The forward collision avoidance system fails to distinguish stationary objects from animate objects resulting in immediate engagement of the braking system.
Freightliner Cascadia collision warning problems
21 of the 254 owner complaints about the Freightliner Cascadia describe false forward collision warnings, most of them for the 2019 model year.
- owner complaints
- 21
- worst model year
- 2019
- typical mileage
- 200,674
Is there a fix? There are 5 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
What owners say
When approaching stopped traffic, sometimes the truck will respond and begin to slow down. At other times, the truck will continue at set speed toward a detected stopped vehicle, and in situations where the time and distance are way too short to justify no reaction by the system. The truck at sometimes acts like it is auto-driving; at others it acts as if it is only in crash-mitigation mode, and will wait for the driver until the last possible second and then slam on brakes. There have been some times where the truck actually gave a collision warning (alarm and display turns red), but in no way attempted to slow itself. This happens with vehicles detected in the truck's headway for multiple seconds beforehand. In short, the truck will sometimes apparently allow itself to rear-end a vehicle in front of itself, even though the sensors detected it and it had plenty of time to react. When there has been a collision warning with no action by the autonomous system, it has often been when there is less than 1/2 second for the driver to intervene.
While approaching an overpass the collision mitigation system activated my brakes nearly causing the vehicle behind me to rear end my trailer, hit my brakes so hard i was thrown forward.
The contact owns a 2019 Freightliner Cascadia. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the Forward Collision Avoidance feature engaged inadvertently. Recently, the contact stated that while driving at 45 MPH, the brake assist system engaged after a plastic bag flew by the vehicle. The Forward Collision Avoidance alarm sounded during the failure. The contact called the local dealer and was informed that the feature could not be deactivated. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 254,180.
A collision avoidance system (CAS), also known as a pre-crash system, forward collision warning system (FCW), or collision mitigation system, is an advanced driver-assistance system designed to prevent or reduce the severity of a collision. System applied brakes bringing our Unit to a complete stop traveling 55 MPH on an Interstate while making a lane change, Because of this our Unit was rear-ended by another CMV, On board cameras video on both V1 and V2 clearly show incident. A print out of the DDEC shows code for braking system control at exact time of incident. In our fleet we have the same 2020 Freightliner Cascadia with this system and in trying to maintain the safety of our drivers and equipment no to mention our Insurance cost and CSA scores, This is a major issue as you can see on the Web the many cases and stories of these same incidents happening. Direction is needed Thank You
The contact owns a 2022 Freightliner Cascadia. The contact received notification of the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V817000 (Service Brakes, Air, Forward Collision Avoidance) however, the part to do the recall repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the Axiomatic Braking System independently activated. The failure had occurred approximately 15 times and occurred intermittently. The contact took the vehicle to the dealer who confirmed that it was a known issue. The vehicle had not been diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the issue. The approximate failure mileage was 115,629. Parts distribution disconnect.
The contact owns a 2019 Freightliner Cascadia. The contact stated that while driving approximately 60–70 MPH, the brake assist system engaged without an object nearby. While depressing the brake pedal, the system released and reset. The Forward Collision Avoidance alarm sounded. The contact called the local dealer and was referred to the manufacturer. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 200,674.
The contact owns a 2022 Freightliner Cascadia. The contact stated while reversing at 10 MPH, the brake caliper seized and the two front driver’s side inside tires exploded. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed with front brake modulator failure. The contact was informed that the front brake modulator valve needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The contact stated that she had contacted the dealer and the manufacturer about the failure and was informed by the manufacturer that the VIN was included in the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 22V817000 (Service Brakes, Air, Forward Collision Avoidance) however, the dealer would not honor the recall repair. The failure mileage was approximately 201,285.
My truck just came to a screeching halt on the interstate with no obstacles in front of it. It nearly caused a major accident. I could not override it. I was approaching an overpass approximately 100 yards away. Collision warning lights went on. Horn started beeping and brakes engaged immediately.
This complaint comes from a private truck fleet operating over 700 trucks experiencing excessive amounts of false positive emergency braking and/or haptic following distance warnings (brake stab) on 2018-2020 Freightliner Classis Cascadia tractors. The system experiencing the highest incidents are equipped with the Wabco OnGuard Collision Mitigation System. Some of these false positives have resulted in neck and shoulder injuries. False positives occur while approaching bridge overpasses and other road objects such as steel plates or overhead signs. Wabco has been contacted and state the system is discontinued and outdated so no support or fixes is offered other than a single software upgrade. All units have received the software update but still experience false positives. These unexpected false positive occurrences have resulted in injuries, potential loss of control, and accident risks to other motorists. Although false positives have occurred and continue to occur since first receiving trucks with this technology in 2018, the first injury occurred on 3/3/2022. The system should be recalled to provide a solution to the excessive false positives.
Related recalls
Electronic stability control (ESC)
- What is wrong
- Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Western Star 49X and 2025 Freightliner Cascadia vehicles. The Electronic Stability Control (ESC) software has incorrect axle spacing parameters. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 136, "Electronic Stability Control Systems on Heavy Vehicles."
- Risk
- Incorrect parameters can decrease vehicle stability or braking performance, increasing the risk of crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will update the ESC software, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed March 22, 2024. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1‑800‑547‑0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL993.
Recall number 24V058000 · Recall details
Electronic stability control (ESC)
- What is wrong
- Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain short wheelbase 2020-2024 Freightliner Cascadia, 2021-2024 Freightliner M2 Business Class, 2022 Western Star 4700, and 2020 Freightliner Classic Cascadia vehicles. The vehicle is equipped with an electronic stability control system and tire combination that may understeer during a J-turn. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 136, "Electronic Stability Control Systems on Heavy Vehicles."
- Risk
- Understeering during a J-turn may increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- DTNA will replace the tires, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 19, 2023. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1‑800‑547‑0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL971.
Recall number 23V299000 · Recall details
Electronic stability control (ESC)
- What is wrong
- Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2017-2023 Freightliner Cascadia, 2020-2023 Western Star 49X, 2021-2023 Western Star 47X, and 2022 Freightliner 114SD vehicles. The brake modulator valves on the front axle may corrode and cause the vehicle to pull to the affected side during braking initiated by Electronic Stability Control (ESC) or Roll Stability Control (RSC).
- Risk
- Brakes that pull to one side may cause a sudden change in vehicle direction, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and replace the front brake modulator valves, as necessary. Some vehicles will have a software update which will alert driver when a replacement is required. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed beginning October 13, 2023. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1‑800‑547‑0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL966.
Recall number 23V073000 · Recall details
Electronic stability control (ESC)
- What is wrong
- Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2022 Freightliner Cascadia vehicles. The antilock brakes (ABS) and electronic stability control (ESC) may be manually disabled. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard numbers 121, "Air Brake Systems," and 136, "Electronic Stability Control Systems on Heavy Vehicles."
- Risk
- Disabled ABS and ESC may lead to loss of braking or stability control, which can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- DTNA will repurchase the vehicles. Owner notification letters were mailed June 28, 2024. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1‑800‑547‑0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL932.
Recall number 22V339000 · Recall details
Electronic stability control (ESC)
- What is wrong
- 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) system manufactured from september 15, 2005 through september 1, 2011. Under certain road and driving conditions, vehicle body roll and road inclination characteristics may adversely affect the slip angle calculation of the electronic stability control (ESC) system. This might cause the ESC to perceive an over steering situation and therefore apply the outer wheel brake on the front axle until the vehicle is perceived to be stable.
- Risk
- If the driver is slow to react during this ESC intervention, the vehicle may deviate from the intended line of travel increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Daimler trucks will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ESC module with the appropriate software version as necessary, free of charge. An interim owner notification will be mailed on or about november 21, 2011. The date for availability of the final remedy is subject to validation testing and parts availability. The safety recall began on march 28, 2012. Owners may contact daimler trucks toll-free at 1‑800‑547‑0712.
Recall number 11V465000 · Recall details
Questions about the Freightliner Cascadia collision warning
Which Freightliner Cascadia years have false forward collision warnings problems?
The model years with the most reports are 2019 (7 complaints), 2020 (5 complaints) and 2022 (5 complaints).
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