2018 Mercedes-Maybach S 560 4MATIC Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
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What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2018 Mercedes-Maybach S 560 4MATIC, 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
- Engine457.1%
- Airbags114.3%
- Driver assistance114.3%
- Steering114.3%
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
Engine
Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.
From owner reports, verbatim
Excessive engine oil lead from the back seal. Also, slow coolant leak. The car has a low mileage of 46k.
My 2018 S560 Mercedes occasionally misfires upon acceleration. This has happened at six times over the past three years. When this happens, the engine loses power, starts to shake, and the check engine light comes on. This happened when I was trying to pass a car on US 301 a week ago nearly causing a head on collision as I tried to get back into the right lane. The problem occurs without any warning. This first happened at 64,242 miles, then at 104833, next 108599, then 119,012, then 121,726, and finally at 126580 (my current mileage). Each time I have gone to a Mercedes mechanic. They have replaced the coils three times and the spark plugs twice. They now tell me the problem is due to the walls of the cylinders delaminating and scratched/scoring and the engine needs replaced (come on, 126,000 miles). They have checked the compression and say it is low across all eight cylinders. The vehicle has been inspected by a Mercedes dealership and by other certified Mercedes mechanics. They gave me pictures of the cylinders (attached). Here are their notes: Cylinder walls in #1 look delaminated, also scratched, no signs of oil consumption on spark plug, carbon is burnt off #1 piston in center. Preformed compression test on cylinder 1 and 2, #1 dry 140, wet 170, #2 dry 110, wet 170. Just these 2 cylinders are showing leakage past rings, luckily no oil consumption. Compression spec's13 to 17 Bar{ 188 psi to 246 psi } Cylinder #1 dry 160psi, wet 190 psi, Cyl #2 dry 150psi wet 185psi, #3 160psi dry, wet 190psi, Cyl #4 160psi dry, wet 190 psi, Cyl #5 155psi dry, wet 190psi, Cyl #6 155 dry, wet 190, Cyl #7 155 psi dry, wet 180psi, Cyl #8 160psi dry, wet 185psi. All wet and dry actual compression are all too low, likely from the cylinder wall conditions. Being compression is low across all cylinders this is causing misfires at random times across all cylinders.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Airbags
Reports naming the air-bag system — deployment behaviour, inflators, sensors and warning lights.
From owner reports, verbatim
The Squib For PRE-SAFE(R) Pulse '' Front Passenger'' Has A S560 w222 model airbag sensors problem an defective parts needs be investigated
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Driver assistance
Reports naming forward-collision avoidance, lane keeping, back-over prevention, cruise control and related electronic driver-assistance systems.
From owner reports, verbatim
Driving on interstate 95 in South Carolina in the high speed lane Saturday December 2 2023 late morning. Adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, self driving modes engaged. No traffic in front, large semi truck next to passenger side about equal to side mirror, I believe it was advancing. Car sounds collision warning beep and executes full emergency barking with seat belt tensioners emergency retraction. The system quickly releases the brakes which may have been the result of me pressing the gas pedal, I am not sure as this all happened in fractions of seconds. I disengaged all self driving and distronic systems including parking sensors and continued on the journey.
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Steering
Reports naming the steering system — racks, columns, power-steering assist and steering linkage.
From owner reports, verbatim
The engine failed while my friend was driving. The car is available for inspection. My friend almost got into a car accident because the car started shaking and the steering wheel closed up before the engine completely failed. Additionally, the airbags did not go off. It could've been a fatal accident because he was driving on the highway. The problem was confirmed by an independent service center. The vehicle has been inspected by a certified mechanic. The car has had problems since I bought it. The tire pressure would always go down. The steering wheel and car would shake at times, and the tires had to be replaced two times within two years.
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 .