1996 Mercedes Benz S420

Routine

Owners filed 1 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the electrical system. No safety recall has been issued.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Electrical System1
000

What owners reported

Newest filings
Electrical System
Filed Jul 10, 2019147,000 milesFL

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 MERCEDES-BENZ S420. WHILE DRIVING 70 MPH, THE SRS, VSR, TIRE AND OTHER UNKNOWN INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE CONTACT COASTED THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND POWERED OFF THE ENGINE. THE VEHICLE WAS RESTARTED AND WAS ABLE TO DRIVE NORMALLY. WHILE DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD, THE FAILURES RECURRED A FEW TIMES. THE CONTACT CALLED AAA AND THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE CONTACT'S RESIDENCE. ON ANOTHER OCCASION, THE STEERING WHEEL BECAME DIFFICULT TO TURN, ONE OF THE TIRES CAME OFF THE RIM, THE RIM WAS CRACKED, AND THE WINDOWS FAILED TO GO UP AND DOWN. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO INFORMED THE CONTACT TO TAKE THE VEHICLE TO A MERCEDES-BENZ DEALER. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FAILURE OCCURRED NUMEROUS TIMES. THE MANUFACTURER AND DEALER WERE NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 147,000.

1 of 1 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 1995
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
19994000Routine
19981000Routine
1996 — this page1000Routine
19955000Routine

Compare every S420 year →

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.