2004 Freightliner Century: recalls and complaints

NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2004 Freightliner Century. The newest campaign is 05V408000. NHTSA received the report on 13 Sep 2005. The NHTSA record gives the component Steering / Linkages. NHTSA has 2 complaints on file for this model year. 2 NHTSA investigations name this model year.

The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.

This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.

Remedy of the newest campaign, 05V408000, in the NHTSA record

Dealers will inspect and attach a tension collar to the steering shaft to secure the connection to the yoke. The recall began on november 16, 2005. Owners may contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.

NHTSA VIN lookup

Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on 1 Oct 2026. Complaint file through 29 Mar 2018. Recall file through 29 Sep 2026.

Since the last update

No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks

All updates to the register

Recall campaigns

3 campaigns, newest first. 52,124 units in total.

05V408000Received 13 Sep 2005. 37,029 units.
Steering / Linkages
Defect, in the NHTSA record
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.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
If this occurs, the vehicle could suffer a loss of steering ability, which could result in a crash.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will inspect and attach a tension collar to the steering shaft to secure the connection to the yoke. The recall began on november 16, 2005. Owners may contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Report filed by FREIGHTLINER LLC. Manufacturer campaign number FL-452. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 16 Nov 2005.
04V590000Received 15 Dec 2004. 1,095 units.
Power Train / Driveline
Defect, in the NHTSA record
On certain vehicles, there is a defect in the interaxle driveline yokes. The bolt holes located on the earwork of the male shaft yokes were manufactured with an oversized minor thread diameter.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
This condition allows the bolts used in the holes to become detached which could result in a driveline separation. Driveline separation could result in a vehicle crash.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will replace the suspect male shaft yokes. The recall began on april 4, 2005. Owners should contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Report filed by FREIGHTLINER LLC. Manufacturer campaign number FL-436. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 4 Apr 2005.
04V205000Received 4 May 2004. 14,000 units.
Power Train / Manual Transmission
Defect, in the NHTSA record
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.
Consequence, in the NHTSA record
If shift lever detachment occurs, tha ability ro accelerate ot maintain speed will be lost, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy, in the NHTSA record
Dealers will re-secure the shift lever to the transmission using threadlock and re-torquing the fastening bolt. Owner notification began on may 21, 2004. Owners should contact freightliner at 1-800-547-0712.
Report filed by FREIGHTLINER LLC. Manufacturer campaign number FL-420. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: 21 May 2004.

The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.

Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.

Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.

Complaints by component

2 complaints, 2 component mentions.

A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. This model year has fewer than 50 component mentions, so the table shows the number of mentions only.

2004 Freightliner Century: component mentions in complaints
Component		Mentions
Unknown or Other		1
Engine and Engine Cooling		1

Complaints that report a crash: 0
Complaints that report a fire: 0
Injuries in the complaints: 0
Deaths in the complaints: 0
Date of the newest complaint: 17 Sep 2006

These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.

Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.

Complaints about the 2004 Freightliner Century, by the year NHTSA received them. The largest year is 2005, with 1 complaint.

Investigations

NHTSA investigations that name the 2004 Freightliner Century
Number	Type	Subject	Component	Opened	Closed	Campaign
PE08009	Preliminary evaluation	POWER STEERING PUMP FAILURES	Steering / Hydraulic Power Assist / Pump	1 Feb 2008	3 Jul 2008
PE06033	Preliminary evaluation	STEERING COLUMN WELD CRACKS	Steering / Column	30 Aug 2006	30 Jan 2007

Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.

Other model years

The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.

A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.

Follow by RSS:Freightliner recallsVehicle recalls

Official channels

NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
NHTSA page of the 2004 Freightliner CenturyThe recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.

Cite this page

Recall Register. 2004 Freightliner Century: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/freightliner/century/2004/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through 29 Sep 2026.

Sources

Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
Licence: US government work, public domain
Recall file through: 29 Sep 2026
Complaint file through: 29 Mar 2018
First complaint in the file: 1 Jan 1995
Manufacturer in the recall file: FREIGHTLINER LLC

The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.

Questions

How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2004 Freightliner Century?: 52,124 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
How many recall campaigns does the Freightliner Century have for all model years?: NHTSA lists 38 recall campaigns for the Freightliner Century, model years 1995 to 2013. 3 of them name the 2004 model year.
Which component do the complaints about the 2004 Freightliner Century name most often?: Unknown or Other: 1 of 2 component mentions.
Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2004 Freightliner Century open?: No. Each of the 2 investigations that name this model year has a closing date in the NHTSA file.