. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550Built January 2013 to April 2013
- 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL63Built January 2013 to April 2013
- 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL65Built January 2013 to April 2013
Repair progress
12 of 130 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2015.
91% repaired — 118 of 130 reported
Manufacturers file these figures with NHTSA each quarter. Vehicles the manufacturer could not trace, or that have been scrapped or exported, are counted separately and are not included in the unrepaired figure.
What the defect is
Mercedes-Benz (Mercedes) is recalling certain model year 2013 SL63, SL550, and SL65 vehicles manufactured January 16, 2013, through April 30, 2013. The affected vehicles are equipped with an occupant classification system (OCS) that may not detect a very light person sitting in the front passenger seat.
What could happen
If the OCS does not detect a very light person sitting in the seat, the passenger side air bag would be turned off. In the event of a crash necessitating side air bag deployment, the passenger would be at an increased risk of injury.
What gets fixed
Mercedes will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger side seat cushion including the OCS. The recall began on December 20, 2013.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtJanuary 2013 to April 2013
- Recall reported to NHTSA1 November 2013
- Owners notified20 December 2013
- Latest repair reportQ2 2015 — 91% repaired
Your rights
A safety recall repair is free. Under US federal law the manufacturer must fix a safety defect at no cost to you — no charge for parts, labor or diagnosis — whether or not you are the original owner. A dealer cannot charge you for recall work, and cannot require you to have bought the vehicle from them.
That entitlement is not unlimited. It applies where the vehicle was first sold less than 15 years before the recall was announced — 5 years for tires. Past that a manufacturer may still do the repair free of charge, and many do, but they are no longer obliged to. This recall was reported on 1 November 2013.
To arrange the repair, contact any franchised dealer for the brand. If a dealer refuses the work or tries to charge for it, you can report that to NHTSA at nhtsa.gov/recalls or on 1-888-327-4236.
Manufacturer contact
Owners may contact Mercedes at 1-201-573-0600.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.
- Recall initiated by
- MFR
Everything on this page — the models listed, the build dates and the repair figures — comes from the manufacturer's filing to NHTSA and describes the vehicle line as a whole, not any individual car. Only the manufacturer can confirm whether a specific vehicle is affected, and whether its recall work has already been carried out. Check yours by VIN and read the official notice at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Additional notes
Owners may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153), or go to www.safercar.gov.
Check your own vehicle
This page describes the recall, not any one car. To see which recalls cover a specific vehicle, search by make, model and year.
A VIN lookup here identifies your vehicle and shows recalls issued for that make, model and year. It cannot tell you what is still open on your individual car - only the manufacturer knows that. Search by VIN instead, or check your VIN at nhtsa.gov for whether a recall is still open on your individual car.