Freightliner Electrical System

Freightliner is recalling about 1,039 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. If the PDM short circuits, there would be an increased risk of a fire, especially if the nearby CNG tank leaks.

Campaign
16V656000
Manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America LLC
Reported
13 September 2016
Vehicles
1,039
Built between
Sep 2012 – May 2015
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
3 March 2017
Repaired
74%
Unrepaired
270

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between September 2012 and May 2015. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2013-2017 Freightliner CascadiaBuilt September 2012 to May 2015

Repair progress

270 of 1,039 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q2 2018.

74% repaired — 767 of 1,039 reported

Scrapped or exported
2

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

Daimler Trucks North America, LLC. (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2013-2017 Freightliner Cascadia vehicles manufactured September 24, 2012, to May 27, 2015 and equipped with compressed natural gas (CNG) engines. The affected vehicles have a Power Distribution Module (PDM) that is mounted near the CNG fuel tank. Due to its location, the PDM may be sprayed with water and contaminants from the road, possibly causing the PDM to short circuit.

What could happen

If the PDM short circuits, there would be an increased risk of a fire, especially if the nearby CNG tank leaks.

What gets fixed

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will relocate the PDM, free of charge. An interim notice was mailed to owners on November 7, 2016. The recall began on March 3, 2017.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtSeptember 2012 to May 2015
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA13 September 2016
  3. Owners notified3 March 2017
  4. Latest repair reportQ2 2018 — 74% 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 13 September 2016.

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 DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-721.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
FL-721
Recalling manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America 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.

Same component

Same brand