IllustrationWHILE DRIVING 55 MPH DRIVER'S AIR BAG DEPLOYED WITHOUT A COLLISION OCCURRING, CAUSE UNKNOWN. PLEASE GIVE ANY FURTHER DETAILS.*AK
1986 Mercedes Benz 300E
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Limited comparison data
There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all 300E years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
Limited mileage data: 4 of 11 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Air Bags. Review the 4 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Fuel System, Gasoline. Review the 2 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Power Train. Review the 2 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
1 crash reports0 fire reports2 injury reports
Air Bags complaints
4 reportsFALSE DEPLOYMENT OF AIR BAG RESULTING IN INJURIES (BURNS) TO FACE AND CHEST AND DAMAGES TO VEHICLE.
WHILE DRIVING VEHICLE ON HIGHWAY WITHOUT IMPACT AIRBAG HAD DEPLOYED ALMOST CAUSING AN ACCIDENT. *AK *JB
FALSE DEPLOYMENT OF AIRBAG, CAUSING INJURIES AFTER RECALL.
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
1PE87001 · Sudden Acceleration
Opened Oct 2, 1986 · Closed Jan 14, 1987
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Vehicle Speed Control:linkages
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION FROM MANUFACTURER:MERCEDES-BENZ OF NORTH AMERICA(MBNA) REPORTED AN ADDITIONAL 4 CASES OF ALLEGED SUDDEN ACCELERATION OF THESUBJECT VEHICLES IN ADDITION TO THOSE PREVIOUSLY REPORTED TO NHTSA.ALLCASES WERE INVESTIGATED BY MBNA REPRESENTATIVES, AND NO TRENDS OR NOTABLESIMILARITIES WERE FOUND IN THE APPARENT CAUSES OF THE ALLEGED INCIDENTS.NO GEOGRAPHIC OR VEHICLE MILEAGE TRENDS WERE NOTED AMONG THE INCIDENTSREPORTED. MBNA CONDUCTED TESTS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTS OF OPEN THROTTLE, OPENENGINE IDLE BYPASS VALVE, AND BRAKE APPLICATION UNDER VARYING CONDITIONSOF VEHICLE MOTION ON ASPHALT AND GRASSY SURFACES.THE RESULTS OF THESETESTS WERE PROVIDED TO NHTSA, AND INDICATE THAT THE SERVICE BRAKES WEREFULLY EFFECTIVE IN BRINGING THE VEHICLE TO A STOP FROM 30 MPH WITH A FULLYOPEN THROTTLE.IN ADDITION THE TESTS DEMONSTRATED A MAXIMUM ATTAINABLEVEHICLE SPEED OF ABOUT 5 MPH WITH A FULLY OPEN IDLE SPEED AIR VALVE.ANALYSIS:MBNA'S EVALUATIONS OF THE EIGHT VEHICLES REPORTED TO HAVEEXPERIENCED SUDDEN ACCELERATION INCLUDED UNDERHOOD INSPECTIONS TO IDENTIFYANY APPARENT CAUSES OF THE ALLEGED INCIDENTS; MECHANICAL INTERFERENCE OFCOMPONENTS WAS FOUND IN TWO VEHICLES, NEITHER OF WHICH RELATED TO A DESIGNDEFICIENCY.TESTS PERFORMED BY MBNA DEMONSTRATED THE CAPACITYOF THE SUBJECT VEHICLES TO BE CONTROLLED UNDER CONDITIONS OF HIGH ENGINEIDLE SPEED AND WITH A FULLY OPEN THROTTLE.PERFORMANCE OF THE VEHICLE ASDOCUMENTED BY MBNA'S TESTS, TOGETHER WITH THE LACK OF A STRONG FAILURETREND SUGGESTS THAT FURTHER INVESTIGATIVE EFFORT IS NOT WARRANTED ON THISISSUE.PROPOSED ACTION:CLOSE THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATION.===