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Mercedes has become ensnared in the never-engined fog of controversy surrounding diesel emissions and has announced a global recall of three-million diesel-engined vehicles to have their software updated.
The move comes following a meeting between senior Mercedes executives and officials of the German transport ministry in Berlin and, as with Audi's recent announcement of an 850,000-strong recall of its V6 and V8 TDI diesel engines, seems calculated to head off a possible sales ban for some of its engines.
As yet, we don't know how many Irish cars will be involved in the recall, but it is clearly a serious issue for Mercedes, which has continued to invest heavily in diesel technology.
For the current E-Class, a reported €2-billion was sunk into the development of just the new 2.0-litre, four-cylinder diesel engine family.
"The public debate about diesel engines is creating uncertainty," Daimler chief executive Dieter Zetsche said in a statement on Tuesday. "We have therefore decided on additional measures to reassure drivers of diesel cars and to strengthen confidence in diesel technology."
Mercedes is hoping that by taking a proactive stance, and issuing a voluntary recall, it can avoid the sort of scandal that swept up Volkswagen, as well as heading off calls from several German cities, which are suffering record air pollution levels, to have diesel cars banned outright from their streets. German police raided Mercedes' offices in May, searching for possible evidence of diesel pollution cheating.
Irish customers affected by the recall will be informed by post in the coming weeks and months.