2011 MERCEDES-BENZ C300 Complaints

Rear subframe of vehicle completely rotted/rusted out and destroyed. Was driving at around 60mph and all of the sudden, went to step on the brakes and the car swerved across the highway uncontrollably. Initially thought this was my brakes, but turns out, it is the rear subframe. Took it to a mechanic who said the car is not drivable and showed me how badly the subframe is destroyed. This is due to a Mercedes Benz manufacturing issue where they tried cost cutting which turned out very poor quality materials for this very important assembly. My car only has ~90,000 miles and is just about 10-11 years of age. This issue should never happen for a vehicle with such low miles and such a short life, especially from a prominent and distinguished automotive company. This is a MASSIVE SAFETY CONCERN, and I am lucky that I was not involved in a major accident where people were killed or seriously injured. I have research online about this problem, and turns out, it is VERY COMMON with this body style c300 ('08 - '14). There are hundreds, if not thousands, of individuals within the USA who are having this exact same issue with as little as 60,000 miles. Most are happening around the 90,000 mile mark however. It is astonishing how this subframe was not recalled by now and how Mercedes USA has not taken responsibility for this. In fact, this is a known issue by the manufacturer, and has actually been recalled in Canada (but not the USA?).. This issue needs to be addressed and recalled IMMEDIATELY before people are killed or seriously injured, and before more of these parts break. Please look into this very soon and contact me with any questions.

when braking the back of the car all of a sudden tried to break out to the right. After towing it to the dealer I was told that the subframe was broken due to corrosion. The car is otherwise in good condition without any visible sign of corrosion. When searching the internet for the problem I learned that a lot of these cars have the same issue and that there are recalls for it in Canada and Europe. I'm just glad that I didn't get into a bad accident, since this came without warning and the dealer didn't make me aware of the problem even though I did every service for the car with them for the last almost 12 years.

I was driving down the road when a deer ran out into the roadway ahead of me. I applied the brake firmly and hear a "pop" and the car suddenly changed lanes. I was able to recover without much of an incident but applying the brakes from that point on caused the car to "steer" into a new direction. I took the vehicle out to a friends farm and jacked it up to find that on this car with zero other corrosion issues that the mounting point for one of the rear suspension arms had rusted at the weld and broken off the sub frame. I should note that the rest of the underbody was inspected and the rear subframe is the only place that has any corrosion. Research into this issue over the past few months has lead me to countless people being affected by the same issues. This is not an isolated case and it needs to be addressed by the manufacturer before it causes a fatal accident (if it has not already).

The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while having a routine brake service performed, the contact was informed that the driver’s side rear subframe was rusted. The contact was informed that the failure might puncture the fuel tank. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was informed of the failure but provided no assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 157,000.

Manufactory defect on w204 Chassis Mercedes Benz rear sub frame rusting allowing control arm to brake free affecting safety and drivability control loss, which has or could lead to severe accident. There no recalls for this defect and is a common issue with materials on back order for the rear sub frame, vehicle Is not drivable until frame is replaced.

I started to smell gas after filling my tank. Once the gas level went down, the odor disappeared. I took car to dealer who said car needs new gas tank (issue on top of tank) and cost is approx $5K for parts and labor. I started reading about same exact issue on same C300 model and year 2011. I was advised that car with high mileage of 114,000 was not worth repairing even though there are no dents, cosmetically very nice, new tires, always dealer maintained. I have the dealer inspection paperwork

My C300 2011 is having rear suspension problem which is unsafe to drive. I took in my car for my usual maintenance check and was told by the mechanic that the rear left driver side suspension is rusted and rotated out, to the point that it can break off and cause an accident. As Mercedes product, even the mechanic was surprised to see this happen on this car. Not surprised the dealer told me there is no recall at this time. I am still waiting for a quote but from what I've seen other people complaining with the same exact issue in same make and model. I have attached pictures just in case.

The contact's client owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that the vehicle's owner had complained of an abnormal fuel odor coming from the vehicle. There was no warning light illuminated. Upon inspecting the vehicle, the contact discovered that fuel was spraying out of the fuel pump onto the exhaust. The contact was able to replace the fuel pump and correct the failure. Upon investigation, the contact discovered NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V557000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) which he linked to the failure. The dealer nor the manufacturer had yet to be notified of the failure. The vehicle had been repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 142,000.

The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that after refueling the vehicle and driving a short distance, there was a burning odor coming from inside and outside the vehicle. The traction control warning light was illuminated. The contact had taken the vehicle to a certified mechanic who replaced the fuel cabinet. The burning odor persisted. The contact was informed that the failure was related to NHTSA Campaign Number: 12V557000 (Fuel System, Gasoline) however, the VIN was not included. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage 12,800.

The driver side rear tail light wiring melted the tailight housing. This component was already replaced as part of a previous recall, but apparently Mercedes is not properly fixing the issue. They refuse to fix it for free, because they already "addressed" the recall. Looks like they are putting cars back on the street that could catch fire.