2007 Mercedes Benz CLK350

TRANSMISSION (MERCEDES TYPE 722.9) WILL NOT SHIFT PROPERLY. TRANSMISSION S/N 722906 00 999408. SUSPECT COMPONENT: VALVE BODY (ELECTROHYDRAULIC CONTROL UNIT). MULTIPLE VARIATIONS OF IMPROPER SHIFTING, EXAMPLES: 1. TRANSMISSION WILL NOT SHIFT AFTER VEHICLE IS STOPPED WITH ENGINE RUNNING RESULTING IN NO MOVEMENT OF VEHICLE; 2. TRANSMISSION WILL SHIFT TO INITIAL GEAR THEN REMAIN IN THAT GEAR RESULTING IN MOVEMENT OF VEHICLE WITH HIGH ENGINE RPM'S. ISSUE MAY CORRECT ITSELF BY OPERATOR SHIFTING TO NEUTRAL/PARK, OR TURNING ENGINE OFF. ISSUE IS INCREASING IN FREQUENCY. LACK OF PROPER SHIFTING RESULTS IN VEHICLE BECOMING POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS TO DRIVE. *TR

WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE MY SUN ROOF GLASS BLEW OFF OF THE VEHICLE. IT WAS NOT OPEN AT THE TIME. I IMMEDIATELY PULLED OVER TO SEE IF ANYONE WAS HIT. I DID NOT SEE ANYONE. MERCEDES BENZ DOES NOT SEEM TO BE CONCERNED THAT THIS COULD HAVE BEEN A FATALITY IF ANYONE WOULD HAVE BEEN HIT, OR SWERVED TO AVOID AN ACCIDENT. MY VEHICLE IS CURRENTLY AT A MERCEDES DEALERSHIP AND I HAVE ALSO CONTACTED MY INSURANCE COMPANY. THIS NEEDS TO BE ELEVATED TO ASSURE THAT THIS TYPE OF SITUATION DOES NOT HAPPEN AGAIN. THIS IS A PRODUCT LIABILITY SITUATION AND THIS SHOULD BE NOTED SOMEWHERE. *TR

DRIVING DOWN THE ROAD AT A SLOW SPEED AND THE CAR JUST QUITS. SOMETIMES IT WILL START ITSELF BACK UP AND SOMETIMES I HAVE TO PULL OFF TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD TO TURN IGNITION OFF AND THEN ON AGAIN. THE CAR WILL JUST QUIT AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND AFTER SOME QUICK THINKING AND REALIZING WHAT JUST HAPPENED THE ONLY THING TO DO IS DRIFT TO THE BERM OF THE ROAD WITH NO PWR STEERING OR BRAKES. THERE ARE ALSO TIMES WHEN I START THE CAR IT WILL QUIT AND TAKES TWO TO THREE MORE TRIES. ALSO HAD A SEVERE RAW GAS COMING FROM THE CAR AFTER A FILL UP. THE GAS FUMES WERE SO SEVERE THAT WE HAD TO PARK THE CAR OUTSIDE FOR FEAR OF AN EXPLOSION IN OUR GARAGE. I TOOK THE CAR TO THE MB DEALER IN PITTSBURGH AND THEY WERE ABLE TO REPAIR THE GAS PROBLEM AS THE GASKETS AROUND THE GAS TANK WERE DRY-ROTTED AND I PAID APPROX $600.00 FOR THIS REPAIR WHICH I FEEL THAT MB SHOULD HAVE COVERED SINCE AT 66000 MILES THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN. AS USUAL THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE THE STALLING ISSUE. MB KNOW OF THIS PROBLEM BUT WILL NOT DO ANYTHING SINCE IT DOESN'T SHOW UP ON THERE COMPUTER HOOK-UPS. SOMETHING NEEDS TO BE DONE BEFORE PEOPLE GET KILLED. I'M SURE I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE THIS HAPPENS TOO. *TR

AS I WAS WATCHING THE GMC ELECTRONIC IGNITION SWITCH RECALL ON THE NEWS THIS MORNING, IT STRUCK A CHORD, AS THE SAME THING HAPPENED ON THE ABOVE MENTIONED CAR LAST SUMMER. FORTUNATELY WE WERE DRIVING DOWN A SIDE STREET SO THE SPEED WAS LOW. THE CAR LITERALLY TURNED OFF... NO POWER STEERING, NO POWER BRAKES... NO POWER WINDOWS... NOTHING. IT WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP AND THE ELECTRONIC IGNITION SWITCH WAS REPLACED. I WAS TOLD THAT THEY SEE THIS IN THIS MODEL, BUT HAVE NOT SEEN A RECURRENCE WHEN THEY REPLACE THE SWITCH. THIS WAS NOT A RECALL, BUT I THOUGHT AT THE TIME, IT SHOULD BE. THIS COULD HAVE EXTREMELY TRAGIC. *TR

THE SAFETY RESTRAINT SYSTEM FAILURE MESSAGE APPEARED IN THE DASHBOARD MESSAGE DISPLAY OF OUR 6-YEAR OLD MERCEDES BENZ CLK350. THE SANTA BARBARA AUTO GROUP MERCEDES BENZ SERVICE PERSON EXPLAINED THAT THE PASSENGER SIDE AIRBAG WAS DEFECTIVE, DESPITE THE FACT THAT IT HAD NEVER BEEN USED/DEPLOYED, NOR HAD THE CAR EVER BEEN INVOLVED IN ANY INCIDENT. THE ESTIMATED CHARGE TO ME WAS ABOUT $1200. I CONTACTED MBUSA DIRECTLY, AND SUGGESTED THAT THEY WERE RESPONSIBLE FOR A SAFETY SYSTEM THAT SHOULD NEVER FAIL IN THE FIRST PLACE. AFTER 5 DAYS OF LEAVING VOICEMAILS, I RECEIVED A CALLBACK WITH THE OFFER OF COVERING 25% OF THE COST. I FOUND THIS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE. *TR

MY CLK 350 CABRIOLET STATED DRIVING DIFFERENT. AT FIRST, WHENEVER I WOULD SLOW DOWN AT A STOP LIGHT, THE CAR WOULD CUT OFF. EVERYTHING WOULD ILLUMINATE ON THE DASH AND I WOULD HAVE TO TURN IT OFF AND BACK ON TO DRIVE IT AGAIN. THE BIGGEST ISSUE IS THAT WHEN I WOULD DRIVE, THE CAR WOULD NOT SHIFT OUR OF GEARS PROPERLY, AND IT WOULD VERY PAINFULLY AND SLOWLY ACCELERATE ITS SPEED. IT WOULD JERK, LIKE THE TRANSMISSION WAS NOT FUNCTIONING CORRECTLY. COME TO FIND OUT, AT 62,000 MILES, MY CAR NEEDED A NEW TRANSMISSION, WITH NO LOGICAL EXPLANATION GIVEN FROM ANY BENZ DEALER. SPEED SENSORS, CAMSHAFT, CONVERTER ALL MALFUNCTIONED. *TR

THERE IS A VERY STRONG GAS SMELL. IT IS OVERWHELMING, LASTS FOR DAYS, AND WE NEED TO PARK THE CAR OUTSIDE OF THE GARAGE, AS THE SMELL IS SO INTENSE IT MAKES YOU FEEL SICK. IT JUST STARTED HAPPENING ABOUT A WEEK OR TWO AGO, AND SEEMS TO BE MOST OBVIOUS AFTER GETTING FUEL. I SEARCHED THE INTERNET AND FOUND THAT THIS SEEMS TO BE A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH A LOT OF MB OWNERS HAVING SIMILAR ISSUES. ALSO, THERE SEEMS TO BE A RECENT CLASS ACTION SUIT INITIATED BY THE NHTSA INVOLVING THIS PROBLEM. I'M CONCERNED THIS COULD BE A LIFE THREATENING SAFETY PROBLEM IF AN EXPLOSION OCCURS AND THE INTENSE FUMES SEEM LIKELY TO CAUSE OTHER HEALTH RELATED PROBLEMS. *TR

SEAT BELTS FAIL TO RETRACT UNLESS THERE ARE ASSISTED MANUALLY, IF NOT NOTICED THEY HANG OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE. IF A DRIVER HAD DELIVERED A PASSENGER TO A DESTINATION AND THAT PASSENGER FAILED TO ASSIST THE SEAT BELT INTO THE ENCLOSURE AND EXITED LEAVING A PORTION OF THE BELT DRAGGING ON THE GROUND AND POSSIBLY GETTING CAUGHT ON A OBSTRUCTION OF SOME TYPE, OR CAUSING SOME UNINTENDED ACTION. *TR