I own a 2001 Slk320 Mercedes bought it a second owner, it had no brakes light in the rear passenger side, electric seats not working either. Replaced the relay for seats but can't get tail lights to work check on recall was not honored what the heck. Mercedes should fix these continual problems that continue to cost us big bucks to fix $600 each time becomes to much, last Mercedes for me or friends and family. Mercedes stand behind your product it's a shame we have to continue to fight with a big company like Mercedes, I hope someone does something to correct these on going problems with these expensive cars.

- Rio Rancho, NM, USA

My brake lights are defective; they have been repaired several times but after a few months, they stop working. I have this car since 2006 and have been told this was a recall issue. But when I went to autobahn motors in belmont, ca, they refused to repair them. I was told by another mb dealer that the recall was finished and by another that they had been repaired at some point (?); I understand that it is not the brake lights themselves but some mechanism that was faulty and that has to be replaced. I cannot afford to have them repaired every 3 or 4 months and feel mb should do it since it was a recall and the lighting mechanism should stay fixed.

- Sunnyvale, CA, USA

There is a deadly issue with the 2001 Slk320 and similar models/years, in regards to the lateral speed sensor and the yaw sensor. When these sensors go faulty, they engage the brakes on the car while the car is in motion. The lateral speed sensor triggers the brakes while driving straight forward, and the yaw sensor triggers the brakes when making a right or left turn. This is extremely dangerous, as the car is stopped while it is in motion, regardless of speed. This has happened to me over a handful of times from December 2013 when I purchased the car, up until yesterday, September 22, 2014. This is also a known issue across Mercedes car forums, so it is extremely unsettling that the issue has not been addressed. In regards to my experience: While driving straight, the front passenger side brake is sporadically engaged due to the lateral speed sensor. This has happened to me at various speed limits, and it is very scary as there is no warning. When the brake engages, the car skids to the right as a result of the brake locking. The first time this happened to me I was on a busy highway in the rain and almost skidded into other cars. Yesterday, the brakes engaging almost caused me to drive up a curb and into a fence. This has even occurred while I have been driving up to 60mph, which is incredibly dangerous. As previously stated, there are hundreds of other drivers that have experienced this same safety issue. The lateral speed sensor costs several hundred dollars to replace, while the yaw sensor costs almost $1,000 to replace. Consumers should not have to come out of pocket to pay for a poorly produced product, but with the issue being potentially fatal, owners have had no choice. I adamantly believe that Mercedes needs to address this issue, and recall these sensors. Lives are literally at stake.

- Fort Washington, MD, USA

First of all, I just want to file a complaint against Mercedes Benz ( house of import in buena park, ca). The vehicle that I have is 2001 slk 320 model. The vehicle is under recall campaign, campaign # 2006080005. This recall campaign has been initiated due to the heat generated by the brake lamps of the affected vehicles. The base of the socket can be subject to thermal deformation over time. This can cause a failure of either brake light. A failure of the brake lamp bulbs to illuminate could lead to a rear end crash. I took my vehicle in for that service in 2007 and the problem is still there after the service. I tried to stop there few times but they want to charge me $150 dollars just to find out what wrong with the vehicle ( even though they know its the brake light issue). I don't have money to pay for it and I just left upset and mad. Finally I just wanted to resolve the issue, contacted Mercedes today July 30,2013 and also went to the dealer to address my concern and they said " we can only cover one year and it expired". again, $150 will be charged just to diagnostic to find out what S wrong with the vehicle. I told them the same issue with the vehicle( the brake light is out-recall issue), and they did not do it properly and it happened again. Now, they said if I want to fix it I have to pay for the service which I find ironic because of the same issue. They would not listen about my concern and safety issue that I have regarding about this matter. Once again, safety is my priority and I do not want to get into an accident. I wish they could have done better job to assist consumers. I want to find a solution not just for me but to all the owners out there who faces the same issue so I need to file a complaint to ca attorney general office about the safety issue. I hope I could bring this to your attention.

- Westminster, CA, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Mercedes Benz S class. The contact was driving 65 mph when he noticed that the lights on the instrument panel failed and smoke was coming from the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and the dealer stated that they needed to replace the instrument cluster module. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and advised that the vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign id number: 06V028000 (interior lighting) but the recall had expired. The failure and the current mileage was 134,000. Updated 07/13/12 updated 07/31/12

- Los Angeles , CA, USA

The two on board computers failed; because of a short circuit inside the electrical system. The dealer had to replace them twice. The cooling fan control monitor is defective and fail; causing the engine to overheat. I was told the cooling fan control monitor is defective. My car is still at the dealership for 3 weeks now because they cant find the right control monitor.

- Lanham, MD, USA

The contact owns a 2001 Mercedes Benz S500. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked and the instrument panel gauges would not illuminate. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostic. The mechanic stated that the instrument panel cluster would have to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 160,000.

- Palos Verdes Peninsula, CA, USA

Mercedes Benz never informed me that my car an S500 was involved in a recall to change the instrumental panel lighting, now that it failed the miami Mercedes dealership do not want to fix my car alleging that there was not any recall, that it was only a warranty extension beginning in 2001 for 10 years leaving me out of coverage since my car is 2001. I think this is unfair to the unsuspecting public lack of communication and desire to do little for the users of their cars my car is within the 10 years and refuse to fix it that is my complaint.

- Sunny Isles Beach, FL, USA

I have a 2001 mercedess430 which has a failed instrument cluster. There appears to have been a recall issued in 2006 but it was limited to a certain number of VIN# and does not cover the widespread issues I have uncovered via my research. This is a serious defect that could cause a major accident as the lights go out, no gauges work, and you have no idea how fast you are going, what gear you are in e.g. you could accidentally reverse, etc. I called Mercedes Benz along with several dealers and they indicate that they will not cover this and the cost is exorbitant. This is a fatal error and can not be corrected to work or function at all without full replacement of the entire instrument cluster. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Prior Lake, MN, USA

I was driving and my whole dash board went out..couldn't see anything, called Mercedes and was told this wasn't on recall and wasn't under warranty..I think this is very dangerous and someone going to get hurt when this happen.

- Palm Coast, FL, USA

Lighting (instrument cluster) on the dashboard of my 2001 Mercedes Benz S500[xxx] flickered for a couple of days then went out completely. It affected my automatic door locks and side mirror signal indicators. I cannot view the gauges/speedometer and use the preset buttons on the steering wheel while operating this vehicle. Updated 07/12/2012 information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

- Sugar Land, TX, USA

: the contact stated the interior lights stopped working suddenly without warning. There was a NHTSA recall, # 06V028000, regarding the interior lighting. The vehicle was not included in the recall due to the VIN. Updated 10/17/2006 - intermittently the instrument panel lights dimmed then surged to full strength.

- Stone Mountain, GA, USA

I own a 2001 Mercedes Benz S500. I was driving home from work on Friday and all of a sudden, the lights in the dashboard went out. It frightened me because I couldn't tell how fast I was going and it hampered me from being as alert as I needed to be by trying to find out what the problem was. These lights need to be functional whenever you are operating the vehicle. Because of the time, the dealerships had closed and I couldn't drive it to them when it happened. This could have resulted in my having an accident and hurting and/or possibly killing myself and/or someone else. This is a serious problem that seems to be happening to others. Please investigate.

- Lithonia, GA, USA

Defect in Mercedes Benz 2001 S500 with the instrument cluster you loose all your in dash lights, gauges the whole panel goes dead you can't tell how fast your going, how much gas you have, or if your car is overheated, nothing works, no miles, nothing this is very dangerous and Mercedes is doing nothing to correct this problem, there dropping the ball I went in to have it checked and was told it cost $2300 to repair this is not acceptable, this is a safety hazard a recall is very much needed there are thousands of others out there with this problem. I hope Mercedes do the right thing and protect it customer from a dealer malfunction, we spend too much money on Mercedes cars to have things like this happen. Please, please do something for it's to late and someone gets hurt.

- Bellwood, IL, USA

Instrument cluster failure 2001 Mercedes Benz S500. Once the instrument cluster fails, the gas gauge, check engine, odometer, inside indicators for turn signals, parking assist lights do not work. Everything is linked to the instrument cluster. One day this is going to cause a real serious problem. Mercedes charges around $1800 to replace the instrument cluster. Phone interview update (September 23, 05): No warnings prior to instrument cluster blackout. The consumer said that he couldn't see the gauges and was told by M-B roadside assistance responder that the gauges were not working.

- Durham, NE, USA

Vehicle is a 2001 S-500. Almost word for word the same issue(s) as ODI id number : 10100807. Same car, same problems, same sentiment. Replacing fuses only results in flickering instrument cluster lighting, and even then the backlight is still non-functional. Gauge needles flicker as well, until they too go out completely. Fuses last only for a couple of days, whereupon the entire instrument cluster remains entirely black. Problem could be remedied simply by replacing faulty transistors, or redesigning an improperly laid-out instrument cluster, ie cooling the transistors much more adequately. This creates a tremendous safety risk by essentially creating an information black hole: The operator does not know his/her own speed, fuel level, if the parking brake is still on, if the directional signals are operational, if the check engine light is on, and other important information that Mercedes is so keen on relaying only to the instrument cluster. The faulty instrument cluster has not yet created an accident, but it is only a matter of time until one of the other thousands of S-class owners runs out of gas on the highway, and gets into a collision all because he/she didn't know how much fuel they had.

- Scarsdale, NY, USA