2007 Mercedes Benz R320

The contact owns a 2007 Mercedes-Benz R320. The contact stated that the vehicle was taken to the dealer to be repaired under NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V315000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic); however, the dealer informed the contact that the vehicle needed a diagnostic test prior to the recall repair. The contact declined to pay for the diagnostic test and advised the dealer to complete the recall repair. The dealer declined to honor the recall repair. The contact later discovered that the dealer had marked the recall repair as completed even though the recall repair had not been performed. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline for assistance. The contact had not experienced a failure.

The contact owns a 2007 Mercedes-Benz R320. The contact stated the vehicle failed to start in very cold weather. The contact stated that after changing the battery several times, the failure continued to occur. Additionally, while operating the vehicle, the front and rear exterior lights failed to illuminate as needed. The contact stated that the failure was intermittent. The cause of the failure was not yet determined. The local dealer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was offered. The manufacturer was not yet contacted. The failure mileage was 75,000.

TRANSMISSION MODEL 722.9 FAILURE WHILE DRIVING. CREATES AN EXTREMELY DANGEROUS SITUATION THAT COULD LEAD TO FATAL ACCIDENTS. TRANSMISSION COMPLETELY DISENGAGES BRINGING CAR TO STAND STILL, OR IT DOWNSHIFTS WITHOUT ANY WARNINGS AT HIGH SPEED. FEELS LIKE THE ENTIRE TRANSMISSION IS DROPPING OFF THE CAR. MY CAR HAD ONLY 45K MILES ON IT WHEN IT FIRST EXHIBITED THIS PROBLEM. NOW IT COST MORE THAN RETAIL VALUE OF THE CAR TO REPLACE THIS TRANSMISSION.

I TOOK MY CAR TO THE MERCEDES-BENZ DEALER IN WILSONVILLE OREGON, THE SERVICE MANAGER TOLD ME THAT THE R320 CDI IS THE WORST CAR MERCEDES-BENZ EVER BUILT, AND THEY KEPT CHARGING FOR REPAIRS EACH TIME WITH A NEW PROBLEM. I WAS ALSO TOLD THE BRAKE LAMP IN THE REAR NEEDS A SOFTWARE UPDATE OTHER WISE MY LIGHTS WILL NOT FUNCTION PROPERLY. DO YOU THINK IT IS A SAFETY ISSUE, IF MY TAIL LAMP AND MY BRAKE LAMP WILL NOT WORK UNTIL I UPDATE THE SOFTWARE FOR 150 DOLLARS?

ESP INOPERATIVE MESSAGE APPEARS. WIPERS WENT ON (ALTHOUGH THEY WERE OFF AT THE TIME) TURN SIGNALS WERE INOPERATIVE AND INTERIOR LIGHTS NOT WORKING.. I PULLED TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND WAS UNABLE TO ENGAGE PARK OR REVERSE. I SHUT THE IGNITION OFF AND NEUTRAL WAS AUTOMATICALLY ENGAGED BUT PARK STILL NOT WORKING. REMOVING THE KEY ENGAGED PARK. RESTARTING THE CAR THE ESP INOPERATIVE MESSAGE WAS STILL DISPLAYED AND DRIVE COULD NOT BE ENGAGED. AFTER LEAVING THE KEY REMOVED FOR 2-3 MINUTES ALL WAS CLEAR. NO RECURRENCE OF THE PROBLEM FOR 6 MONTHS THEN RECURRED ON SEPTEMBER 22, 2014 AND AGAIN ON SEPTEMBER 24, 2014. I FEEL THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS ISSUE. STABILITY CONTROL IS LOST ALONG WITH TURN SIGNALS AND EVEN IF YOU STOP THE CAR STAYS IN DRIVE AND REVERSE IS NOT AVAILABLE. PARK CAN ONLY BE ENGAGED BY REMOVING THE KEY. EACH RECURRENCE WAS THE SAME. HEADLIGHTS WERE STILL WORKING BUT I COULD NOT ESTABLISH IF TAIL AND BRAKE LIGHTS WORKING SINCE THE CAR STAYS IN DRIVE UNTIL YOU REMOVE THE KEY SO YOU CANNOT CHECK THIS. *TR

PREFACE: I OWN AN AUTOMOTIVE REPAIR SHOP IN CARROLLTON TEXAS. I HAVE BEEN WORKING ON CARS SINCE 1968. I AM A THREE-TIME CERTIFIED MERCEDES-BENZ MASTER TECHNICIAN. IN DECEMBER, 2012 I REPLACED THE RIGHT FRONT AIR SPRING ON A 2007 MERCEDES R-320. THE MANUFACTURER IS AREN'T INDUSTRIES. THEIR PART NUMBER IS A-2587. LESS THAN TWO MONTHS LATER, THE AIR SPRING SUFFERED A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE. THE SPRING MATERIAL, WHICH IS SIMILAR IN CONSTRUCTION TO A TIRE, RUPTURED. THE VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN THE OWNER'S GARAGE WHEN THE "BLOW-OUT" OCCURRED. THE MILEAGE AT FAILURE WAS 49336. THE MILEAGE OF THE ORIGINAL REPLACEMENT WAS 49113. THE DISTRIBUTOR OF THE AIR SPRING OFFERED ME A WARRANTY REPLACEMENT. I REPLACED THE SPRING WITH, AT THIS POINT, NO FURTHER ISSUES. ON SEPTEMBER 10,2013 I REPLACED THE LEFT FRONT AIR SPRING. THAT SPRING FAILED TODAY, SIX DAYS SHY OF ONE YEAR AND AFTER ONLY 4200 MILES. BOTH OF THE REPLACEMENT AIR SPRINGS SUFFERED CATASTROPHIC "BLOW-OUT" FAILURES. WHEN THE LEFT SPRING FAILED TODAY, THE CAR WAS BEING DRIVEN. THE DRIVER MANAGED TO GET THE CAR OFF THE ROAD WITHOUT INCIDENT. HOWEVER, IT COULD HAVE RESULTED IN LOSS OF CONTROL OF THE CAR AND SERIOUS DAMAGE OR INJURY. I CONTACTED AREN'T ABOUT THEIR FAILURE RATES FOR THESE AIR SPRINGS. THEY STATED THEY HAVE ONLY AN 8% FAILURE RATE OF THIS PRODUCT. BECAUSE THE TWO FAILURES THAT I HAVE WITNESSED PRESENT A THREAT TO THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE AND OCCUPANTS, I WOULD LIKE SOMEONE TO SEE IF ADDITIONAL FAILURES OF THIS COMPANY'S PRODUCTS HAVE OCCURRED. *TR