What can happen when one doesn't follow a recall notice.

[66andBlue]

A bonanza for corporate lawyers.

https://jalopnik.com/how-one-suv-fire-destroyed-45-million-in-cars-damaged-1826086012

[Tyler S]

I think some of that blame needs to be placed on the shipper. A single car fire should have never gotten that far out of hand.

[gimp]

I think that some time the automakers are at fault.
It took 2 years to have my air bags replaced.
Last year I received recall notice from BMW that 2 wires require replacement, however the parts are not available at this present time.
The suggestion from BMW is for me not to park the vehicle in the garage.

[wwheeler]

Didn't hear about that and thanks for posting. What a mess! My wife's ML350 is still waiting for its airbag. Will probably be sold before the bag becomes available though.

[Benz Dr.]

Were there ever any recalls on a 113?

[Tyler S]

Dan, I think the first Sl to get a recall was the w107 for subframe issues.

Even MB isn't immune to "thermal incidents"
https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/rcl/2017/RCLRPT-17V114-6749.PDF

Back in the 90's there were a series of recalls on the Nissan Van's "Vanette" due to engine fires. After 4 different recalls to try to fix the issues, Nissan eventually bought them back and had them all crushed. They almost went bankrupt doing so. One of my jobs was to drain all of the fluids and "disable" the engines before the vans headed off to be crushed. We got a lot of free gas!

[49er]

 It wasn't a recall, but I did receive a letter from MBUSA to disregard the door sill's data plate's passenger data (2 in front 1 behind). Since there wasn't a seat back there I followed their advise . My car was also one of the 280's that suffered excessive oil consumption. The short block was replaced under warranty but no recall and no mention at the time that this was a known problem with the 280.

John

[Tyler S]

Recalls are almost always safety related and are under the athority of NHTSA. Auto makers come to a written agreement with them as to how the recall will be handled. The EPA and CARB (California Air Resources Board) also have recall governing abilities. Non recall service campaigns, bulletins, TSB's (technical service bulletins), and customer retention "goodwill" advisories are up to the discretion of the auto maker.

[neelyrc]

It wasn't a recall, but I did receive a letter from MBUSA to disregard the door sill's data plate's passenger data (2 in front 1 behind). Since there wasn't a seat back there I followed their advise .

John, do I understand from the above that your data plate does include this typo?     

[49er]

Hello Ralph, you understand correctly

John

[mdsalemi]

...I think that some time the automakers are at fault...
...It took 2 years to have my air bags replaced.
...the parts are not available at this present time...
...My wife's ML350 is still waiting for its airbag...

And the ugly truth-reality comes out. First, parts used in manufacture (on the assembly line) always take precedence over service or recall parts. NHTSA or no NHTSA, recall or not, no automaker is going to stop production because of parts needs elsewhere in "the system". This brings to mind the other truth: service parts are handled and even purchased completely separately from parts used for assembly. This is why to many it is mind boggling why (extreme example here) Ford will manufacture 2,300 F-series trucks a day, but will often have a shortage of parts for recall work or service work. The normal person's mind can't fathom this. While that's an extreme example the same thing holds true for other manufacturers.

With some of these recent recalls--such as FCA's announcement the other day http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/25/autos/fca-recall-cruise-control/index.html that involved 4.8 million cars, once they determine the fix, then obtaining parts (or even a software patch) and deploying it worldwide, and then getting those 4.8 million vehicles in is a gargantuan task. 4.8 million of anything is trouble unto itself.

The darling of the tech world, Elon Musk and Tesla, is learning the hard way that manufacturing cars isn't easy.

[Mike Hughes]

Elon Musk ... is learning the hard way that manufacturing cars isn't easy.

... but if Elon has a car that he maybe can't get parts for anymore he can always send it into space!

[Tyler S]

R.E. Original post.
It looks as if the Hand is on the other Foot now!
https://youtu.be/Us56c7yQAYY

[280SE Guy]

I just crossed the BMW X5 off of my list of what I might buy as my next SUV. Thanks for posting the link.

[Peter h]

Always read the manual.... 

https://youtu.be/HngfGSKi94w
Peter

[gimp]

Well I have now finally had my air bags replaced and have an appointment to have the Engine PCV Blow-by Heater replaced.
All recalls will be up to date.

[Cees Klumper]

I just received a recall notice from BMW for my 2018 BMW G310R (a motorcycle).there is a problem with the sidestand that can cause it to break off. The fix is a reinforcing plate. Discovery of this defect led to a 'stop sale' earlier this year, meaning BMW had to stop selling the inventory that was in dealers' hands, until they had the plates to address the issue.
Now what annoys me is that BMW chose to fix that inventory first, at the expense of customers who already owned these bikes. So BMW is now out of the parts to fix my bike, because they decided to fix their own bikes first. As an accountant, I get it, but as a customer it also tells me BMW cares more about itself than about me, which I suppose should not surprise me in this day and age.