| Issue ID | 1437113 |
| Internal NHTSA # | 11058517 |
| Manufacurer | Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. |
| Brand | MERCEDES BENZ |
| Model | SL500 |
| Model Year | 2004 |
| File date | 01/01/18 |
| Component | SERVICE BRAKES |
| Product type code | VEHICLE |
| Description of the problem | I purchased this vehicle in 2014. My brakes completely went out while driving january 1 2018. I was attempting to stop at an intersection when the the vehicle would not stop with oncoming traffic on both sides coming towards me. I immediately pressed the accelerator and sped through the intersection to avoid an accident.... Absolutely terrifying and without any warning whatsoever. Because the dealership was closed i was unable to seek service that day. I called mercedes of richmond va being that was the closest dealership where i was visiting at at the time. Unfortunately i could not get an appointment until january 3rd. I had it towed that morning and they came back hours later notifying me it was in face the sbc system which needed to be replaced at the cost of $2006. I was outraged learning that mbusa knew of this issue nhtsa campaign number 04v296000 in june 2004 but closed it out in december 2013. I did not purchase the vehicle until 2014. I asked if there was anything they could do to assist me as one of the associates informed me about "good will" service where they might consider my situation and help. I was again extremely disappointed to learn they would only assist with $300 as we have 2 mercedes and have incurred thousands of dollars in known repair issues of the few years. I am asking that mbusa accept the cost of this repair as it was a known issue that they were replacing at no cost to owner. I have 131,000 miles on the car which is under mileage for that year. They told me to ask mercedes if they would consider assisting in any way but they said there was nothing they could do. |
| Vehicle Mileage at Failure | 131000 |
| Number of Occurences | |
| Source of the issue | NHTSA WEB SITE |
| City and State | CHESAPEAKE, VA |
| VIN pattern | WDBSK75F04FXXXXXX |
| Was vehicle invloved in a crash? | N |
| Was vehicle involved in a fire? | N |
| Was incedent reported to police? | N |
| Was medical attention required? | N |
| Was part original equipment? | |
| No. of injured persons | |
| No. of fatalities | |
| Date of purchase | 07/08/26 |
| Was original owner? | N |
| Anti-lock brakes | N |
| Cruise control | N |
| Number of cylinders | |
| Drive train type | |
| Transmission type | |
| Vehicle speed | 5 |
| DoT tire identifier | |
| Tire size | |
| Location of tire code | |
| Type of tire failure code | |
| Was defective tire repaired? | |
| Date of manufacture | |
| Type of child seat code | |
| Type of restraint | |
| Dealer's name | |
| Dealer's telephone number | |
| Dealer's city | |
| Dealer's state code | |
| Dealer's ZIP code |