Consumer Reports Alerts Recall of Over 342,000 Mercedes Vehicles for Backup Camera Problem

Backup Camera Safety

Thanks to federal regulations a few years ago, new cars sold in the U.S. are required to come standard with backup cameras. Advocates for this added security measure state that backup cameras will help prevent accidents with pedestrians---particularly children---who are too often victims of an accident because a driver fails to see what is behind their vehicle while backing up.

In fact, backup accidents kill over 200 and injure over 12,000 people annually.

And while backup cameras are largely trouble-free (aside from a recent Ford circuit board module fault in their backup cameras), software glitches in a car during updates or other changes in the coding can result in erroneous behavior that can interfere with such safeguards.

According to a recent Consumer Reports newsletter, writer Jon Linkov tells us that. “Mercedes-Benz is recalling 342,366 coupes, convertibles, sedans, and SUVs from the 2019 through 2021 model years to address faulty software that may prevent the video feed from the backup camera being displayed or cause the system to reboot.

Owner/users of the backup camera have reported issues where when shifting into Reverse, the feed from the backup camera either fails to display or the screen goes blank causing the rearward image to disappear.

Car Recall List of 342,366 Mercedes-Benz vehicles (2019-2021 model years)

• 2019-2021 Mercedes-Benz A220

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG A35

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG CLA35 & CLA45

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG CLS53

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG E53 & E63S

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLA35 & GLA45

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLB35

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLC43 & GLC63

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLE53 & GLE63S

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLS63

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT43, GT53, GT63 & GT63S

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz CLA250

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz CLS450

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz E350 & E450

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA250

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz GLB250

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz GLC300

• 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC350E

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz GLE350, GLE450 & GLE580

• 2020-2021 Mercedes-Benz GLS450 & GLS580

• 2021 Mercedes-Benz MAYBACH GLS600

What to Do if Your Car is On the Recall List

• If you possess a “Mercedes Me” subscription, a smartphone app is available that will allow over-the-air (OTA) software updates for your vehicle to remedy the backup camera problem.

• If you do not have a “Mercedes Me” subscription, owners will need to have the update performed at a Mercedes-Benz dealership.

• Mercedes-Benz will notify owners by mail, starting July 13, 2021. Owners of affected vehicles may call Mercedes-Benz customer service at 800-367-6373. Updates to the backup camera system will not result in a service charge for owners.

For additional recent news articles about vehicle camera systems, here is why a hidden Tesla Cybertruck front end camera may pose problems for drivers, and a new look at where the Tesla Roadster hides its sideview repeater camera.

Timothy Boyer is Torque News Tesla and EV reporter based in Cincinnati. Experienced with early car restorations, he regularly restores older vehicles with engine modifications for improved performance. Follow Tim on Twitter at @TimBoyerWrites for daily Tesla and electric vehicle news.