The defect
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2015-2016 Mercedes Benz C300, 2017-2019 C300 Cabrio, C300 Coupe, C63 Cabrio, 2015 C63S AMG, 2018-2019 C300, C350e, C63 AMG, C63S AMG Cabrio, 2018 C63 AMG Cabrio, C63 AMG Coupe, C63S AMG, C63S AMG Coupe, E300, E400 Cabrio, E400 Coupe, 2019 CLS450, E450 Cabrio, and E450 Coupe rear-wheel drive vehicles. A locknut in the steering rack may break under high load, possibly causing the steering to become stuck in one position.
The risk
A car that cannot be properly steered has an increased risk of a crash.
The remedy
MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the steering rack, free of charge. The recall began August 23, 2019. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2019080012.
NHTSA's own wording · initiated by MFR
Vehicles covered
Components: STEERING:RACK AND PINION:RACK
Model years in this recall
NHTSA complaints and the number of recall campaigns for each model year this recall covers.
| Model | Year | Complaints | Recalls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mercedes-Benz AMG C63 | 2017 | 4 | 11 |
| Mercedes-Benz AMG C63 | 2018 | 2 | 10 |
| Mercedes-Benz AMG C63 | 2019 | 1 | 10 |
| Mercedes-Benz AMG C63S | 2015 | 1 | 3 |
| Mercedes-Benz AMG C63S | 2018 | 1 | 7 |
| Mercedes-Benz C 300 | 2017 | 216 | 15 |
| Mercedes-Benz C 300 | 2018 | 99 | 18 |
| Mercedes-Benz C 300 | 2019 | 69 | 17 |
| Mercedes-Benz C 350 E | 2018 | 2 | 5 |
| Mercedes-Benz C 350 E | 2019 | 0 | 2 |
| Mercedes-Benz C300 | 2015 | 381 | 11 |
| Mercedes-Benz C300 | 2016 | 289 | 13 |
| Mercedes-Benz CLS 450 | 2019 | 15 | 12 |
| Mercedes-Benz E 300 | 2018 | 32 | 7 |
| Mercedes-Benz E 400 | 2018 | 23 | 13 |
| Mercedes-Benz E 450 | 2019 | 17 | 12 |
Other steering recalls in 2018
31 of the 912 recall campaigns reported to NHTSA in 2018 concerned the steering; Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. filed 199 campaigns in all.
| 18V928000 21 Dec 2018 | Prevost Cars, Inc. |
| 18V913000 19 Dec 2018 | Daimler Trucks North America LLC |
| 18V898000 19 Dec 2018 | Porsche Cars North America, Inc. |
| 18V872000 7 Dec 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V840000 27 Nov 2018 | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| 18V815000 16 Nov 2018 | Autocar, LLC |
| 18V804000 14 Nov 2018 | Suzuki Motor of America, Inc. |
| 18V781000 6 Nov 2018 | Lotus Cars Limited |
NHTSA recalls (public domain) · all recalls of 2018