The contact owns a 2004 Mercedes Benz C230. The contact stated he noticed the front driver side head lights was melted. The contact stated he replaced the bulb himself. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired as of yet. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of failure. The failure mileage was approximately 87,000.

- Plainfield, IN, USA

I was driving on the I-95 at 60 mph and turned on my air conditioner when smoke began to come out of the vents. I shut off the air conditioner and the smoke stopped. I visited with my parents and as I started the car and it was idling, I turned on the air conditioner and smoke began to come from the vents again and flames appeared under the dashboard. I was able to put out the fire and pulled the fuse box cover off and found the fuse box was where the fire had started. There was a paper with fuse sizes and locations put (by Mercedes) in between the fuses which had been singed, and part of the fuse box and some of the fuses had melted. I did an internet search and found a complaint on a Mercedes forum where this had happened to another 2004 Mercedes C230.

- Stratford, CT, USA

Numerous things have happened. The car has 124,000 right now. This is the biggest lemon ever!! -car caught fire at Mercedes - A/C blower shorted out, causing fuse box to catch fire and burnt underneath dash. They informed me the technician received minor burns when trying to put out the fire. -new alarm siren (it would go off randomly) -2 alternators (voltage regulator goes bad) -new door lock on driver and passenger side doors -new rf sensor on driver door for the key-less remote -2 new thermostats -1 driver side door handle -2 passenger side door handles and now broke for 3rd time -rear glass was replaced because when rear defroster was turned on it would make fm radio static. It does it again now. -front fog light glass cracked in half - bought new one and did it again -check engine light on now and O2 sensor bad. -rear screen shade it stuck up. Wont go down. -key-less remote antenna is broke -3 brake systems in front -1 brake in rear -sunroof works but the arm that pops up broke -middle console buttons get stuck sometimes. Mb has to pop them back out. -strut stabilizer bar broke -transmission mount and front arm bushings were all replaced. -lcd on dash has a blur line going through it. -bose speakers were replaced and now all busted again. Exterior - very sexy car and that's all it has.

- Nashville, TN, USA

I have black Mercedes C230 kompressor sports sedan 2004 model. Car was purchased brand new at Mercedes authorized dealer. There is no modification made to this car and all the servicing done at Mercedes authorized dealer since I bought this car. It had only 58000 miles. Last B servicing which checked any safety related issues and includes regular maintenance, was done at authorized dealer on 02/18/2012. No issue was informed on 02/18/2012 to us by Mercedes authorized dealer servicing department. On 06/21/2012, when I was driving this car from work to home, I turned on A/C, A/C shutdown and I started smelling smoke. On left side of my car there is A/C vent and I saw fire inside the hood through that vent.I pulled over car right away and electricity went out with in 1 min of my pulling over and within 4 min, whole car was burning. My car is now totaled. This poses following security concerns: 1. Mercedes C230 2004 is made of highly inflammable material and driver and users of car has very less chance to survive if there is fire. 2. Mercedes C230 2004 model A/C unit is not of highest quality and electrical system is faulty. Both of above issues poses very serious security risks to public and it needs through investigation. I contacted Mercedes head quarter for investigation and Mercedes declined to investigate. Geico stated in report that hood is stuck and cause of fire is unknown. Geico insurance company authorized Mercedes engineers to investigate further upon my request and Mercedes usa does not want to investigate further. I have pictures of burnt car and can share if it helps in investigation to rule out above 2 concerns. We do not want others to go through same ordeal as we went through. Updated 06/13/13 updated 06/17/2013

- North Potomac, MD, USA

Letter from congressman ackerman on behalf of constituent regarding an issue with his 2004 Mercedes Benz C230 the consumer stated the vehicle caught on fire while driving, due to a catastrophic electrical failure and destroyed the vehicle.

- Roslyn Heights, NY, USA

The cam sensors on the Mercedes M271 engine leak oil which spreads to other components via the wire harnesses connected to cam sensors. Oil contamination will damage other electrical components (namely the ECU and exhaust oxygen sensors) if the cam sensors and wire harnesses are not replaced. A new cam sensor and wire harness has been designed as the corrective action. The defective cam sensor and wire harness were used on the previous engine design (M111). There is a technical service bulletin for M111 engine but not the M271 engine. Mercedes refuses to recall this defective design on the M271 engine causing owners to pay for the $900 preventative maintenance. Without this repair the ECU (part cost $2000) and oxygen sensors (qty 2 @ $250 ea) will be eventually damaged and will need to be removed and replaced.

- Bothell, WA, USA

This is a 2004 Mercedes C230. Check engine light went on. I went to dealer within 15 miles of warning light coming on. I was told that there was an oil leak and that it had dripped over the wiring harness. It would cost $3,500 to repair. I have never missed a maintenance on this car. They said the this happens because of where the O2 sensor is located. This is a defect and design flow created by mb. They should do a recall to protect the wiring harness

- Frisco, TX, USA

I bought a certified pre-owned 2004 cl 500 mb from hbl tysons on 8545 leesburg pike, vienna, va on Apr 19, 2008. The salesman showed me the carfax report which showed no prior problems. So, I bought the vehicle w/ an extended warranty. However, 2 weeks after I purchased the car, I experienced many electrical problems, transmission problems, tire problems, & problems with my air conditioner/ heat. Over a 1 years later, my car has been back & forth at the hbl tysons corner, va & mb annapolis, md svc cntr over 40 times for the same reoccurring electrical problems. The electrical problems are becoming worse B/C the car freezes; the steering wheel malfunctions & locks upon starting the car & sometimes, while in motion; in addition to other malfunctions involving: Seat belt, seat head rest, headlights, tail lights, rear fog lights, license plate lights, windshield wipers; heat/air conditioner, SRS, & airbag deployment. I'm paying a car note & I barely have my car B/C the svc. Cntrs have my car for 2-3 weeks at a time B/C they can't fix it. I've even been told by them that my particular car is too intricate to fix. I've contacted mb corporate in montvale, NJ via telephonically & correspondence, to elevate several complaints, but, my last 2 complaints were to no avail B/C I heard nothing from them as of yet. I keep all of my receipts from each time I've dropped my car off & I'm ready to pursue a lawsuit. In fact, I've contacted better business bureau, your Agency, & several lawyers B/C I've recently discovered via a class action suit, that the year, make, & model of my car is involved in a nat'L recall where a faulty valve w/I the heat/air conditioner, causes a build-up of debris & water, which leaks into the electrical system, causing it to malfunction & shut down. Help me B/C it's obvious the car is unfixable and too dangerous to drive. According to the class action, these problems pre-existed before I bought the car and mb was aware of them prior to selling the car.

- Severn, MD, USA

I have a 2004 Mercedes Benz C230. The alarm sounds continuously while driving down the road. When this happens, the key will not disable it. The dealership says there is not a problem with Mercedes but I seem to find lots of complaints on internet blogs regarding other customers having the same problem. What is our right as a consumer" should there be a recall to get this corrected"

- Nashville, TN, USA

Car would not start and could not get the car in gear. The car has been in the dealers shop for repair 4 times to fix the same problem. Currently the car is running. Negociating with mbz to buy the car back.

- Fresno, CA, USA