Mercedes Benz SL Class
Owners filed 31 complaints across 10 model years of the Mercedes Benz SL Class. The 1998 drew the most (12); the 2013 the fewest (0).
Model years10
Complaints31
Recalls15
Fires1
Deaths0
Every Mercedes Benz SL Class model year compared
Complaints per year| Year | Complaints | Relative volume | Recalls | Fires | Crashes | Most reported | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2009 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2006 | 0 | 1 | — | — | — | Routine | |
| 2005 | 2 | 1 | — | 1 | Suspension › Front | Routine | |
| 2004 | 3 | 3 | — | — | Service Brakes, Hydraulic | Routine | |
| 2003 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 1 | Service Brakes, Hydraulic | Routine | |
| 2002 | 1 | 0 | — | — | Engine and Engine Cooling | Routine | |
| 1998 | 12 | 0 | — | — | Equipment › Electrical › Radio/Tape Deck/Cd Etc. | Routine | |
| 1997 | 2 | 2 | — | — | Air Bags › Frontal | Routine | |
| 1996 | 2 | 3 | — | — | Electrical System › Wiring › Front Underhood | Routine |
Which Mercedes Benz SL Class years should you avoid?
On raw complaint volume the 1998 is the weakest year on record, with 12 complaints concentrated in the equipment › electrical › radio/tape deck/cd etc..
Read these numbers with sales volume in mind. A model year that sold in huge numbers naturally accumulates more reports than a rare one, and older cars have had more years to fail. The stronger signal is the severity columns and whether the same component keeps coming up year after year.
Data: NHTSA complaint and recall files, September 2026. Complaints are unverified owner reports.