2012 MERCEDES-BENZ C300 Complaints

The contact owns a 2012 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated her son was driving approximately 60 MPH and noticed that the steering wheel was crooked and vibrating. The driver was manually turning the steering wheel for the vehicle to drive straight. The driver also noticed that while depressing the brake pedal, the rear of the vehicle was shaking going from left to right while coming to a complete stop. The driver took the vehicle to an independent mechanic to be inspected and was informed that the rear driver’s side subframe had separated from the vehicle due to extreme rust. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 115,000.

The rear drivers side had a loud chunking/clanking noise while driving and the vehicle was unable to control and break when in motion. Driving was impossible as the breaking component was a total failure and car could not be controlled while traveling down 45-50mph zone. I reduced my speed to 20-25 mph by letting off on the gas to get better control of the car if breaking would need to be suddenly made. I relied on the shoulder to pull off if any sudden breaking was needed. The car was immediately take to be reviewed by a specialized Mercedes benz mechanic and further inspection proved that the rear subframe on the driver’s (left) side was corroded and broken. The connecting arms are rusted, corroded and rendered the car inoperative. I notified my insurance company as well as car manufacturers corporate office. I researched this issue further and discovered that this reoccurring issue with this make and model. There are a pheletera of recounting of this same issue on various message boards to validate the same issues and callouts I found. The car was taken to the dealership that it was purchased and further inspection showed that the left side subframe/ subframe arms were corroded with rust and broken. The brake lines and fuel tank were equally rusted and corroded. The service manager confirmed that this is defect of the car but it had been part of a recall. I had the car towed for 2nd opinion to another dealership service department to access the car and this callout further validated the corrosion and rust was wide spread and has rendered the car inoperable unless these damages were fixed.

The contact owns a 2012 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while driving approximately 15-20 MPH, there was a rattling noise heard and the vehicle was pulling to the right. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and diagnosed that the rear subframe was rusted and had fractured. The vehicle was not repaired and remained at the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and opened a case. The contact was awaiting a call back from the case manager. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000.

The contact owns a 2012 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would drift from the center in either direction without warning. After describing the symptoms to an independent mechanic, he was informed that the rear subframe might be corroded. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that the subframe had started to corrode which had caused the failure. The dealer was notified of the failure and informed him that they are aware of the failure however, there was no recall regarding the issue. The contact attempted to notify the manufacturer of the failure but was unsuccessful. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

The contact owns a 2012 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that the driver’s side air bag warning light was illuminated. The contact took the vehicle to a certified mechanic who cleared the code. The failure recurred. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 93,541.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 MERCEDES BENZ C300. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH, A BURNING TYPE ODOR WAS PRESENT INSIDE THE VEHICLE. WHILING INSPECTING THE VEHICLE IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT REAR DRIVER AND PASSENGER SIDE TAIL LIGHT PLUGS HAD MELTED. ALSO, AFTER TURNING THE FRONT DRIVER SEAT HEATER ON A BURNING ODOR WAS PRESENT AND THE SEAT FELT EXTREMELY HOTTER THE NORMAL. THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURES WERE NOT DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER AND LOCAL DEALER WERE NOT YET NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 70,000. ## VIN PASSED ## MERCEDES-BENZ 2012 C300 ##

REAR SUBFRAME (AS RECALLED IN PREVIOUS YEARS) WAS COMPLETED CORRODED - FAILED VIRGINIA INSPECTION - IN SUCH POOR SHAPE THAT ENTIRE SUBFRAME HAD TO BE REPLACED - CORROSION RIDDLED THE PIECE SO THAT HUGE HOLES RESULTED IN NO POSSIBILITY OF WELDING TO FIX/SUPPLEMENT WEAKNESS - AUTO REPAIR PLACE HAD NOT SEEN SUCH A WEAK FRAME IN SUCH A RELATIVELY NEW CAR. LUCKILY - NO ACCIDENT OCCURED BUT COULD EASILY HAVE OCCURRED DUE TO CORROSION. NO OTHER PART OF VEHICLE WAS CORRODED - SO PART WAS MANUFACTURED INCORRECTLY (NO CORROSION CONTROL?/SHIPMENT FROM GERMANY ISSUE?) - MERCEDES BENZ HAS RECALL FOR THIS PART IN PREVIOUS MODEL YEARS - PICTURES OF SUBFRAME AVAILABLE UPON DEMAND

DRIVING LOW SPEED IN TOWN IN FAIR WEATHER AND HIT BRAKES, NOISE AND STRANGE "LOOSENESS" IN BACK END. HAD NEARBY SERVICE STATION INSPECT AND REAR SUB FRAME HAD RUSTED OUT, SEARCHED AND FOUND MULTIPLE REPORTS OF EXACT ISSUE. CONFIRMED W/ LOCAL MB DEALER KNOWN ISSUE AND THEY ARE SEEING ABOUT 1 MONTH NOW.

TL* TAKATA RECALL. THE CONTACT OWNS A 2012 MERCEDES-BENZ C300. THE CONTACT RECEIVED NOTIFICATION OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 19V010000 (AIR BAGS) HOWEVER, THE PART TO DO THE REPAIR WAS NOT YET AVAILABLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER HAD EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. AN UNKNOWN DEALER WAS CONTACTED AND CONFIRMED THAT PARTS WERE NOT YET AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT HAD NOT EXPERIENCED A FAILURE. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE. ## VIN PASSED ## MERCEDES-BENZ C300 2012 ##

THE REAR SUBFRAME HAS CORRODED AROUND THE AREAS WHERE THE TRAILING ARM AND CONTROL ARM MEET THE SUBFRAME ON BOTH SIDES OF THE VEHICLE, AND HAS DISINTEGRATED AROUND THE DRIVERS SIDE REAR TRAILING ARM CAUSING IT TO HAVE DETACHED, ALONG WITH A PIECE OF THE SUBFRAME. THE METAL OF THE SUBFRAME IS DISTORTED AROUND THE AREA OF THE BREAK. THE DETACHED TRAILING ARM AND PIECE OF SUBFRAME ARE NOW MAKING CONTACT WITH THE FUEL TANK AS WELL. THE FUEL TANK COULD HAVE EASILY RUPTURED AND IGNITED WHEN THIS CAR WAS STILL IN OPERATION, AS THIS CAR WAS DRIVEN FOR SEVERAL DAYS BEFORE THE MANUFACTURING DEFECT WAS DISCOVERED. THE FAILURE HAPPENED WHEN COMING TO A GENTLE STOP FROM 20-30 MILES PER HOUR ON A STRAIGHT ROAD. THERE WAS A LOUD SNAPPING NOISE FROM THE DRIVERS SIDE REAR. THIS CAR HAD 92,000 MILES AT TIME OF THE STRUCTURAL FAILURE AND HAS BEEN REGULARLY SERVICED, EXCLUSIVELY AT MERCEDES-BENZ. MERCEDES-BENZ USA CUSTOMER SERVICE IS UNABLE TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE. THIS EXACT ISSUE HAS LED TO A RECALL OF THE SAME MODEL IN CANADA, AND THERE ARE COUNTLESS NHTSA REPORTS DESCRIBING SIMILAR STRUCTURAL FAILURES. MERCEDES-BENZ USA IS AWARE OF THIS ISSUE AND IS ALSO AWARE THAT THERE IS A RECALL IN CANADA, BUT HAS MADE IT CLEAR THAT GOODWILL WILL NOT BE EXTENDED.