Mercedes Benz CL Class vs Harley-Davidson Flhtc

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 CL Class	Harley-Davidson Flhtc
Complaints on file	52	130
Model years covered	2000–2004	1989–2013
Worst model year	2003	2009
Best model year	2004	2008
Crashes reported	11	9
Fires reported	14	0
Injuries reported	8	8
Deaths reported	8	0
Most complained-about part	Suspension	Electrical System
Share of complaints involving harm	78.8%	13.1%

Mercedes Benz CL Class by year

1 4 25 12 10

00 01 02 03 04

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

What breaks

Suspension 9 17.3%

Electrical System 7 13.5%

Engine & Cooling 5 9.6%

Airbags 4 7.7%

Lights 4 7.7%

Seat Belts 4 7.7%

Tires 3 5.8%

Seats 3 5.8%

Harley-Davidson Flhtc by year

3 2 3 2 8 6 2 1 3 7 2 8 3 2 3 16 17 23 9 4 3 3

89 90 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 05 07 08 09 10 11 12 13

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

What breaks

Electrical System 28 21.5%

Engine & Cooling 22 16.9%

Brakes 22 16.9%

Transmission & Drivetrain 13 10.0%

Suspension 8 6.2%

Acceleration & Cruise Control 7 5.4%

Fuel & Propulsion 7 5.4%

Wheels 6 4.6%