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1972 Mercedes Benz 350SL

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

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: 1 of 1 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.

  • Structure. Review the 1 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

0 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports

Structure complaints

1 reports
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153,000 miles · Jun 14, 2012
Structure

SEVERAL MONTHS AGO I PURCHASED AN EXCELLENT CLASSIC 1972 MERCEDES 350SL. I HAD A SAFETY INSPECTION BY A LOCAL MERCEDES DEALER (AUTOHAUS ON EDENS IN GLENCOE IL) BEFORE I COMMITTED TO BUYING THE CAR. AT THE TIME, NO SERIOUS PROBLEMS WERE IDENTIFIED OR REPORTED. A FEW WEEKS AGO, I TOOK THE CAR TO A CLASSIC MERCEDES SPECIALIST (AXEL…

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SEVERAL MONTHS AGO I PURCHASED AN EXCELLENT CLASSIC 1972 MERCEDES 350SL. I HAD A SAFETY INSPECTION BY A LOCAL MERCEDES DEALER (AUTOHAUS ON EDENS IN GLENCOE IL) BEFORE I COMMITTED TO BUYING THE CAR. AT THE TIME, NO SERIOUS PROBLEMS WERE IDENTIFIED OR REPORTED. A FEW WEEKS AGO, I TOOK THE CAR TO A CLASSIC MERCEDES SPECIALIST (AXEL'S AUTOMOTIVE) WHO DISCOVERED AN OPEN RECALL ON THE CAR FOR THE SUBFRAME. HE REPORTED THE PROBLEM TO THE SAME MERCEDES DEALER (AUTOHAUS) WHERE I ORIGINALLY HAD THE CAR INSPECTED. THEY (AUTOHAUS) ARE DECLINING THE RECALL REPAIR BECAUSE THE CAR IS NOW 40 YEARS OLD AND THEY SAY THAT ONCE THEY START WORKING ON IT, THERE WILL BE ADDITIONAL REPAIRS REQUIRED THAT ARE NOT A PART OF THE RECALL. THEY WANT ME TO PAY NEARLY $8,000 (WORST CASE) IN THE EVENT THEY HAVE PROBLEMS WITH THE REPAIR. NOW THEY WON'T RELEASE THE CAR UNLESS I SIGN A LIABILITY WAIVER. THE CAR IS BEAUTIFUL AND RUNS FINE, BUT IS NOW SITTING IN BACK OF THE MERCEDES DEALERSHIP. IS THIS SOMETHING YOU CAN HELP ME WITH. KIND REGARDS, {XXX}"PARTS OF THIS DOCUMENT HAVE BEEN REDACTED TO PROTECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552 (B) 96)." *JB

NHTSA ODI #10461819

Official recalls

1

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

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.