2013 MERCEDES-BENZ C300 Complaints

1. The component that failed was the rear subframe for the rear transaxle and wheel suspension system. It was inspected by a licensed MB service department and determined the drivers side of the rear subframe had rusted completely through and was separated from the frame. The passenger side of the rear subframe was also severely rusted and at risk of breaking. The subframe is currently being replaced. 2. The subframe to this vehicle holds the transaxle and rear wheel suspension in place, I noticed with a hard breaking the rear of the car swerved, slightly fishtailing. I immediately drove home and parked it until I could drive it to a service/repair facility. If this subframe had completely broken free the entire rear drivetrain would have been severely damaged or completely destroyed or worse, break free from the vehicle and cause a crash. 3. The problem is well known in the auto industry. My service center who inspected my vehicle described it and said it is a well known problem and they have replaced other subframes due to the same issue. I even spoke to an AUDI salesman today and they know of it and send these MB vehicles as a trade-in to auction and do not even attempt to replace the subframe. A recall for this problem of the subframe failure due to rust has already been issued for MB in Europe for quite some time but no recall in the USA. 4. This vehicle and component has not been inspected by the manufacturer, police or insurance rep. 5. no warning lamps or any other messages were illuminated to give any warning of a subframe failure due to rust. The first symptom of the problem is the loose rear end with hard breaking causing a slight fishtail of the rear of the car. I experienced this on my drive home from work and afterwards only drove it to my service center.

The contact owns a 2013 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while driving 50 MPH, the contact heard a loud noise coming from the vehicle and then lost control of the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact was able to pull over safety and had the vehicle towed to the dealer. The dealer stated that the rear subframe of the vehicle was corroded. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, and a case was filed. The failure mileage was 49,000.

Went to brake, heard a thump, car proceeded to loose control bearing to the left. Then went into other lane! Could not regain control of the car until it came to a complete stop. No warning light came on,. Took to mechanic, put it on the lift found rear right side of the frame rotted. This car is garage kept, nothing else is rusted on the vehicle. The vehicle is not near any water. This a known problem with this model Mercedes. Spoke with Mercedes Benz USA, was advised not to drive the car, the frame could detach and puncture gas tank!! I have seen the recall for the problem in Canada and Europe and the repairs were covered by Mercedes. Now I have my only mode of transpiration, undriveable and sitting waiting on help!!

Discovered a severely "rotted/rusted" rear subframe and one of the passenger side suspension/control arm of the rear passenger side wheel is completely "detached/disconnected" from the rear subframe. During a hard brake, the car will "swing/drift" to the right and is very dangerous and prone to accident/catastrophe. Also, many other 2008-2014 C300 owners already have reported/complaints over the internet. This defect needs to be recalled by the manufacturer. The contact paid for the replacement and service repair of the rear subframe. The contact was informed by a technician that the detached rear control arm may "puncture" the gas tank because of how close it is to it. The vehicle is not recommended to be driven until the repair is made.

My car had new brakes installed in the last few months. All of a sudden the car "fishtailed" when applying the brakes. I brought it into my mechanic, Johns Mercedes of Wakefield, Massachusetts, for some routine service and he noticed once he put the car up on the rack that the subframe is completely rotted out due to rust. The brakes were fine. He strongly recommended not driving the car until the part can be replaced. The part is very hard to come by. I called my Mercedes dealership (Herb Chambers Mercedes in Lynnfield, Massachusetts) and Rennan told me that he has seen quite a number of problems lately with rotted subframes in C300s. He said it would cost $5000 to repair IF you could find a part. The parts are incredibly hard to find. In doing research in Mercedes forums, I read that in Germany Mercedes replaces the subframes free of charge, recognizing it is a major safety issue. My mechanic is going to take pictures of the damaged part in question. My car is at his shop now so I don't have pictures to upload at this time. I am going to have him find the part and fix the car at a cost of $4000+.

I sensed the rear wheels going into a skid as I braked at low speed. I noticed it first on downhills as I drove on a mountain road which was curvy. It seemed that the car was going to go into a skid. No warning lights came on. I checked the tires were all at the same accurate level which did not change the occurrence. It happened again on flat terrain coming to a quick stop. Like one tire was responding differently than the other in the rear. I asked my mechanic to put it up on the lift so I could make sure I was safe and not causing further damage by driving it until they could fix it. Had the arms cracked off the frame from the wheels while I was driving on a winding mountain road, my life would have been in danger. He came out and said "you need to see this, this car is going nowhere and its lucky that you came in. He pulled back a black cover that was blocking view of the rear sub-frame. One both sides, there was significant rotted through holes. He looked up about a possible recall and came across many people complaining for years on this Model C car having the same issue. It was noted that this issue was a recall and manufacturer repaired issue in Europe. Not here is the US. After reading numerous complaints online from owners, I called the Mercedes Benz dealer (Keeler Motors, Latham, NY) and asked about issues. There are very aware of this issue and quoted me $1400 for the sub-frame and not including many parts that will likely need replacing. With labor at $189 hourly rate. This car is in very good condition, serviced regularly at the Keeler Mercedes Benz dealer department and when we checked it over prior to purchase it was noted how little to no rust there was on the car. Mechanics can easily miss the damage occurring by the black cover over the subframe.

The contact owns a 2013 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that upon depression of the brake pedal, the vehicle independently swayed to the left without warning. The contact notified the independent mechanic who instructed her to bring the vehicle in for an inspection. The mechanic discovered severe corrosion on the subframe; however, the part to repair the vehicle was on backorder. The contact then had the vehicle towed to a second independent mechanic who kept the vehicle for three weeks before the vehicle was repaired. Neither the dealer nor the manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 68,026.

Rear sub frame failure due to corrosion. Failed part causes vehicle to lose control when applying breaks. Further broke sub frame has high risk of fire due fuel tank breach. Vehicle was inspected by Mercedes Benz technicians several times up to the point of failure, no advanced warning. Technician stated no lights, no warning signs until total failure occurs.

While returning from a long trip with my entire family, I initially lost control of the vehicle on a normal curve at 70 mph speed on a highway. We managed to stop without getting in an accident. After determining that it is not because of any tire damage and not understanding the problem, we continued with the journey driving at reduced speeds. From then on, vehicle was losing control whenever I try to brake. After narrowly missing few accidents, I realized the stopping distance also increased a lot. I almost hit several vehicles whenever I try to come to stop all of a sudden. Unsure of the weirdly behavior all of a sudden, I decided to stop at a nearby autoshop and get a quick check. Surprisingly the mechanic heard about these issues earlier and pointed us directly at the cause of this behavior. The issue is a ROTTEN REAR SUBFRAME. A part which is supposed to last for the entirety of its life, rusted from inside out prematurely. Learning this, I sent my family home in a different vehicle and brought mine towed. Mercedes Service center gave me an initial estimate of $8860 to repair and might increase once they start removing things for repair. After further research, I found out this is a very common issue. In other countries, Mercedes is replacing this free of charge to customers who report it as this is a safety issue. So I tried to reach out to Mercedes Corporate office and they declined to repair it Free of charge as there is no official recall on this issue. I am only glad that my entire family didn't end up in an unfortunate incident due a a cheaply made part. I urge NHTSA to look into this issue as soon as possible and help avoid lots of accidents due to this issue.

The Rear Subframe is rusted through and cracked making the car almost undriveable. This is a known problem at Mercedes Benz. Nothing else on the vehicle is rusted and has a perfect undercarriage. The vehicle is available for inspection and has been inspected by a reputable German repair facility. There were no warning lamps, messages or other symptoms There's a Mercedes Benz recall for the rear subframe in Canada.