Freightliner Electrical System: Cables

Freightliner is recalling about 122,056 vehicles over a problem with the electrical system. An engine stall increases the risk of a crash.

Campaign
21V481000
Manufacturer
Daimler Trucks North America, LLC
Reported
25 June 2021
Vehicles
122,056
Built between
Not published
Models
4
Recall type
Vehicle
Initiated by
Manufacturer
Owners notified
7 January 2022
Repaired
82%
Unrepaired
22,147

Does this affect my vehicle?

The manufacturer did not publish a build-date range for this recall, so the model and year list below is the only way to tell whether your vehicle is covered.

  • 2019-2022 Freightliner Cascadia
  • 2021-2022 Western Star 49X
  • 2021 Western Star WH126
  • 2020 Western Star WJ121

Repair progress

22,147 of 122,056 vehicles in this recall had still not been repaired as of Q4 2023.

82% repaired — 99,903 of 122,056 reported

Scrapped or exported
6

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 2019-2022 Freightliner Cascadia P4, 2021 Western Star WH126, 2020 Western Star WJ121, and 2021-2022 Western Star 49X vehicles. The battery cable terminal may break, resulting in a loss of electrical power and unintended engine stall.

What could happen

An engine stall increases the risk of a crash.

What gets fixed

Dealers will repair or replace the battery cables, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on January 7, 2022.

Parts involved

  • Power CablesMultiple PartsPositive and Negative Power Cables

Part numbers are as filed by the manufacturer and are listed for reference. Your dealer will confirm the correct part for your vehicle.

Timeline

  1. Recall reported to NHTSA25 June 2021
  2. Owners notified7 January 2022
  3. Latest repair reportQ4 2023 — 82% 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 25 June 2021.

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-893.

Official source

Manufacturer's recall number
FL-893
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.nhtsa.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