Mini Cooper Countryman vs Mercedes Benz E Class

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	Mini Cooper Countryman	Mercedes Benz E Class
Complaints on file	165	412
Model years covered	2011–2013	1993–2008
Worst model year	2012	2003
Best model year	2013	1996
Crashes reported	6	14
Fires reported	18	12
Injuries reported	0	8
Deaths reported	0	0
Most complained-about part	Engine & Cooling	Electrical System
Share of complaints involving harm	14.5%	8.3%

Mini Cooper Countryman by year

46 81 38

11 12 13

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

What breaks

Engine & Cooling 39 23.6%

Electrical System 33 20.0%

Airbags 13 7.9%

Transmission & Drivetrain 11 6.7%

Other & Unspecified 10 6.1%

Fuel & Propulsion 8 4.8%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 8 4.8%

Seat Belts 8 4.8%

Mercedes Benz E Class by year

9 46 29 18 43 31 20 61 33 8 69 19 10 11 5

93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 08

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

What breaks

Electrical System 99 24.0%

Suspension 57 13.8%

Fuel & Propulsion 39 9.5%

Engine & Cooling 38 9.2%

Brakes 34 8.3%

Transmission & Drivetrain 20 4.9%

Body & Structure 18 4.4%

Windows, Mirrors & Wipers 17 4.1%