2006 Mercedes-Benz E350 Owner Complaints

Mercedes Benz issued a recall and extended a warranty on its 2003-2005 E Class SBC braking systems (recall # 2005110001) and extended the warranty to 25 years; the 2006 E Class models have the exact same SBC braking system but is not included in the recall. Mercedes needs to add the 2006 E Class models to recall # 2005110001. My 2006 is experiencing the same SBC issues the 2003-2005 models are known to have but because my vehicle is 2006 it is not covered by the extended warranty.

NHTSA ID

11702819

Incident

Oct 1, 2025

The contact called on behalf of the owner of a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that while his mother was driving at an undisclosed speed and approaching a traffic light, the brake pedal was depressed; however, the brakes failed to function as intended. The brake pedal was depressed down to the floorboard. The contact's mother used the parking brake to stop the vehicle. The ABS warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was towed to the residence and then to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was diagnosed with Sensotronic Brake Control (SBC) system failure. The contact was informed that the Sensotronic Brake Control system needed to be replaced. The vehicle remained with the mechanic unrepaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact to report the failure to the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 180,000.

NHTSA ID

11695309

Incident

Oct 12, 2025

Mileage

180,000 mi

The contact's son owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that while his son was driving at an undisclosed speed, the sunroof detached and shattered on the roadway. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. After investigating the failure, the contact related the failure to NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V918000 (Visibility) and 22V954000 (Visibility); however, the VIN was included in the recalls, but the vehicle had been repaired in 2023 and 2025. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 97,900.

NHTSA ID

11694784

Incident

Oct 18, 2025

Mileage

97,900 mi

Reduce power braking depress brake fully keeps popping up on my dash and not letting me take it out of gear

NHTSA ID

11663896

Incident

May 30, 2025

The engine in these cars are defective and can cause serious harm due to a part that was put inside the motor made of plastic. There was a lawsuit but if you didn’t get in on it you losses out for not knowing. I was recently at Mercedes dealership to fix recalls and they brushed me off. The car can catch fire and I’m already experiencing engine failure after only owning the car for a year. They don’t care because it’s an old car but it’s still being sold to unsuspecting buyers. I’m not the only one there are thousands of us who are at risk driving these cars because Mercedes won’t admit their off the showroom floor mistake.

NHTSA ID

11611501

Incident

Aug 28, 2024

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated while driving at 35 MPH, the vehicle would not stop when depressing the brake pedal. No warning lights were illuminated, however, the contact stated the entire instrument panel was illuminated in red. The vehicle was taken to a local independent mechanic where the vehicle's brake line, brakes, and rotors were replaced. The contact stated the failure recurred. The vehicle was driven to the contact's residence and was not repaired. The contact referenced the manufacturer recall 2005110001 Sensotronic Brake Control as a possible solution however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 149,000.

NHTSA ID

11578703

Incident

Mar 8, 2024

Mileage

149,000 mi

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that upon depressing the brake pedal, there was a beeping sound coming from the vehicle with a message stating "Stop, Reduced Braking Power, Depress Brake Pedal Fully" displayed on the instrument panel. The contact pulled over to shoulder of the road. Due to the failure, the vehicle was towed to the residence. The dealer was notified of the failure and the contact was informed that the vehicle was not covered under NHTSA Campaign Number: 05V133000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) which was linked to the failure. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and the contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 177,000.

NHTSA ID

11569912

Incident

Sep 1, 2023

Mileage

177,000 mi

Certain Mercedes-Benz models 2005- 2007 M272 V6 and M273 V8’s have faced or are facing issues regarding the balance sprocket in which drives the camshaft and crankshaft of the vehicle. Mercedes-Benz had made a decision to make certain engine components out of soft metals, when such metals are not adequate in handling the stress of the engine. In particular, in many cases, the balance sprocket was made with inadequate materials and gradually deteriorated to the point in which it could not engage the timing chain and cause camshaft-crankshaft misalignment. I personally did not experience such failure yet but it is more of a concern as this is a common issue , the repair is quite substantial and the failure can damage the engine even more

NHTSA ID

11562755

Incident

Dec 30, 2023

Engine codes P0016 and P0017 reads cam shaft and crank shaft correlation it is everywhere on the internet and on the Mercedes Benz Forum.This is a know problem that Mercedes has ignored. its on all 2004 thru 2008 vehicles with the 3.5 engine. Calls for a balancer shaft replacement. This should definitely be a recall issue.The industry knows that is was poorly manufactured part. Your help with rectifying this issue would greatly help the and restore the reputation of Mercedes and restore faith in Mercedes Benz owners. My vehicle is a 2006 E350 4 Matic with only 113,634 miles

NHTSA ID

11552776

Incident

Oct 17, 2023

PZEV fuel tank leaks at top but is not repairable. Replacement requires complete tank replacment which is not economically feasilble. This forces owners to continue to operate vehicle with fuel leakage since repair of the tank is not possible. In older models a simple gasket change would resolve such leaks, in the PZEV tank leaks can not be repaired and thus are left uncorrected. Many of these vehicles are now owned by minority owners who are unable to pay $5000 to repair a defective design. MB refuses to support owners.

NHTSA ID

11512596

Incident

Mar 13, 2023

Driving the vehicle on several occasions on Interstate 66 and the vehicle spontaneously went into limp mode. Now we find out it's a balance shaft issue and is a known problem from Mercedes in the M272 engines for our 2006 E350 4-matic. They evidently used balance shafts with materials that were too soft, resulting in premature wearing of the balance shafts with all of the M272 engines produced during this time having the problem. There was a previous class action lawsuit, which Mercedes settled, however, the consumers were not adequately notified and no recall was ever issued for the cars. Now we have 2nd or 3rd owners having these problems that didn't get a notice and have no idea there is a huge expensive and dangerous problem with their vehicle. On I-66 traffic moves at 70 mph (regular lanes) or 75 mph (express lanes). Having the vehicle spontaneously go into limp mode because of this engine issue is dangerous and could have caused a fatal accident on multiple occasions for us. Mercedes should be recalling all of these engines and fixing them properly before someone gets injured or killed. When I spoke with Mercedes, they said because I was not involved in the class action suit at that time, they were not willing to fix the car or pay for any portion of the repair, which they quoted me as costing $16,228.96. The problem is the Mercedes went into limp mode on multiple occasions and there was no check engine light to indicate what the problem was for several months. We had no warning that this was going to happen which created a dangerous situation while driving. There were several incidents on different dates spanning months before a check engine light came on with codes and Mercedes could identify the problem specifically was the balance shaft failure.

NHTSA ID

11499006

Incident

Jun 20, 2022

I recently started smelling gas in my car after refueling. I was told by my mechanic that Mercedes was replacing fuel pumps and fuel tanks free of charge . Mercedes Benz customer care has advised this isn't so. This is an expensive repair and I am hoping Mercedes Benz can cover the cost of this repair and if not, offer substantial assistance.

NHTSA ID

11497476

Incident

Dec 14, 2022

We just purchased a 2006 Mercedes for our teenage sons and had a dealer look at it before we purchased it. They told us there were a couple of codes that were worth watching but that it wasn’t anything significant right now. After the car started jerking and shaking while driving it, we brought it in to dealership where they told us it had a common code for Mercedes in this timeframe P0016. Repair estimate is nearly $5000 to replace timing chain and balance shaft, or a new engine which would be roughly the same. After researching on my own upon being told this code, I found all of the information about the class action lawsuit and settlement, which of course we are too late to be a part of. The dealer said there is a potential that the car could just seize up at some point, so I don’t want my young sons to be out on the road when that happens. I am very frustrated and upset that this wasn’t a recall since it apparently affected a huge amount of vehicles manufactured within this time frame. There is a specific list of engines with known issues and ours is among them. Mercedes Benz should be held responsible for making this right because it was definitely a quality issue. Now we are stuck with an unsafe vehicle, or a massive expense due to defect.

NHTSA ID

11496136

Incident

Nov 23, 2022

In June 2017, I received a letter from Mercedes-Benz of America informing me that the warranty of the fuel system in my vehicle is extended to 15 years. In that same year, I had my whole fuel tank replaced by an authorized Mercedes Benz dealer in San Jose, California due to strong smell of fuel by the rear wheel well on the driver side of the car. The repair was fully cover by MB-America under this extended warranty. On November 3, 2022, I experienced the same fuel smell from the same place of the car (i.e., driver side rear wheel well) and was told that the repair will not be cover at all, even though the fuel system in my car is only 5 years old. I am writing to suggest that you impose a 15 years warranty on the fuel leak replacement parts. MB needs to stand behind their product if it was their OEM parts and done by their authorized dealer. In my case the new fuel smell was due to a cracked Fuel Pump Assembly (Part # 211 470 60 94) which was found in the brand new fuel tank installed in my car in 2017. My car is now repaired at a local shop at a fraction of the cost that MB-San Jose would have charged me. My hope is for you to help future similar customers who will experience similar issue avoiding this unjust expense. Thank you very much, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ID

11493193

Incident

Nov 3, 2022

February 22, 2022 I was driving from Memphis, TN to Flower Mound,TX. It was raining really bad and once I got to Texas on University Ave. My brakes went completely out. I had to shut the car off to stop. Shortly after I heard about a recall involving this same matter but it was for 2006 Mercedes SUV. However after reading the recall the same thing happened to me E350. I had to pay over $2000 on this repair. I feel I am entitled to be refunded. I also had to get the car towed home. I have tow record and repair record. And you should be able to research the weather on that date from Memphis to Texas. Please give me a response at [XXX] or email me at [XXX]. INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).

NHTSA ID

11480575

Incident

Feb 22, 2022

THE CAR WOULD NOT START AS THE FUEL PUMP WAS FAULTY AND IS PART OF THE TANK DESIGN. MBZ KNEW OF THE PROBLEM BECAUSE THEY REPAIRED OR REPLACED SOME OF THE CARS BUT I WAS NEVER NOTIFIED TILL THE PROBLEM. IT COST ME UNDER $3,800 TO REPAIR AND REPLACE THE GAS TANK EVEN THOUGH THEY REPAIRED A LOT OF CARS. MY REPAIR WAS FINISHED ON 05/14/18. I PAID $3,409.33 FOR THE REPAIR AND I WANT TO BE REIMBURSED FOR IT. I FILED A COMPLAINT BACK IN 05/31/2018 UNDER THE COMPLAINT NUMBER [XXX]. I NEED HELP TO GET MY MONEY BACK. THIS WAS A BAD DESIGN ON THEIR PART. THANK YOU, [XXX] THE CAR WOULD NOT START FUEL PUMP FAULTY AND IS PART OF GAS TANK BAD DESIGN COST ME CLOSE TO $3800, SOME PAID BY MBZ. MBZ REPLACED 2009 GAS TANKS FOR FREE UNDER WARRENTY BUT WOULD NOT DO MINE. THIS IS A BAD DESIGN THEY SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME ABOUT IT SO I WOULD NOT BUY THE CAR. IT IS STUPID TO HAVE TO REAPLCE GAS TANK IN ORDER TO REPLACE A FUEL PUMP IN 2012 I HAD GAS LEAKAGE FROM THE SAME AREA AND I PAID TO FIX IT THEY SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME THIS WOULD BE A PROBLEM. INSTEAD THEY KEP SILENT WHEN I TAKE MY CAR FOR SERVICE THEY ALWAYS LIST OF THINGS TO DO SO I CAN SPEND MORE MONEY AT THE DEALERSHIP WHY THE [XXX]NO BODY BOTHERED TO TELL ME ABOUT THIS PROBLEM THAT IT WOULD COST ME A LOT OF MONEYTO FIX . THIS CAR HAS COST OVER $60,000 TO BUY AND I DID NOT PAY THAT KIND OF MONEY FOR A CAR TO LAST ME ONLY 12 YEARS. MBZS ARE SUPPOSED TO LAST 30 YEARS OR MORE SO IFEEL CHEATED BIG TIME I THINK THEY ARE HIDING THIS BECAUSE THEY WILL GET SUED BIG TIME AND I HOPE THEY DO BOTHE THE DEALERSHIP AND THE MBZ COMPANY. THE DEALERSHIP IS MERCEDES BENZ OF VALENCIA IN VALENCIA, CA 91355. PHONE NUMBER 661-753-5555. I HAVE THE NECESSARY PAPERWORK. I WOULD LIKE TO BE REIMBURSED FRO ALL THE COST, THE 3 WEEKS WITHOUT A CAR AND FRO THE PAIN AND SUFFERING THEY HAVE CAUSED ME AND SO IT WILL BE A LESSON TO MBZ AND THEIR DEALERS NOT TO PRATICE THIS FRAUD. I AM AVAILABLE FOR AN INTERVIEW OR MORE INFORMATION AS NEEDED. REGARDS, [XXX] INFORMATION Redacted PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT

NHTSA ID

11480254

Incident

Apr 30, 2018

Brake failure at 40 mph. RED CAUTION light on : "STOP Reduced braking power Depress brake pedal fully"

NHTSA ID

11474839

Incident

Jul 18, 2022

Mileage

140,000 mi

Balance shaft issues possible cause of vehicle stalls and safety concerns.

NHTSA ID

11467678

Incident

Jun 1, 2022

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that while the vehicle parked, fuel was noticed leaking from the vehicle onto the driveway. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 184,000.

NHTSA ID

11452787

Incident

Oct 4, 2021

Mileage

184,000 mi

Noticed strong gasoline odor in left rear wheel well after filling the vehicle with fuel. Since the vehicle had just been repaired for an unrelated issue at a local Mercedes dealer, I took it back to them for troubleshooting. They diagnosed the problem as a leak at the seal on the fuel pump in the tank. I researched this issue and found it is a recurring problem for which Mercedes had offered a warranty extension of 15 years. This extension expired for my vehicle in July 2020. Cost to repair was $3,256 as after a 10% discount. I was not informed of this issue or the extended warranty despite having the vehicle serviced at Mercedes dealers multiple times since purchasing it in 2008.

NHTSA ID

11445710

Incident

Dec 7, 2021

roof started leaking & whistling, could feel air even when it was closed. went to get it checked out was told the glass panel was detaching.

NHTSA ID

11440856

Incident

Sep 24, 2021

Leaking fuel tank and gaskets. A strong smell of fuel internally in the vehicle and externally with a full tank of fuel. Mercedes Benz Warrantee extension PE#12001 "Covered Fuel Tank Components." Mercedes Benz denied claim because of PZEV vs non-PZEV type of vehicle. Both vehicles PZEV and non-PZEV, both use the same plastic gas tank, sending units, and fuel pump in their respective vehicles. How did NHTSA agree to cover non-PZEV vehicles only.

NHTSA ID

11427304

Incident

Jul 14, 2021

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated while the vehicle was stationary, she started to smell an abnormal fuel odor from the rear driver’s side seat. The contact stated there was no warning light illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed with needing the fuel level sending unit and the seals and gaskets to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired however, the failure recurred. The contact stated that she was unable to continue driving the vehicle due to odor. The contact towed the vehicle to another local dealer, Mercedes-Benz of Myrtle Beach (936 Jason Blvd, Myrtle Beach, SC 29577, (843) 848-6800) where it was diagnosed with needing the fuel tank, fuel pump, fuel line and all the seals and gaskets needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 104,000.

NHTSA ID

11421151

Incident

Sep 1, 2011

Mileage

104,000 mi

The crankshaft pulley is a two piece item. When excessive pressure is on it the pieces separate and disable the car. Upon replacing the belt or belt tensioner more pressure is exerted on the crankshaft pulley. Thus it fails and again disables the vehicle. When doing either of the replacement tasks Mercedes fails to check this or mention it to customers. Thus months later it fails and previous belt replacement of belt tensioner replacement has to be done again. This creates a dual expense without fixing the issue the first time. Expense is in the thousands.

NHTSA ID

11419514

Incident

May 30, 2021

I NOTICED THAT ANOTHER OWNER OF A 2006 E350 NOTED THAT HE/SHE HAD A FUEL LEAK. I HAVE HAD ONE, TOO. THE EXTENDED WARRANTEE RAN OUT IN 2020, SO MERCEDES WOULDN'T COVER THE REPAIR EXPENSES. BUT IF THEY KNEW FOR 15 YEARS THAT THIS WAS A PROBLEM, THEY SHOULD HAVE RECALLED THE CARS. AND IF THEY AREN'T GOING TO RECALL IT, THEY SHOULD COVER REPAIR EXPENSES. THIS IS A SERIOUSLY DANGEROUS SITUATION. IT'S LIKELY THAT OUR TANK HAS BEEN LEAKING FOR A WHILE. WE'VE SMELLED GAS FOR ABOUT A YEAR, BUT DIDN'T REALIZE IT WAS LEAKING UNTIL RECENTLY WHEN THERE WAS A CLEAR PUDDLE IN THE GARAGE.

NHTSA ID

11406404

Incident

Mar 25, 2021