2000 MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS — Complaint #626175
Open-data reference.
NHTSA Complaint about SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:AIR SUSPENSION SYSTEM filed June 4, 2007
NHTSA complaint #626175 (ODI reference 10192385) concerns a 2000 MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS and was filed on June 4, 2007. The owner reports the failure occurred on February 18, 2007. The vehicle had 68,000 miles on the odometer at the time of the incident. The report was geocoded to Rhode Island based on the filer's self-reported location. The affected component is categorized as suspension:front:springs:air suspension system, one of NHTSA's standardized taxonomy codes used to group defect patterns across make, model, and year.
The filer flagged the following severity indicators: crash: no, fire: no, injuries: 0, fatalities: 0. No crash, fire, or fatality was associated with this report, which places it in the early-warning stream rather than the priority-review stream. Because a VIN was supplied, this complaint is tied to a specific vehicle and not just a model-year cohort.
Individual complaints are consumer-submitted and unverified by NHTSA engineers — the agency's role at this stage is to collect, index, and make them searchable. What matters for federal action is the pattern: when many owners of the same MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS cohort independently describe similar suspension:front:springs:air suspension system failures, defect investigators have grounds to open a PE and request manufacturer data. Related filings for the same vehicle and component appear below, and the detail page for the full 2000 MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS shows the complete component-level complaint distribution alongside any active investigations or recalls.
Complaint Description
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 MERCEDES BENZ S430. WHILE DRIVING 35 MPH, THE AIR RIDE SUSPENSION FAILURE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE DROPPED APPROXIMATELY FOUR INCHES, WHICH MADE IT IMPOSSIBLE TO STEER. THE DEALER DID NOT INSPECT THE VEHICLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE CAUSE OF FAILURE WAS DUE TO THE AIR COMPRESSOR THAT CONTROLS THE AIR RIDE SUSPENSION. THE DEALER REPLACED THE AIR COMPRESSOR AND NO OTHER FAILURES HAVE OCCURRED. THE CURRENT MILEAGE IS 70,000 AND FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 68,000. THE CONSUMER STATED HE WOULD LIKE TO KNOW THE STATUS OF HIS COMPLAINT. UPDATED 06/20/07. *JB
Complaint Details
| NHTSA Complaint ID | 626175 |
| ODI Number | 10192385 |
| Date Filed | June 4, 2007 |
| Failure Date | February 18, 2007 |
| VIN | WDBNG70J9YA |
Similar SUSPENSION:FRONT:SPRINGS:AIR SUSPENSION SYSTEM Complaints for 2000 MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS
I WAS DRIVING ON 95 NORTH LEAVING FLORIDA AND THE FRONT END OF MY CAR DROPPED. I WAS DRIVING ABOUT 65 MPH. FEARING FOR MY LIFE I ATTEMPTED TO PULL TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD BUT IT WAS VERY HARD TO EVE
AS I WAS DRIVING THE AIRMATIC SYSTEM FAILED AND CAUSE THE CAR TO LOWER TO AN UNDRIVABLE HEIGHT, I CHECKED AND FOUND THAT THIS IS A MAJOR PROBLEM FOR THIS MODEL. *TR
THE AIRMATIC SUSPENSION SYSTEM IN MY MERCEDES BENZ S500 FINALLY FAILED AFTER ACTING UP FOR SOME TIME. THE WHOLE CAR SUDDENLY SANK TO THE GROUND AND MADE DRIVING UNSAFE AND ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE. MY RESEAR
I OWN A 2000 MERCEDES BENZ S500 SEDAN. WHILE PULLING INTO MY PARKING SPACE AT HOME, THE REAR OF MY VEHICLE DROPPED TO APPROXIMATELY 3" FROM THE GROUND WITHOUT WARNING, I HAD NO IDEA WHY THIS HAPPENED.
HAD 2000 MERCEDES S500, CAR IN GARAGE FOR A WEEK, NOTICED THE CAR IS VERY LOW, TIRES ALMOST RUBBING THE INSIDE OF THE FENDERS, TURNED CAR ON AND WARNING MASSAGE SAID " CAR IS TOO LOW, STOP AERONAUTIC
Source: NHTSA Vehicle Complaints Database. Component taxonomy and severity codes are standardized by NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.