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September 11, 2000 4:50 PM, EDT

Freightliner announced late Monday it is preparing its North American dealers to handle inspections of 45,000 vehicles – 39,000 of them being heavy trucks – due to defective Bendix Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) EC 17-1030R electronic control units (ECUs).

The first phase of the recall was for Freightliner-made buses and emergency vehicles; the second phase, just announced, is for 35,400 Sterling brand trucks and 3,600 Freightliner brand trucks manufactured between Feb. 13, 1998 and Aug. 16, 2000. Sterling is a division of Freightliner, which in turn is a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not yet required a recall of trucks equipped with the Bendix ABS unit, but Freightliner is recalling those trucks anyway. Last week, Volvo recalled 18,000 trucks because of the faulty Bendix unit.