Mercedes Benz E CLASS problems and owner complaints
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
287 owner complaints analyzed
9 distinct recall campaigns
87,500 mi median reported failure mileage
Scope: 1992 to 2008 model years. Data snapshot: . 215 complaints include usable failure mileage.
Most common problems
Electrical System is the most frequently named component, appearing in 41 of 287 complaints (14.3%). A complaint can name multiple components.
| Topic | Matching reports | Share of complaints |
|---|---|---|
| Electrical and battery issues | 67 | 23.3% |
| Braking behavior | 46 | 16.0% |
| Engine operation | 28 | 9.8% |
| Steering behavior | 26 | 9.1% |
| Fuel system concerns | 19 | 6.6% |
| Transmission and shifting | 17 | 5.9% |
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Electrical System | 41 |
| Suspension:Front:Springs:Coil Springs | 25 |
| Electrical System:Wiring:Front Underhood | 24 |
| Suspension:Front | 22 |
| Electrical System:Wiring | 18 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine | 16 |
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 16 |
| Engine And Engine Cooling | 14 |
Electrical System: 41; Suspension:Front:Springs:Coil Springs: 25; Electrical System:Wiring:Front Underhood: 24; Suspension:Front: 22; Electrical System:Wiring: 18; Engine And Engine Cooling:Engine: 16; Fuel/Propulsion System: 16; Engine And Engine Cooling: 14
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 37 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 14 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 41 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 32 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 57 |
| 150,000 and above | 34 |
Under 25,000: 37; 25,000 to 49,999: 14; 50,000 to 74,999: 41; 75,000 to 99,999: 32; 100,000 to 149,999: 57; 150,000 and above: 34
100,000 to 149,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (57). 72 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2000 | 6 |
| 2001 | 2 |
| 2002 | 6 |
| 2003 | 29 |
| 2004 | 38 |
| 2005 | 28 |
| 2006 | 41 |
| 2007 | 27 |
| 2008 | 33 |
| 2009 | 19 |
| 2010 | 12 |
| 2011 | 9 |
| 2012 | 17 |
| 2013 | 15 |
| 2014 | 5 |
2000: 6; 2001: 2; 2002: 6; 2003: 29; 2004: 38; 2005: 28; 2006: 41; 2007: 27; 2008: 33; 2009: 19; 2010: 12; 2011: 9; 2012: 17; 2013: 15; 2014: 5
Pattern summary
Electrical System leads the component reports. Electrical and battery issues appears in 67 complaint narratives. Braking behavior appears in 46 complaint narratives. Engine operation appears in 28 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Complaint evidence
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 10005860 · 2003-02-14 (February 14, 2003)
MY 1993 300CE WIRING HARNESS HAS TOTALLY DRIED UP AND CRACKED IN NUMEROUS PLACES. RESULTING IN INTERNITTANT ELECTRICAL PROBLEMS AND WASTED DOLLARS SPENT ON TROUBLE SHOOTING.
Owner-reported narrative. 75,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10005860 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10056735 · 2004-02-07 (February 7, 2004)
WIRING HARNESS: UNDER HOOD TOP OF MOTOR FAILED. SHEATHING HAS BECOME BRITTLE AND INDIVIDUAL WIRING STRANDS HAVE MELTED TOGETHER. VEHICLE QUIT RUNNING AND WOULD NOT RESTART. BURNT WIRE COULD BE SMELLED WHEN HOOD WAS RAISED.*AK
Owner-reported narrative. 131,050 miles reported. Look up ODI 10056735 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10196287 · 2007-07-13 (July 13, 2007)
THE INSULATION ON THE ENGININE WIREING HARNESS HAS DISENTIGRATED. THIS IS THE ENGINE / FUEL INJECTION WIRING HARNESS AND IS A MAJOR PROBLEM WITH 1991-1996 MERCEDES-BENZ M104 ENGINES. THIS IS A MAJOR FIRE RISK AS WELL AS AN ACCIDENT HAZARD AS IT WILL CAUSE THE ENGINE (AND POWER STEERING, BRAKES, ETC.) TO FAIL AT SPEED. MERCEDES WILL NOT RECALL THE PART AND RELACEMENT IS THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS.
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10196287 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10025560 · 2003-07-07 (July 7, 2003)
ON 5 SEPARATE OCCASIONS OVER THE PAST 4 MONTHS MY CAR HAS SUDDENLY CUT OUT WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AND CITY STREETS, ALL WITHOUT ANY PRIOR WARNING. THESE INCIDENTS RESULTED IN A SUDDEN LOSS OF MECHANICAL AND ELECTRICAL POWER, RESULTING IS POOR BRAKING AND STEERING. ON A PREVIOUS DEALER VISIT, THE CAR WAS INSPECTED AND SERVICED WITHOUT ANY PROBLEMS. THIS CAR IS NOW AT THE DEALER HAVING THE WIRING HARNESS REPLACED AS A COST OF $1500 WITHOUT ANY GOOD WILL FROM MERCEDES BENZ. THIS IS CLEARLY A MANUFACTURING DEFECT AFFECTING A LARGE NUMBER OF V…
Owner-reported narrative. 96,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10025560 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10365668 · 2010-11-15 (November 15, 2010)
RECENTLY MY 53K MILE (VERY LOW MILEAGE) 1993 MERCEDES 300E 2.8 SUDDENLY STALLED (WITHOUT ANY WARNING) ON A LOCAL EXPRESSWAY, WHICH ALMOST CAUSED A SERIOUS CAR ACCIDENT (THE CAR FROM BEHIND ALMOST HIT ME). AFTER I HIRED A MECHANIC TO TAKE A LOOK, HE FOUND THAT THE ENGINE STALL WAS CAUSED BY BIO-DEGRADABLE ENGINE WIRING HARNESS THAT WAS INSTALLED IN THIS CAR (ALSO SEE HTTP://WWW.MERCEDESDEFECTS.COM/2008/04/WIRE-HARNESS-DEFECT.HTML#COMMENT-FORM). I CALLED MERCEDES CUSTOMER SERVICE BUT THEY TOLD ME THERE IS NO RECALL ON THIS CAR. THIS ENGINE STALL …
Owner-reported narrative. 53,999 miles reported. Look up ODI 10365668 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10074886 · 2004-06-06 (June 6, 2004)
1994 MERCEDES BENZ E420- WIRING HARNESS IS DECAYING. THE WIRES ARE BRITTLE AND MELTING TOGETHER. THE INSULATION AROUND THE WIRE IS GONE; AS A RESULT, THE WIRE IS BARE AND UNSAFE. THE VEHICLE SUFFER FROM ALL TYPES OF PROBLEMS; SUCH AS, STALL ON THE HIGHWAY, SURGING IN TRAFFIC JAMS, AND GAUGES INTERMITTENTLY GO HAYWIRE.*AK
Owner-reported narrative. 112,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10074886 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10128437 · 2005-07-12 (July 12, 2005)
1994 E320 HAD INTERMINTENT RUNNING PROBLEMS. CAR WOULD STALL WITHOUT WARNING, ESPECIALLY DURING A RAIN OR AFTER WASHING THE CAR. REPLACED MANY PARTS(MASS AIR METER, TUNE UP, OVP RELAY, FUEL PUMP RELAY, ETC) TO CHASE THE PROBLEM, NONE OF WHICH SOLVED IT. BEGAN TO LOOK ON MERCEDES FORUMS AND FOUND THIS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM. BEFORE I REPLACED THE ENGINE WIRING HARNESS IT BEGAN TO SMOKE HEAVILY FROM UNDER THE HOOD. I HAD AN EXTINGUSIHER WITH ME AND STOPPED IT FROM CATCHING FIRE. MERCEDES COVERED PART OF THE COST UNDER THEIR "GOODWILL" PROGRAM HOW…
Owner-reported narrative. 125,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10128437 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 770199 · 2002-11-27 (November 27, 2002)
MY CAR IS PRESENTLY IN THE SHOP FOR THE THIRD TIME WITH A MAJOR FUEL LEAK. EACH TIME HAS BEEN FOR A DIFFERENT LEAK. THE REPAIRS HAVE NOT BEEN DONE BY A MERCEDES HOWEVER REPLACEMENT PART HAVE BEEN PURCHASE FROM MERCEDES AND MY REPAIRER HAS BEEN TOLD THAT DIESEL LEAKS ARE NOT UNCOMMON IN THESE MODELS. THIS IS MY THIRD MERCEDES DIESEL AND THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I HAVE EVER HAD THIS PROBLEM. CERTAINLY THIS SEEMS TO BE TO BE A FIRE HAZARD. DT
Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 770199 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10223640 · 2008-04-07 (April 7, 2008)
MY CAR EXPERIENCES HARD STARTS, ROUGH IDLING, POOR GEAR SHIFTING (AUTOMATIC), AND RANDOM STALLING IN POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS ROADWAY ENVIRONMENTS. AFTER SYSTEMATICALLY TESTING AND ELIMINATING THE VEHICLES OTHER EQUIPMENT AS THE SOURCE, IT IS INCREDIBLY OBVIOUS THAT A DEFECTIVE WIRING HARNESS IS TO BLAME. WHAT MERCEDES HAS LAMELY DESCRIBED AS "ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY" WIRE INSULATION IS REALLY A LIFE THREATENING DEFECT THAT LEAVES BARE WIRES EXPOSED THAT HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO CREATE POTENTIAL ELECTRICAL SHORTS, VEHICLE DAMAGE, FIRES, ACCIDENTS, …
Owner-reported narrative. 243,155 miles reported. Look up ODI 10223640 at NHTSA ↗
Owner report 10291334 · 2009-11-07 (November 7, 2009)
ENGINE HARNESS AND ALTERNATOR HARNESS. ALTERNATOR HARNESS OVERHEATED DUE TO INSULATION ON WIRES COMPLETELY DISINTEGRATED. HARNESS WAS REPLACED BY EUROPEAN SERVICE AND TRANSMISSION, IN CUMMINGS, GEORGIA ON OCTOBER 22ND 2009. *TR
Owner-reported narrative. 140,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10291334 at NHTSA ↗
Recalls by model year
All campaigns in the snapshot affecting each model year, including recalls announced years later.
Recall campaigns
Shared campaigns appear once in each affected model year.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 1992 | 1 |
| 1993 | 1 |
| 1994 | 1 |
| 1995 | 1 |
| 1996 | 1 |
| 1997 | 1 |
| 1998 | 0 |
| 1999 | 1 |
| 2000 | 0 |
| 2001 | 0 |
| 2002 | 0 |
| 2003 | 4 |
| 2004 | 4 |
| 2005 | 3 |
| 2006 | 1 |
| 2008 | 0 |
1992: 1; 1993: 1; 1994: 1; 1995: 1; 1996: 1; 1997: 1; 1998: 0; 1999: 1; 2000: 0; 2001: 0; 2002: 0; 2003: 4; 2004: 4; 2005: 3; 2006: 1; 2008: 0