Remember the controversial self-driving advertisement that Mercedes released which got pulled down for misguiding viewers? Well, this time its the vehicle that is being pulled down (or rather pulling itself down), after Mercedes-Benz discovered a flaw in the new E-Class model’s wiring that leads to a stalled car when someone sits at that perfect spot on the back seat.
Car and Driver reported citing the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) which claimed that the early builds of the 2017 E300 and E300 4MATIC sedan have an engine stalling problem if a passenger sits at a particular area of the rear seat.
As per Jalopnik, this does not apply to every 2017 E-Class model, but just the vehicles built from Dec. 10, 2015 to June 30, 2016, which have the wiring below the rear seats. When pressure is applied to the rear seat, the fuel pump, fuel-tank pressure sensor and fuel gauge get pressed down, which cuts off the supply of fuel to the engine, shutting it it in the process.
Car and Driver states that a total of 6858 cars have a wiring harness mounted under the rear-seat bench. Lucky for Mercedes-Benz, 3,100 of the affected vehicles are yet to be sold. For the unlucky owners who have yet to discover the issue, dealers have figured out a way to reroute the wiring so its more of quick fix than a complete overhaul.