Freightliner Electrical System: Instrument Cluster/Panel

Freightliner is recalling about 43,584 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. Without an ABS or ESC bulb check, the operator may unaware that the warning light bulbs are not working.

Campaign
18V491000
Manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America LLC
Reported
20 July 2018
Vehicles
43,584
Built between
May 2016 – Jul 2016
Models
1
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
5 March 2019
Repaired
96%
Unrepaired
1,685

Does this affect my vehicle?

This recall covers vehicles built between May 2016 and July 2016. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.

  • 2017-2019 Freightliner CascadiaBuilt May 2016 to July 2016

Repair progress

1,685 of 43,584 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q4 2020.

96% repaired — 41,885 of 43,584 reported

Scrapped or exported
14

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 2017-2019 Freightliner Cascadia trucks. The Instrument Cluster Unit (ICU) may not perform the required bulb checks for the Anti-lock Brake System (ABS) or Electronic Stability Control (ESC) if the ignition is turned from on to off to on too quickly. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 121, "Air Brake Systems," and 136, "Electronic Stability Control Systems on Heavy Vehicles."

What could happen

Without an ABS or ESC bulb check, the operator may unaware that the warning light bulbs are not working. If the warning bulbs are not working, in the event of an ABS or ESC malfunction, the driver may not be notified, increasing the risk of a crash.

What gets fixed

DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the ICU's to ensure a bulb check is performed each time the ignition is turned on, free of charge. Also, the sub-population with Tire Pressure Monitoring (TMPS) will also require replacement parts, free of charge. DTNA issued owners an interim notification on September 18, 2018. The recall began March 5, 2019.

Timeline

  1. Vehicles builtMay 2016 to July 2016
  2. Recall reported to NHTSA20 July 2018
  3. Owners notified5 March 2019
  4. Latest repair reportQ4 2020 — 96% 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 20 July 2018.

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-780.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
FL-780
Recalling manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America LLC
Safety standard
FMVSS 121
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