IllustrationIGNITION KEY DID NOT WORK. HAD TO USE SPARE KEY IN ORDER TO TURN VEHICLE ON.*AK CONSUMER STATES WITHOUT WARNING, AT STARTUP, WHILE STOPPED, OR MOVING, VEHICLE WILL STALL, CONSUMER STATES IF YOU HAVE A SPARE KEY, SOMETIMES IT WILL WORK. *SLC
1998 Mercedes Benz ML320
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most ML320 years
Owner complaints for the 1998 Mercedes Benz ML320 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 28.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all ML320 years →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
20–25K
625–50K
1150–75K
1275–100K
8100–150K
4150K+
43 reports with mileage · 90 unknown
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.
- Engine And Engine Cooling. Review the 31 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Electrical System. Review the 21 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Visibility. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
9 crash reports5 fire reports10 injury reports
What owners actually said
133 reportsWHILE TRAVELING ON WET ROAD AND WITHOUT ANY INDICATION VEHICLE FISHTAILED OUT OF CONTROL, CAUSING VEHICLE TO FLIP OVER. CONSUMER STATED THAT SPEED CONTROL CAME ON. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.*AK
DRIVESHAFT BEARING BROKE WHILE DRIVING. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION.*AK
FUEL TANK FILLER NECK IS DEFECTIVE. WHEN FUELING VEHICLE THERE IS FUEL SPILLAGE. DEALER HAS BEEN NOTIFIED.*AK
WHILE TRAVELING 30-40MPH, COULD SMELL BRAKES BURNING. WOULD HAVE BURNING BRAKES EVERY 12,000 MILES. PADS AND ROTORS WOULD NEED TO BE CHANGED. HAS BEEN THROUGH 5 SETS OF BRAKES ALREADY.*AK
MY 1998 MLK 320 IS GOING INTO THE SHOP FOR THE TENTH TIME IN 31 MONTHS, AND THE ONLY REASON IT HASN'T BEEN IN MORE OFTEN IS I LIVE 30 MILES FROM THE DEALER. THE CAR HAS BEEN A NIGHTMARE. THE PROBLEMS ARE NUMEROUS; MANY HAVE NEVER BEEN SUCCESSFULLY REPAIRED. THE MAIN PROBLEM THAT STARTED NOT LONG AFTER I PURCHASED THE CAR (NEW…
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MY 1998 MLK 320 IS GOING INTO THE SHOP FOR THE TENTH TIME IN 31 MONTHS, AND THE ONLY REASON IT HASN'T BEEN IN MORE OFTEN IS I LIVE 30 MILES FROM THE DEALER. THE CAR HAS BEEN A NIGHTMARE. THE PROBLEMS ARE NUMEROUS; MANY HAVE NEVER BEEN SUCCESSFULLY REPAIRED. THE MAIN PROBLEM THAT STARTED NOT LONG AFTER I PURCHASED THE CAR (NEW) IS, WHEN I START IT THE CAR DIES. I HAVE TO REPEAT THE PROCESS AND EVENTUALLY THE CAR WILL START. THERE ARE ALSO A MYRIAD OF SMALL, CONTINUOUS PROBLEMS; WINDOWS THAT WON'T GO UP, LOCKS THAT LOCK AND UNLOCK ON THEIR OWN, PLASTIC PARTS THAT HAVE FALLEN OFF. IT HAS IS AWFUL. IT MAKES MY 95 FORD RANGER TRUCK SEEM LIKE A DREAM AUTO.
MY MERCEDES TRUCK HAS BURNED THROUGH 4 OR 5 SETS OF BRAKE PADS IN THE FRONT AND TWO SETS FOR THE REAR WITHIN 63300 MILES OF DRIVING, OUR DRIVING IS MOSTLY ON THE FREEWAY. I CALLED MERCEDES BENZ THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER, WHICH I ALREADY DID. MY DEALER TELLS ME THAT THIS IS A UNIVERSAL PROBLEM WITH THE ML 320 AND ML …
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MY MERCEDES TRUCK HAS BURNED THROUGH 4 OR 5 SETS OF BRAKE PADS IN THE FRONT AND TWO SETS FOR THE REAR WITHIN 63300 MILES OF DRIVING, OUR DRIVING IS MOSTLY ON THE FREEWAY. I CALLED MERCEDES BENZ THEY TOLD ME TO TAKE IT TO THE DEALER, WHICH I ALREADY DID. MY DEALER TELLS ME THAT THIS IS A UNIVERSAL PROBLEM WITH THE ML 320 AND ML 430 TRUCKS, THEY ARE HEAVY VEHICLES AND THE COMPONENTS OF THE BRAKE PADS ARE SOFT AND SO ARE THE BRAKE ROTORS. IT IS THE DESIGN OF THESE COMPONENTS AND THE WEIGHT OF THE VEHICLE THAT CONTRIBUTES TO A HIGH BURNING RATE OF THESE BRAKES. THIS WAS TOLD TO ME BY THE DEALER AS WELL AS ANOTHER MERCEDES SERVICE CENTER.
VEHICLE WAS IN GARAGE AND IT CAUGHT ON FIRE. THERE WAS DAMAGE TO GARAGE. DEALER SAID FIRE WAS DUE TO DEFECT IN BATTERY. *AK THE CAUSE OF THE FIRE WAS DUE TO AN ELECTRICAL SHORT CIRCUIT IN THE VOLTAGE REGULATOR/ALTERNATOR, THE FIRE DESTROYED THE VEHICLE AND DAMAGED THE DRIVEWAY AND GARAGE. *SLC
WAS DRIVING 70 MPH ON CALIFORNIA FREEWAY AND VEHICLE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC. EMERGENCY FLASHERS FAILED TO WORK & HAD NO BRAKE LIGHTS. RADIO WAS STILL WORKING. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALER & MECHANIC INDICATED THAT RELAY SWITCH NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. HAVING AN ENGINEER CHECK VEHICLE OVER FOR CAUSE OF STALLING.*AK THE…
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WAS DRIVING 70 MPH ON CALIFORNIA FREEWAY AND VEHICLE STALLED IN THE MIDDLE OF TRAFFIC. EMERGENCY FLASHERS FAILED TO WORK & HAD NO BRAKE LIGHTS. RADIO WAS STILL WORKING. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALER & MECHANIC INDICATED THAT RELAY SWITCH NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. HAVING AN ENGINEER CHECK VEHICLE OVER FOR CAUSE OF STALLING.*AK THE DEALER CHANGED VARIETY OF SWITCHES AND THE PROBLEM WAS SOLVED. *YH
THE AIR BAG AND SAFETY RESRAINT SYSTEM DID NOT OPERATE DURING MY ACCIDENT. SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER MY ACCIDENT I RECIEVED A RECALL ON MY SEAT BELTS. THE COMPANY THAT REPAIRED MY VEHICLE TOLD ME THE AIR BAG HAD NOT BEEN CONNECTED. NO WARNINGS WERE GIVEN UNTIL AFTER THE ACCIDENT THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE AIR BAG SYSTEM.*AK
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
1PE03058 · Engine Crankshaft Pulley Failure
Opened Dec 17, 2003 · Closed Apr 22, 2004
Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Engine And Engine Cooling:engine:gasoline:belts And Associated Pulleys
THE OFFICE OF DEFECTS INVESTIGATION (ODI) OPENED THIS PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO INVESTIGATE ALLEGATIONS OF ENGINE CRANKSHAFT PULLEY HARMONIC BALANCER FAILURE THAT COULD RESULT IN LOSS OF POWER-STEERING ASSIST.ODI HAS RECEIVED A TOTAL OF 546 NON-DUPLICATIVE REPORTS THAT ALLEGE ENGINE CRANKSHAFT PULLEY HARMONIC BALANCER FAILURE ON ALL MERCEDES-BENZ VEHICLES USING THE SUBJECT COMPONENT.THE SUBJECT COMPONENT FAILURES ARE PROGRESSIVE IN NATURE AND ONLY A SMALL PERCENTAGE OF THE COMPLAINTS AND WARRANT CLAIMS INVOLVED A FAILURE THAT HAD PROGRESSED FAR ENOUGH TO EFFECT POWER STEERING PERFORMANCE (6 OF 55 ODI COMPLAINTS REFERENCE INCREASED STEERING EFFORT).THERE HAVE BEEN NO CRASHES OR INJURIES RELATED TO THE ALLEGED DEFECT.A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT HAS NOT BEEN IDENTIFIED AT THIS TIME AND FURTHER USE OF AGENCY RESOURCES DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE WARRANTED.ACCORDINGLY, THIS INVESTIGATION IS CLOSED.THE CLOSING OF THIS INVESTIGATION DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A FINDING BY NHTSA THAT A SAFETY-RELATED DEFECT DOES NOT EXIST.THE AGENCY WILL TAKE FURTHER ACTION IF WARRANTED BY THE CIRCUMSTANCES.SEE SUMMARY REPORT ATTACHED FOR FURTHER DETAIL.