Dodge Electrical System: Instrument Cluster/Panel

Dodge is recalling about 17,501 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. Without the BRAKE lamp illuminating during the vehicle start up bulb-function check, the driver has no confirmation that the lamp is working and therefore may not know whether or not the lamp will illuminate if the brake fluid level is low.

Campaign
16V833000
Manufacturer
Daimler Vans USA, LLC
Reported
17 November 2016
Vehicles
17,501
Built between
Jun 2003 – Aug 2006
Models
4
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
27 July 2017
Repaired
17%
Unrepaired
12,291

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between June 2003 and August 2006. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2003-2006 Dodge Sprinter 2500Built June 2003 to August 2006
  • 2003-2006 Dodge Sprinter 3500Built June 2003 to August 2006
  • 2003-2006 Freightliner Sprinter 2500Built June 2003 to August 2006
  • 2003-2006 Freightliner Sprinter 3500Built June 2003 to August 2006

Repair progress

12,291 of 17,501 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q4 2018.

17% repaired — 2,902 of 17,501 reported

Owners not reachable
1,639
Scrapped or exported
669

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 Vans USA, LLC (DVUSA) is recalling certain model year 2003-2006 Dodge and Freightliner Sprinter 2500 and 3500 vans manufactured June 30, 2003, to August 31, 2006. The instrument cluster on the affected vehicles fails to illuminate the BRAKE warning lamp in the instrument cluster during the vehicle start up bulb-function check. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 105, "Hydraulic and Electric Brake Systems."

What could happen

Without the BRAKE lamp illuminating during the vehicle start up bulb-function check, the driver has no confirmation that the lamp is working and therefore may not know whether or not the lamp will illuminate if the brake fluid level is low. If the operator is unaware that the vehicle has low brake fluid, there would be an increased risk of a crash.

What gets fixed

DVUSA will notify owners, and DVUSA and Dodge dealers will correct the instrument cluster software, as necessary, free of charge. An interim notification was sent to owners on January 6, 2017. A second notice will be mailed to owners once the remedy becomes available. The recall began on July 27, 2017.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtJune 2003 to August 2006
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA17 November 2016
  3. Owners notified27 July 2017
  4. Latest repair reportQ4 2018 — 17% 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 17 November 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 DVUSA customer service at 1-770-705-2070.

Official source

Recalling manufacturer
Daimler Vans USA, LLC
Safety standard
FMVSS 105
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