Mercedes-Benz recalls around 223,000 vans worldwide over potentially defective airbags
The recall affects Viano and Vito models produced between December 2002 and February 2006. In Germany alone, 60,245 vehicles are potentially impacted.
A Mercedes-Benz spokeswoman said that during past airbag replacements, some vehicles may have been fitted with modules from Takata, the manufacturer linked to widespread airbag defects around the world.
In the event of a crash, the gas generator in these airbags could rupture, preventing proper deployment and posing a risk of injury from flying metal fragments.
The KBA warning, published on Friday, also cited the danger of "metal fragments detaching," which could harm vehicle occupants.
Affected vehicle owners will be notified in writing through the company's dealer network, the spokeswoman said. Mercedes-Benz will inspect and, if necessary, replace the airbags free of charge. - dpa
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
17 minutes ago
- The Star
Motor racing-Piastri denies Norris a Hungarian practice sweep
Formula One F1 - Hungarian Grand Prix - Hungaroring, Budapest, Hungary - August 1, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri in action during practice REUTERS/Bernadett Szabo/File Photo BUDAPEST (Reuters) -Formula One leader Oscar Piastri lapped fastest in Saturday's final Hungarian Grand Prix practice and denied McLaren teammate Lando Norris a sweep after the Briton dominated Friday's sessions. Piastri lapped the Hungaroring with a best time of one minute 14.916 seconds, 0.032 quicker than his closest title rival. The Australian, who took his first F1 win in Hungary last year, leads Norris by 16 points after 13 of the season's 24 rounds. Ferrari duo Charles Leclerc and Lewis Hamilton, the latter a record eight times winner in Hungary, were third and fourth 0.399 and 0.768 off the pace respectively. Mercedes' Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli showed signs of a return to form with the fifth-best time while Aston Martin continued their strong Friday form with Fernando Alonso sixth and Lance Stroll seventh. Mercedes' George Russell was eighth ahead of the Sauber pair of Gabriel Bortoleto and Nico Hulkenberg. Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen was only 12th and teammate Yuki Tsunoda 19th. (Reporting by Alan Baldwin, Editing by Andrew Cawthorne)
New Straits Times
10 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Norris completes Hungarian practice double as McLaren dominate
BUDAPEST, (Hungary): Lando Norris completed a Hungarian Grand Prix practice double on Friday as runaway leaders McLaren dominated both sessions while leaving something in reserve and almost colliding at the end. Norris was top of the timesheets in both sessions at the Hungaroring outside Budapest, with Formula One leader Oscar Piastri second and Ferrari's Charles Leclerc emerging as McLaren's closest rival. The Briton was 0.019 of a second faster than teammate Piastri, who has a 16 point lead after 13 of 24 races, in first practice and 0.291 quicker in the late afternoon when he set a best lap of one minute 15.624 seconds. "The car felt good from the first couple of laps," said Norris, who took pole position last year but then lost out to first time winner Piastri. "I've got a good feel for what we need from the car, so we'll work on that overnight and make sure we're in the best possible position going into qualifying tomorrow." At the end of the session, with the chequered flag already waved, Norris locked up coming out of the pits for a practice start as Piastri, winner in Belgium last weekend, went around the outside at turn one. Leclerc was third fastest in both sessions, with Racing Bulls' French rookie Isack Hadjar fourth in the opening one but Aston Martin coming on strong in the second with Lance Stroll fourth and Fernando Alonso fifth. "McLaren seem to be quite a bit ahead of us but we will stay focused on ourselves and try to turn things around tomorrow," said Leclerc. Double world champion Alonso had missed practice one due to back pain, with Brazilian reserve Felipe Drugovich standing in for him. Lewis Hamilton, winner a record eight times in Hungary with McLaren and Mercedes, was fifth and sixth on his return with Ferrari. "I'm still chasing grip, but we're heading in a positive direction. There's definitely more to extract ahead of qualifying," said the Briton. Mercedes's form looked more encouraging than at the last race in Belgium, with George Russell ending the day seventh, after earlier complaining about his car's balance, and Italian rookie Kimi Antonelli 10th. Red Bull's reigning champion Max Verstappen was ninth and 14th respectively in the sessions, with Japanese teammate Yuki Tsunoda 17th and ninth. "I don't know what's going on. It's just undriveable, I can't get any balance," said Verstappen over the team radio at one point in the late afternoon. Verstappen was summoned to the stewards for a bizarre incident in which the four-times world champion threw a towel out of the car's cockpit while on track at turn three. Red Bull were later reprimanded. Estonian Paul Aron took Nico Hulkenberg's Sauber for the opening session and was last after having to stop before the midpoint of the session due to a technical problem. Hulkenberg was 12th on his return.
Malay Mail
a day ago
- Malay Mail
‘Stop all the rumours': Verstappen quells speculation by committing to Red Bull for 2026
BUDAPEST, Aug 1 — Max Verstappen ended weeks of speculation about his future on Thursday when the reigning Formula One world champion said he would be staying with Red Bull in 2026. Verstappen said it was time to 'stop all the rumours'. 'I've never really said anything about it because I was just focused on talking to the team about how we can improve our performance,' the Dutchman explained at the Hungaroring circuit ahead of this weekend's Hungarian Grand Prix. 'And that's why I had nothing really to add, but I think it's time to basically stop all the rumours. 'For me, it's always been quite clear that I was staying anyway.' Four-time world champion Verstappen's future became a subject of speculation after rival driver George Russell revealed his Mercedes team were talking to the Dutchman's management about his future plans. It emerged that there was a performance clause in Verstappen's contract that offered him a chance to leave Red Bull if he was not in the top three at the end of July. But that clause has now elapsed and he will stay with Red Bull next year, the first season following a sweeping change of technical regulations. Verstappen is contracted to Red Bull until the end of 2028 and a similar scrutiny of his contract is expected next year once it becomes clear which teams have adapted and progressed best under the new regulations. Verstappen has fallen 81 points behind series leader Oscar Piastri of McLaren into third place in the drivers' championship this year. Red Bull are in a state of flux, after sacking their team principal Christian Horner this month and replacing the Briton with Laurent Mekies, the boss of their 'B' team Racing Bulls. 'No one really knows' Horner's departure will have pleased Verstappen's father Jos, who turned against the man who had led Red Bull from their launch in 2024 following last year's accusation by a woman colleague of 'inappropriate behaviour'. The Englishman was twice cleared over the claims by the Formula One team's parent company, Red Bull GmbH. At the Belgian Grand Prix last weekend Max Verstappen insisted Horner's shock departure had no impact on his future plans. He said the well-publicised discord between his father and Horner was never a problem. 'People can have a difference of opinion and I expect that to happen because if everyone agrees, there is a problem.' On Thursday when asked about his future after next year he replied: 'If you ask me that question next year, then yes, we'll have that speculation, but I never speak about it because I am more interested in working on performance — and that's why I never really talk about what is in my contract.' Despite McLaren and their two drivers Piastri and Lando Norris dominating this season, he said he still retained hopes of gaining some success before the end of the year. 'I know that the cars will be different next year, but there are still things that you can take out of this year on the engineering side of things and also implement for next year. 'So, you cannot just say 'Okay, we're not winning the championship this year, so we just write it off completely'. 'No-one really knows where they will be at next year.' — AFP
