RoadVitals

2009 Mercedes-Benz S Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints 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.
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Latest Aug 9, 2009
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
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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.
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What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2009 Mercedes-Benz S, 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

  • Interior & seats1100.0%

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

Interior & seats

Reports naming seats, latches, locks, linkages and interior fittings.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

WE TOW A 2009 SMART PASSION CAB BEHIND OUR RV, AS ALLOWED BY SMART AND IN WRITING WITHIN ITS OWNERS MANUAL. TWICE NOW, WE HAVE LOST THE HOOD (OR AS SMART REFERS TO IT, THE SERVICE FLAP) WHILE TOWING. THE HOOD COMPLETELY DISENGAGES FROM ITS LOCATION AND BASICALLY FLAPS AROUND UNTIL THE CAR IS PULLED OVER TO A STOP. DAMAGE HAS OCCURRED TO THE HOOD, AND THE FIRST TIME WE IMMEDIATELY REPLACED IT AT A SMART DEALER WHO STATED IT MAY HAVE BEEN OUR PROBLEM DUE TO THE POSSIBILITY THAT WE MAY HAVE IMPROPERLY INSTALLED IT.. THE SECOND TIME IT OCCURRED (IN EXACTLY THE SAME MANNER) ANOTHER SMART DEALER TOOK IT TO THE MANUFACTURER WHO DECLARED THAT BY TOWING IT BEHIND THE RV WE HAD AN UNUSUAL AMOUNT OF TURBULENCE AND THEREFORE WAS NOT COVERED UNDER WARRANTY,NOR WAS THERE ANY 'FIX' FOR IT. MY CONCERN IS THAT THESE SAME TURBULENCE CAN BE FELT ON AN INTERSTATE BEHIND A LARGE VEHICLE OR IN A HIGH WIND. THEREFORE I FEEL THAT IT IS MORE OF A PROBLEM THAN THE MANUFACTURE WOULD CONFIRM. WE HAVE TWO OF THE SMARTS, THE OTHER ONE IS A 2008, AND THIS SITUATION HAS NEVER OCCURRED WHILE TOWING IT. *TR

NHTSA ID 10279823 · filed Aug 9, 2009

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

Data on this page last refreshed .