Daimler to recall over 100,000 SUV over power steering defect

Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz has recalled almost 103,000 sport utility vehicles because of a defect that could cause a loss of power steering, US safety regulators said on Thursday.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said 102,954 Mercedes M-Class SUVs from model years 1998 to 2003 were covered by the recall.

A clamp used to secure a cooling hose for power-steering systems on the vehicles may not hold with enough force, NHTSA said in the recall notice posted on its website. That loose hose connection could result in diminished power steering and could damage the power steering pump on the vehicles, NHTSA said.

"This could result in a loss of control and a crash without warning," NHTSA said. The recall is expected to begin in October. The automaker, based in Stuttgart, Germany, will begin notifying owners next month, according to its letter.

Daimler's voluntary action involves some of the 227,484 M-Class vehicles involved in the earlier recall. The second round of repairs is for vehicles on which the previous work was done before 15 November 2003, the agency said.

The Mercedes-Benz M-Class is a mid-size sport utility vehicle (SUV) with light off-road capability, first offered in 1997 as a 1998 model.

It marked a shift at Mercedes-Benz in becoming a global player; while it had plants outside Germany before, they merely built German models. Gradually, the M-Class became a sales success in the US.

The vehicle famously featured in the blockbuster movie ''The Lost World: Jurassic Park'' in 1997.