Laundry list of failures. Jack has almost killed me while changing tire. Vehicle fell, almost hitting me but catching side of vehicle before landing on me! Hood latch has failed on a few occasions, causing hood to open while vehicle was in motion. Air mass meter failed. Has required 5 (five!) alignments in two years. When brought to dealer's attention, was told nothing was wrong. A month later requires another alignment. Alignment problems causes wear on tires, which has caused hydroplaning and loss of control of vehicle. Vehicle swerves uncontrollably when hits anything other than flat road. Transfer case motor fixed by dealer without consulting. After repair, transfer case motor failed. Dealer states owner responsible for costs. Has had repair of harmonic balancer on front of engine due to excessive heat buildup leading to oil leak and failure of belt tensioner. Window switches have failed twice and fixed at expense of owner. Six different keys have failed @ the cost of $220/key. Rear window defroster causes loss of stereo reception. Rear window wiper motor has failed. Front end makes noise.
1998 Mercedes Benz ML320 engine complaints
Page 2 of 2: complaints 11 to 32 of 32, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Steering failure due to defective harmonic balancer. Refer to the federal safety agency action number: pe03058
Belt tensioner failed at 73886 mile,$308.00. Harmonic balancer failed @80,772 miles. Lost power steering and all accessories. Replaced belt ,oil pan ,tensioner(again),harmonic balancer,oil ,oil seal. Mercedes paid for parts. I paid for labor $675.00. Did tensioner fail first time because of balancer. Was balancer a known defect?
Regarding the federal safety agency action number pe03058. The crankshaft pulley harmonic balancer was found to be defective on my mercedes ml, 320 today. The vehicle had 57,435 miles. The dealer told me it was starting to fail and recommended it be replaced or it could lead to a loss of power steering and major engine damage.
1998 mercedes-benz ml320, 73k miles - crankshaft harmonic balancer disintegrated, resulting in concurrent loss of multiribbed-v-belt and instantaneous loss of power steering, alternator and water pump function.
Vehicle stalled on the highway while driving about 55 MPH. Vehicle was towed to the dealership for analysis.
Harmonic balancer failure at highway speeds.
1998 mercedes benz ml320, 47k miles, harmonic balancer loosened, ground through timing cover and upper oil pan leading to rapid loss of oil. Could have been a safety issue to cars behind.
98 mercedes ml320 with 75,000 miles harmonic balancer went up and destroyed half of the engine which cost over $5,000 in repairs. Mbusa said they had no previous complaints and that I was responsible for all repairs since it was out of warranty. I have since found out that this is a known problem for these vehicles/engines that mb is trying to cover up.
The crank shaft damper (harmonic balancer) came apart causing damage to the middle oil pan and the front timing cover.
While driving 25-35 MPH the vehicle stalled without warning. The dealer has replaced the fuel pump twice but the problems still exist. Please provide further information.
The vehicle coolant ended up in the transmission. Probable problem with hoses or connection.
The harmonic balance that is located in the crankshaft went out and caused the loss of power steering and control. Dealer informed the consumer that the damper pulley had separated.
The consumer pulled into the driveway where both lights had come on at the same time and had become unable to steer the vehicle. The battery light came on, because the belt came off the alternator, power steering, and the AC, which made the vehicle difficult to steer. *scc
The serpentine belt had broken while driving at 45mph and caused the engine to overheat. Manufacturer was notified. *ak the consumer stated that after the investigation per garrett engineering, the vehicle was determined to have a crank shaft pulley failure which caused the other systems to fail. The belts, altenator, and the cooling systems failed as a result of the pulley failure. This part was supposed to be covered under the 80k warranty, but has not been honored.
Vehicle has been stalling at various speeds since purchase, dealer has examined vehicle numerous times, but cannot remedy the problem.*ak
Vehicle is experiencing catalytic converters problem.
Ignition key did not work. Had to use spare key in order to turn vehicle on.*ak consumer states without warning, at startup, while stopped, or moving, vehicle will stall, consumer states if you have a spare key, sometimes it will work.
My 1998 mlk 320 is going into the shop for the tenth time in 31 months, and the only reason it hasn't been in more often is I live 30 miles from the dealer. The car has been a nightmare. The problems are numerous; many have never been successfully repaired. The main problem that started not long after I purchased the car (new) is, when I start it the car dies. I have to repeat the process and eventually the car will start. There are also a myriad of small, continuous problems; windows that won't go up, locks that lock and unlock on their own, plastic parts that have fallen off. It has is awful. It makes my 95 ford ranger truck seem like a dream auto.
The rear lower control arm failed and took two weeks to have repaired. Nlm
Smog pump failed. Yh
The consumer has been experiencing problems with automatic transmission/motor/ power windows/ door handles and panels, and suspension system. Consumer has been experiencing these problems ever since vehicle was purchased. The manufacturer has been contacted.
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