Mercedes Benz 240 vs BMW 325CI

Both cars' complete complaint records, side by side.

Read the totals carefully. NHTSA publishes no sales figures, so the car that sold more collects more complaints regardless of quality. The rows worth weighing are the proportions — the share of complaints that involved harm, and which part dominates.

Measure	Mercedes Benz 240	BMW 325CI
Complaints on file	116	289
Model years covered	1979–2003	2000–2006
Worst model year	2002	2001
Best model year	2001	2003
Crashes reported	19	8
Fires reported	2	18
Injuries reported	6	10
Deaths reported	0	0
Most complained-about part	Electrical System	Airbags
Share of complaints involving harm	23.3%	12.5%

Mercedes Benz 240 by year

1 1 2 3 1 29 45 34

79 80 83 95 99 01 02 03

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Electrical System 19 16.4%

Engine & Cooling 13 11.2%

Fuel & Propulsion 12 10.3%

Transmission & Drivetrain 8 6.9%

Airbags 8 6.9%

Body & Structure 8 6.9%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 8 6.9%

Brakes 7 6.0%

BMW 325CI by year

9 56 33 35 76 40 40

00 01 02 03 04 05 06

Complaints filed with NHTSA, by model year. Bar colour is the FaultScore grade: A B C D F ungraded

What breaks

Airbags 133 46.0%

Electrical System 24 8.3%

Engine & Cooling 21 7.3%

Lights 21 7.3%

Transmission & Drivetrain 17 5.9%

Fuel & Propulsion 12 4.2%

Body & Structure 9 3.1%

Suspension 9 3.1%