Mercedes-Benz GLB Recalls Over Incorrect Headlight Leveling

Back in July 2021, the safety boffins at Mercedes-Benz AG launched an investigation based on “an internal finding.” What kind of finding is anyone’s guess because the automaker failed to explain what’s what.
 

At the end of July 2021, the Stuttgart-based automaker implemented a plant rework campaign in order to check and repair potentially affected vehicles. Once again, Merc failed to mention what kind of campaign and repairs were performed on what vehicles. But as you can tell from the headline and the attached report, Merc refers to the GLB and incorrect headlight leveling.
 
The safety boffins discovered that “the level sensor linkage might not have been installed according to specifications during a vehicle rework process.” The German automaker confirmed that several tests on the headlamp test bench were performed from January 2021 through April 2022, which goes to show that someone at Mercedes-Benz AG has delayed the inevitable.
 
Certain GLBs feature a level sensor linkage on the rear axle that might have been incorrectly installed due to “a deviation in the rework process.” For a company that promises the best or nothing, that says a lot about marketing’s ways of bending reality. Merc further noted that headlight leveling could calibrate in the opposite direction if the rear seat, trunk, or third-row seats were loaded appropriately. As a result, headlight glare to oncoming traffic cannot be ruled out, thus increasing the risk of a crash.
 
A grand total of 88 examples of the GLB are called back, all of them produced for the 2021 model year. The Mercedes GLB 250 vehicles in question were produced between April 20th, 2021, and April 28th, 2021.
 
Identified under part number A2473204604, the level sensor linkage will be checked and – if necessary – reworked at no cost to the customer. A change in the rework procedure ensures that incorrect leveling can no longer occur from July 30th, 2021 onwards. Dealers will be notified of the recall tomorrow, May 16th, while affected owners will be notified on July 8th.