Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||||
| 033008 | 04/24/2008 | SB-03-30-08E | 10022893 | Check engine light on / fault codes fc1200 / fc1208 stored in me-sfi control unit. mercedes-benz model c230, c280, c350, slk280, slk350, clk350, clk550, e350, e550, cls550, s600, and sl550. equipped with m272 engine or m273 engine. *nj | 10/03/2007 |
Investigations
| NHTSA ID | Manufacturer | Date open | Date close | Subject | Recall campaign | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | ||||||
| PE03058 | MERCEDES-BENZ USA, LLC. | 12/17/2003 | 04/22/2004 | ENGINE CRANKSHAFT PULLEY FAILURE | ||
| The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this preliminary evaluation to investigate allegations of engine crankshaft pulley harmonic balancer failure that could result in loss of power-steering assist.odi has received a total of 546 non-duplicative reports that allege engine crankshaft pulley harmonic balancer failure on all mercedes-benz vehicles using the subject component.the subject component failures are progressive in nature and only a small percentage of the complaints and warrant claims involved a failure that had progressed far enough to effect power steering performance (6 of 55 odi complaints reference increased steering effort).there have been no crashes or injuries related to the alleged defect.a safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by nhtsa that a safety-related defect does not exist.the agency will take further action if warranted by the circumstances.see summary report attached for further detail. | ||||||
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING | |||
| 09/15/2010 | 98000 | ||
| Tl. the owns a 1999 mercedes-benz ml 430. the contact stated while driving 25 the catalytic converter starting making noise and leaking. the contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic and the mechanic notice the welding was cracking. the mechanic pulled up a recall and suggested the contact take the vehicle to the dealer. the contact took the vehicle to the dealer for the recall remedy repair and the dealer stated due to the vin number the vehicle does not fall into the recall. the dealer suggested to the contact to call manufacturer. the contact called the manufacturer and they informed the contact their is nothing they can do and the recall campaign is closed. the contact stated the manufacturer should be responsible for the recall. the failure mileage was 98,000. jo | |||
| 04/15/2003 | 52231 | 1 | |
| The vehicle stalls at any speed without warning. consumer contacted dealer on six separate occasions, but the problem still occurs. *ak | |||
| 10/23/2003 | 83353 | 1 | 01/23/1999 |
| The harmonic balancer on the crankshaft of my mercedes ml430 vin# 4jgab72e7xa09375 failed w/o warning causing the fan belt to fail and the balancer started cutting a hole in the oil pan. this failure just by luck did not cause a moving accident due to loss of electrical and power steering, or an under the hood fire. this cost me $500 to get fixed when a $70 part could have been replaced if i had only been notified of this frequent failure on mercedes models like mine. the dealer was little help in solving this problem.*ak | |||
| 10/03/2003 | 72000 | ||
| I was driving my ml430 on the highway when all of a sudden my power steering gave out and my car started to overheat. i managed to strong arm the car, (hopped a curb mid-turn) and pull over into a local grocery store. what my dealer had diagnosed was that the harmonic balancer was disconnected and the crankshaft pulley assembly came apart. i'm afraid that if my wife had been driving the car at the time the circumstances may have been more severe. since the pulley came apart at such force it also managed to rip a hole into my oil pan. all in all i'm looking at a $3000 repair to a potentially deadly problem. when i contacted the dealership they told me that this was a common problem and offered to present the issue to mb and request help for the repair. common problem! .. i thought to myself. mb came back with no assistance since the car was out of warranty. i don't understand the lack of responsibility and ownership mb is taking on their brand. the whole reason i purchased the car was for quality. i'm saddened to wonder how many lives are potentially in danger due to this common problem and what it would take for mb to become proactive and take responsibility. *la | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE | |||
| 08/01/2004 | 72000 | 1 | 09/04/2002 |
| I'm an owner of a 1999 mercedes benz ml430 which in my belief has a defective part named a harmonic balancer or a crank shaft pulley. the reason im filing my complaint is because i was told by a mercedes benz service rep(chris) of tri-star mercedes benz in the st louis mo,area that he had no knowledge of a malfunction or a defective part called the harmonic balancer the inquiry was made as i brought my vehicle to the said establishment after having a problem with a loud noise like grinding in the engine department the battery light came on the engine started to die out the power steering began to fail just think if my wife had been driving the car she could have caused serious damage to others and herself but god.... on wednesday aug 1,04 i had the car towed to tri-star mercedes benz on the following day i received a call from service rep chris and i told him what happened, he said he would have his tech's look at it he called back on the same day and stated what the problem was i asked him does this happen often to the ml he stated no. i was then quoted a price of 1700 dollars to fix the problem if the oil pans were damaged and 1450 if it was not. after receiving my car back i am having problems of shaking in my steering wheel like there's something wrong with my tires but there is not. i believe its got something to do with the costly repairs of the harmonic balancer. a couple of web sites were found were i discovered according to other mb owners were having the same problem i think that mb is trying to cover up that there is a potential life threatening situation on there hands and which have cost millions of dollars to the consumer such as myself. those that have no problems with there mb should be warned of the potential danger and mb should own up to there responsibility and recall there cars and suv and refund money to those who have had costly repairs done because of this said costly defect. who knows how many accidents have happened causing lives to perish. *jb | |||
| 10/13/2003 | 78000 | 1 | 07/24/2003 |
| Mercedes benz 1999 ml 430. harmonic balancer failed. driving 65+ on the mass. pike, the power steering failed, and then the engine begin to overheat. the vehicle had to be wrestled from the left lane, across 3 very busy lanes of traffic to the side of the highway. the state police were called and the vehicle was towed. i later learned that the crank shaft pulley had broken apart and caused a chain reaction of failures ultimately leading to the above. * cb | |||
| 11/21/2003 | 1 | 10/19/2003 | |
| Mercedes benz (mb) has a defective harmonic balancer which they will not provide replacement for willingly. their official line is that they have no policy with regard to this. the part in question is on national backorder i was told by 2 different sources. mb was condescending & rude when i inquired about this. their dealerships provide no help. failure of this part can be dangerous. i have filed reports with my state attorney general & the bbb. a recall is necessary immediately!! p.s. (the fuel gage does not read full ever!) *la | |||
| 01/15/2003 | 80000 | 1 | 08/01/2002 |
| The harmonic balancer failed to stay on the crankshaft and hit other engine componets and consequently cut the fan belt, caused the engine to over heat, and put a hole in the oil pan. *ak *ts *jb | |||
| 08/23/2002 | 65000 | ||
| While driving 45mph lost control of steering and noticed main pulley loosened.*ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE | |||
| While driving 60 mph and without warning vehicle will shut off. while vehicle was restarted steering wheel locked up due to a malfunction within the computer system. please provide any further details. *ak | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - ENGINE - GASOLINE - BELTS AND ASSOCIATED PULLEYS | |||
| 09/20/2004 | 82663 | 1 | 08/01/2002 |
| Crankshaft harmonic balancer failure! (1999 mercedes benz ml430)... mileage: 82000 ref: nhtsa action # 03058..he pulley failure just occurred while driving down i85 in atl. upon hearing a knocking noise and smelling what seemed like rubber burning, i immediately stopped the engine. it took no time to find the source of the smell, it was the v-belt (no longer centered on all pulleys) rubbing against the engine. being reasonably mechanic savvy, i knew this was a little more serious than just a water pump outage and proceeded called a tow truck. the vehicle was towed to my local mb dealership (mb of s.atl) at a cost of $52.00& aprox drop time: 8:00 pm. the following morning i contacted the service department to further explain my situation and was advised that this is a known and very common issue with the v6 and v8 engines of which mine is the latter (113942). having no knowledge of the multitude of customer complaints and law suites, i was floored when the quote of approximately $3500.00 was dropped in my lap. the dealer has agreed to comp the parts.. aprox cost: $1300.. the labor (14.85 hrs totaled $1510.00) i get to eat! law suite to follow in an attempt to recover my out of pocket cost! why is this not a recall item!!!!!*ak | |||
| 01/25/2004 | 1 | ||
| Harmonic balancer/vibration dampner on ml430 mercedes-benz defective.*ak | |||
| 10/18/2003 | 54000 | 1 | 10/04/2003 |
| The harmonic balancer on all mercedes benz v6 and v8 engines between 1995 and 1999 is defective. mb knows about this problem and refuses to acknowledge the problem. when the $100 defective part fails around 50k miles it causes $2k-3k in damage. please see the site mercedesshop.com to view the number of complaints. i have spoken to mbusa customer service, the m-b area manager, ron st.pierre, and dreher-holloway service manager, mike bellaigeron. all refuse to replace these defective items. m-b re-designed the part in 2001 and issued a technical bulletin in dec 2001 directing service techcnicans to replace the part with a new stock number. they know the problem exists but wait for the fauilures becuse they get more revenue from repairing the damage caused by the failure. *ak | |||
| 10/27/2003 | 90000 | 1 | |
| Harmonic balancer had deteriorated and was replaced in order to prevent suden failure and/or major damage to the engine; problem seems to be increasingly 'common' among ml owners!*ak | |||
| 09/20/2003 | 71700 | 05/01/1999 | |
| Harmonic balancer failure; early detection prevented serpentine belt failure and loss of power steering assist and power brakes assist. | |||
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING - EXHAUST SYSTEM - EMISSION CONTROL - CATALYTIC CONVERTOR | |||
| 1 | |||
| Ltr inquiring on the status of a complaint filed in august 2003 (#10031122) re the defective transmission in his mercedes benz ml 430 sport utility vehicle.*mr the vehicle transmission failed while pulling out of a parking space. the transmission is sealed (no dipstick) so there is no way for the consumer to check the fluid level. the vehicles catalytic converter failed and the brake line ruptured. *nlm | |||