RoadVitals

1998 Mercedes-Benz 400 Owner Complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full

Data refreshed

Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
2
Latest Mar 21, 2002
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
0
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Nov 3, 2000

What this page shows

Our database holds 2 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1998 Mercedes-Benz 400. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Complaints, most recent first

Showing 1–2 of 2

Airbags
Filed Mar 21, 2002
1 injury reported

WHILE TRAVELING 55 MPH AND WHEN MAKING A SUDDEN STOP AIR BAGS DEPLOYED WITHOUT ANY INDICATION, CAUSING INJURY TO CONSUMER'S FACE. DEALER HAS BEEN CONTACTED. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.*AK

NHTSA ID
8006094
Engine
Filed Nov 3, 2000

I HAVE A MERCEDES S420 AND HAVE HAD A CONTINUING PROBLEM WITH BAD FUMES IN THE CAR THAT ARE MAKING MY WHOLE FAMILY REALLY SICK. THE PROBLEM STARTED WHEN WE FIRST GOT THE CAR AND RECENTLY HAS BECOME SO BAD THAT I HAVE HAD TO GET AN INHAILER FROM MY DOCTOR TO BREATHE. WE HAD IT AT THE DEALER WHEN WE FIRST GOT IT AND 3 TIMES FOR MANY DAYS AT A TIME RECENTLY AND COMPLAINED THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT WAS COMING ON BUT THEY SAID THEY DID NOT THINK THERE WAS A PROBLEM. WE ARE GETTING REALLY SICK WITH OUR EYES BURNING SO WE HAD THE CAR LOOKED AT BCERTIFIED MECHANICS WHO SAID THE "HEAT COIL" IS BAD AND LOOKS LIKE IT MAY BE DEFECTIVE CAUSING COOLANT DRIP OUT AND BURN AND CAUSING FUMES IN THE CAR THAT COULD BE MAKING US SICK. THIS MAY BE A PROBLEM FROM WHEN WE FIRST GOT THE CAR. THE "HEAT SHIELD" ON THE FLOOR OF THE CAR MAY BE DEFECTIVE ALSO SO HEAT AND FUMES FROM THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER MAY BE COMING IN THE CAR TOO. MY LUNGS HAVE BEEN SEVERELY DAMAGED AND WE ARE HAVING GREAT DIFFICULTY WITH THE MERCEDES DEALER GETTING THEM TO HELP US. I JUST WANT HELP FIXING THE CAR AND DO NOT CARE ABOUT COST AND FEEL THEY DON'T WANT TO FIX IT BECAUSE IT IS UNDER WARRANTY BUT MY LUNGS HAVE BEEN SEVERELY DAMAGED AND I JUST DON'T WANT OTHER PEOPLE TO BE HARMED FROM FUMES EITHER AND THOUGHT IT MAY BE HELPFUL FOR YOU TO KNOW IN CASE THERE ARE REAL PROBLEMS WITH THIS MERCEDES MODEL. I HAVE ALWAYS HAD TROUBLE BREATHING IN IT AND RECENTLY IT BECAME SO BAD MY DOCTOR TOLD ME NOT TO RIDE IN THE CAR. PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF THERE IS ANY WAY TO GET THE CAR TESTED FOR DANGEROUS FUMES OR ANYTHING YOU MAY RECOMMEND IF THIS MERCEDES MODEL HAS HAD PROBLEMS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP AND I REALLY WANT TO HELP PREVENT OTHER PEOPLE FROM GETTING SICK IF IT IS A DEFECT THAT CAN HURT PEOPLE'S LUNGS AND BREATHING. THANK YOU. PATRICIA BORLAND. *AK

NHTSA ID
735704
Incident
Jul 20, 2000

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .