When Mercedes-Benz introduced the eCall system, it sounded pretty promising: automatically call the emergency services to your location when you need help? I’ll take it. The only problem is that the system has a malfunction, and that malfunction has resulted in the recall of 1.3 million vehicles.
Yes. That’s because the eCall system sent those emergency responders to the wrong locationSomehow, after an accident, the vehicle’s location would be reported incorrectly, meaning rescuers would rush elsewhere to find that no injured Mercedes-Benz is waiting for help. And worse, the passengers in the crashed car were not getting the help they needed.
According to a chronology of events, Mercedes-Benz was first made aware of the issue in 2019, but did not have other similar incidents to compare against. At the time it was a single instance in Europe that could have been caused by various problems. Nevertheless, Mercedes launched an investigation to see where the problem came from and how it could be resolved.
But in mid-2020, the problem was inevitable. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) notes that not all recalled cars are likely to have the eCall error, but it’s not a risk worth taking. It eventually determined that it expects to have 100 percent of the 1,292,258 vehicles recalled some problem with the eCall system.
Mercedes-Benz USA is calling certain 2016-2021 CLA-Class, GLA-Class, GLE-Class, GLS-Class, SLC-Class, A-Class, GT-Class, C-Class, E-Class, S-Class, CLS -Class, SL-Class, B-Class, GLB-Class, GLC-Class and G-Class vehicles. You can always use the NHTSA website and enter your VIN to see if your vehicle has been affected.
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Mercedes plans to fix the problem via a wireless software update, but you should still take your vehicle to the dealer to have it fixed.