Freightliner Exterior Lighting: Brake Lights

Freightliner is recalling about 438,255 vehicles over a problem with the exterior lighting. If the brake lights fail to illuminate, there would not be a signal to other motorists that the vehicle is slowing, increasing the risk of a crash.

Campaign
17V761000
Manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America LLC
Reported
27 November 2017
Vehicles
438,255
Built between
Mar 2007 – Nov 2017
Models
5
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
9 May 2018
Repaired
72%
Unrepaired
122,050

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between March 2007 and November 2017. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2008-2018 Freightliner CascadiaBuilt March 2007 to November 2017
  • 2008-2018 Western Star 4700Built March 2007 to November 2017
  • 2008-2018 Western Star 4900Built March 2007 to November 2017
  • 2008-2018 Western Star 5700Built March 2007 to November 2017
  • 2008-2018 Western Star 6900Built March 2007 to November 2017

Repair progress

122,050 of 438,255 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q3 2019.

72% repaired — 316,205 of 438,255 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

Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2008-2018 Freightliner Cascadia, Western Star 4700, 4900, 5700, and 6900 trucks. After hard brake applications, the brake light pressure switch may not activate the brake lights with a light application of the brake pedal.

What could happen

If the brake lights fail to illuminate, there would not be a signal to other motorists that the vehicle is slowing, increasing the risk of a crash.

What gets fixed

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles, free of charge. Daimler issued interim notifications to owners on January 22, 2018. The recall began on May 9, 2018.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtMarch 2007 to November 2017
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA27 November 2017
  3. Owners notified9 May 2018
  4. Latest repair reportQ3 2019 — 72% 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 27 November 2017.

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-756.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
FL-756
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