2011 Mercedes-Benz E350
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
Vehicles › Mercedes-Benz › E350 › 2011
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
These records cover every 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350. To see whether one car still needs a recall repair, decode its VIN or check it with NHTSA.
5 recalls name the 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350. Newest first.
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2015-2016 E400 Coupe, 2012-2015 C250 Coupe, C350 Coupe, C63 AMG Coupe, 2011-2014 E350 Coupe, and 2012-2014 E350 Cabrio vehicles. An incorrect front passenger air bag may have been installed during a prior repair.
An incorrect air bag may not function properly in a crash, increasing the risk of injury.
Dealers will replace the front passenger air bag on the affected vehicles, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on September 10, 2021. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2014 C250, C300 4Matic, C350, C63 AMG, E350 4Matic Coupe, E350 Cabrio, E350 Coupe, SLS AMG Cabrio, SLS AMG Coupe, 2014-2015 C250 Coupe, C350 4Matic Coupe, C350 Coupe, C63 AMG Coupe, GLK 350, GLK250 BlueTec 4Matic, GLK350 RWD, 2015-2017 E400 4Matic Coupe, E400 Cabrio, E400 Coupe, 2014-2017 E550 Cabrio, and…
An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the passenger or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag module, free of charge. The recall began March 29, 2019. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2008-2011 C300 Sedan, C300 4matic Sedan, C350 Sedan, C63 AMG Sedan vehicles, 2010-2011 GLK350, GLK350 4-Matic and E350 Coupe vehicles, 2011 SLS AMG, E350 Convertible, E550 Coupe and E550 Convertible vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii…
An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag modules, free of charge. Owners were sent an interim notification October 2016. A second notice will be mailed when remedy parts are available. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-877-496-3691.
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2009-2010 ML320 BlueTec 4Matic, GL320 BlueTec 4Matic and R320 CDI 4Matic, 2011 E350 Cabriolet and E550 Cabriolet, 2009-2011 ML350, ML350 4Matic, ML550 4Matic, ML63 AMG, and C63 AMG, 2010-2011 ML450 4Matic Hybrid, E350 Coupe, E350 4Matic, E550 Coupe, E550 4Matic, and E63 AMG, 2011-2012 GL350…
In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the driver's frontal air bag, the inflator could rupture with metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants resulting in serious injury or death.
MBUSA will their notify owners, and Fiat Chrysler will notify the affected Chrysler owners. Dealers for the respective brands will replace the driver's frontal air bag module, free of charge. This recall began November 2016. Mercedes-Benz owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372 and Chrysler owners may contact Fiat Chrysler customer service at 1-800-853-1403.
Mercedes-Benz is recalling certain model year 2011-2012 S400, S550, S550 4Matic, S63 AMG, C300, C300 4Matic, E350, GLK350, GLK350 4Matic, CL550 4Matic, and CL63 AMG vehicles manufactured from April 18, 2011, through July 12, 2011. Due to an irregularity stemming from the molding process of the fuel filter flange, the fuel filter flange may crack when…
If the fuel filter flange cracks, it will leak fuel which may lead to a fire if an external ignition source is present.
Mercedes-Benz will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel filter, free of charge. The recall campaign is expected to begin in February 2013. Owners may contact Mercedes-Benz at 1-800-367-6372.
Without an impact or collision, my car's passenger seat headrest shot out. I've been checking and others have done this as well. This morning, the driver's side headrest shot out without impact or collision. There is something wrong with the mechanism or airbags for the headrests. This can be extremely dangerous when in motion....
Dealer notes: Replace rear brake lines, found to be rusty recommend replacement with rear subframe replacement. This is a very well known issue and is not covered under recall from manufacturer. It will cost $3200 for brake line repair alone, not including the subframe. This is an extreme safety hazard and a common problem that has been acknowledged by the manufacturer.
Subject: Safety Concern – Mercedes-Benz E350 4MATIC (2011) Subframe and Brake Line Rust Dear [Mercedes-Benz Customer Care / NHTSA], I am writing to report a serious safety concern regarding my 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350 4MATIC. Recently, I brought my vehicle in for recall service, and during the inspection, it was discovered that: The rear subframe is broken due to rust. The brake lines are extremely rusted, and I was advised that I could lose braking control if they are not replaced immediately. The estimated repair cost exceeds $4,000. I have been a long-time owner of Mercedes-Benz vehicles and part of the Mercedes-Benz family. However, I am now deeply concerned about the safety of myself, my family, and others on the road due to this severe corrosion issue, which I believe may be a widespread defect. I respectfully request that Mercedes-Benz investigate this issue and provide assistance, as the failure of these critical components poses a serious safety hazard. Thank you for your attention to this urgent matter. Sincerely, [XXX] [Phone: [XXX] ] [Email: [XXX] ] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Rear crossmember or ( rear subframe frame ) rust and It broke due to corrosion
Brake lines have completely rusted through. Car had additional rust issues on the subframe which Mercedes admitted and replaced as part of an extended warranty . When that was repaired they never mentioned the brakes. Now 3 months later the brake lines rusted completely through … seems both subframe and lines rust at the same rate. And I would presume both cause equal safety risk. Why have they not yet issued an extended warranty on the brake lines? Both of these appear to be common issues. Hopefully NHTSA can encourage a change.
Brake lines rust and corrode at the plastic support clips. Brake lines are not made from quality materials. Suffrage also corroded. Suffrage was changed by dealer though when vehicle was returned the Brake lines were broken. Car entered Suffrage service with brake lines intact, rusted i wouldn't doubt but intact. When returned after changing Suffrage, brake line was broken and leaking brake fluid. Extremely dangerous to return vehicle with broken brake lines and expected Owner to drive away with no brakes. Changing brake lines was offered at a cost of $4000 but the lines were not broken upon dropping off for service. Brake lines should be warrantied and changed to a less corrosive material. Engine mounts fail and cause vibration.
A gasoline smells fills the cabin and the outside surrounding area the vehicle continually to the point making anyone surrounding the vehicle and or sitting in the front and back seats physically sick. The gasoline smells omits continually from the backseat and or trunk area no matter the amount of fuel that is in the tank. It is a fire hazard and also health hazard as well.
The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that while starting the vehicle, the SRS Malfunction message was displayed. The dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 156,094.
This vehicle, with 115,000 miles has been discovered to have had the brackets in the subframe for BOTH rear lateral arms rust through and are broken causing a $5,000 repair estimate. The mechanic who found this (42 years as a mechanic) said he has never seen anything like it. This is a car where I had to replace the transmission at 49,000 miles and the control unit at 62,000 miles (over $13,000 in repairs). I saw through AI search that this problem has been reported many times but has not prompted an investigation. This issue should NEVER happen and is a MAJOR SAFETY threat.
Rear brake lines are known to corrode. Had to get my line replaced at 78xxx miles. This is a common problem for the w212 Mercedes, along with the rear sub-frame rusting away. If the brake lines bursted when I was driving, I could of lost my life.
Broken rear sub frame.
The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact stated that on multiple occasions when fuel was administered into the vehicle, he observed a strong fuel odor in the cabin. The vehicle was taken to the residence and parked. The contact stated that as he came out to inspect the vehicle he observed a leak under the vehicle near the fuel spout. The vehicle was inspected and the rear seat and the access panel were removed and a large amount of condensation was present near the fuel tank. The vehicle was taken to a dealer where it has yet to be diagnosed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 159,143.
The known Subframe rust recall issue has caused the brake lines to rust and mercedes in St Louis wont cover the expense to fix this known extra problem. They want $2200.00 to fix the brakes that other dealers would charge half for. They want to escape this problem and I just want this fixed at their cost.
Driving on interstate, hit the brakes and noticed the car was swaying hard to the left. After that it progressively got worse. When hitting even the smallest bump or braking I heard a metal on metal ‘thunk’ sound. My daughters were in the car and it was frightening. Upon further inspection by a Mercedes mechanic, the secondary frame had rusted and snapped into. After reading forums online I found it’s very common. They rust from the inside out. There was absolutely NO previous warning.
Rear subframe rusted and broken apart.
The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E-350. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the steering wheel would occasionally become difficult to maneuver. The contact stated the power steering fluid was previously refilled. The air bag warning light was illuminated intermittently. Additionally, the contact stated that there was an unusual amount of smoke coming from under the hood occasionally. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, where it was diagnosed that the power steering fluid might have leaked. The mechanic could not determine the cause of the failure. An unknown local dealer was contacted, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 108,000.
The contact owns a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V081000 (Air Bags); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer and another dealer, Mercedes-Benz of Sacramento (1810 Howe Ave, Sacramento, CA 95825) were contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and a case was opened. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.
I bought my vehicle to the Mercedes dealership to get the rear subframe replaced under extended warranty due to it being rusted and broken from the rear suspension attachment points. While the Mercedes technician had the subframe removed he noted that the rear brake lines which are routed under the body and between the subframe had significant rust/corrosion on them.
With less than 40,000 miles on the odometer, I noticed a gas smell both inside the car and outside. I was able to access the fuel filter assembly on the top of the gas tank and found it had a substantial leak resulting in a puddle of fuel on the assembly. The car has never been in a wreck on had any damage that would cause this problem. I researched and found earlier years of the same model had this problem resulting in Mercedes Benz extending the warranty to 150,000 miles for this part. They have refused to warranty my car. This is a major safety issue and by releasing gas fumes into the atmosphere is an environmental problem as well.
The passenger front air bag malfunction,the passenger seat head rest deployed and And malfunction with any incident,the driver air bag is light on malfunction.after I took it to the dealership radio stop working no audio
While driving at approximately 55mph on the highway, I was required to brake for a merging vehicle who decided to make a lane change at the last second. I used my breaks, and my car did not break correctly. Instead, the car pulled the the right and locked up, it felt as though I had lost control of the car. When I went to my mechanic, I thought it was a break issue. Instead, it turns out the whole rear sub frame had rusted. When researching this issue, I found many other similar experiences. The harm that this part failure lead to was extreme. This could have been deadly. This is a safety issue that the manufacturer does not address.
The sunroof detached and the water from the rain leaked through the faulty sunroof into the interior doors, floorboard and dashboard. This happened to both the passenger side and the driver side. It was repaired out of pocket because of the hazard and lack of dealership accountability. Because the dealership wanted to charge $1000 to provide a water intrusion inspection so we went to an a MB authorization independent mechanic to repair the vehicle.This leaking lead to the growth of mold and lack driver visibility.Lastly they were no warnings before the leak happened.
There is a strong odor of gasoline inside the passenger compartment and around the outside of the vehicle when the gas tank is filled. A previous maintenance code of 0456 was triggered. Several repairs have been done to try and solve this problem, but the issue still remains. There is currently no recall for this specific VIN model but Mercedes Benz have issued the recall for other models with the same issue.
Bake line rusted through and drained brake fluid. Dashboard lit up bright red with a warning not to drive the car. Brake failure, spongy brake.
Purchased vehicle May 22, 2023 at Direct Auto Sales of Orlando, Florida. Approximately two and a half weeks later the subframe broke away from the support arm rendering the vehicle in an inoperable and unsafe condition. A local mechanic said this vehicle should not have been driven. He said we could have been in an accident and suffered severe injuries or even death. Mercedes Benz of South Orlando inspected the vehicle and reported the subframe, fuel tank, front and rear axles, exhaust system, support arms, motor mounts, etc need replacing. Cost is $30,000. How could anyone fail to see damage this extensive.and not report it.
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened these reviews into vehicles including this one.
From 2000 through 2017, Takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("PSAN") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004L. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 Blomquist Report at www.nhtsa.gov/sites/nhtsa.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.Consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substance that traps and holds moisture) in US vehicles are under recall. These "non-desiccated" inflators either have been or are required to be replaced.In some cases, the remedy part for these recalled inflators was, or will be, an inflator using either propellant 2004 or 2004L that does contain a desiccant. None of these "desiccated" remedy parts (which were installed in older model year vehicles) are currently under recall for a degradation concern. Certain subsets of desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004 for use as original equipment, however, have been recalled for a degradation concern. All Takata inflators produced with propellant 2004L contain desiccant, and none of these desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L are under recall for a degradation concern. There have been no reported field ruptures in any non-recalled desiccated PSAN inflators.It is understood that desiccants fully saturate at some threshold, at which point any additional moisture will not be captured. This means the degradation process observed in non-desiccated inflators using propellant 2004 may also occur in non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004, assuming additional moisture enters the inflator and high temperature cycling occurs. Based on available information, desiccant saturation can occur within the first five years in the worst environments, and the time required for full saturation is affected by multiple factors. While no present safety risk has been identified, further work is needed to evaluate the future risk of non-recalled desiccated inflators using propellant 2004.Three entities -- Takata (now known as TK Global), the Independent Testing Coalition, and Exponent -- have been studying the long-term behavior of Takata desiccated PSAN inflators using propellant 2004L (as well as 2004) in the presence of moisture and temperature cycling. The research efforts, which include development of predictive modeling techniques and field sample analysis, are ongoing. To date, none of the researchers have identified field evidence showing that propellant 2004L is undergoing a degradation process that leads to aggressive deployment and potential rupture. However, the time in service of such inflators remains short compared to that of the inflators using propellant 2004. Further study is needed to assess the long-term safety of desiccated inflators using propellant 2004L.The Office of Defects Investigation is opening this investigation to examine whether a safety defect related to propellant degradation exists in non-recalled desiccated PSAN frontal inflators manufactured by Takata. This investigation will require extensive information on Takata production processes and surveys of inflators in the field. Lists of recall actions that may have used desiccated PSAN inflators as remedy parts, as well as the makes and models originally manufactured with them, is available with the downloadable version of this document (see nhtsa.gov/recalls?nhtsaId=EA21002 -- note this information is subject to change/revision as the investigation proceeds). This investigation does not supersede EA15-001, which remains open.
On April 10, 2020, NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition from Mr. Surjit Singh alleging premature corrosion of the rear brake lines in his 2013 Mercedes-Benz E350 sedan. The petitioner states that he was recently informed by a Mercedes dealer service department that his car had severely rusted brake lines that need[ed] to be replaced immediately at a cost of about $3300. He further stated that the dealer service advisor informed him that he had seen the issue on many cars like his. The petitioner requested ?that NHTSA launch an investigation into this serious issue of rusting brake lines on [his] 2013 Mercedes E350.? The brake line corrosion reported by the petitioner did not result in brake line leakage or any compromise in brake system performance before it was detected in a dealer vehicle inspection. The petitioner submitted a complaint to NHTSA documenting his experience (NHTSA ID 11319024).On April 24, 2020, ODI opened Defect Petition DP20-004 to evaluate the petitioner?s request. ODI conducted a search for all consumer complaints and Early Warning Reporting (EWR) data related to allegations of brake line corrosion or leakage in 2013 Mercedes-Benz E350 sedans and similarly equipped vehicles. The 2013 E350 is a fourth-generation Mercedes-Benz E-Class vehicle (W212 platform), which was first sold in the United States in 2009 as a 2010 model. Mercedes-Benz sold approximately 245 thousand model year 2010 through 2015 E-Class sedan and wagon vehicles in the United States with the same brake line design as the petitioner?s vehicle.ODI?s search for complaints and EWR data in 2013 Mercedes E350 vehicles found no additional records related to the alleged defect. Expanding the search to all W212 platform vehicles identified just one incident, a complaint alleging unspecified brake line corrosion and leakage in a 2011 Mercedes-Benz E550 (NHTSA ID 10902081). The complaint did not allege that the brake line leakage resulted in reduced brake performance, crash, or injury. The resulting failure rate of 0.4 failures per hundred thousand vehicles is extremely low for a population that includes vehicles that have been in service for over ten years. After reviewing the available data, ODI has not identified evidence of a defect trend in the subject E-Class vehicles that would support opening a defect investigation into premature brake line corrosion failure. NHTSA is authorized to issue an order requiring notification and remedy of a defect if the Agency?s investigation shows a defect in design, construction, or performance of a motor vehicle that presents an unreasonable risk to safety. 49 U.S.C. ?? 30102(a)(9), 30118. Since the information before the Agency is not indicative of a vehicle-based defect, it is unlikely that any investigation opened because of granting this petition would result in an order concerning the notification and remedy of a safety-related defect. Therefore, upon full consideration of the information presented in the petition and the potential risks to safety, the petition is denied. The denial of this petition does not foreclose the Agency from taking further action if warranted or the potential for a future finding that a safety-related defect exists based upon additional information the agency may receive.A Federal Register notice further detailing NHTSA?s reasons for denial of the petition will be forthcoming.
Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.
Bars are owner complaints, dots mark years with recalls. Select a year to open its report.