DCX recalls 680,000 Mercedes cars

Reuters ^ | 5/11/2004

[BurbankKarl]

FRANKFURT (Reuters) -- DaimlerChrysler AG's DaimlerChrysler said it is offering free inspections to customers of its E-class sedan built after March 2002, SL-class sports cars built after October 2001 and T-models built after March 2003.

A spokesman said that previous inspections showed that of all the models of these classes and years, roughly two out of every thousand proved to have problems with the Sensotronic Brake Control system.

If the same percentage applied, this would translate in this case to about 1,360 units affected out of the 680,000 vehicles.

The carmaker said the defect in the system's braking hydraulics meant drivers need to brake earlier and with greater force to bring the car to a stop.

According to the company, high-mileage vehicles where the brakes have been used more than average -- such as taxis -- have mainly been hit by the problem.

The spokesman declined to comment on what the cost of the recall would be for DaimlerChrysler.

Mercedes, which delivered nearly 1.1 million cars to customers in 2003, is the company's most prestigious and profitable car unit.

Including its Smart and Maybach brand sales, the Mercedes Car Group contributed roughly 55 percent to the group's operating earnings last year.

Analysts view recalls as more of a danger to the brand's image than the group's profits.

In a quality study by J.D. Power and Associates, Mercedes-Benz cars were found to have 106 problems per 100 vehicles, placing it far below Toyota's luxury brand Lexus, but still ahead of the BMW brand and Volkswagen's premium brand Audi.

"Mercedes' quality image has been slipping in many surveys," Merrill Lynch wrote in a note to clients on April 29.

[oceanview]

SBC is a very complicated braking system. The cars have two batteries, the electrical system needs a backup to provide power to the electro-hydraulic system that stops the car.

[BurbankKarl]

Chrysler recalls 326,000 pickups, SUVs

DETROIT -- The Chrysler unit of DaimlerChrysler is recalling more than 326,000 pickups and Durango SUVs because of two potential safety problems, federal regulators said Tuesday.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said the largest of the two recalls involved 320,188 Durangos and Dakota pickups with front windshield wiper units that are susceptible to water intrusion, corrosion and eventual failure.

Vehicles affected include Durango SUVs from the 2002-2003 model years and 2002-2004 Dakotas, NHTSA said.

Separately, the agency said Chrysler was recalling 6,183 Dodge Ram 1500 and 2500 pickups because some were sold with erroneous vehicle certification labels.

The labels include "incorrect tire, wheel and recommended inflation pressure information" and fail to conform to federal motor vehicle safety standards, NHTSA said.

Automakers have been recalling an increasing number of vehicles in recent years and industry critics say the Big 3 have been responsible for a disproportionate number of the cars and trucks affected.

[SamAdams76]

Even though I am not a smoker, I like very much the built-in cigarette lighters that come in most cars. I like pushing the button in and waiting for it to pop out as the coils inside electrically heat up. I then pull the cigarette lighter out and look at how the heating element glows red. I then continue to stare at it until the red fades away. I almost had a car accident doing this once. I really need to pay more attention to the road when I am staring at the cigarette lighter.

I wonder why computer companies have not thought about installing these cigarette lighters into monitors of computers. A monitor company would do well to feature a monitor with a built-in cigarette lighter such as those that are found in most cars as many smokers will smoke while operating their computers.

If anybody out there decides to do this, please cut me in on a share of the profits as I am the one who thought this up. Thank you and good day.

[HiTech RedNeck]

And if you accidentally drop the stupid thing, worry about finding it before it can set all the litter at your feet on fire. There oughtta be a lighter where you just poke in the cigarette or cigar and the element is not removable during use.

[RightWhale]

Between that and the retracting cup holder labeled Drive D: you may have a winner.

[Doohickey]

http://www.frozencpu.com/cgi-bin/frozencpu/cig-01.html

Sorry, dude...

[SamAdams76]

That stinks. I haven't gotten a single royalty check from this guy.

[NCjim]

do you have the link for this? as a 2002 durango owner i'd like to know!

[BurbankKarl]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040511/ap_on_re_us/chrysler_recall_3