MERCEDES-BENZ S550 · model year

2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550

18 NHTSA complaints, and 5 active recalls for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

Not crash-tested

New Car Assessment Program

The 2016MERCEDES-BENZS550 carries 18 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 0 crashes, 0 fires, 1 injury, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2016 S550 is unknown or other with 6 filings, followed by structure:body (3) and seat belts (2). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 5 active recall campaigns, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 15 investigation files overlapping the 2016 S550. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

18
Complaints
0
Crashes
0
Fires
1
Injuries
0
Deaths

Total Complaints

18 filings

Crashes Reported

0 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

At or below the fleet median complaint volume.

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
UNKNOWN OR OTHER6
STRUCTURE:BODY3
SEAT BELTS2
VISIBILITY/WIPER1
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM1
ENGINE1
TIRES1
TIRES:SIDEWALL1
TIRES:TREAD/BELT1
STEERING1

Recalls (5)

16V76000020/10/2016

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 S550 Coupe 4MATIC, S63 AMG Coupe 4MATIC, S65 AMG Coupe and S63 AMG Convertible 4Matic vehicles manufactured September 3, 2015, to February 4, 2016. The low beam headlights on the affected vehicles may not be properly adjusted.

21V19700019/03/2021

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2017-2020 C300 Coupe, C43 Coupe AMG, C43 AMG, 2015-2020 C300, GLA250, 2016-2018 C350e, CLA45 Coupe AMG, 2015 C400, S65 AMG, 2015-2019 C63 AMG, 2016 C450, 2015-2016 GLA45 AMG, S600, 2016-2020 GLC300, 2017-2019 GLC43 AMG, GLE43 Coupe AMG, 2014-2019 C

16V82900016/11/2016

SEAT BELTS

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 S63 AMG Coupe, S65 AMG Coupe, S550 Coupe 4Matic, S63 AMG 4Matic Convertible, and S550 Convertible vehicles manufactured June 29, 2015, to March 15, 2016. The seat belt extenders on the affected vehicles may not retract as inte

23V85400015/12/2023

STRUCTURE:BODY:ROOF AND PILLARS

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2014-2020 C-Class, CLA, GLA, S-Class, GLC, and GLE vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle details. The front roof panel located between the windshield and the panoramic sunroof may not have been bonded correctly to t

19V78700001/11/2019

COMMUNICATION

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2013-2017 vehicles due to a software fault that may cause the date and time for the emergency call system (eCall) to differ from the actual date and time, potentially relaying an inaccurate vehicle location. For a full list of the affected models

Recent Complaints

20251014STEERING

The contact owns a 2016 Mercedes-Benz S550. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the power steering failure warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the steering wheel seized. The contact stated that he was lucky to have been driving the vehicle in front of the residence and not on the highway. In addition, the contact stated that it was very difficult trying to move the vehicle from one parking space to another in front of the residence. The vehicle was towed to the dealer where it was diagnosed with a failed electric power steering module. The contact was informed that the electric power steering module needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact was informed about NHTSA Campaign Number: 16V899000 (Steering); however, the VIN was not included in the recall. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but provided no assistance. The contact was referred to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was appro

Mileage: 56,000

20250811UNKNOWN OR OTHER

2016 S550 front roof panel issues. Adhesive issues.

20250616TIRES:SIDEWALL

Started car in parking lot and warming light read zero air in right front tire. No prior warning. Checking tire for any road hazard - nails or other potential punctures but none were present but the tire had a hole just below the wheel that had blown out. The tire is a Pirelli P Zero 245/40R20 Run Flat. Was able to drive it to Tire Discount the next day to replace the tire. Manager checked tire and could not find any other issue with the tire. They were supposed to hold the tire but it was removed by the recycling company. I have pictures and the managers examination. Our safety any others if the split in the tire would have blown at speed in traffic. Called and emailed Pirelli and they could care less about a safety issue. Just told me it was out of warranty because it was over 1 year old. The tire has approximately 5,000 miles on it.

20250616TIRES:TREAD/BELT

Started car in parking lot and warming light read zero air in right front tire. No prior warning. Checking tire for any road hazard - nails or other potential punctures but none were present but the tire had a hole just below the wheel that had blown out. The tire is a Pirelli P Zero 245/40R20 Run Flat. Was able to drive it to Tire Discount the next day to replace the tire. Manager checked tire and could not find any other issue with the tire. They were supposed to hold the tire but it was removed by the recycling company. I have pictures and the managers examination. Our safety any others if the split in the tire would have blown at speed in traffic. Called and emailed Pirelli and they could care less about a safety issue. Just told me it was out of warranty because it was over 1 year old. The tire has approximately 5,000 miles on it.

20240912SEAT BELTS

Rear left seat belt is stuck and won’t retract. Seat has not been used much. Vehicle is a 2016 with 65,000 miles.

20240726SEAT BELTS

The car's front passenger passenger seat buckle fails to properly secure the seat belt. After inserting the seat belt it fails to latch into the buckle. The Mercedes dealer has examined the seat buckle and determined that it failed. They are recommending a replacement.

20240725STRUCTURE:BODY

My vehicle is listed in this Mercedes recall campaign bulletin, and it is also experiencing the safety issue that is discussed in this recall campaign bulletin: Campaign No.2021070010, August 2021 Revision A 09/03/2021 When I contact Mercedes to have the issue addressed, they stated my Vin is not a part of this recall campaign, and to contact you about it.

20240513TIRES

Staggered tires on this car Goodyear Eagle F1 Asymetric 2 Run flats. Front size - 245/40 R 20/99y, Rear -275/35 R 20/102 These tires cannot take the load of the car . I purchased the vehicle & the same tire (front driver side) has blown & ripped open over a moderate pothole, Aug 2020 & in Sep, 2022. In my opinion these tires are massive liability and a huge safety hazard. These are Summer runflat tires & also there no Allseason ROF's

20240110UNKNOWN OR OTHER

On cold days below 40 degrees, my 2016 Mercedes S550 W222, trunk lid when closed using the close button on the trunk lid closes and immediately reopens. It will only stay closed if I tie it down with a rope or elastic cord. I found a work around if I am home and apply heat to the latch with a hair drier and spray the latch with silicone lubricant spray. This problem is identical to Mercedes Campaign No. 2019030005, April 2019, which applies to S-Clsss 222 platforms Model Year 2018-2019. I request that this campaign be extended to Model Year 2016 and my car. I have attached copy of Mercedes Campaign No. 2019030005, April 2019.

20240108UNKNOWN OR OTHER

While driving or even sitting this piece gets extremely hot and has actually burned me twice. As soon as the car is turned on the temperature rises on this piece that’s on by the arm rest

20230318ENGINE

Catalytic converters are factory defective My vehicle has less than 80K miles and used as pleasure vehicle. The problem has been inspected and confirmed by a reputable independent service provider. Warning lights came on and upon inspection it was determined that 3 catalytic converters are defective. My spouse also complains about a bad odor when vehicle is on but not running.

20221108ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Failure of LED instrument cluster. 2016 S550. No display. In October 2020 I had total system failure in my garage. Battery discharged down to +/- 5V. The car was still under warranty. Tech arrived and tried to recharge battery. He did not have the proper equipment, (his statement). I had to use two of my chargers in parallel plus his to get car back to life. He disconnected the battery from car to get there. Battery came back to life. Everything seemed to work. Started to drive car and experienced random IC failure. There were times when cluster worked fine and suddenly it went blank (black). Contacted dealer and was told that I should keep on driving it would fix itself. Dealer had the car for a week and could find no fault. And it fixed itself. Great!!! Note, at this time the car was still under Warranty. Forward to June 2022. I replaced Batteries. As in 2020 display died (black) randomly. This time it was more often black than alive, it does not want to recover. Note, every time

20220228UNKNOWN OR OTHER

on Feb 26, 2022 between the hours of 4:00 am and 5:15 am the Sunroof on my 2016 S550 Mercedes Benz shatter for no cause or reasons while driving on the main highway. When the loud bang accrued while driving I immediately pulled the car over to exam the issue and I noticed the Sunroof glass had shattered. I was able to drive the S550 Mercedes Benz to my residence. However, this Sunroof Shattering could have a cause major issue if the lower cover to my sunroof was open. I would strong recommend Mercedes Benz reach out to the glass manufacture concerning this safety issue with defective glass (Shattering Glass Sunroof for no cause or reasons)

20201003STRUCTURE:BODY

I WOKE UP ONE MORNING AND WAS ASTOUNDED TO FIND A LONG DIAGONAL CRACK ACROSS THE PANORAMIC SUNROOF OF MY 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550. I CONTACTED MERCEDES AND WAS TOLD TO BRING THE CAR TO A DEALERSHIP FOR EVALUATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS DUE TO OUTSIDE INFLUENCE OR A MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT. THEY DETERMINED THAT IT WAS A "STRESS CRACK" AND STUCK ME WITH A BILL FOR $13,000. THIS IS A 2016 MODEL CAR WITH 50K MILES ON IT WITH A SUNROOF THAT SPONTANEOUSLY CRACKED. WHAT IF MY WIFE AND YOUNG CHILDREN WERE IN THE CAR WHEN IT STARTED TO CRACK? THE RESPONSE FROM MERCEDES IS UNACCEPTABLE. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT WHICH MUST BE ADDRESSED BEFORE SOMEONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT.

Mileage: 58,455

20201003UNKNOWN OR OTHER

I WOKE UP ONE MORNING AND WAS ASTOUNDED TO FIND A LONG DIAGONAL CRACK ACROSS THE PANORAMIC SUNROOF OF MY 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550. I CONTACTED MERCEDES AND WAS TOLD TO BRING THE CAR TO A DEALERSHIP FOR EVALUATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER THIS WAS DUE TO OUTSIDE INFLUENCE OR A MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT. THEY DETERMINED THAT IT WAS A "STRESS CRACK" AND STUCK ME WITH A BILL FOR $13,000. THIS IS A 2016 MODEL CAR WITH 50K MILES ON IT WITH A SUNROOF THAT SPONTANEOUSLY CRACKED. WHAT IF MY WIFE AND YOUNG CHILDREN WERE IN THE CAR WHEN IT STARTED TO CRACK? THE RESPONSE FROM MERCEDES IS UNACCEPTABLE. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT WHICH MUST BE ADDRESSED BEFORE SOMEONE GETS SERIOUSLY HURT.

Mileage: 58,455

20190620STRUCTURE:BODY

TAKATA RECALL. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY ON MY WAY TO PHOENIX AZ TO DROP OFF MY MOM AND GRANDMA WHEN SUDDENLY THE SUNROOF EXPLODED. IT SOUNDED LIKE A GUN SHOT. THERE WASN'T ANY TYPE OF OBJECT NEAR ME TO CAUSE IT. IT WAS VERY RANDOM. THIS DISTURBED MY FAMILY MENTALLY SCARING THEM AND I SWERVED OFF THE HIGHWAY ALMOST CRASHING.

Mileage: 43,900

20190620UNKNOWN OR OTHER

TAKATA RECALL. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY ON MY WAY TO PHOENIX AZ TO DROP OFF MY MOM AND GRANDMA WHEN SUDDENLY THE SUNROOF EXPLODED. IT SOUNDED LIKE A GUN SHOT. THERE WASN'T ANY TYPE OF OBJECT NEAR ME TO CAUSE IT. IT WAS VERY RANDOM. THIS DISTURBED MY FAMILY MENTALLY SCARING THEM AND I SWERVED OFF THE HIGHWAY ALMOST CRASHING.

Mileage: 43,900

20180212VISIBILITY/WIPER

I AM REPLACING THE WINDSHIELD FOR THE 3RD TIME, SMALL STONES CREATING HUGE CRACKS, SEEMS VERY UNUSUAL FOR IT TO HAPPEN SO OFTEN.

Mileage: 139,000

Compare 2016MERCEDES-BENZS550 to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 have?
The 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 has 18 NHTSA complaints, 0 crashes, 0 fires, 1 injuries, and 0 deaths reported.
Are there any recalls for the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550?
Yes, the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 has 5 recall(s). The most common affected component is EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550?
The most-complained component for the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 is UNKNOWN OR OTHER with 6 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include STRUCTURE:BODY and SEAT BELTS.
Is the 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. No NHTSA crash test rating is available for this model year. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.