1999 Mercedes-Benz C280 problems
NHTSA has received 45 complaints about the 1999 Mercedes-Benz C280, and 22% of them involve engine. After that come suspension (13%) and lighting (11%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 45 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 22% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 3 and 2
- Injuries and deaths
- 0 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 76,000 miles 25 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 1 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 9 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 1 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 2 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 1 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 0 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 5 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 2 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 2 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 25 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 76,000 miles.
Safety-related details: 3 complaints mention a crash; 2 complaints mention a fire.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 1999 ranks 1st most-complained-about out of 4 model years of the Mercedes-Benz C280 with enough data (26 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
Tl*the contact owns a 1999 mercedes benz c280. The rear tail light bulbs and plastic holder melted seven times. The dealer has not diagnosed the vehicle; however, they replaced the plastic holder and bulb under warranty. The contact filed a complaint with the manufacturer. The failure mileage was 45,000 and current mileage was 151,000.
Tl* the contact owns a 1999 mercedes c280. The contact stated that the rear lights constantly burn out and had been replaced at least twenty times. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who stated that the lights were burning out and creating a fire hazard. The cause of failure was not determined. The contact planned to take the vehicle to an authorized dealer to have the failure diagnosed. The failure mileage was unknown and the current mileage was 155,000. The VIN was not available.
While driving vehicle suddenly accelerated, and the braking would not stop vehicle, causing a crash. Please provide further information.
The vehicles fuel tank filler failed and made it difficult to fill the tank with gas. The gas came back out the filler cap although the tank didn't have a half a tank of gas. *nlm sometimes the engine didn't turn over, and the vehicle was poor on gas. *scc
On july 30, 2015 around 1900 hrs. I was leaving home going to pick up my kids from around the corner. I came to a stop light (red). Begin to move forward when a loud bang happened then scraping. I got out the car to address the situation and observed that my vehicle was sagging. I retraced my tracks on foot and located my coil spring. Once I got back home, I jacked up the car and noticed my upper spring housing on my passenger side was broken.