- Vehicles
- 23,386
- Built between
- Until May 1983
- Models
- 4
- Recall type
- Vehicle
- Initiated by
- Manufacturer
- Owners notified
- 25 February 1988
- Repaired
- Not reported
- Unrepaired
- Not reported
Does this affect my vehicle?
This recall covers vehicles built between an unspecified date and May 1983. If yours was built outside that window, it is not part of this recall.
- 1973-1983 Mercedes-Benz L1013Built unknown to May 1983
- 1973-1983 Mercedes-Benz L1113Built unknown to May 1983
- 1973-1983 Mercedes-Benz L1116Built unknown to May 1983
- 1973-1983 Mercedes-Benz L1316Built unknown to May 1983
What the defect is
Slot in steering drag link to allow for clamping of the ball joint may not be fully closed by the ball joint thread.
What could happen
Water may enter the drag link and result in corrosionwhich lowers strength of drag link making it subject to fracture.
What gets fixed
REPLACE DRAG LINK IF OPENING EXIST; ALSO, THREADED STUD OF BALL JOINT HAS BEEN EXTENDED FOR COMPLETE CLOSURE OF THE SLOT.
Timeline
- Vehicles builtunknown to May 1983
- Recall reported to NHTSA17 November 1987
- Owners notified25 February 1988
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 1987.
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.
Official source
- Recalling manufacturer
- FREIGHTLINER CORP.
- 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
System: steering drag linkvehicle description: heavy duty trucks equipped with hydraulic steering.
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.