1995 Mercedes Benz C280 electrical problems

Filed Sep 12, 2020 · Electrical · NY

Mercedes with full knowledge installed disintegrating wiring insulation in many cars knowing full well the insulation would fail rendering any and all cars unreliable dangerous and ultimately useless

Filed Feb 23, 2015 · Electrical, Engine · 143,000 miles · WA

The car was barely used in about 2 years. Before it had never had a problem, now it can't be taken to emissions because the check engine light is on. It was discovered that this is because the engine wiring harness was deteriorating. Through internet research, I have discovered that mercedes-benz knows about this common problem very well even though they blatantly disregard their customers' safety, claiming they have no such knowledge and requiring customers to pay for it themselves or continue driving an unsafe vehicle. There is no reason other than irresponsible greed that mercedes-benz ignores this problem, and this puts unknowing consumers at serious risk. I am appalled that mercedes-benz has not owned up to their responsibilities and I would be very happy to see action taken to force mercedes-benz to actually value protecting their customers' safety above keeping their pockets lined with money.

Filed Feb 9, 2015 · Electrical, Engine · 121,482 miles · MD

I recently bought this used 1995 c280 mercedes benz,almost immediately after I bought it -electrical system started malfunctioning,gauges go on and off continuously, car refused to start -then starts as if nothing happened.windows work-and then they don't. Obdii system reads different codes-obviously unreliable. After having a mechanic look at it -he stated that wiring harness is failing. After coming here to look for recalls-I see that over 90% complaints on this car are for a defective wiring harness-a fact that mercedes benz should be well aware of by now. This could create a fire hazard and serious driving hazard. Why haven't they dealt with this possibly disastrous defect? I'm totally disappointed that a car company that stresses safety,and dependability put something like this in the market and hasn't made any attempt to help out the owners of hundreds of thousands of defective cars they produced. Another myth falls by the wayside-mercedes benz uber alles? What a bad joke-people that own cheap nissans get 200,000 miles-a high dollar lemon? Shame on you mercedes benz-btw if you go to mercedes recall page,they don't even mention this problem..has mercedes dropped their standards to screwing their customers? Apparently so-.another legend turns out to be nothing more than a lie.

Filed Jul 31, 2014 · Electrical · 120,000 miles · AR

Car started running funny. Had it looked at and the wiring harness was found to be brittle and falling apart. Car cannot be driven until a new harness is installed.

Filed Jul 4, 2014 · Electrical, Engine · 95,000 miles · CA

Several intermittent issues recently began to occur with my c280. Instrument panel started to intermittently not work and as a result I ran out of gas in several occasions in areas where my personal safety was at question. Car also began to intermittently cease from starting leaving me stranded until the car was able to start. After an investigation by a certified mercedes mechanic, they had determined that the engine wire harness was defective and that the wiring insulation was seriously degrading. During the evaluation the wiring was starting to smoke and system shut down due to safety concerns. It is very possible that continued operation of the vehicle could have caused safety issues to driver, passengers and others as unpredictable and serious actions could have resulted from engine wire harness electrical shorts. I am very surprised and disappointed that mercedes benz had not provided any warning or recall for this condition, which they apparently already knew is a common defect for this model and year.

Filed Jun 27, 2014 · Electrical · 142,000 miles · TX · fire

Tl* the contact owns a 1995 mercedes benz c280. The contact stated that the vehicle was emitting smoke and the wiring harness was melting. The contact stated that the tail lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a private mechanic where it was diagnosed that the ECM and the wire harness needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure and current mileage was 142,000. Updated 11/12/14*lj updated 4/29/2015

Filed Apr 9, 2014 · Electrical · 256,600 miles · CA

Engine wiring harness is defective. This caused engine to cut out unexpectedly when merging into traffic.

Filed Aug 3, 2013 · Electrical · 125,000 miles · GA

Car stalled while driving on highway. After having a mechanic check it, he said it needed a new engine wiring harness because the insulation in the original harness was crumbling and flaking causing electrical problems. He said it was not safe to drive the car as it could stall again.

Filed Jun 12, 2013 · Electrical, Engine · 184,550 miles · KY

While driving on the hwy at 75mph the car lost power and then came right back while this happened the transmission down shifted jerked very badly and car also slowed down rapidly. This is a known issue with 90's+ mercedes benz's why has nothing been done about this? Multiple casualties on the hwy should not be a reason to inspect a very well known problem with millions of cars!! As long as these cars are still on the road safety should be at the top of the list! With the cost of repairs for a problem that the manufacturer has known about for many years whats the deal? And because of this wiring issue obdii diagnostics is defective and does not work! Upon inspection of the wiring harnesses anyone can see crumbled cracked rotted away insulation leaving wires bare and able to touch causing fires costly engine repairs and possibly even death.

Filed Feb 19, 2013 · Electrical · 128,500 miles · PA

Car shut off at 25 MPH. Towed to mechanic and upon investigation the wiring harness is disintegrated.