Due to a software issue, the ESP internal monitoring program in the vehicles covered by this recall may incorrectly determine a malfunction at the start of the driving cycle.
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German luxury automaker Mercedes-Benz is recalling tens of thousands of S-Class vehicles in China due to a software issue.
Effective immediately, Mercedes-Benz is recalling a total of 32,786 imported S-Class and EQS vehicles with production dates between June 14, 2021, and March 22, 2023, according to an announcement posted today on China's State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) website.
Due to a software issue, the internal monitoring program of the electronic stability system (ESP) in the vehicles covered by this recall may incorrectly determine a malfunction at the beginning of the driving cycle, resulting in the limited function of the vehicle's dynamic control system, according to the announcement.
Mercedes-Benz will upgrade the ESP control unit software for the recalled vehicles through authorized dealers, free of charge, to eliminate the safety hazard, the announcement said.
The announcement did not mention how many regular S-Class vehicles and EQS electric vehicles were recalled, respectively.
This is the latest recall involving the EQS. Mercedes recalled a total of 11,908 vehicles in China in an August 2022 recall, including 660 EQS electric vehicles.
Last year's recall was because the threads of the traction tie-down points on the vehicle's front and rear bumpers may not meet specifications, which could cause the traction tie-down rings to loosen.
Mercedes-Benz launched the EQS electric sedan in China in December 2021, with a current starting price of RMB 881,000 yuan ($122,100).
The German luxury carmaker launched the EQS SUV in China in February this year, with a current starting price of RMB 910,500 yuan.
Mercedes-Benz, like other foreign carmakers, has performed weakly in China's competitive new energy vehicle (NEV) market.
In the January-June period, BYD and Tesla had the highest retail sales among the top 10 in China's NEV market, with 1,154,573 units and 294,105 units, respectively, according to a ranking by the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA).
Nio (NYSE: NIO) came in at No. 10 in the ranking, with Mercedes-Benz, BMW, and Audi missing from that top 10 list of NEV retail sales.
($1 = RMB 7.2152)
Automakers' share in China NEV market in Jun: BYD 34.7%, Tesla 11.2%
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