2000 MERCEDES-BENZ M CLASS Complaints

AT HIGHWAY SPEED CAR JERKED VIOLENTLY TO THE LEFT AS OFF THE FROM RIGHT BRAKE WAS BEING APPLIED ON ITS OWN. TURNED THE ESP (ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL) OFF AND PROCEEDED AND THE EVENT HAPPENED AGAIN, CAR JERKED TO LEFT AND HEADED TO DITCH BUT WAS ABLE TO OVERCOME WITH STEERING WHEEL. IT APPEARS A CAR SYSTEM FAILED CRASH RATHER THAN FAIL SAFE. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCEDES BENZ ML320. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 55 MPH WITH THE CRUISE CONTROL IN ACTIVATION. WHEN PRESSURE WAS APPLIED TO THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE CRUISE CONTROL FAILED TO DISENGAGE. SUDDENLY THE BRAKES LOCKED AND THE VEHICLE CONTINUED TO ACCELERATE. THE GEAR WAS SHIFTED INTO NEUTRAL AND THEN INTO PARK, WHICH BROUGHT THE VEHICLE TO A STOP. THE CONTACT RESUMED IN OPERATION WITH CAUTION. THERE WAS A RECALL ASSOCIATED WITH THE FAILURE UNDER NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER: 11V208000 (VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL: CRUISE CONTROL). THE RECALL PART WAS UNAVAILABLE TO PERFORM THE REMEDY REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE PROBLEM. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 138,000.

WHILE DRIVING MY 2000 ML320 MERCEDES, THE CAR SUDDENLY APPLIES BRAKES WHILE TRAVELING AT VARIOUS SPEEDS. THE BAS/ESP WARNING LIGHTS COME ON. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS MALFUNCTION AND SOMEONE SHOULD MAKE MERCEDES ADDRESS THIS DEFECT IMMEDIATELY BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED! IF YOU DO A SEARCH ON THE INTERNET, IT WILL AMAZE YOU HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS HORRIFYING ORDEAL. PLEASE DO NOT IGNORE MY COMPLAINT. *TR

I WAS DRIVING MY 2000 MERCEDES BENZ ML 430 AT APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH, WHEN WITHOUT ANY WARNING LIGHTS BEING DISPLAYED IT ABRUPTLY STOPPED. THE BRAKE PEDAL HAD NOT BEEN DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE THEN SKIDDED, STOPPED, SKIDDED AGAIN AND STOPPED. THIS WENT ON FOR APPROXIMATELY 45-60 SECONDS THEN THE BAS ESP MALFUNCTION LIGHT CAME ON. I WAS THEN ABLE TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE WHILE THE LIGHT WAS ILLUMINATED. I HAVE EXPERIENCED THIS ON 4 SEPARATE OCCASIONS AND HAVE ALMOST BEEN INVOLVED IN THREE ACCIDENTS WHICH ALL COULD HAVE BEEN FATAL BECAUSE THE VEHICLE STOPS COMPLETELY, IT DOES NOT SLOW DOWN THEN STOP, IT STOPS. I WAS ADVISED TO CHANGE THE TIRES AND HAVE THE BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH REPLACED. I DID BUT THE PROBLEM CONTINUED. I HAVE BEEN TOLD BY THREE CERTIFIED MECHANICS THAT THERE SEEMS TO BE A DEFECT WITH OR WITHIN MY ABS SYSTEM BECAUSE EVEN IF THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH MY ABS SYSTEM THE CAR SHOULD NOT ABRUPTLY STOP WHILE BEING DRIVEN AND IT SEEMS THAT THE ABS SYSTEM IS WORKING IN REVERSE ORDER BECAUSE THE MALFUNCTION LIGHTS ILLUMINATE AFTER THE MALFUNCTION OCCURS. THE ABRUPT STOPPING OF THE VEHICLE WHILE BEING DRIVEN IS DANGEROUS AND CAN CAUSE A FATALITY OR SERIOUS BODILY INJURY. I HAVE MY OLD BRAKE LIGHT SWITCH BUT DO NOT HAVE THE TIRES THAT WERE REPLACED. *TR

THE ANTILOCK BRAKING SYSTEM CAN TAKE OVER THROTTLE AND BRAKING. VEHICLE WILL AUTOMATICALLY APPLY BRAKES TO VARIOUS WHEELS. IT WILL PITCH THE CAR LEFT OR RIGHT AND REQUIRE DRIVER TO COUNTER STEER TO KEEP THE VEHICLE STRAIGHT. THERE IS NO WARNING ON WHEN THIS WILL HAPPEN. CAN CAUSE ACCIDENT OR CAUSE VEHICLE TO SPIN. MERCEDES DEALER SERVICE MANAGER ADVISE ME IT IS A FAULTY SENSOR AND IT IS REPLACE AT OWNERS EXPENSE FOR $600. I COMPLAINT THAT IT IS DANGEROUS AND SHOULD BE REPLACED. SERVICE ADVISOR SIMPLY REPLIED " YES IT IS, YOU SHOULD PAY FOR THE REPAIR. " *TR

2000 ML-CLASS MERCEDES ML55 LEAKING BRAKE LINE DUE TO CHAFFING AS DESCRIBED IN YOUR INVESTIGATION OF 52,000 ML-CLASS MERCEDES SUV'S. THE BRAKE LINE RUNNING FROM THE MASTER CYLINDER TO THE ABS PUMP SUFFERS EVENTUAL FAILURE DUE TO CHAFFING AGAINST A POORLY POSITIONED FUEL LINE. SUFFERED NEAR TOTAL FAILURE OF BRAKING SYSTEM THIS MORNING DUE TO THIS ISSUE. I HAVE ALL PARTS REMOVED, AND A FAILURE ASSESSMENT PROVIDED BY THE SERVICE TECHNICIAN. THE WORK WAS NOT PERFORMED AT A MERCEDES BENZ DEALER, THEREBY ENSURING OBJECTIVITY OF THE DIAGNOSIS. *TR

WITHOUT ANY WARNING, WHEN COMING TO A TRAFFIC STOP THE BRAKE PEDAL ON MY 2000 MERCEDES ML55 WENT TO THE FLOOR. I WAS ABLE TO STOP AFTER REAPPLYING THE BRAKE AND PUSHING VERY HARD. FORTUNATELY NO CARS WERE IN FRONT OF ME OR I WOULD HAVE HIT THEM. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE STREET AND LOOKED UNDER THE HOOD, NOTICED THE BRAKE FLUID WAS LOW, PUT SOME FLUID IN AND DROVE A SHORT DISTANCE TO WORK. THE BRAKES WERE VERY SOFT. THE NEXT DAY TOOK THE VEHICLE TO MY MERCEDES DEALER WHERE THEY FOUND THAT A BRAKE LINE WAS RUBBED THROUGH AND LEAKING. NO INDICATOR LIGHTS OR WARNINGS OF ANY KIND OCCURRED BEFORE THE PROBLEM.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCEDES BENZ ML. IN DECEMBER OF 2008, THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER TO HAVE IT REPAIRED ACCORDING TO NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 08V465000 (STEERING: HYDRAULIC POWER ASSIST: HOSE, PIPING). AFTER THE REPAIR, HE NOTICED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS STILL LEAKING FLUID. THE DEALER STATED THAT IF HE BROUGHT THE VEHICLE BACK, HE WOULD BE CHARGED FOR THE REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER STATED THAT THEY WOULD CALL HIM BACK, BUT THEY NEVER DID. ON MARCH 26, 2009, WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 50 MPH, THE VEHICLE PULLED TO THE RIGHT AND THE CONTACT LOST CONTROL OF THE STEERING. THE VEHICLE VEERED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND WAS TOWED TO A REPAIR SHOP. THE MECHANIC FOUND THAT THE POWER STEERING FLUID WAS LEAKING ON THE BELTS AND CAUSED THE STEERING TO FAIL. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 80,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 100,000.

THIS COMPLAINT ARISES OUT OF NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID NUMBER 08V465000 (MOST RECENT) INVOLVING A DEFECTIVE HOSE AND CLAMP ASSOCIATED WITH THE POWER STEERING. I AM WAITING TO HAVE THOSE ITEMS INSTALLED ON MY 2000 MERCEDES ML55 WHEN THE PARTS ARE OBTAINED BY MY DEALER, MBL OF TYSON'S CORNER, VA, WHICH SOLICITED ME TO HAVE THE REPAIRS MADE AND I TRIED TO DO SO BUT THE PARTS WERE NOT IN STOCK. MY COMPLAINT HAS TO DO WITH MERCEDES'S REFUSAL TO TAKE ANY RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FACT THAT SINCE I BOUGHT THE CAR IN 2000, IT HAS HAD THREE OR FOUR POWER STEERING PUMPS TO GO BAD AND HAVE TO BE REPLACED. IN YOUR RECALL NOTICE, YOU STATE THAT THE DEFECTIVE HOSE AND CLAMP "ULTIMATELY CAN DAMAGE THE POWER STEERING PUMP. THIS COULD RESULT IN A LOSS OF CONTROL AND A CRASH WITHOUT WARNING>" SINCE I BOUGHT THIS CAR IN 2000, IT WILL NOT HAVE HAD A NON-DEFECTIVE POWER STEERING SYSTEM. AS BEST I CAN DETERMINE FROM PAPER IN MY POSSESSION, THE POWER STEERING PUMP HAS BEEN REPLACED AT LEAST THREE TIMES. I SUPPOSE THAT MERCEDES COULD ARGUE THAT FOUR PUMPS REPRESENTS NORMAL WEAR-AND-TEAR, BUT IT SEEMS TO ME THAT THERE IS SOME CONNECTION BETWEEN THE DEFECTIVE HOSE AND CLAMP AND THE NEED TO REPLACE MULTIPLE PUMPS. THE PUMP IS A BIG-TICKET ITEM--MORE THAN $1,200 EACH TO BUY AND HAVE INSTALLED. IT STRIKES ME AS UNLIKELY IN THE EXTREME THAT THE DEFECTIVE HOSE AND CLAMP DID NOT CONTRIBUTE TO THE FAILURE OF AT LEAST THREE POWER STEERING PUMPS OVER THE LAST 9 YEARS. *TR

POWER STEERING LEAKING LOSS OF STEERING TOOK TO DEALERSHIP. ADVISE NOT AWARE OF RECALL. CAR WAS REPAIRED IN 2003 DUE TO THE SAME ISSUE UNDER ANOTHER RECALL. FINALLY REPLACE HOSE, BUT POWER STEERING CONTINUES TO LEAK. *TR