1999 Mercedes-Benz S Class Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 1999 Mercedes-Benz S Class, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Airbags330.0%
- Seat belts220.0%
- Suspension220.0%
- Tires & wheels110.0%
- Transmission110.0%
- Visibility110.0%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Airbags
Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights.
From owner reports, verbatim
MERCEDES S-CLASS W220 AIRMATIC PROBLEMS,DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! THEY ARE SUCKING USS OUTTTTTT! *TR
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
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Seat belts
Reports naming seat belts, buckles, retractors and pretensioners.
From owner reports, verbatim
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. *TR
THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE AND DRIVER SIDE SEAT BELTS WERE NOT RETRACTING. *AK *SC *JB
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Suspension
Reports naming suspension components — springs, struts, shocks, control arms and related hardware.
From owner reports, verbatim
MERCEDES S-CLASS W220 AIRMATIC PROBLEMS,DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT ! THEY ARE SUCKING USS OUTTTTTT! *TR
AIRMATIC WARNING KEEP COMING UP, SAY THE CAR IS TO LOW STOP. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Tires & wheels
Reports naming tires, wheels, hubs, or the tire-pressure monitoring system.
From owner reports, verbatim
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. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Transmission
Reports naming the automatic or manual transmission, including shifting behaviour, shudder, slipping and transmission control modules.
From owner reports, verbatim
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.*AK
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Visibility
Reports naming windshields, glass, wipers, defrosters and mirrors.
From owner reports, verbatim
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. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
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.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .