FaultScore report
Owners have filed 10 complaints about the 1999 Mercedes Benz S Class with NHTSA between 2001 and 2008. The largest single group is the airbags. Across this model's run it ranks 6 of 8 worst.
FaultScore 37/100
Higher is worse. Measured against the other years of the Mercedes Benz S Class.
How this is worked out10
Complaints
1
Crashes reported
0
Fires reported
1
Injuries reported
96,500 mi
Median mileage at failure
Half of reported failures happened before this
0%
Failed under 36,000 miles
Inside a typical bumper-to-bumper warranty
The letter says how bad. This says what kind — whether this year drew an unusual number of complaints, unusually dangerous ones, or failures that arrived unusually early.
Click any bar to open that year's report.
Every complaint is filed against a part. Follow any row for the complaints about that part alone.
1 crashes, 0 fires · median 85,500 mi
Median failure at 107,258 miles
Median failure at 70,000 miles
Median failure at 124,027 miles
Odometer readings owners gave when they filed. About half of all complaints include one.
A spike years after the car went on sale usually means a part wearing out on schedule across the whole fleet — the kind of pattern no single owner can see from inside their own car.
Reports where the owner recorded a crash, a fire, an injury or a death.
AIR BAGS
AIRBAGS IN 1999 S500 MERCEDES FAILED TO DEPLOY IN FRONTAL COLLISION WITH A UTILITY POLE AT SPEED ESTIMATED BETWEEN 15-25 MPH. DRIVER WAS WEARING HIS SEAT BELT.
NHTSA complaint #10169599 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
In the owners' own words, exactly as filed with NHTSA.
AIR BAGS
MERCEDES S-CLASS W220 AIRMATIC PROBLEMS,DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! THEY ARE SUCKING USS OUTTTTTT!
NHTSA complaint #10253298 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SUSPENSION
MERCEDES S-CLASS W220 AIRMATIC PROBLEMS,DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! THEY ARE SUCKING USS OUTTTTTT!
NHTSA complaint #10253298 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
VISIBILITY
REAR VIEW MIRROR FAILURE ON 1999 MERCEDES BENZ S320. MIRROR IS AN AUTO DIM REAR VIEW MIRROR AND VIEW IS OBSTRUCTED BECAUSE LIQUID CRYSTAL MATERIAL IS "LEAKING" OUT OF MIRROR. THIS IS A DESIGN AND QUALITY ISSUE THAT WOULD NOT OCCUR WITH A STANDARD REAR VIEW MIRROR. THERE IS NO MANUAL FAILOVER ON MIRROR SO THE VEHICLE CAN BE DRIVEN SAFELY IN THE EVENT OF A FAILURE. MAGNA DONNELLY CORPORATION WILLFULLY AND KNOWINGLY PRODUCES A DEFECTIVE PRODUCT SOLD TO THOUSANDS OF OEMS AND NOW REFUSES TO REPAIR THEIR DEFECTIVE PRODUCTS. PREVIOUSLY THIS COMPANY REPLACED THE DEFECTIVE MIRRORS AND NOW THEY REFUSE.
NHTSA complaint #10252675 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
TIRES:SIDEWALL
I HAD 4 KUMHO SOLUS KH16 TIRES INSTALLED ON A 1999 MERCEDES S500 ON 1/17/07. THESE TIRES HAVE BEEN DRIVEN APPROXIMATELY 15,000 MILES. THE TIRE ON THE RIGHT REAR FAILED ON FEB. 10, 2008 AND WAS SUDDEN AND UNEXPECTED. MY WIFE HAD JUST STOPPED FOR A TRAFFIC LIGHT AND WAS ACCELERATING TO THE POSTED SPEED LIMIT OF 45 MPH. THE CAR WAS TRAVELING AT APPROXIMATELY 35 MPH WHEN THE FAILURE OCCURRED. SHE IMMEDIATELY PULLED ON TO THE GRASS MEDIAN WHEN SHE HEARD "CLUNK, CLUNK" FROM THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. I PERIODICALLY CHECK TIRE PRESSURES ON OUR CARS AND CHECKED THE TIRE PRESSURES THE PREVIOUS DAY AND ALL FOUR TIRES HAD APPROXIMATELY 30 LBS. OF AIR PRESSURE. THE TIRES HAD BEEN HOLDING THIS PRESSURE FOR SEVERAL MONTHS. ON THE DAY OF THE FAILURE THE CAR WAS DRIVEN APPROXIMATELY 12 MILES WHEN THE TIRE SUDDENLY FAILED. I CLOSELY INSPECTED THIS TIRE AND THERE WAS NO INDICATION OF PUNCTURE. HOWEVER, I NOTICED THAT THE SIDEWALL OF THE TIRE HAD SEPARATED. THE SEPARATION IS SO SEVERE THAT THE TIRE WILL NOT HOLD ANY AIR PRESSURE. I AM VERY CONCERNED ABOUT THIS INCIDENT, SINCE I STILL HAVE THREE MORE OF THESE TIRES ON THE VEHICLE AND WE FREQUENTLY TRAVEL ON INTERSTATE HIGHWAYS AND TOLL ROADS AT SPEEDS OF 65 TO 70 MPH. A TIRE FAILURE AT THIS SPEED COULD BE CATASTROPHIC.
NHTSA complaint #10217679 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SUSPENSION:REAR:SPRINGS:AIR SUSPENSION SYSTEM
AIRMATIC WARNING KEEP COMING UP, SAY THE CAR IS TO LOW STOP.
NHTSA complaint #10207602 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
AIR BAGS:FRONTAL:SENSOR/CONTROL MODULE
THE SRS LIGHT ON THE DASH INDICATES A POTENTAL AIR BAG MALFUNCTION. THE DEALER CONFIRMS THE SRS MODULE HAS FAILED ON MY 1999 MERCEDES S320 MAKING THE AIR BAGS INOPERABLE. COUNTRY OF ORIGIN GERMANY MANUFACTURER MERCEDES-BENZ MODEL S320W 4DR SEDAN 5 PASSENGER THE QUOTED COST FOR REPAIR IS $620.00 FOR THE SRS MODULE AND A FURTHER $182.00 LABOR. THE TOTAL REPAIR COST OF OVER $800 IS EXORBITANT AND PREYS ON THE PUBLIC NEED FOR SAFTEY. HAS THERE BEEN A NHTSA RECALL OR A MANUFACTURER TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETIN? VERBAL OVERVERTURES TO MB AND THE DEALER HAVE FAILED TO FIND RELIEF, AND A LETTER TO MERECEDES BENZ HAS GONE UNANSWERED. UPDATED IVOQ. 02/05/10
NHTSA complaint #10191682 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT
WHEN I TRIED TO FASTEN THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT IT WOULDN'T RELEASE. AFTER TWO ATTEMPTS TO RELEASE THE SEAT BELT, IT FULLY RELEASED WITHOUT ANY TENSION ON THE SEAT BELT. THE DRIVER'S SEAT BELT IS COMPLETELY USELESS AS A RESTRAINING DEVICE SINCE THERE IS NO TENSION.
NHTSA complaint #10188594 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
AIR BAGS
AIRBAGS IN 1999 S500 MERCEDES FAILED TO DEPLOY IN FRONTAL COLLISION WITH A UTILITY POLE AT SPEED ESTIMATED BETWEEN 15-25 MPH. DRIVER WAS WEARING HIS SEAT BELT.
NHTSA complaint #10169599 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
SEAT BELTS:FRONT:RETRACTOR
THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE AND DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELTS WERE NOT RETRACTING. *AK *SC
NHTSA complaint #10097596 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION:PARK/NEUTRAL START INTERLOCK SWITCH
WHILE VEHICLE WAS PARKED INSIDE GARAGE CONSUMER'S CHILD BUMPED PARK PAWL CAUSING VEHICLE TO ROLL BACKWARDS OUT OF GARGE AND DOWN DRIVEWAY. CONSUMER JUMPED HEAD FRIST THROUGH WINDOW AND DEPRESSED BRAKE PEDAL BY HAND TO STOP VEHICLE. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.
NHTSA complaint #890184 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.