2020 FREIGHTLINER CASCADIA Complaints

Multiple safety issues with truck #1 When driving & using cruise control (CC) at 60 mph & truck is at that speed (60 mph) truck is moving from top speed to E coast mode. Immediately RPM is down (from 1250 to 600) & steering wheel is much harder b/c reduced power from engine . Response time for driver to avoid potential hazardous situations on the road (i.e. animals, rocks, trees, etc.) is longer & not safe #2 This problem is related to when truck is in regen. In driving, and when truck is doing regen (visible on the dash: high temp light/ icon). CC set to (60 mph) when truck is at that speed (60 mph) truck goes to E coast mode. RPM is going down to 600 RPM which is not adequate engine speed to finish regen. With regen interrupted there is a lot of white smoke under the truck and red light for engine shut down is on the dash. There is 30 seconds time to override shut down but at the same time the driver needs to safely park the truck on the shoulder, on a busy highway, with reduced power and steering wheel (600 RPM or no power at all because engine shut down). With high DPF temperature,there is potential for fire (truck,grass,trees ). I am told engine shut down was caused by interrupted regen process. #3 Collision warning is coming with no reason, and can activate active brake, at high speed. Radar malfunction (snow, ice in the front)can cause malfunction to adaptive cruise control, active brake assist, & malfunction other safety features. Combination of malfunction (radar, active break assist, collision warning, IPM [intelligent powertrain management], engine break not engaging) can cause dangerous acceleration for heavy loaded truck. I contacted DTNA (Daimler Truck North America) in regard to these issues & am told in order to solve these issues the truck should be inspected where mechanics and programmers are involved. At the same time I spoke with the company I work for about safety issues with those trucks. You can contact me for further information.

The contact owns a 2020 Freightliner Cascadia. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the low tire pressure alarm sounded at 120 PSI. The contact stated that there was an abnormal buzzing sound detected. The contact stated that the air pressure alert should engage at 60 PSI. The vehicle was taken to the dealer however, the mechanic was unable to duplicate the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 400,000.

CAS actived with a Collision Warning and applied hard braking for about 1/2 second for a vehicle that stopped in a paved turnout. The stopped vehicle was not in the travel lane. There was a slight left curve and I could see the stopped vehicle. I thought the CAS May trip because I had experience FALSE Collision Warnings many times in the 88,000 miles I have driving this truck. Before the CAS Collison Warning alerted, I was not in cruise control and was accelerating with the throttle. As stated before the CAS applied hard braking for 1/2 second. I have read the Driver’s Manual about the Driver Assist, Active Braking Assist(CAS) Section 5. On page 5.6 Table 5.2 is says that the above situation can trigger Collision Warning and braking. This may be so, however this has on numerous occasions FALSE Warnings, applied partial braking, and 3 times emergency braking for vehicles that were not traveling in my lane. Earlier this year, Freightliner had a road service mechanic in my company yard to verify that current software and working Driver Assistance Systems on our fleet of trucks. Mechanic determined that this truck was up to date and no recalibration was required. I’m very concerned that the CAS will activate in poor weather conditions, causing a lost of control of the vehicle OR I maybe rear ended by a following vehicle when there is no reason for my vehicle to be stopping. I cannot have the CAS deactivated because it would violate manufacturer, company, and insurance policies.

TIRE SIZE: 275/80 R22.5 MICHELIN ENERGY LINE Z Component that failed is passenger side steer front tire. The inside edge decoupling groove/sidewall failed. Risks include potential tire blow resulting in loss of vehicle control. This failure could cause an accident putting others safety at risk. Both Freightliner Corp. and Michelin Tire Co. are aware of this failure. No one has inspected the tire. I have the tire in my possession. There are/were no warning, messages or symptoms of this problem prior to. This truck was built with a 6X4X6 front air fairing. Mileage on tire at the time of failure was 68,686 miles. This truck is a test with Con Met Corp. and Freightliner Corp. New tires were installed at 474,452 miles along with heat sensors to monitor the heat temperature under the truck. At 526,168 miles I reported the passenger side, inside edge steer was starting to wear a decoupling groove. This was very slight. Tire was not changed. Pursuant to the Michelin Technical Bulletin of 1-2-2022 the tire was inspected every Monday when truck returns to our terminal. On July 13, 2022 the tire psi was checked to verify 110 psi as recommended by Michelin Corp. At 543,148 miles the tire failed. 2 new steer tires installed and the air fairings were removed as recommended by DTNA engineers. Side wall of tire shows excessive heat. Tire was close to blowing. Please review pictures.

TIRE SIZE: 275/80 R22.5 MICHELIN ENERGY LINE Z Component that failed is passenger side steer front tire. The inside edge decoupling groove/sidewall failed. Risks include potential tire blow resulting in loss of vehicle control. This failure could cause an accident putting others safety at risk. Both Freightliner Corp. and Michelin Tire Co. are aware of this failure. No one has inspected the tire. I have the tire in my possession. There are/were no warning, messages or symptoms of this problem prior to. This truck was built with a 4X4X4 front air fairing that was removed after this failure by the request of Freighliner Corp. Mileage on tire at the time of failure was 85,982 miles.

Wednesday 13 July, 2022 6:45pm PDT. Location US395 Lakeview, OR. Collision Avoidance System(CAS) applied maximum AEB braking for a false detection of obstruction in my travel lane. I was following a pickup and horse trailer at about 45mph. The pickup signaled a left turn and slowed. I applied minimum braking. The pickup and trailer turned clearing my travel lane(the tail end of the trailer was in the opposing lane). At this moment the CAS detected a collision warning(I was still applying some braking) and the AEB slammed on the brakes for about half second then canceled. The CAS has falsely detects numerous incidents a day for the 7 months I have driven this truck. The above incident has been the most severe. Other false incidents range from warning(without braking), cutting power to engine, to applying some amount of braking. At NO TIME during this period did the CAS detected a true obstruction. Manufacturer has checked that truck's system software is current and properly calibrated.

The contact owns a 2020 Freightliner Cascadia equipped with Bridgestone Tires, Tire Line: Ecopia M760, Tire Size: 295/75/R22.5, DOT Number: Y7BT3MJ3719. The contact stated while driving approximately 72 MPH, he looked in the rearview mirror and noticed the tire was shredded from the passenger’s side second axle inside. The tire had experienced a blowout. The contact drove safely to the side of the highway. The contact then drove a little further to an area to park the vehicle safely. The contact changed the tire himself and drove to an independent mechanic where the tire was replaced. The contact kept the blowout tire. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The tire was the original tire. The approximate failure mileage was 245,000.

SHOW ABS NOT WORKING SERVICE REQUIRED ABS DETECTED INTERNAL PROBLEM,AND MAY NEED REPROGRAMMING OR REPLASEMENT STABILLY CONTROLS NOT WORKING SERVICE REQUIRED Error CODE 520247 31 ERROR CODE 1810

The contact state that the Detroit Assurance Safety System radar failed. When the contact drove a Freightliner Cascadia at 65 to 68mph south on the New York state freeway howling two 48-foot trailers. The contact stated that the Detroit Assurance Safety System detected an object and locked the brake and steering pushed the tractor and trailers abruptly swing to the right causing the trailers Tai to whiplash. The contact was able to keep the unit from crashing into the guard rail and tipping over. The contact was able to press the camera button and the red light went off. The contact doesn’t remember the Freight liner Cascadia year truck he was driving the truck was put out of service. The contact also wanted to state that the Detroit Assurance Safety System radar failure occurred twice.

I DRIVE A 2020 FREIGHTLINER CASCADIA EQUIPPED WITH THE MERITOR WABCO ON GUARD COLLISION MITIGATION SYSTEM. THIS SYSTEM ROUTINELY SIGNALS AN IMPENDING COLLISION AND APPLIES THE BRAKES, SOMETIMES IN A VERY AGGRESSIVE WAY, FOR NO REASON WHATSOEVER. IT HAPPENS AT LEAST ONCE EVERY SINGLE DAY. THE SYSTEM TAKES COMPLETE CONTROL OF THE VEHICLE BRAKING SYSTEM AND THERE IS NO WAY FOR THE DRIVER TO STOP THE HARD APPLICATION OF THE BRAKES. I HAVE COMPLAINED TO MY LOCAL DEALERSHIP ABOUT THIS PROBLEM AND HAVE BEEN TOLD THAT ALL ON GUARD CMS SYSTEMS DO THIS OCCASIONALLY. I BELIEVE THIS SYSTEM IS UNSAFE AND MERITOR WABCO SHOULD BE COMPELLED TO FIX THIS ISSUE.