Mercedes GLE Fire Risk Sparks New Recall Stateside

If your Mercedes GLE 450 or AMG GLE 53 recently blew one candle off its birthday cake since it left the factory floor, then there is a small chance that it has been struck by a recall.
 

Blamed on a “deviation in the production process,” the latest safety campaign concerns only 17 units of the 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 and Mercedes-AMG GLE 53, built from November 4 to December 2, 2020.
 
Due to the aforementioned error, the SUVs in question have an electric heater ground connection bolt on the passenger-side footwell, that may not have been tightened accordingly. At first glance, it looks like a minor problem, but since the contact resistance and temperature could increase due to the high electrical currents in the heater, there is a chance that the vehicles can catch fire with no prior warnings.
 
The issue was first discovered about a year ago, when the automaker launched an initial investigation having implemented a change in the electric screwdriver system for the ground bolting of the electric heater. More investigations were conducted for the better part of 2021 and no complaints or reports associated with this defect were received until November, which is when they decided to conduct a voluntary recall.
 
Mercedes will inform owners of the potentially faulty GLE 450 and AMG GLE 53 on or before January 18, 2022. Dealers, on the other hand, were brought up to speed at the end of November and were instructed to check the ground connection on the affected vehicles and, if necessary, rework it. The fix will be performed at no cost to the owners, who, due to the nature of the problem and the fact that their SUVs are still covered by the factory warranty, will not be reimbursed if they have already fixed them on their own. The car firm can answer questions on the topic at 1-800-367-6372.