Power Train › Automatic Transmission
Filed Oct 6, 2008260,000 milesVA
CAR LOOSING POWER WHEN DRIVING. *TR
1996 Mercedes Benz 300
Routine
Owners filed 8 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the exterior lighting › headlights. No safety recall has been issued.
What fails
| Component | Reports | Crashes | Fires | Injuries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tires | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Suspension › Front › Springs › Coil Springs | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Suspension | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Structure › Body › Door | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Power Train › Automatic Transmission | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Exterior Lighting › Headlights | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Electrical System › Wiring | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Electrical System | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
What owners reported
Newest filingsElectrical System › Wiring
Filed Jan 2, 2008205,650 milesGA
CAR STALLS AT 40+ MPH IN TRAFFIC APPARENTLY CHOKED FOR FUEL. AFTER 5 TO 10 MINUTES AT REST - THE CAR CAN BE STARTED ALTHOUGH THE KEY MUST BE HELD IN THE START POSITION FOR 30 TO 40 SECONDS. THIS IS A 1996 300D MERCEDES BENZ 4-DOOR SEDAN. IT WAS DIAGNOSED BY A CERTIFIED MERCEDES BENZE REPAIR CENTER, CUMMINS AUTOMOTIVE, WHICH VERIFIED THRU FAULT CODES THAT HE ENGINE WIRING HARNESS IS BAD. UPON INSPECTION THEY HAVE FOUND INSULATION WEAR THAT HAS CAUSED THE FAULT (WIRES TOUCHING EACH OTHER) THAT HAS CAUSED THE STALLS.*CN
Electrical System
Filed Aug 27, 2004159,600 milesFL
DRIVING AT 70 MPH ON CRUISE CONTROL AND ELECTRONICS ON FRONT DASH WENT BLANK, CAR DECELERATED, AND I HAD TO GET OFF THE ROAD BEFORE IT STOPPED. CAR WOULD NOT START FOR APPROXIMATELY 30 MINUTES. WAS ABLE TO RESTART AND DRIVE TO SAFETY. DROVE CAR HOME AFTER A FEW DAYS - IN AREA AWAY FROM HOME AND HAD TO USE RENTAL. ON RETURN HOME WITH VEHICLE, IT AGAIN STALLED OUT WHILE DRIVING AT 40MPH ON A DRAWBRIDGE AT NIGHT! AGAIN, CAR WAS ABLE TO EVENTUALLY GET RESTARTED AND DRIVEN TO SAFETY. I HAVE HAD CAR AT MERCEDES DEALERSHIP AND TWO OTHER CAR REPAIR CENTERS THAT WERE ENDORSED. NO ONE CAN FIX THE DEFECT. I HAVE SPENT OVER $12,000 OVER LESS THAN 2 YEARS TO NO AVAIL. WE JUST CONTINUE TO GET MILKED FOR MONEY. THE CAR DOES HAVE 156K MILEAGE ON IT, BUT IS A DIESEL AND HAS BEEN WELL CARED FOR DESPITE THE MILEAGE WITH MAINTENANCE CHECKS AS WARRANTED BY THE DEALER.*AK
Suspension
Filed Apr 1, 2004160,000 milesMA
THE WELDED BRACKET RUSTED, AND IN APRIL 2003, THE LEFT HAND COIL SPRING BRACKET FAILED. ALSO, IN FEBUARY 2004, THE RIGHT HAND COIL SPRING BRACKET FAILED. *AK THE FRONT OF THE VEHICLE JUMPED INTO THE AIR, MADE NOISES, AND A BLACK OBJECT HAD FLOWN OFF THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE VEHICLE. EVERY LIGHT ILLUMINATED ON THE DASH AND THE SPEEDOMETER FAILED. THE "EARS" OF THE BRACKET THAT WERE WELDED ALONG THE BODY CAPTURED WATER WHICH CAUSED THE BRACKET TO SHEAR OFF AND THE SPRING(S) TO FAIL. *SC *JB
Tires
Filed Nov 5, 2003RI
PROBLEMS WITH WRONG SIZE TIRE ON VEHICLE.*MR CONSUMER RETURNED VEHICLE TO PURCHASING DEALER WHO REPLACED THE TIRES WITH THE CORRECT SIZE AT NO CHARGE. *PH
Suspension › Front › Springs › Coil Springs
Filed Sep 29, 2003100,000 milesRI
WHILE SLOWING DOWN TO MAKE A TURN CONSUMER HEARD A POPPING NOISE, THEN A BANG, THE RIGHT FRONT COIL SPRING UPPER CRADLE FAILED. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE WAS UNDETERMINED.*AK
Exterior Lighting › Headlights
Filed May 15, 1998MN
HEADLIGHT BULBS CONTINUE TO FAIL.
Structure › Body › Door
Filed Jun 10, 1997OK
RATTLE IN ONE OF THE DOORS.
8 of 8 complaints, reproduced as filed.
Reading this record
No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.
Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.
Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.