This silver mercedes (not sure the year) car has been parked in front of my house for over two weeks, no signs of it being moved at all. 16329 chatsworth street doors are unlocked and I have not seen any neighbors paying attention to this vehicle, first time I have seen it ever be parked here. Possible stolen car and just left there, please check on vehicle and have it towed away.
The worst 1998 Mercedes Benz E320 problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
- Engine10
- Suspension7
- Body5
- Visibility4
- Airbags3
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Engine10
- Suspension7
- Body5
- Visibility4
- Airbags3
- Lights3
- Brakes2
- Tires2
- Transmission2
- Acceleration1
- Electrical1
- Fuel system1
- Steering1
- Wheels1
Recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Defect investigations
Front suspension coil spring ejection
Odi has focused this investigation on assessing the risks posed by a separated spring as (1) a road hazard and (2) the potential for vehicle control to be compromised after the front coil spring has been ejected from its intended position in the vehicle.both risks are associated with corrosion, flexing, and fracture of the upper front suspension mounting bracket.time-in-service failure rates are notably higher in salt belt states since corrosion is a primary contributor to the failure mode.since a number of incidents have occurred while the vehicle was being operated, odi is skeptical that owners can always detect the subtle side to side difference in ride height and/or inspect or notice that the upper suspension bracket has been compromised by corrosion.(1) road hazard - although the (approx. 7 lb.) front suspension spring that may be ejected at highway speeds could pose a serious road hazard to pedestrians and other vehicles, the occurrence rate has been low (.03% based on 51 reported incidents occurring and an initial population of 172,781 vehicles after 9 - 12 years of use / exposure) and there are no known injuries, fatalities, or property damage reports due to an ejected spring.also, many of the 51 incidents occurred at low speed or while the vehicle was stopped or parked.(2) vehicle control - vehicle handling and control could be affected by the fracture of the upper suspension mount and/or the associated spring ejection.odi first identified its concern about corrosion in the upper suspension bracket of subject vehicles in 2002, at which time mercedes provided a video that showed that a vehicle could be steered, stopped, and controlled through various maneuvers at high speeds with a front coil spring completely missing from the vehicle. During pe07-021, in addition to reviewing the 2002 video-tape, odi engineers drove an exemplar vehicle with the spring removed and simulated various combinations of steering angles to assess whether there were any possible conditions / displacements in which the separated spring might interfere with the wheels. In a vehicle with the front spring removed, the top of the wheel can lightly contact the bottom area of the wheel fender during high angle turns typically associated with slower speed maneuvers such as city driving. The light tire contact generated an obvious grinding noise and would likely abrade or bend the edge of the fender with continued use.however, the extent of the interference was not sufficient to affect vehicle steering and does not occur at smaller turning angles associated with highway driving.odi has not identified a safety related defect trend at this time.further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding that a safety related defect does not exist.the agency reserves the right to take further action if future circumstances warrant.
PE07021
Engine crankshaft pulley failure
The office of defects investigation (odi) opened this preliminary evaluation to investigate allegations of engine crankshaft pulley harmonic balancer failure that could result in loss of power-steering assist.odi has received a total of 546 non-duplicative reports that allege engine crankshaft pulley harmonic balancer failure on all mercedes-benz vehicles using the subject component.the subject component failures are progressive in nature and only a small percentage of the complaints and warrant claims involved a failure that had progressed far enough to effect power steering performance (6 of 55 odi complaints reference increased steering effort).there have been no crashes or injuries related to the alleged defect.a safety-related defect has not been identified at this time and further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist.the agency will take further action if warranted by the circumstances.see summary report attached for further detail.
PE03058
Technical service bulletins for the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320 29
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- NTG5.5
- If the customer brakes sharply from a speed of > 30mph, without ABS intervention, there is a single...
- Unmotivated Reaction from Park Assist
- Harsh engagement when changing gear range from P to D or R
- Harsh engagement when changing gear range from P to D
- Airmatic
- Seat belt extender toothed rack sluggish or makes noises
- Display of suspension setting in head unit implausible
- Liftgate intermittently does not open fully
- Enclosed for your information and pursuant to part 579.5, please find our latest Service and Warranty...
What 1998 Mercedes Benz E320 owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
I have primewell valera touring 2 tires and the front driver's side developed a sidewall bulge when I was reversing into my driveway. The same family of tires have a recall, and while my set are not included in the recall, I have the same or similar problems. It appears that the bulge was due to manufacturer's defect (per my mechanic) and I was told that the tire is unsafe to ride on, so I am using the full spare at the moment. I contacted the manufacturer , giti tires, and they do not want to do anything about it. The tire is primewell valera touring 2, 215/55/16, dot number is y9jm clhx 1515.
Passenger coil spring seat broke , car in garage last 15 years , not even 100000 miles yet
Your web site states "invalid request" when I place VIN number in. Correct characters were used.
While driving in traffinc east along haddonfield berlin road in cherry hill nj, I was slowing to a stop approaching a red light at evsham road. As I pressed the brake pedal, there was a loud bang and grinding sound from the front end that ended with a loud clank on the ground. After which I saw the spring from my driver's side on the road behind me in my rear view mirror. Driving was not affected, not was steering. However we came to find that the panel containing the driver's side spring perch had rusted and then torn away from the bod, thus releasing the front spring. After doing some research this appears to be a known problem with mbusa, but not a recall issue. My insurance company is refusing repairs due to their view of this as being a "maintenance issue."
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 mercedes benz e320. While driving 30 MPH, the contact was informed by another motorist that the rear driver side tail light was not working. The contact also stated that the braking power diminished and required a lot more pressure to stop the vehicle. The contact also stated that the check engine indicator would illuminate intermittently. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failures. The failure mileage was unknown.
On wednesday, january 21, 2015, 4:45 pm, an attendant at sam's club gas pumps, tulsa hills shopping center, tulsa, ok, overflowed the gas tank, creating a spill large enough that absorbent materials was used to soak up the gas on the pavement (video available from sam's). Upon leaving, the engine died before exiting the station. Restarted and died again at the first traffic light about 1/4 mile away. Restarted and abnormal noises were heard during the next mile and while stopped at a traffic light, there was a large explosion under the hood, producing lots of black smoke but no extended fire. Local police helped in removing the car from traffic and later loading the car on a wrecker. The description from the mbz repair facility gave this explanation and repaired the car at a cost of $2,600. The gas overflow caused the charcoal canister to fill up with liquid gas and when the car was started the liquid gas was sucked into the input manifold, causing an undetected explosion and cracking the manifold. The explosions got larger as the car was driven and finally an explosion blew most of one end of the input manifold off (manifold available). End
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 mercedes benz e320. The contact stated that while driving 50 MPH, the vehicle independently dropped to the ground. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure was 160,322.
Had an inspection on friday. Found passenger shock tower broken from the body frame, this is an extremely dangerous situation. Looked in mercedes benz world website, and saw many many complaints about this typical issue, people must not be reporting this typical rust of the spring tower to body rust issue. Apparently there is a recall for this issue in canada but not in USA.
Tl* the contact owns a 1998 mercedes benz e-320. The contact stated that the SRS and ABS warning lights illuminated. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure and advised the contact that the VIN was not included in their manufacturer's recall campaign for the brake lights. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 128,000. ..updated 02-28-14
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Questions about the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320
Is the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320 reliable?
Owners have filed 37 complaints about the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320, close to a typical E320 model year.
What is the most common problem with the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320?
Engine and cooling, with 10 complaints, typically around 67,000 miles. Next is suspension (7).
How many recalls does the 1998 Mercedes Benz E320 have?
No recalls on record.
What year does the Mercedes Benz E320 have bad engine?
The Mercedes Benz E320 model years with the most engine complaints are 1999 (18 complaints), 2005 (17 complaints) and 1995 (10 complaints).
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