Just got this letter from MBUSA - 2005-2014

"....Unfortunately, unlike other parts used in manufacturing, redesign of an airbag model is a tie-intensive effort given the time needed for sourcing, design, testing, certifying and manufacturing requirements. As a result, it will take us time to go through the....

"as soon as a suitable replacement is tested and available...."

Wonder if I'll still have the car (or be alive) when I get the second letter notifying me to bring the car in to have the work done.

"Whitney Houston, we have a problem."

Lets wait and see.

I wouldn't be too concerned unless you have one of the older models and live in a year-round high humidity area. I believe the issue is tied to moisture sensitivity of the gas generant. The defect allows it to absorb moisture over time which effects performance.

I would be and am concerned. Our 2012 is now on Hawaii Island 1/2 mile from the ocean.
We previously were waterfront in Texas.
Why did they wait to notify owners?

wouldn't be too concerned? um, okay. i just checked and mine is effected and the thought of metal fragments exploding into my face is a little traumatizing no matter what the odds. folks have died because of this. i think they oughta take in vehicles and issue loaners for those waiting. this is unacceptable IMO. but maybe i'm being "too concerned"

is there a way to expedite this or otherwise get a loaner while waiting? i havent even gotten my letter, found out about my vehicle being affect through this website and the recall was allegedly in feb? unbelievable and unacceptable IMO.

My neighbor has a Honda Ridgeline with a defective air bag and the local dealer had given him a Honda Pilot loaner until the Ridgeline's new (improved) airbag shows up. They can't tell him when that will be.

He's asked them to keep the Ridgeline at the dealer ship and they refused.

seems like honda is offering them but mercedes isnt, under the guise that there hasnt been an incident in a mercedes before. well, that's really neither here nor there IMO. there could always be a first and the product is defective necessetating the recall and unless they can assure that you wont be the first, its extremely concerning to think of having to drive the car for an unknown period of time hoping you arent the first victim of a defective device sitting 1 foot away from your face!

does anyone here work at a dealership and know what can be done about this? Waiting to hear back from my dealer but my selling dealer said they sympathize with our concerns but dont think mercedes will compensate them for handing out a loaner for this.

From Car and Driver:
Update 5/20: Mercedes-Benz has expanded its Takata recall. The company will also replace passenger-side inflators on 196,975 cars. The affected models are:
C-class
2012–2014 C-class
E-class
2012–2017 E-class coupe, 2012–2017 E-class cabriolet
GLK-class
2013–2015 GLK-class
SLS AMG
2015 SLS AMG, 2015 SLS AMG cabriolet

So according to this list MB is still installing these Takata air bags into 2017 model E coupes and cabs? Guess that means they don't have a suitable replacement available yet to handle the recall.

Sorry if this has been covered already but is there no contingency plan for these airbags yet? I thought I was in the clear but now see it does affect my 2014 E cabrio. Can't believe we have to go through this.

I can't figure this out. Even though this story is out there, MB has not added it to the recall list here: https://www.mbusa.com/mercedes/recall

Here's what my VIN search pulled up:



Still no note for the Takata airbag recall.

This is going to be a ridiculously long process. They have no time tables and although they profess time is of the essence, the fact of the matter is that vehicles continue to be built every day in their factories yet parts are not yet available. All the while, we're supposed to drive around with a device 1 foot away from my face that could explode chunks of metal into it. They claim the vehicles are "safe" because there have not yet been any injuries but cannot guarantee you won't be the first one to meet your maker by and through a failed airbag. They don't want to provide loaners to those who are nervous about driving these vehicles. This will likely be my last mercedes after having bought several and recommended numerous others to buy same and which many, did. Honda is providing loaners. Could have felt more safe buying a car that cost a third as much. Go figure. Amazing. Just amazing.

I get the same empty status on the recall web site as you do, even though I obviously fall into the effected vehicles.

Given the vagueness of the letter that PCA7GGR received, regarding both a time frame for resolution and lack of any actual replacement parts, I fully expect that this will probably be an open issue a year from now. The whole auto industry seems to be scrambling to get replacement air bags from an alternative source at this point. So the demand numbers are huge and the number of companies in the air bag business are very small.

MB is still building new E coupes and cabs, at least according to the list provided by Car and Driver, with the defective Takata air bags installed. So obviously MB doesn't have a near-term solution.

I can understand some car companies offering some loaners, on a short-term basis (few days, weeks or occasionally longer), to owners who are concerned about potential vehicle safety. However, I would expect that in these cases the car company has replacement air bags for the impacted vehicles coming in shortly to make the repairs. Otherwise, you're talking about loaning out hundreds of thousands of cars for sevral months at a time. Are other car companies, like Honda, really just supplying loaner cars to virtually every one of their customers who has these defective Takata air bags on demand for several months at a time until new air bag suppliers can be sourced or have they already identified, tested and secured a new source of air bags for their vehicles?

They should at least send us an exploding cigar...

anyone who has an affected honda vehicle and is afraid to drive the vehicle (rightfully so) is provided a loaner vehicle. period!

Then your best option is to trade your MB in for Honda. Seriously if Honda is willing and able to provide loaner cars to every one of their customers on a open-ended basis (possibly lasting years), then that's something you should actively consider. I don't know how any car company can afford to essentially give away free loaner cars to hundreds of thousands of their customers for years at a time, but I'll take your word for it.

I read a report yesterday that Jeep is also still installing these Takata air bags into some of their vehicles and plan to do so for a number of years to come. They also have no alternative supplier to replace the Takata air bags with just a number of other auto manufacturers. The U.S. government is fully aware of it. Yet the official position is it's all right to continue to install these Takata air bags into new vehicles since there is no widely available alternative.

the level of fanboy-ism on mercedes knows no limits. i used to be a big fan but i wont suck up and defend a company that doesn't feel the need to step up to the plate and do the right thing when it could cost life or limb.

Hardly a MB fanboy. Merely suggesting that given the massive scale of the problem (hundreds of thousands of cars for each of several major auto manufacturers) and the lack of replacement parts to retrofit all these cars, if you feel that MB is that unsafe to drive you consider going with the auto manufacturer you feel more confident in (Honda). It's all about feeling safe behind the wheel and being able to sleep at night. If I thought my MB was unsafe to operate under these circumstances, I would garage it and use one of my other cars until it could be repaired. The only other alternative would be to trade it in and get something else.

I understand you think MB should just provide free loaners to everyone for the year or more that it will take to source a new air bag supplier (the time frame several auto manufacturers are telling government agencies), test and certify the new air bags, etc., but somehow I doubt MB or any of the other car companies impacted by this Takata mess have a few hundred thousand cars each just laying around to provide as loaners on demand. You seem to feel Honda does, so all the more reason to make the switch. Again, it's about feeling safe behind the wheel.

So today I had an email exchange with a MB salesperson who claims that my 2014 is not affected by the recall. He claimed that the Car & Driver article was false and that the only E class cars affected were from 2010-2011. The NHTSA link seems to confirm this: http://www.safercar.gov/rs/takata/takatalist.html

BUT - the webpage also states "NOTE: This list does not yet include vehicles in the May 4 announced Takata recall expansion."

Anybody know of any additional info on this yet?

It's really a mess. All we really know is that we have to drive these potential death traps around that are supposedly "the best or nothing" because the good cash we doled out for them isn't enough for mercedes to do the right thing and place affected owners into substitute vehicles like some other (much) cheaper brands. They can't guarantee you wont be the first one to lose your face in a faulty deployment. It's sickening.

but you still drive your death trap...don't you?

Try not to crash it?

I guess you could ask MB to loan you another Takata equipped car to blow up in your face if you really want it. Seriously, have you seen the list of cars affected by this?

potential death trap, no i do not.

My GT3 will get me long before the coupe.