took car in for oil change and was informed that car should not be driven because rear subframe had rotted thru and rear link was completly unattached and hitting gas tank. havent had a response from 2 dealerships this car is unstable and hitting the brakes requires a lot of attention to keep on road

- Waynesville, OH, USA

Rear sub frame rusting through

- Fort Wayne, IN, USA

Rear left sub frame is found to be broken due to corrosion and rust. Right side is near to be broken. Driving under such condition is very dangerous.

- Belle Mead, NJ, USA

Completely rotted & rusted sub-frame. Caused braking/stability/steering issues and was completely undriveable. Cost $2300 to fix, another $1000 for car rental as well as lost time at work. There have also been many reports of this problem with other drivers of the same model of vehicle. NO warning lamps or messages whatsoever, only knew the level of damage once I brought it into auto shop.

- Boonton, NJ, USA

Car has approximately 60,000. miles. Upon it's state inspection Mercedes Benz service center indicated rear subframe is rusted. Service advisory says it is okay now, but will need to be replaced. Searching Mercedes forums, I've noted this is a n oft reported issue. Many do not realize there is an issue until it breaks and car pulls to one side at rear upon braking. Others have experienced rusted brake lines at the same area as the subframe issue. Others have noted damage to the gas tank from suspension parts banging the fuel tank after it breaks. I realize this is a 8 year old vehicle. But the vehicle shows zero signs of rust on the undercarriage except for the subframe. Sure seems like a manufacturer's defect that should be recalled by Mercedes. Because of safety concerns, I now have to decide to repair or trade the car because of safety concerns. But the rusted subframe zaps the value I thought I had in the vehicle for a trade. What is the protocol for manufacturer's to issue safety recalls. Sure seems like this one qualifies.

- Lititz, PA, USA

Failed component: The subframe on my Mercedes C300 broke on one side and was almost broken on the other. It would be available for inspection as it is sitting in the Mercedes dealer bone yard waiting on the part to be shipped from Germany around September 17th. It also ruined my back tires & now I have to replace them too. I understand that in the UK the Mercedes dealers are fixing this problem free of charge but there seems to be no recalls! Safety: I was entering the freeway on a rainy afternoon. My car was fishtailing very badly. At first I thought is was the highway itself as we had not had rain for quite some time. I tried to accelerate 4 or 5 times with the same fishtailing. I pulled off the busy freeway onto the shoulder & sat for a few minutes to collect my thoughts as I didn't know what was wrong. Then I drove very slowing to the next exit & a few more miles home. I drove very slowly a few miles the next morning to the Mercedes dealership. Inspected: The Mercedes dealer told me the subframe was broken and the car was not drivable! Couldn't find the part in the US so ordered from Germany with at least more than a month to wait. Warnings: There were absolutely no warning lights what so ever! Additional: The dealership did not have any loaner cars. I went for 5 days without a car to drive. I finally purchased another vehicle as I depend on it to do my job. It is going to cost over $4,400 to fix.

- Springfield, MO, USA

My 2014 Mercedes C300 4matic currently has a rusted through rear subframe. I know this has been reported to your Bureau numerous times by various people. This affects all 2008-2014 C Class and E Class Mercedes (as I used to work for a Mercedes dealer). Mercedes is trying to avoid liability at the sheer cost and man hours required to replace these parts. This is a MAJOR safety hazard, and has caused numerous drivers to lose control of their vehicle when they do in fact break off at one of the weld joints. The car is 8 years old with approximately 90k miles. This is a STRUCTURAL part of the car, and should never have to be replaced. Subaru dealt with suspension recalls on their vehicles, and I believe Mercedes should be reliable as well. Thousands of these cars are a ticking time bombs on the road. This issue was confirmed by my personal mechanic, and he stated this will not pass the next inspection (luckily I have 6 months left).

- Pennsburg, PA, USA

This car has 63,792 miles on it and has been continuously garaged and well cared for. All maintenance has been done timely and by Mercedes-Benz of Tysons Corner (Virginia) since it was purchased there on 01/08/14. All required maintenance was completed as advised and the car was covered under a 7 year 75,000 mile warranty. At the recent regularly scheduled yearly maintenance service completed on 12/28/21 we were advised that the that the "rear sub-frame is beginning to rust through and has a hole on the right rear (RR) and the recommendation was the "replacement of rear sub-frame soon" at an estimated cost of $4,242.40. This car has never been in an accident. In speaking to the MB service representative about this issue, I was advised that this problem has happened to several C300's from the period 2009-2014 and that Mercedes Benz was not accepting any responsibility for the issue in the US but had issued recalls in other countries. He said Mercedes maintains that it is a "wear and tear" issue. This car has not been abused and has been well maintained. This is not an area of the country where you would expect to see this type of corrosion unless the part was defective in some manner. In researching the problem on the internet, several people write about experiencing a failure of this part although the cars were older than ours and had more mileage on them. It appears to be a safety issue should the part rust through as it could puncture the gas tank or cause the rear wheels to buckle or cause a loss of control of the auto from the auto fishtailing. I have never seen this happen to a car before and I am 75 years old and have owned a number of automobiles over the years.

- Leesburg, VA, USA

R/F tire bubble in sidewall. At 1959 miles a bubble appeared in the R/F tire. I discovered the bubble while washing the car. This appeared about two month after purchase. August 19 20014 the dealer relunctantly replace the tire. I have not seen any bubbles since that date. I am not satisfied with the Continental tires.

- Washington, DC, USA