NHTSA recall 08V465000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 08V465000 |
| Manufacturer's number | 2003040005 |
| Manufacturer | MERCEDES-BENZ USA, LLC. |
| Reported | 2008-09-17 |
| Owners notified | 2008-11-15 |
| Component | STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:HOSE, PIPING, AND CONNECTIONS |
| Units potentially affected | 125228 |
What is wrong
MERCEDES-BENZ IS RECALLING 125,228 MY 1998-2004 M-CLASS VEHICLES. THE HOSE CLAMP USED TO SECURE THE POWER STEERING FLUID COOLING HOSE TO THE POWER STEERING FLUID COOLER MAY NOT PROVIDE SUFFICIENT CLAMPING FORCE FOR THIS CONNECTION.
What can happen
THE LOSS OF POWER STEERING FLUID MAY RESULT IN DIMINISHED POWER STEERING OVER TIME AND ULTIMATELY CAN DAMAGE THE POWER STEERING PUMP. THIS COULD RESULT IN A LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING.
The remedy
AN EARLIER RECALL REPAIR PERFORMED ON THESE VEHICLES MAY NOT BE SUFFICIENT TO PREVENT A FUTURE LEAKAGE OR FAILURE OF THE POWER STEERING HOSE CONNECTION (PLEASE SEE 03V121). SINCE IT IS NOT POSSIBLE THROUGH INSPECTION TO IDENTIFY SPECIFIC VEHICLES THAT MAY NOT HAVE BEEN PROPERLY REPAIRED, ALL VEHICLES REPAIRED PRIOR TO NOVEMBER 15, 2003, WILL BE REPAIRED AGAIN. THE RECALL IS EXPECTED TO BEGIN DURING NOVEMBER 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MERCEDES-BENZ AT 1-800-367-6372.
Notes
MERCEDES-BENZ RECALL NO. 2003040005.CUSTOMERS MAY CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-327-4236 (TTY: 1-800-424-9153); OR GO TO HTTP://WWW.SAFERCAR.GOV.
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Investigated as RQ08002
This recall followed 1 NHTSA investigation. An investigation is NHTSA looking into a possible defect. It is not a finding that a defect exists, and it does not say that any one vehicle is affected.
| RQ08002 | Recall query, opened 2008-03-11, closed 2008-09-17. POWER STEERING HOSE LEAK. STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:HOSE, PIPING, AND CONNECTIONS; STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST:POWER STEERING FLUID; STEERING:HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST SYSTEM. |
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From NHTSA's investigation file, as of 2026-10-19. The JSON has NHTSA's summary of each.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| TB-46-30-13-B | 2013-04-29. Service bulletin. MERCEDES: SEE DOCUMENT SEARCH BUTTON FOR OWNER LETTER. THE LOWER POWER STEERING HOSE AND CLAMP SHOULD BE REPLACE, UNDER EXTENDED WARRANTY, DUE TO POWER STEERING LEAKAGE FROM CONNECTION TO POWER STEERING COOLER. MODELS 1998-2003 163.154, (ML320, 430, 55, 500, 350). *PE |
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A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.