2016 Western Star 4900 problems, complaints & recalls
Safety recalls (10)
Tires 2021-11-17 · campaign 21V896000 · 307 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2012-2021 Freightliner SD 108, Freightliner SD 114, 2016-2020 Freightliner Coronado, 2013 Western Star 6900, 2013-2022 Western Star 4700, Western Star 4900, and 2022 49X vehicles. The tires and rims are not approved and rated for these vehicles from the Tire and Rim Association or tire manufacturer. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 120, "Wheels and Rims-Othe
Risk: Unapproved tires that are not rated for the vehicle can cause tire performance issues, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealer will inspect and replace, as necessary, tires and rims, free of charge. Interim owner notification letters were mailed January 14, 2022. Owner notification letters were mailed on April 22, 2022. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall FL-908.
Visibility:defroster/Defogger/Hvac System:rear Window 2019-11-04 · campaign 19V792000 · 2,725 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2016-2020 Western Star 4900 and 5700 vehicles equipped with sleeper cab vent windows. Due to improper adhesive, the vent window may detach from the vehicle.
Risk: If the vent window detaches while the vehicle is in motion, it can become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the vent windows, free of charge. DTNA issued owners an interim notification on December 27, 2019. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-836.
Service Brakes, Air 2018-05-29 · campaign 18V351000 · 640 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2012-2019 Western Star 4900 trucks built with Lowmax hoods and disc brakes. There may be insufficient clearance between the front brake hose and the hood resulting in the brake hose being chafed.
Risk: Front brake hose chafing may causing air loss, possibly reducing braking effectiveness and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front axle brake hose, free of charge. DTNA issued owners an interim notification on July 27, 2018. The recall began November 27, 2018. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-773.
Equipment 2017-12-15 · campaign 17V810000 · 24,860 vehicles
Defect: 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. These vehicles are equipped with Kidde Plastic-Handle or Push Button 'Pindicator' Fire Extinguishers that may become clogged, preventing the extinguisher from discharging as expected or excessive force may be needed to activate the extinguisher. Additionally, in certain models, the nozzle may detach fr
Risk: In the event of a fire, if the fire extinguisher does not function properly, it can increase the risk of injury.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and instruct them to contact Kidde for a replacement fire extinguisher, free of charge. The recall began on April 11, 2018. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712, or contact Kidde customer service toll-free at 1-855-262-3540, or online at www.kidde.com and click on "Product Safety Recall" for more information. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-759.
Exterior Lighting:brake Lights:switch 2017-11-27 · campaign 17V761000 · 438,255 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America, LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2008-2018 Freightliner Cascadia, Western Star 4700, 4900, 5700, and 6900 trucks. After hard brake applications, the brake light pressure switch may not activate the brake lights with a light application of the brake pedal.
Risk: If the brake lights fail to illuminate, there would not be a signal to other motorists that the vehicle is slowing, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles, free of charge. Daimler issued interim notifications to owners on January 22, 2018. The recall began on May 9, 2018. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-756.
Steering:linkages:tie Rod Assembly 2017-10-06 · campaign 17V628000 · 41 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2016 Western Star 4900 and Freightliner Cascadia vehicles, equipped with certain Spicer D-Series and E-Series steer axles. The castellated nut on the steer axles may not be properly torqued, allowing the tie rod to loosen.
Risk: If the tie rod loosens, it may disconnect from the steering knuckle, causing a complete loss of steering and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the torque of the castellated nut and tie rod, tightening it as necessary. If the tie rod stud and knuckle on units cannot be sufficiently torqued, the dealer will replace the knuckle and tie rod end assembly, free of charge. DTNA issued an interim to owners on December 4, 2017. The recall began on March 7, 2018. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-751.
Service Brakes, Air 2017-02-27 · campaign 17V124000 · 450 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain 2015-2018 Western Star 4900 trucks. The aluminum air tanks on these vehicles may have improper welds possibly resulting in a rapid loss of air pressure.
Risk: A rapid loss of air pressure without warning may cause a sudden application of the park brakes, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the aluminum air tanks with steel, triple compartment, air tanks, free of charge. The recall began on April 27, 2017. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-732.
Seat Belts 2016-10-05 · campaign 16V711000 · 1,944 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2014-2017 Western Star 4900 and 5700 trucks manufactured March 22, 2013, to September 23, 2016 and equipped with a Stratosphere sleeper cab. The seat belt mounting plate may have a drill hole that is too large.
Risk: If the plate has a hole that is too big, the plate may fail when it stressed such as in the event of a crash, preventing the seat belt from adequately restraining the seat occupant, increasing the risk of injury.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will reinforce the seat belt mounting plate, free of charge. An interim notice was mailed to owners on December 7 2016. The final remedy is now available. A second notice was mailed to owners on February 24, 2017. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-725.
Power Train:axle Assembly 2015-12-22 · campaign 15V859000 · 43 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America, Inc. (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2015-2016 Freightliner 108SD, 114SD, Business Class M2, and Western Star 4900 vehicles manufactured September 26, 2014, to November 6, 2015, and equipped with certain drive axles manufactured by Marmon-Herrington. The affected axles have hex nuts on the flange yoke that may not have been properly tightened.
Risk: If the hex nuts are not tightened to specification, the driveshaft may disconnect from the drive axle, resulting in a loss of propulsion and increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the hex nuts, tightening them as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on February 5, 2016. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-745-8000, or Marmon-Herrington customer service at 1-800-547-0712. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-699.
Electrical System:ignition:module 2015-10-02 · campaign 15V620000 · 273 vehicles
Defect: Daimler Trucks North America LLC (DTNA) is recalling certain model year 2016 Freightliner Cascadia, Business Class M2, 108SD, 114SD, and 122SD, Western Star 4700 and 4900, Thomas Built Buses Saf-T-Liner C2, and Freightliner MT55 vehicles manufactured August 7, 2015, to August 26, 2015. The affected vehicles are equipped with certain Cummins ISB6.7, ISL9, ISX12 or ISX15 engines whose engine control module (ECM) may short circuit and blow a fuse resulting in the engine stalling without warning.
Risk: An engine that stalls without warning increases the risk of a crash.
Fix: DTNA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the ECM free of charge. The recall began on October 22, 2015. Owners may contact DTNA customer service at 1-800-745-8000. DTNA's number for this recall is FL-690.
Service bulletins (718)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Unknown Or Other 2026-05-07 · TSB-00-018-WST · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
technical service bulletin for starnet manuals moving to technical literature
Engine 2025-03-20 · CXA 3_25_NOx · Other
cx advocate for nox conversion low faults
Engine 2025-02-20 · CXA 2_25_Turbo Oil Drain · Other
cx advocate for turbo oil drain cracking
Engine 2025-02-20 · CXA 2_25_NOx · Other
cx advocate for nox conversion low faults
Engine 2025-01-16 · CXA 1_16_Turbo Oil Drain · Other
cx advocate for turbo oil drain cracking
Engine 2025-01-16 · CXA 1_16_NOx · Other
cx advocate for nox conversion low faults
Showing the 6 most recent of 718 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
No detailed complaint narratives on file.
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.