Freightliner Columbia recalls and problems
63 recalls and 96 owner complaints for 22 model years. Pick your year for full details.
Recalls
63
Complaints
96
Crashes reported
8
Fires reported
8
Choose a model year
Freightliner Columbia by year
| Year | Recalls | Complaints | Crashes | Fires | Injuries | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 Columbia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 Columbia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 Columbia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 Columbia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 Columbia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2016 Columbia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2015 Columbia | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2014 Columbia | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 Columbia | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2012 Columbia | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2011 Columbia | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2010 Columbia | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 Columbia | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2008 Columbia | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2007 Columbia | 27 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2006 Columbia | 21 | 14 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| 2005 Columbia | 14 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 2004 Columbia | 10 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 2 |
| 2003 Columbia | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 2002 Columbia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 2001 Columbia | 1 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 2000 Columbia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
Most reported Freightliner Columbia problems
| Problem area | Reports | |
|---|---|---|
| Engine and Engine Cooling | 31 | |
| Power Train | 27 | |
| Structure | 7 | |
| Visibility | 5 | |
| Electrical System | 5 | |
| Tires | 5 | |
| Wheels | 4 | |
| Service Brakes, Air | 3 | |
| Steering | 3 | |
| Suspension | 3 |
All Freightliner Columbia recalls
| Recall | Date | Years | Component | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23V-105 | Feb 20, 2023 | 2019–2021 | Steering | Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2019-2021 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, 122SD, Columbia, Coronado, Business Class M2, and 2020 Freightliner Cascadia vehicles. |
| 20V-214 | Apr 14, 2020 | 2006–2020 | Exterior Lighting | Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2006-2020 Freightliner Columbia, 2006-2021 Freightliner Business Class M2, 2007-2020 Freightliner Coronado, 2014-2021 Freightliner 122 SD, 2007 Sterling A… |
| 19V-370 | May 14, 2019 | 2005–2009 | Service Brakes, Air | Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2004-2019 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, 122SD, Cascadia, Columbia, Classic, FL80, FLD 120SD, Business Class M2, Western Star 4700, 4900, 6900, Sterling Acterra… |
| 18V-525 | Aug 9, 2018 | 2018–2019 | Service Brakes, Air | Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2018-2019 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, 122SD, Cascadia, Columbia, Coronado, and Business Class M2 vehicles. |
| 17V-810 | Dec 15, 2017 | 2002–2017 | Equipment | Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2002-2017 Freightliner Cascadia, Century Class, Columbia and Coronado trucks and Western Star 4700, 4900, 5700, 5900 and 6900 trucks. |
| 16V-206 | Apr 12, 2016 | 2010–2017 | Service Brakes, Air | Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2010-2017 Freightliner M2 Business Class, 108SD, 114SD, and Columbia trucks manufactured from January 6, 2010, through February 29, 2016, equipped… |
| 14V-150 | Mar 28, 2014 | 2014 | Seat Belts | Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2014 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, 122SD, Coronado, Argosy, Cascadia, Columbia, and M2 Business Class, and Western Star 4700, and 4900 vehicles… |
| 13V-604 | Nov 29, 2013 | 2014 | Seat Belts | Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2014 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, 122SD, Coronado, Argosy, Cascadia, M2 Business Class, and Western Star 4700, 4900, and 6900 vehicles manufactured August… |
| 12V-266 | Jun 12, 2012 | 2013 | Suspension | Daimler trucks north america (Dtna) is recalling certain model year 2013 freightliner, western star, freightliner custom chassis trucks, and thomas built buses manufactured from april 18, 2012, through may 11, 2012, and… |
| 12V-074 | Feb 28, 2012 | 2006–2013 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks (Dtna) is recalling certain model year 2006-2013 freightliner, sterling, and western star vehicles, equipped with detroit diesel epa07 and epa10, dd13 and dd15/16 engines, manufactured from january 20… |
| 11V-514 | Oct 13, 2011 | 2005–2011 | Steering | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2005-2011 freightliner cascadia, columbia, century, coronado, and classic xl trucks manufactured from november 1, 2004, through june 15, 2010 for the rack and pinion… |
| 11V-478 | Sep 16, 2011 | 2004–2008 | Fuel System, Diesel | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2004 through 2008 heavy trucks manufactured from july 11, 2003, through september 28, 2007, equipped with epa04 model mbe4000 engines built with plastic low pressure fuel… |
| 11V-465 | Sep 8, 2011 | 2006–2012 | Electronic Stability Control (ESC) | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2006-2012 freightliner business class m2, cascadia, century, columbia, coronado and sterling a-line vehicles built with meritor wabco electronic stability control (Esc)… |
| 11V-330 | Jun 21, 2011 | 2008–2012 | Electrical System | Dtna is recalling certain model year 2008-2012 freightliner; cascadia, century class, columbia, and coronado, certain model year 2008-2009 sterling; a-line and l-line and certain model year 2009-2012 western star… |
| 11V-287 | May 18, 2011 | 2009–2011 | Fuel System, Other | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2009 through 2011 freightliner cascadia, century, columbia, coronado, m2, and western star 4900 heavy trucks manufactured from february 19, 2009, through july 9, 2010… |
| 11V-146 | Mar 3, 2011 | 2006–2011 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks (Dtna) is recalling certain model year 2006 through 2011 freightliner, cascadia, century, columbia fld, and m2, sterling 9500, and western star 4900 heavy trucks manufactured from march 20, 2006, through… |
| 10V-551 | Nov 4, 2010 | 2011 | Equipment | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2011 freightliner coronado, columbia, fld military, business class m2, cascadia, century, and western star 4900 trucks manufactured from august 9, 2010, through october 27… |
| 10V-341 | Jul 27, 2010 | 2007–2011 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2007 through 2011 freightliner, fccc, sterling, and western star heavy trucks manufactured from september 5, 2006, through june 30, 2010, equipped with specific mbe900 epa04… |
| 10V-339 | Jul 27, 2010 | 2009–2011 | Fuel System, Other | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2009 through 2011 freightliner cascadia, century, columbia, coronado, m2, and western star 4900 heavy trucks manufactured from february 19, 2009 through july 9, 2010… |
| 10V-189 | May 7, 2010 | 2008–2011 | Fuel System, Other | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2008 through 2011 freightliner columbia, cascadia, coronado, century, m2, sterling 9500, and western star 4900 vehicles equipped with dd 13 and dd15/dd16 engines and… |
| 10V-112 | Mar 23, 2010 | 2008–2010 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks has notified NHTSA of a defect in certain model year 2008 through 2010 freightliner columbia, fld, sterling 9500 and western star 4900 emergency vehicles. |
| 09V-400 | Oct 8, 2009 | 2007–2010 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks is recalling model year 2007-2010 freightliner, sterling and western star vehicles equipped with detroit diesel dd15 epa07 engines which were manufactured with grid heaters. |
| 09V-391 | Oct 6, 2009 | 2006–2010 | Fuel System, Gasoline | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2006 through 2010 heavy trucks manufactured between january 17, 2006 and march 31, 2009, equipped with epa07 model mbe4000 engines built with plastic low pressure fuel… |
| 09V-390 | Oct 6, 2009 | 2009 | Fuel System, Gasoline | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2009 heavy trucks manufactured between may 5, 2008 and january 7, 2009, equipped dd15 engines and with bosch high pressure fuel pumps. |
| 09V-366 | Sep 23, 2009 | 2004–2010 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks is recalling model year 2004-2010 trucks equipped with caterpillar c15 engine. |
| 09V-357 | Sep 16, 2009 | 2007–2010 | Steering | Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2005 through 2010 heavy duty trucks manufactured from october 29, 2005 through july 3, 2009. |
| 09V-220 | Jun 12, 2009 | 2009–2010 | Service Brakes, Air | Daimler trucks is recalling 1,460 model year 2009 and 2010 heavy duty trucks and fccc chassis (Used on thomas built school buses) manufactured from june 11 through december 16, 2008, equipped with certain haldex quick… |
| 09V-086 | Mar 13, 2009 | 2008–2009 | Engine and Engine Cooling | Daimler trucks is recalling 2 my 2008-2009 freightliner columbia and sterling l-line trucks equipped with caterpillar c7, c9, c13 and c15 diesel engines. |
| 08V-159 | Apr 9, 2008 | 2008 | Parking Brake | Daimler trucks is recalling 900 my 2008 freightliner argosy, argosy rhd, cascadia, columbia, century st, coronado, sterling acterra, l-line and western star 4900 trucks equipped with bendix mv-3 dash control valves. |
| 08V-113 | Mar 11, 2008 | 2005–2007 | Fuel System, Diesel | Daimler trucks is recalling 62,000 my 2005-2007 freightliner business class, century class, columbia, coronado, fld, classic, sterling a-line, l-line, and western star 4900 trucks. |
| 08V-029 | Jan 28, 2008 | 2008 | Service Brakes, Air | On certain trucks and motor homes chassis, incorrect fasteners may not provide adequate clamping force between the brake caliper and brake anchor plate potentially resulting in reduced brake effectiveness. |
| 07V-598 | Dec 28, 2007 | 2008 | Engine and Engine Cooling | On certain trucks equipped with caterpillar epa07 c155 engines, the extension pipes attached to the aftertreatment regeneration device may develop a crack or hole and heat or flame may escape during a regeneration of the… |
| 07V-592 | Dec 21, 2007 | 2008 | Steering | On certain trucks equipped with trw steering gears, models tas85 and rcs85, these steering gears contain potentially defective sector shafts with an incorrect gear tooth which may interfere with the rack-piston teeth… |
| 07V-532 | Nov 13, 2007 | 2008 | Visibility | On certain trucks, the wiper motor ground wire was omitted in a new harness design. |
| 07V-530 | Nov 13, 2007 | 2006–2008 | Trailer Hitches | On certain truck-tractors equipped with holland simplex se or se II fifth wheels, the latch lever pivot bolt assembly may have been over-tightened which could distort the pivot bolt spacer sleeve. |
| 07V-403 | Sep 6, 2007 | 2005–2008 | Steering | On certain trucks equipped with rack and pinion steering, the ball socket assembly at the inner end of the driver side tie rod may be damaged in a sharp turn. |
| 07V-400 | Sep 5, 2007 | 2005–2008 | Steering | On certain trucks equipped with rack and pinion steering, the tie rod arms may have been incorrectly installed. |
| 07V-357 | Aug 13, 2007 | 2007–2008 | Steering | On certain trucks built with a trw global adjustable upper steering column, two upper tilt plate bolts may loosen with use and fall out. |
| 07V-335 | Aug 2, 2007 | 2007–2008 | Fuel System, Gasoline | On certain trucks, a manufacturing error in the fuel-water separator preheater thermoswitch may prevent the fuel preheater from turning off if the ignition is left on. |
| 07V-316 | Jul 24, 2007 | 2007–2008 | Suspension | On certain trucks equipped with tuftrac rear suspensions, the center casting brackets may be out of specification. |
| 07V-306 | Jul 18, 2007 | 2007–2008 | Steering | Freightliner is recalling certain school bus chassis, heavy trucks, van chassis, rv motorhome chassis manufactured from january 5 to may 17, 2007, equipped with axle alliance company (Aac) front axles. |
| 07V-302 | Jul 16, 2007 | 2003–2008 | Service Brakes, Air | Certain freightliner school bus chassis, heavy trucks, and thomas built school buses manufactured between july 2002 and july 3, 2007, equipped with bendix sr-7 spring brake control valves. |
| 07V-289 | Jul 3, 2007 | 2005–2006 | Steering | Certain freightliner school buses and trucks manufactured from october 23, 2004, to march 21, 2006. |
| 07V-255 | Jun 7, 2007 | 2007 | Power Train | On certain trucks built with dana rear axles, the housings may contain thinner material than what is necessary for normal vehicle operation. |
| 07V-169 | Apr 12, 2007 | 2006–2007 | Suspension | On certain trucks built with front axles assembled by arvinmeritor, the front spindle nut may be over-tightened causing preload on the front wheel bearings which could lead to premature bearing wear. |
| 06V-424 | Nov 2, 2006 | 2006–2007 | Suspension | On certain trucks equipped with arvinmeritor front axle assemblies, the front spindle nut may be over-tightened causing preload on the front wheel bearings which may lead to premature bearing wear. |
| 06V-387 | Oct 11, 2006 | 2007 | Power Train | On certain trucks equipped with arvinmeritor rpl20 high angle interaxle driveshafts, an improper seated or missing snap ring can result in the bearing cup to separate from the slip yoke sub-assembly. |
| 06V-205 | Jun 12, 2006 | 2007 | Parking Brake | Certain heavy trucks, shuttle buses, and school buses equipped with bendix modulated spring brake valves. |
| 06V-190 | Jun 5, 2006 | 2005–2006 | Electrical System | On certain trucks, the protective cover for the cab power distribution model (Pdm) may be missing or improperly installed. |
| 06V-030 | Feb 8, 2006 | 2004–2006 | Engine and Engine Cooling | On certain trucks equipped with caterpillar diesel engines, the variable valve actuation oil line may wear against the sharp edge of the cylinder head if not positioned correctly. |
| 05V-551 | Dec 6, 2005 | 2006 | Power Train | On certain trucks and motor home chassis, the top flange of the front axle I-beam may fatigue and fracture. |
| 05V-467 | Oct 5, 2005 | 2005 | Suspension | Certain 2005 thomas built fs-65 and c-2 school buses and 2005 freightliner argosy, columbia, century st, and m2 business class trucks manufactured between june 4 and july 8, 2005. |
| 05V-408 | Sep 13, 2005 | 2004 | Steering | On certain truck and motor home chassis equipped with I-shafts supplied by zf heavy duty steering, there is a potential for a failure of the fork/shaft connection. |
| 05V-285 | Jun 14, 2005 | 2004 | Wheels | On certain trucks equipped with 3rd generation conmet aluminum wheels, the drum mounting flange on the conmet truturn brake drum may have been manufactured with a taper from the pilot hole to the barrel of the drum. |
| 05V-185 | Apr 27, 2005 | 2005 | Wheels | On certain heavy duty class 8 trucks equipped with accuride aluminum wheels, the wheels were not properly pre-stressed. |
| 05V-001 | Jan 3, 2005 | 2002–2004 | Seats | On certain trucks equipped with seats built by gra-mag, the seat pivot bolts can loosen and possibly fracture or dislodge, causing the seat back to fail to provide full support to the driver's back. |
| 04V-590 | Dec 15, 2004 | 2004 | Power Train | On certain vehicles, there is a defect in the interaxle driveline yokes. |
| 04V-205 | May 4, 2004 | 2003–2004 | Power Train | On certain trucks equipped with manual transmission, the tapered joint that attaches the shifter to the transmission may become loose making it difficult to put the transmission into gear. |
| 03V-500 | Dec 4, 2003 | 2003 | Service Brakes, Air | On certain trucks equipped with air brakes, the plastic push-to-connect air line fitting cartridge could be improperly welded into the nylon junction block housing allowing an air line to become disconnected. |
| 03V-227 | Jun 17, 2003 | 2000 | Trailer Hitches | On certain truck tractors equipped with jost international jsk 37u series fifth wheels, a fatigue crack can develop in the bracket pin weld under certain loading conditions. |
| 03V-112 | Mar 21, 2003 | 2000–2001 | Suspension | On certain trucks equipped with truck hub units manufactured by skf exclusively for use on arvinmeritor's ff98x series non-drive steer axles, the hub unit bearings can wear prematurely. |
| 02V-321 | Dec 2, 2002 | 2002 | Service Brakes, Air | On certain trucks equipped with manifold dash valves with push to connect fittings used to control the park brake function on trucks and trailers with air brakes, the park knob can pop out unexpectedly while the vehicle… |
| 00V-232 | Aug 7, 2000 | 2000 | Service Brakes, Air | Vehicle description: heavy duty trucks and school bus chassis built with bendix air ABS with an ec-17 1030r electronic control unit (Ecu), there have been reports of unwanted ABS activation at low speeds caused by 1)… |
Frequently asked questions
What is the worst year for the Freightliner Columbia?
By owner complaints to NHTSA, the 2005 Freightliner Columbia has the most reports (38). Check the 2005 page for the problems owners describe.
How many recalls does the Freightliner Columbia have?
NHTSA lists 63 safety recalls covering Freightliner Columbia model years 2000–2021.
What are the most common Freightliner Columbia problems?
Owners report engine and engine cooling, power train, structure problems most often.