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Mercedes-Benz C-Class and GLC passenger airbag light may mislead

NHTSA campaign 18V838000 · Reported 2018-11-27 · Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.

medium How serious is it? About this label

The airbag itself still works normally, but a front passenger may be misled about whether it will deploy and be injured in a crash; the notice does not tell owners to stop driving.

What's wrong, in plain English

On certain Mercedes-Benz C-Class and GLC models with the Audio 20 screen and automatic child-seat detection, the display that tells you whether the front passenger airbag is on or off can show the wrong status. It may say the airbag is ON when it is actually switched off. A passenger could then sit there believing the airbag will protect them in a crash when it will not. Dealers fix it with a software update to the audio screen.

What you should do

1. Look up your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to confirm your vehicle is covered. 2. Call MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372 (recall 2018120009) or your dealer to schedule the software update. 3. Until it is fixed, treat the passenger airbag display as unreliable — the update is free.

Affected vehicles (1)

Who to contact

Mercedes-Benz — official Mercedes-Benz recall lookup

Customer service: 1-800-367-6372

Any franchised dealer for the brand can do the repair. Phone numbers are taken from manufacturer sites and recent NHTSA notices; if one has changed, the number in your own recall letter is the one to use.

The bigger picture

Official notice

Component
AIR BAGS:SENSOR:OCCUPANT CLASSIFICATION
Summary
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2018 C300 Cabriolet, C300 Coupe, C300 4Matic Cabriolet, C300, C300 4Matic Coupe, C300 4Matic, C43 AMG Cabriolet, C43 AMG Coupe, C63 S AMG Cabriolet, C350e Plug-In Hybrid, C63 AMG Cabriolet, C63 AMG Coupe, C63 S AMG Coupe, C63 AMG, C63 S AMG, 2018-2019 GLC300 4Matic Coupe, GLC300, GLC63 AMG Coupe, GLC300 4Matic, GLC350e Plug-In Hybrid, GLC43 AMG Coupe, GLC43 AMG, GLC63 S AMG Coupe, and GLC63 AMG vehicles equipped with Audio 20 head units and automatic child seat recognition. The status of the passenger side air bag may not display correctly.
Safety risk
If the passenger air bag is incorrectly displayed as 'ON' when it is not, a front seat passenger may be unaware that the air bag will not deploy in the event of a crash, increasing their risk of injury.
Remedy
MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will update the audio head unit software, free of charge. The recall began January 3, 2019. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2018120009.

Verify your specific vehicle by VIN at nhtsa.gov. Recall repairs are free of charge by law.