Mercedes-Benz has announced a voluntary safety recall for its EQE and EQS electric vehicles in the US. This recall affects a total of 14,912 units of the EQE and EQS models and is related to a software issue with the battery management system. The software glitch could potentially cause a sudden shutdown of the high-voltage system without any prior warning to the drivers, posing a safety risk.
The recall was initially reported in Denmark in October 2023 when a new vehicle displayed a high-voltage battery warning message on its instrument panel before delivery. A similar incident occurred in the US in November 2023, which led to a power reduction and a warning message.
Mercedes-Benz investigated the battery management system and discovered that excessive diagnostic requests from other control units could overload the system's memory. This overload would trigger a system reset, which is how the system has been programmed in case of an overload. Further investigation from the automaker conducted between December 2023 and April 2024 revealed that an overflow of diagnostic data could result in reduced power output or, in rare cases, a complete loss of power.
Mercedes-Benz identified the issue with specific control units installed in the vehicles manufactured after January 2023. The company initiated a re-evaluation of known field cases involving vehicles produced during this timeframe.
Mercedes-Benz said it will inform the affected owners of the recall through mail notifications before July 23, 2024. The necessary software update to address the issue will be provided and done for free.
Both the Mercedes-Benz EQS and EQE are sold in India. The automaker has not revealed if it plans to announce a similar recall in other markets including India. More recently, Mercedes-Benz India launched the updated C-Class and GLC in the country bringing feature updates and new engine options to either model.
