Total Complaints
9 filings
MERCEDES-BENZ SLK · model year
9 NHTSA complaints for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 1999MERCEDES-BENZSLK carries 9 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, 0 injuries, 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 1999 SLK is exterior lighting:brake lights with 2 filings, followed by structure:frame and members:underbody shields (1) and visibility (1). 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.
NHTSA currently has 15 investigation files overlapping the 1999 SLK. 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.
Total Complaints
9 filings
Crashes Reported
0 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING:BRAKE LIGHTS | 2 |
| STRUCTURE:FRAME AND MEMBERS:UNDERBODY SHIELDS | 1 |
| VISIBILITY | 1 |
| STRUCTURE | 1 |
| VISIBILITY/WIPER | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 1 |
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 1 |
THIS IS IN REGARDS TO RECALL NUMBER 05V505 FOR THE DRIVER SIDE REAR BRAKE LIGHT. THIS RECALL OCCURRED IN 2006 AND THE LIGHT WAS FIXED. HOWEVER, IT HAS FAILED AGAIN AND HAS THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM, THE SOCKED HAS GOTTEN HOT AND MELTED/DEFORMED THE PLASTIC SOCKET. I DON'T KNOW IF THE BULB WAS REPLACED ONLY BUT TO ME IT APPEARS NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE TO REPAIR THIS ISSUE ON THIS CAR. *TR
THIS IS IN REGARDS TO RECALL NUMBER 05V505 FOR THE DRIVER SIDE REAR BRAKE LIGHT. THIS RECALL OCCURRED IN 2006 AND THE LIGHT WAS FIXED. HOWEVER, IT HAS FAILED AGAIN AND HAS THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM, THE SOCKED HAS GOTTEN HOT AND MELTED/DEFORMED THE PLASTIC SOCKET. I DON'T KNOW IF THE BULB WAS REPLACED ONLY BUT TO ME IT APPEARS NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE TO REPAIR THIS ISSUE ON THIS CAR. *TR
THIS IS IN REGARDS TO RECALL NUMBER 05V505 FOR THE DRIVER SIDE REAR BRAKE LIGHT. THIS RECALL OCCURRED IN 2006 AND THE LIGHT WAS FIXED. HOWEVER, IT HAS FAILED AGAIN AND HAS THE EXACT SAME PROBLEM, THE SOCKED HAS GOTTEN HOT AND MELTED/DEFORMED THE PLASTIC SOCKET. I DON'T KNOW IF THE BULB WAS REPLACED ONLY BUT TO ME IT APPEARS NOTHING HAS BEEN DONE TO REPAIR THIS ISSUE ON THIS CAR. *TR
THE INSIDE REAR MIRROR OF MY 1999 MERCEDES BENZ SLK 230 IS AN ELECTRO-CHROMIC SELF-DIMMING MIRROR THAT HAS NO MANUAL BACKUP. THE MIRROR CONTAINED FLUID HAS LEAKED OUT CAUSING THE SELF-DIMMING TO FAIL TO PROVIDE DIMMING AGAINST REAR APPROACHING HEADLIGHTS BUT INSTEAD TO BE DARK AND FULL OF BUBBLES ALL THE TIME. THIS CAUSES A HAZARD AS IT ELIMINATES REAR VIEW CAPABILITY ENTIRELY. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER CASES OF THIS FAILURE DOCUMENTED ON LINE AND I HAVE HEARD THAT MAGNA DONNELLY (THE MANUFACTURER) WAS REPLACING THEM UP UNTIL A YEAR AGO FOR FREE BUT HAS STOPPED AND NOW SUGGESTS THAT WE BUY A NEW ($240) OR REMANUFACTURED ONE. THIS IS A FAILURE OF A SAFETY FEATURE OF THE CAR. *TR
Mileage: 70,000
THE INSIDE REAR MIRROR OF MY 1999 MERCEDES BENZ SLK 230 IS AN ELECTRO-CHROMIC SELF-DIMMING MIRROR THAT HAS NO MANUAL BACKUP. THE MIRROR CONTAINED FLUID HAS LEAKED OUT CAUSING THE SELF-DIMMING TO FAIL TO PROVIDE DIMMING AGAINST REAR APPROACHING HEADLIGHTS BUT INSTEAD TO BE DARK AND FULL OF BUBBLES ALL THE TIME. THIS CAUSES A HAZARD AS IT ELIMINATES REAR VIEW CAPABILITY ENTIRELY. THERE ARE NUMEROUS OTHER CASES OF THIS FAILURE DOCUMENTED ON LINE AND I HAVE HEARD THAT MAGNA DONNELLY (THE MANUFACTURER) WAS REPLACING THEM UP UNTIL A YEAR AGO FOR FREE BUT HAS STOPPED AND NOW SUGGESTS THAT WE BUY A NEW ($240) OR REMANUFACTURED ONE. THIS IS A FAILURE OF A SAFETY FEATURE OF THE CAR. *TR
Mileage: 70,000
THE MIRROR IS SELF-DIMMING USING A LIGHT-SENSITIVE LIQUID BEHIND THE MIRROR. THE LIQUID LEAKED OUT OF THE MIRROR AND CREATED ACID STAINS ON THE CENTER CONSOLE. THE MIRROR IS NOW BLURRY AND SHOWS GHOST IMAGES OF ANYTHING BEHIND. IT ALSO NO LONGER AUTO-DIMS WHEN BRIGHT HEADLIGHTS APPROACH FROM BEHIND AND THERE IS NO LEVER FOR THE DRIVER TO USE TO MANUALLY DIM IT. THE EASIEST THING IS TO JUST TURN IT AWAY BUT THAT CREATES A SAFETY HAZARD. I ASKED MERCEDES-BENZ CORPORATE TO HELP IN THIS MATTER BUT THEY REFUSED SAYING THE PART IS OUT OF WARRANTY AND THERE IS NO RECALL IN EFFECT. *TR
Mileage: 70,000
THE FRAME OF MY 1999 MERCEDES SLK 230 HAS BROKEN FOR NO APPARENT REASON. I HAD NEW TIRES PUT ON IT AND AN ALIGNED AND TWO WEEKS LATER THE FRAME BROKE NEAR THE AXLE. THIS VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN WRECKED PREVIOUSLY AND THE FRAME SHOULD BE STRONGER THAN IT WAS. *TR
Mileage: 122,408
1998 MERCEDES-BENZ SLK, BOTH REAR BREAK LIGHTS BURNED OUT, PLASTIC (BLUE) LIGHT BLUB HOLDERS ARE FUSED TO THE ASSEMBLY DUE TO EXTREME OVERHEATING CONDITION. CANNOT BE REMOVED BY HAND. JB
Mileage: 51,000
TL* - THE CONTACT RECEIVED A RECALL LETTER CAMPAIGN # 05V505000 ON 01/09/07 FOR THE EXTERIOR LIGHTS ON HIS 1999 MERCEDES SLK. THE DEALERSHIP, R & H MERCEDES OWENS MILL, MARYLAND TOLD THE CONTACT THAT THEY WOULD NOT PERFORM THE RECAL REPAIR BECAUSE THE BRAKE LIGHT WAS PRESENTLY WORKING.
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.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.