2009 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Body & Structure Problems

Vehicle inspection by independent service center indicated that a new rear frame was necessary. This was the second communication to nhtsa on this issue. This automobile (2009 c300) is inoperable due to this Mercedes rear frame defect .

The contact owns a 2009 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the rear end of the vehicle would fishtail and become extremely unstable while driving over a bump in the road or while turning. Upon inspection, the contact discovered that the subframe was severely rusted. The cause of the failure was not determined, and the vehicle was not yet repaired. The local dealer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was 201,000.

The contact owns a 2009 Mercedes-Benz C300. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the vehicle would sway from side to side as an abnormal clonking noise would emit from the vehicle without warning. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where they discovered that the subframe had cracked due to severe corrosion. The dealer was contacted about the failure, and she was given an estimate for the repair. The manufacturer was also notified of the failure and the contact was given a case number. The vehicle had yet to be repaired. The failure mileage was 94,200.

My spouse was driving approx 40MPH. Traffic light turned amber so she applied the brakes, at that point the vehicle pulled violently to the left into on coming traffic and at the same time the vehicle rear end was fish tailing out of control.Our mechanc inspected the vehicle and discovered the rear sub frame assembly had cracked on the driver side. We were advised by the mechanic this car is un driveable. Our Insurance appraiser inspected the vehicle and stated this is very common with this model vehicle and is a very bad design flaw. I contacted the Mercedes dealership and they advised there is no re-call on the subframe so I would need to pay $4000-$5000 for the repair. This vehicle is worthless to me now and is a grave safety risk to drive. I do not have the funds to fix this vehicle so I am now without a car. Mercedes customer care will not even answer any telephone calls. I have called 3 times and been on hold for over 60 minutes each time. This design flaw needs to be corrected by Mecedes before someone gets killed.

This car I have owned since brand new and I am the original owner. This car has never been used in winter despite I live in New York and always has been maintained in very good condition however, this car has developed noises from the rear when driven. I took the car to my trusted mechanic and he found out that the rear subframe has corrosion making it unsafe to drive.

The brake lines and subframe were completely rusted and the vehicle was unsafe to drive. Dealer confirmed at regular service appointment. I have documentation and competed all regular maintenance. Dealer would not cover costs for what appears to be a major defect. I had another shop replace the brake lines and subframe.

Rear Sub-frame corrosion required a complete replacement of component to pass PA Inspection - car had about 63,000 miles and has been garage kept (and barely driven in Winter) since I purchased it as a certified pre-owned vehicle from the dealer (6 months old with less than 6,000 miles on it). MB Mechanics state that they are seeing this a lot with these cars, replacement sub-frame design is modified to prevent corrosion and I personally think this should be a recall safety issue as the corrosion was classified by the dealership as "Aggressive" and can cause control arms to detach (yikes !). I contacted Mercedes-Benz corporate to see if they would provide some cost assistance, they agreed to pay $1000 towards the cost of the replacement, still leaving me with a bill of $2500. I have a 20 year old Ford Taurus that lives outside and is driven all year round that doesn't have a corroded subframe - why can't Mercedes make one that doesn't fall apart ?

MY REAR SUB FRAME IS BROKEN DUE TO RUST ON MY 2009 MERCEDES C300. IT WAS CAUSING MAJOR WIGGLE WHILE BREAKING AND I THOUGHT IT WAS THE ROTORS. THE CAR HAS 98,000 MILES ON IT AND HAS ALWAYS BEEN STORED DRY IN MY GARAGE. UPON LOOKING ONLINE, IT APPEARS THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM WITH NUMBERS MERCEDES C CLASSES UPON 90,000 - 100,000 MILES. WHEN I TOOK IT TO THE SHOP FOR THEM TO LOOK AT THE ROTORS, THEY WERE SURPRISED IT DIDN'T COMPLETELY BREAK AND CAUSE A WRECK. THEY ARE HAVING ME TOW IT TO A BODY SHOP.

BOUGHT C300 2009 4 MATIC SEP. 2017 USED FROM A DEALER. CARFAX INDICATES GETTING SCHEDULED SERVICE FROM DEALER AND IT DOES NOT SHOW PROBLEMS WITH THE CAR. IT HAS NOW 90K MILEAGE. LATELY, I STARTED HEARING SOME NOISE AT THE BACK WHENEVER I HIT A SMALL BUMP, SO I DECIDED TO BRING IT TO THE MERCEDES-BENZ DEALER AND HAVE IT CHECKED LAST JULY 21, 2020. THEY FOUND OUT THAT THE REAR SUBFRAME IS BROKEN BECAUSE OF RUST. THE ESTIMATED REPAIR COST IS $6,000. THEY ALSO SAID FRONT END LINKS TORN AND LEAKING, BOTH FRONT AXLES BOOTS TORN AND LEAKING, CENTRIFUGE AND VACUUM PUMP O-RING LEAKING OIL, TRASNFER CASE LEAKING OIL. THE COST OF REPAIR IS AN ADDITIONAL $4,000. I COMPLAINED TO THE THE TECHNICIAN THAT I JUST HAD A SCHEDULED SERVICE ON IT LAST YEAR, HOW COME IT HAS THIS SERIES OF PROBLEMS NOW. TECHNICIAN ADVISED ME TO CALL CUSTOMER SERVICE AND SEE IF THEY CAN GOODWILL THE REPAIR COST. AFTER A SERIES OF EMAIL AND TEL. EXCHANGES WITH C.S., I FINALLY GOT THE RESULT TODAY AUG. 7, 2020 FROM THE C.S MANAGER AND SAID NO DISCOUNT OR GOODWILL ON THE REPAIR. THEY CAN ONLY GIVE A DISCOUNT OF $1,000 IF I BUY A NEW ONE FROM THEM OR $500 IF I BUY A CPO. IS THIS THEIR TACTIC ON SELLING THEIR CARS IN THE INVENTORY? THIS CAR IS SO EXPENSIVE THAT THEY BRAG THEMSELVES TO HAVE A VERY DURABLE CAR BUT YET, HAS THIS KIND OF ISSUES. I FOUND OUT LATELY THAT A LOT OF MERCEDES -BENZ OWNER HAS SIMILAR COMPLAINTS. MERCEDES-BENZ DID NOT DO THEIR JOB TO AVOID THIS KIND OF ISSUE OCCURING, SO I FOUND THEM TO BE AT FAULT ON THIS AND MAKING THE CONSUMERS UNSAFE TO DRIVE THEIR CARS. CONSUMERS ARE GOING TO BE ALWAYS ON THE LOOSING END NO MATTER HOW CAREFUL WE ARE ON DRIVING AND MAINTAINING THE CAR, IF THIS KIND OF CAR AND SERVICE IS WHAT WE'RE GETTING FROM MERCEDES-BENZ. I'M APPEALING TO YOU TO HELP ME MAKE MERCEDES-BENZ SHOULDER THE COST OF REPAIR. I CAN'T DRIVE IT NOW BECAUSE OF SAFETY ISSUE. THANK YOU.

HI, ON MY COMMUTE HOME FROM WORK, I WAS GETTING READY TO EXIT THE HIGHWAY BY DECELERATING. MY CAR SWERVED AND ALMOST LOST CONTROL WHEN I BEGAN TO PRESS THE BRAKES. THERE WERE NO CARS AT 7AM ON THE WEEKEND, SO I WAS ABLE TO COAST TO THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE 1/4 MILE EXIT RAMP. I CONTINUE HOME, BUT FEEL THE CAR KICKING OUT THE REAR END WHEN I BRAKE. AT SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER SPEEDS I LOOK IN THE MIRROR AS I BRAKE AND NOTICE MY REAR RIGHT WHEEL TURNING INWARDS. I GET HOME AND WHEN I WAKE UP I LIFTED THE CAR AND CHECKED TO SEE WHAT IT WAS. THE SAFETY ISSUE IS THAT THE REAR BRACKET WELDED TO THE CROSS MEMBER THAT HOLDS THE REAR TIE ROD CRAKED.

2009 MERCEDES-BENZ 300C. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO RUSTED LEFT SUB FRAME. *LD *TR

DRIVER'S SIDE INTERIOR DOOR-OPENING LATCH/HANDLE HAS DISENGAGED SO THAT I CANNOT OPEN THE DOOR TO EXIT THE VEHICLE. IN ORDER TO OPEN THE DOOR, I MUST OPEN THE WINDOW AND REACH OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE TO ENGAGE THE EXTERIOR DOOR LATCH/HANDLE. THIS IS TIME-CONSUMING AND COULD BE QUITE DANGEROUS SHOULD I NEED TO EXIT THE VEHICLE QUICKLY. IT HAPPENED SUDDENLY AFTER I HAD RETURNED HOME AND PARKED. I WAS ABOUT TO EXIT AND THE LATCH JUST GAVE UP WHEN I TRIED TO ENGAGE IT. I FOUND SIMILAR COMPLAINTS ONLINE WITH OWNERS STATING THAT THE INTERIOR DOOR LATCH/HANDLE (INNER PART) IS MADE OF VERY CHEAP PLASTIC.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ C300. WHILE THE VEHICLE WAS STATIONARY, THE TIRE PRESSURE MONITOR (TPM) INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. HELMS BROTHER MERCEDES-BENZ IN FLUSHING, NEW YORK REPLACED ALL FOUR TPM SENSORS AND ALL FOUR TIRES, BUT THE FAILURE RECURRED. IN ADDITION, WATER ENTERED INTO THE REAR PASSENGER SEAT. THE SOURCE OF THE LEAK COULD NOT BE DETERMINED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURES. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 65,000.

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ C300. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE FRONT DRIVER SIDE INTERIOR DOOR HANDLE FRACTURED. IN ORDER TO EXIT THE VEHICLE, THE POWER WINDOW SWITCH HAD TO BE ACTIVATED TO ENGAGE THE EXTERIOR DOOR HANDLE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 80,000.

TROUBLE WITH SUN ROOF ASSEMBLY. MECHANIC WARNED ME NOT TO USE IT AS IT IS DEFECTIVE AND CANNOT BE REPAIRED BUT MUST BE REPLACED WHICH WOULD COST TOO MUCH MONEY. THE CAR WAS PURCHSED USED AND THIS WAS NOT INDICATED AT THAT TIME. HE WARNED ME AFTER I BOUGHT IT.