2010 Sterling Acterra: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2010 Sterling Acterra
No owner has filed a defect report with NHTSA about the 2010 Sterling Acterra. That is not a clean bill of health — it usually means few were sold, or the year is too new for problems to have surfaced.
Recalls on the 2010 model year
NHTSA has issued 5 recall campaigns covering the 2010 Sterling Acterra, affecting an estimated 911 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover engine and engine cooling:engine, engine and engine cooling and steering:column. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
One caution about reading these together: a recall usually raises the complaint count for the same part, because owners who read about it go and file. The mileages stay informative; the counts get noisy.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
43 vehicles 2011-08-31- Defect
- Daimler trucks north america is recalling certain model year 2005 through 2012 freightliner m2, sterling acterra, 7500 & 8500, and thomas built hdx vehicles manufactured from june 23, 2004, through march 15, 2011, equipped with specific mbe900 epa04 and epa07 model engines. The intake air grid heater may short circuit and fail due to excessive internal temperatures.
- Consequence
- A short circuited grid heater could result in a vehicle fire and injury to vehicle occupants.
- Remedy
- Daimler trucks will notify owners, and dealers will repair the vehicles free of charge. Repairs will be performed by detroit diesel corporation authorized repair facilities. The safety recall began on september 12, 2011. Owners may contact daimler trucks toll-free at 1-800-547-0712. This recall is an expansion of a previous recall, campaign number 10v-341.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
58 vehicles 2010-10-08- Defect
- Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2007 through 2010 freightliner business class m2, custom chassis mt45, s2 chassis, and stering acterra vehicles manufactured from october 5, 2006, through may 24, 2010, equipped with epa 2007 mbe 900 detroit diesel engines. Engine software may not react properly to certain aftermarket treatment device fault codes. The software may unnecessarily shutdown a vehicle or may fail to shutdown a vehicle with an aftermarket device over-temp fault.
- Consequence
- Unexpected shutdown of a vehicle may increase the risk of a crash. Overheating of the aftertreatment device without engine shutdown may result in a fire.
- Remedy
- Daimler trucks will notify owners and repairs will be performed by detroit diesel free of charge. The safety recall began on december 30, 2010. Owners may contact daimler trucks at 1-800-547-0712.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
5,743 vehicles 2010-07-27- Defect
- 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 and epa07 model engines. The intake air grid heater may short circuit and fail due to excessive internal temperatures.
- Consequence
- A short circuited grid heater could result in a vehicle fire and injury to vehicle occupants.
- Remedy
- Daimler trucks will notify owners and dealers will repair the buses free of charge. Repairs will be performed by detroit diesel corporation authorized repair facilities. The safety recall is expected to begin on or about july 29, 2011. Owners may contact daimler trucks toll-free at 1-800-547-0712.
STEERING:COLUMN
6,325 vehicles 2010-07-13- Defect
- Daimler trucks (dtna) is recalling certain model year 2009 and 2010 freightliner business class m2, sterling acterra, a-line, and l-line heavy trucks manufactured from september 8, 2008 through april 20, 2009 equipped with trw igen3 intermediate steering columns. The weld around the igen3 steering shaft tube that secures the spline tube to the intermediate tube may be mislocated (I.e., not fully over the seam created when the tubes are pressed together.)
- Consequence
- Mislocated welds may result in torsional and axial strength falling below acceptable levels. This condition could result in separation of the steering column, loss of steering control and a vehicle crash without warning.
- Remedy
- Dtna will notify owners and the buses will be repaired free of charge. The safety recall began on december 23, 2010. Owners may contact dtna at 1-800-547-0712.
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
101 vehicles 2009-11-24- Defect
- Daimler trucks is recalling certain model year 2008 through 2010 freightliner m2, custom chassis mt55, and sterling acterra vehicles manufactured between april 4, 2007 and july 15, 2009, equipped with cummins isc cm2150 and isl cm2150 model diesel engines. The vehicles may be designed with a hard wired, dash-mounted switch that enables the vehicle operator to inhibit aftertreatment diesel particulate filter regeneration in environments where the operator believes it may be unsafe for elevated exhaust temperatures. Due to an issue with the logic in the ECM software in…
- Consequence
- This condition will permit hot exhaust gases to exit the vehicle tailpipe, increasing the risk of melting or burning of nearby surfaces, or a fire.
- Remedy
- Daimler trucks is working with cummins to repair the engines free of charge. Please see cummins' defect report 09e-046. The safety recall is expected to begin during november 2009. Owners may contact cummins at 1-800-diesels (1-800-343-7357) or daimler trucks at 1-800-547-0712.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
Every year of the Sterling Acterra
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
Why this page is short
A model year needs about 8 reports before percentiles mean anything, and this one does not have them. Complaint volume tracks how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road, so a thin page usually means a rare car, a new car, or a car whose owners do not file.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed