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2005 Mercedes Benz C Class

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Limited comparison data

There is not enough comparable history to draw a useful model-year comparison.

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How this year compares

Owner complaints by model year

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Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.

What owners reported most

All reported categories

Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

Limited mileage data: 4 of 5 reports include usable mileage. There isn’t enough coverage to show a useful chart.

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Power Train. Review the 2 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Seats. Review the 2 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Air Bags. Review the 1 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

0 crash reports0 fire reports0 injury reports

Seats complaints

2 reports
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81,000 miles · Feb 28, 2014
Seats

DRIVER'S SIDE SEAT BACK, LEFT BOLSTER, STARTED TO SMOKE AND BURNED A DIME SIZE HOLE IN THE LEATHER SEAT COVER. DRIVER'S SEAT HEAT WAS ON AT THE TIME. TURNING THE SEAT HEAT OFF SEEMS TO HAVE SOLVED THE PROBLEM TEMPORARILY. SUSPECT SHORT IN SEAT HEAT WIRING. POTENTIAL FIRE HAZARD! *TR

NHTSA ODI #10566433

105,000 miles · Jan 5, 2012
Electrical SystemEquipment Adaptive/mobilitySeats

SEAT CONTROL MODULE FAILURE. 2 MODULES PER CAR, 1 FOR PASSENGER SEAT, AND 1 FOR DRIVER SEAT FAIL. THE DEFECTIVE SEAT CONTROL MODULE UNIT WILL DEPLETE THE CARS BATTERY OVERNIGHT RESULTING IN A NO-START CONDITION THE FOLLOWING DAY. A NEW BATTERY, OR A JUMP START, WILL GET THE CAR GOING AGAIN. THE COMMON IMMEDIATE RESOLUTION …

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SEAT CONTROL MODULE FAILURE. 2 MODULES PER CAR, 1 FOR PASSENGER SEAT, AND 1 FOR DRIVER SEAT FAIL. THE DEFECTIVE SEAT CONTROL MODULE UNIT WILL DEPLETE THE CARS BATTERY OVERNIGHT RESULTING IN A NO-START CONDITION THE FOLLOWING DAY. A NEW BATTERY, OR A JUMP START, WILL GET THE CAR GOING AGAIN. THE COMMON IMMEDIATE RESOLUTION IS TO UNPLUG THE SEAT CONTROL MODULE WHICH WOULD IMPACT THE SEATS ABILITY TO RESPOND IN AN ACCIDENT. THE REPLACEMENT PART AND DIAGNOSIS FROM MB DEALER IS APPROX $700/ MODULE. THIS IS A HUGE LIABILITY FOR MERCEDES OWNERS AND THE REPAIR SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED FOR SEAT FUNCTION SAFETY. I UNDERSTAND THE PART NUMBER HAS BEEN UPDATED, WHICH I BELIEVE IS AN ADMISSION BY MERCEDES THAT THE ORIGINAL PART IS DEFECTIVE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10442578

Official recalls

2

08V303000 · Electrical System

Jul 7, 2008

MERCEDES-BENZ IS RECALLING MY 2006-2008 M-CLASS, R-CLASS, MY 2005-2009 SLK-CLASS, MY 2005-2008 C-CLASS, MY 2003-2004 AND 2006-2008 CLK-CLASS, MY 2003-2008 E-CLASS, MY 2004 AND 2008 CL-CLASS, MY 2008 CLS-CLASS, MY 2004 AND 2007-2008 S-CLASS, MY 2003 G-CLASS, AND MY 2003-2004, 2006 AND 2009 SL-CLASS VEHICLES. A SOFTWARE CALIBRATION NUMBER (SCN) CODING RECEIVED ON THE AFFECTED VEHICLES DURING A RECENT WORKSHOP VISIT WAS INCORRECT. DEPENDING ON THE MODEL YEAR AND MODEL AFFECTED, THE RESULTS OF AN INCORRECT SCN CODING CAN AFFECT A NUMBER OF VEHICLE SAFETY AND EMISSION FUNCTIONS INCLUDING THE FOLLOWING TYPES OF FUNCTIONS: (1) THE FUEL GAUGE READINGS MAY BE INCORRECT; (2) A STUCK FUEL-LEVEL SENSOR MAY NOT BE DISPLAYED IN THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER; (3) THE OBD SYSTEM MAY CAUSE THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT TO ILLUMINATE INCORRECTLY; AND, (4) THE SPEEDOMETER MAY BE OUT OF TOLERANCE.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: IN THE EVENT OF A VEHICLE CRASH, THE ELECTRICAL FUEL PUMP MAY NOT RECEIVE A CRASH SIGNAL THAT IS REQUIRED FOR THE FUEL PUMP TO DISCONNECT AND PREVENT FUTURE FUEL DELIVERY AS DESIGNED.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL RECODE THE SCN FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 30, 2008. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MERCEDES-BENZ AT 1-800-367-6372.

05V560000 · Air Bags

Dec 20, 2005

CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH SPORT MODEL STEERING WHEELS FAIL TO COMPLY WITH THE REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY STANDARD NO. 208, "OCCUPANT CRASH PROTECTION." IN CERTAIN LOW RISK AIR BAG DEPLOYMENT TESTS CONDUCTED BY NHTSA, USING AN OUT-OF-POSITION UNBELTED 5TH PERCENTILE FEMALE CRASH TEST DUMMY, IRREGULARITIES WERE DEMONSTRATED INDICATING THAT OCCUPANTS MAY NOT BE PROPERLY PROTECTED IN A CRASH.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: IN THE EVENT OF A CRASH, AN OCCUPANT MAY NOT BE PROPERLY RESTRAINED WHICH COULD RESULT IN INJURIES.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL INSTALL A NEW AIR BAG INFLATOR MODULE FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON MARCH 15, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT MERCEDES-BENZ AT 1-800-367-6372.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.