U.S. public vehicle records

Mercedes Benz 380 recalls by model year

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

22 owner complaints analyzed

0 distinct recall campaigns

156,066 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 1981 to 1986 model years. Data updated: 2026-10-01 (October 1, 2026). 7 complaints include usable failure mileage. View data status.

This selection has limited data. It remains available for lookup but is excluded from search indexing.

Compare model years

Recalls by model year

All campaigns in the snapshot affecting each model year, including recalls announced years later.

From yearThrough year

Recall campaigns

Shared campaigns appear once in each affected model year.

1981

1982

1983

1984

1985

1986

1981: 0; 1982: 0; 1983: 0; 1984: 0; 1985: 0; 1986: 0

First model yearSecond model year

Year-by-year records

Mercedes Benz 380 model-year comparison
Model year	Complaints	Change in recalls
1981	2	Not available
1982	2	0
1983	1	0
1984	9	0
1985	7	0
1986	1	0

Recall history

0 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.

No recall campaigns are recorded in this snapshot.

Explore the data

Vehicle analysis explorer

Inspect model-year patterns, reported mileage, monthly activity and the evidence behind each signal.

Data completeness

22 unique complaints in this selection. Analysis snapshot: 2026-10-01.

31.8%Usable mileage7 / 22 records

86.4%Valid incident date19 / 22 records

100.0%Valid filing date22 / 22 records

86.4%Ordered incident and filing dates19 / 22 records

Missing, zero and invalid mileage is excluded. Dates after the snapshot are excluded. Examples are limited selections, not a representative sample.

Problems by model year

Model-wide comparison of the eight most reported components across the model. Cells show counts and shares within each model year. Open a cell for source examples.

From model yearThrough model year

Component complaint heatmap
Component	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986
Structure:Frame And Members	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	333.3% ODI 10074146 CONSUMER WAS INFORMED ON A RECALL ON VEHICLE, BUT CONSUMER'S VEHICLE IS NOT INCLUDED DUE TO VIN. *LA Look up ODI 10074146 at NHTSA ↗	228.6% ODI 10267495 · 100,000 mi 1985 380SL SUB FRAME DEFECT ACKNOWLEDGED BY MERCEDES BENZ WITH THEIR RECALL CAMPAIGN NUMBER 191185120001. IS THIS REPAIR STILL A RESPONSIBILITY OF MERCEDES BENZ? *TR Look up ODI 10267495 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Vehicle Speed Control	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	111.1% ODI 959753 VEHICLE SUDDENLY ACCELERATED CAUSING FRONTEND COLLISION AT HIGH UNKNOWN SPEED CRASHING INTO 2 VEHICLES AND MEDIAN STRIP. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. TT Look up ODI 959753 at NHTSA ↗	342.9% ODI 809956 OWNER STATES THAT WHILE STARTING THE VEHICLE AND PLACING FOOT ON BRAKE THE ENGINE HAD VERY HIGH REVS WHICH CAUSED THE VEHICLE TO ACCELERATE, OWNER HIT A SIGN. DEALERS COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG WITH THE VEHICLE. *AK Look up ODI 809956 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Vehicle Speed Control:Cruise Control	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	111.1% ODI 10204482 · 185,000 mi WHEN THE CRUISE CONTROL IS ACTIVATED, THE CAR WILL SUDDENLY ACCELERATE TO HIGH SPEED BY ITSELF AND THE BRAKE DOES NOT WORK. THE ONLY OPTION IS TO SHIFT TO "NEUTRAL"AND APPLY THE BRAKES OR SWITCH -OFF THE ENGINE. IT IS MOST DANGEROUS WHEN YOU ARE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. *JB Look up ODI 10204482 at NHTSA ↗	114.3% ODI 567549 CONSUMER STATES AFTER PRESSING THE ACCLERATOR, THE ENGINE RACED, THREW DRIVER FORWARD AND THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED IN REVERSE AT A HIGH SPEED. VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A VEHICLE PARKED IN AN ADJACENT ROW. DRIVER ATTEMPTED TO REACH THE BRAKE PEDAL SECONDS BEFORE THE IMPACT BUT DID NOT HAVE TIME TO OVERCOME THE ROARING ENGINE. MECHANIC REPLACED IDLE SPEED CONTROL UNIT AND IDLE VALVE. *TT Look up ODI 567549 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Vehicle Speed Control:Linkages	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	111.1% ODI 878459 CAR WAS IDLING INTO DRIVEWAY, CONSUMER PUT CAR IN REVERSE, AND IT TOOK OFF IN REVERSE, LIKE PEDAL WAS STUCK. CONSUMER TRIED EVERYTHING TO STOP VEHICLE, AND CONSUMER COULD NOT. CONSUMER LANDED IN BETWEEN TWO TREES. *AK Look up ODI 878459 at NHTSA ↗	114.3% ODI 10095062 · 195,000 mi WHEN STEPPING ON THE GAS THROTTLE STICKS. ALSO, STICKS WHILE DRIVING. NO CONTACT WITH THE MANUFACTURER. *AK Look up ODI 10095062 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Air Bags:Frontal	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	1100.0% ODI 817692 GOING 35MPH WHEN VEHICLE HIT POOL OF WATER & HYDROPLANED. RETURNED TO GROUND IN CORRECT LANE; VEHICLE HIT 2 MORE POOLS OF WATER & HYDROPLANED INTO EMBANKMENT, FRONT FIRST & THEN HIT A POLE W/DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR. SPUN AROUND INTO A FENCE & NEITHER AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. HAVE POLICE REPORT. VEHICLE TOTALED. *AK Look up ODI 817692 at NHTSA ↗
Air Bags:Side/Window	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	1100.0% ODI 817692 GOING 35MPH WHEN VEHICLE HIT POOL OF WATER & HYDROPLANED. RETURNED TO GROUND IN CORRECT LANE; VEHICLE HIT 2 MORE POOLS OF WATER & HYDROPLANED INTO EMBANKMENT, FRONT FIRST & THEN HIT A POLE W/DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR. SPUN AROUND INTO A FENCE & NEITHER AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. HAVE POLICE REPORT. VEHICLE TOTALED. *AK Look up ODI 817692 at NHTSA ↗
Electrical System:Ignition	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	111.1% ODI 740739 IN 1993 I HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE ENGINE SHUTING DOWN WHILE DRIVING IF AT ANY SPEED. I WOULD STEP ON THE GAS AND THE VEHICLE HAD NO POWER. IT WOULD RESTART AND I COULD PROCEED. IT WAS VERY DANGEROUS AND SOMETIMES I WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN AND ONCOMING TRAFFIC WAS APPROACHING. THE VEHICLE WAS UNDER WARRANTY BY MERCEDES-BENZ AND I TOOK IT IN. THEY REPLACED THE INGNITION CONTROL MODULE AND OVERLOAD PROTECTION RELAY. IN JULY 2000, I HAD THE ENGINE SHUTTING DOWN AGAIN. IT WAS VERY INTERMITTEN BUT FINALLY I HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALER IN NASHVIL… Look up ODI 740739 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Electrical System:Wiring:Front Underhood	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	150.0% ODI 8016871 WHEN VEHICLE WAS PARKED VEHICLE CAUGHT ON FIRE UNDER THE HOOD. DEALER NOTIFIED.*AK Look up ODI 8016871 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.

Darker cells indicate a larger share of submitted complaints. Components overlap. This measures complaint composition, not failure probability.

Failure mileage by component

Median and middle 50% of usable owner-reported mileages. Ranges require at least five records.

Component failure mileage distribution
Component	Mileage range (25th–75th percentile)	Median	Usable records	Examples
Structure:Frame And Members	Too few reports for a range	128,033 mi	2 (sparse)	ODI 10125290 · 156,066 mi DT: CONSUMER FOUND A RECALL ONLINE AND CONTACTED MERCEDES BENZ, AND DEALER,. THEY ACKNOWLEDGED THE RECALL, BUT REFUSED TO REIMBURSE THE CONSUMER FOR THE REPAIRS OF THE VEHICLE. THE SUBFRAME BROKE, AND HE HAD IT REPAIRED BEFORE HE FOUND THERE WAS A RECALL. HE HAD IT REPAIRED AT A FIRESTONE. AK Look up ODI 10125290 at NHTSA ↗ ODI 10267495 · 100,000 mi 1985 380SL SUB FRAME DEFECT ACKNOWLEDGED BY MERCEDES BENZ WITH THEIR RECALL CAMPAIGN NUMBER 191185120001. IS THIS REPAIR STILL A RESPONSIBILITY OF MERCEDES BENZ? TR Look up ODI 10267495 at NHTSA ↗
Vehicle Speed Control:Cruise Control	Too few reports for a range	185,000 mi	1 (sparse)	ODI 10204482 · 185,000 mi WHEN THE CRUISE CONTROL IS ACTIVATED, THE CAR WILL SUDDENLY ACCELERATE TO HIGH SPEED BY ITSELF AND THE BRAKE DOES NOT WORK. THE ONLY OPTION IS TO SHIFT TO "NEUTRAL"AND APPLY THE BRAKES OR SWITCH -OFF THE ENGINE. IT IS MOST DANGEROUS WHEN YOU ARE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC. *JB Look up ODI 10204482 at NHTSA ↗
Vehicle Speed Control:Linkages	Too few reports for a range	195,000 mi	1 (sparse)	ODI 10095062 · 195,000 mi WHEN STEPPING ON THE GAS THROTTLE STICKS. ALSO, STICKS WHILE DRIVING. NO CONTACT WITH THE MANUFACTURER. *AK Look up ODI 10095062 at NHTSA ↗

Complaint and recall timeline

Explore monthly filing activity alongside recall announcements. Up to ten years of monthly history is available.

ComponentPeriod

Solid line: filed complaints. Dashed amber lines: recall announcement dates for this vehicle selection; markers include all recall components. The latest month is partial. Temporal proximity does not establish causation.

Monthly counts, recall campaigns and complaint examples

Monthly complaint and recall timeline
Month	Campaigns announced	Examples
2024-11	None	No examples available for this selection.
2024-12	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-01	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-02	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-03	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-04	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-05	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-06	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-07	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-08	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-09	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-10	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-11	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-12	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-01	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-02	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-03	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-04	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-05	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-06	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-07	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-08	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-09	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-10 (partial)	None	No examples available for this selection.

Emerging complaint spikes

Complete months in the latest six months with at least 10 complaints, at least twice the preceding 12-month average, and at least three square-root deviations above that average.

This is a descriptive screening rule, not a statistical defect finding. Publicity and reporting changes can increase submissions.

No complete months meet the spike thresholds for this selection.

Equal-age model-year comparison

Model-wide cumulative reports during the first three or five calendar years, starting with the model year (age 0). Only fully elapsed windows are compared.

Observation windowFirst model yearSecond model year

1985: 0 complaints · 1986: 0 complaints

Equal observation windows
Model year	Through age 0	Through age 1	Through age 2
1985	0	0	0
1986	0	0	0

Date coverage across each selected cohort

Date basis for all complaints in selected model years
Year	Incident dates used	Filing date fallbacks	Excluded dates
1985	5	2	0
1986	1	0	0

Incident date is preferred when valid and no later than filing; otherwise filing date is used. Model year approximates age. Equal observation time does not adjust for sales, distance driven or reporting delays. One complaint linked to multiple model years can appear in each cohort.

Components reported together

Each cell counts unique complaints naming both components. Open a nonzero cell for examples.

Component co-occurrence matrix
Component	Structure:Frame And Members	Vehicle Speed Control	Vehicle Speed Control:Cruise Control	Vehicle Speed Control:Linkages	Air Bags:Frontal	Air Bags:Side/Window	Electrical System:Ignition	Electrical System:Wiring:Front Underhood
Structure:Frame And Members	—	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Vehicle Speed Control	0	—	0	0	0	0	0	0
Vehicle Speed Control:Cruise Control	0	0	—	0	0	0	0	0
Vehicle Speed Control:Linkages	0	0	0	—	0	0	0	0
Air Bags:Frontal	0	0	0	0	—	1 ODI 817692 GOING 35MPH WHEN VEHICLE HIT POOL OF WATER & HYDROPLANED. RETURNED TO GROUND IN CORRECT LANE; VEHICLE HIT 2 MORE POOLS OF WATER & HYDROPLANED INTO EMBANKMENT, FRONT FIRST & THEN HIT A POLE W/DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR. SPUN AROUND INTO A FENCE & NEITHER AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. HAVE POLICE REPORT. VEHICLE TOTALED. *AK Look up ODI 817692 at NHTSA ↗	0	0
Air Bags:Side/Window	0	0	0	0	1 ODI 817692 GOING 35MPH WHEN VEHICLE HIT POOL OF WATER & HYDROPLANED. RETURNED TO GROUND IN CORRECT LANE; VEHICLE HIT 2 MORE POOLS OF WATER & HYDROPLANED INTO EMBANKMENT, FRONT FIRST & THEN HIT A POLE W/DRIVER'S SIDE DOOR. SPUN AROUND INTO A FENCE & NEITHER AIR BAGS DEPLOYED. HAVE POLICE REPORT. VEHICLE TOTALED. *AK Look up ODI 817692 at NHTSA ↗	—	0	0
Electrical System:Ignition	0	0	0	0	0	0	—	0
Electrical System:Wiring:Front Underhood	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	—

Co-reporting does not establish that one component caused another concern.

Recurring narrative patterns

Specific keyword mentions beyond broad component labels. Matching includes negations and comparisons and does not confirm a diagnosis.

Search patterns

2 patterns with matching reports.

Brake response concerns

1 mentions · 4.5% of complaints

Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).

ODI 567549

CONSUMER STATES AFTER PRESSING THE ACCLERATOR, THE ENGINE RACED, THREW DRIVER FORWARD AND THE VEHICLE ACCELERATED IN REVERSE AT A HIGH SPEED. VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A VEHICLE PARKED IN AN ADJACENT ROW. DRIVER ATTEMPTED TO REACH THE BRAKE PEDAL SECONDS BEFORE THE IMPACT BUT DID NOT HAVE TIME TO OVERCOME THE ROARING ENGINE. MECHANIC REPLACED IDLE SPEED CONTROL UNIT AND IDLE VALVE. *TT

Look up ODI 567549 at NHTSA ↗

Matching rule

Stalling or loss of power

1 mentions · 4.5% of complaints

Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).

ODI 740739

IN 1993 I HAD A PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE ENGINE SHUTING DOWN WHILE DRIVING IF AT ANY SPEED. I WOULD STEP ON THE GAS AND THE VEHICLE HAD NO POWER. IT WOULD RESTART AND I COULD PROCEED. IT WAS VERY DANGEROUS AND SOMETIMES I WAS MAKING A LEFT TURN AND ONCOMING TRAFFIC WAS APPROACHING. THE VEHICLE WAS UNDER WARRANTY BY MERCEDES-BENZ AND I TOOK IT IN. THEY REPLACED THE INGNITION CONTROL MODULE AND OVERLOAD PROTECTION RELAY. IN JULY 2000, I HAD THE ENGINE SHUTTING DOWN AGAIN. IT WAS VERY INTERMITTEN BUT FINALLY I HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALER IN NASHVIL…

Look up ODI 740739 at NHTSA ↗

Matching rule

\b(stall\w*|loss of power|lost power|engine shut\w* off)\b