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NHTSA campaign 16V363000

2008–2011 Mercedes-Benz C300 and 6 other Mercedes-Benz models: air bags recall

An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death.

high 258,163 vehicles affected 93% reported repaired

What was reported

Source: manufacturer filing, 49 CFR Part 573
Problem Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2008-2011 C300 Sedan, C300 4matic Sedan, C350 Sedan, C63 AMG Sedan vehicles, 2010-2011 GLK350, GLK350 4-Matic and E350 Coupe vehicles, 2011 SLS AMG, E350 Convertible, E550 Coupe and E550 Convertible vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands, or "Zone A." Additionally, unless included in "Zone A" above, MBUSA is recalling certain model year 2008 C300 Sedan, C350 Sedan, C63 AMG Sedan and C300 4-Matic Sedan vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, or "Zone B." Vehicles not originally sold or ever registered in either Zones A or B are not subject to this safety recall. These vehicles are equipped with certain air bag inflators assembled as part of the passenger frontal air bag modules, and used as original equipment or replacement equipment. In the event of a crash necessitating deployment of the front air bags, these inflators may rupture due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to absolute humidity and temperature cycling. Risk An inflator rupture may result in metal fragments striking the vehicle occupants resulting in serious injury or death. Fix MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will replace the passenger frontal air bag modules, free of charge. Owners were sent an interim notification October 2016. A second notice will be mailed when remedy parts are available. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-877-496-3691.

Reported to NHTSA May 26, 2016 by Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC, owners notified Jul 31, 2018.

Which vehicles are covered

Source: NHTSA campaign 16V363000
Model yearOn WhichTrim
2008 Mercedes-Benz C300every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2009 Mercedes-Benz C300every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2010 Mercedes-Benz C300every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz C300every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2008 Mercedes-Benz C350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2009 Mercedes-Benz C350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2010 Mercedes-Benz C350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz C350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2008 Mercedes-Benz C63every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2009 Mercedes-Benz C63every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2010 Mercedes-Benz C63every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz C63every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2010 Mercedes-Benz E350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz E350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz E550every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2010 Mercedes-Benz GLK350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz GLK350every Mercedes-Benz on this site
2011 Mercedes-Benz SLSevery Mercedes-Benz on this site

None of the vehicles this campaign names has a page on WhichTrim: every model year it names is older than the catalogue, which begins at 2016. The campaign record above is complete as filed, and whether one specific vehicle is included is settled by its VIN. Other campaigns on vehicles without a page here →

How much of it has been fixed

Source: manufacturer quarterly report, 49 CFR 573.7
Reported repaired 93%

of the campaign

The final figure: the six quarters of reporting that 49 cfr 573.7 requires have closed.

This is the manufacturer's own cumulative count of vehicles it has inspected and repaired, divided by the vehicles the campaign covers. It files that count with NHTSA every quarter for six consecutive quarters, starting from the quarter in which owners were told a remedy was ready, and then the obligation ends — so a figure on an older campaign is where the count stopped, not where it stands today.

It rarely reaches 100%, and not because the work was not done. The same report asks manufacturers to count vehicles they could not reach at all — exported, stolen, scrapped, or simply never located — and those stay in the denominator. A low number means a lot of these vehicles are still out there unrepaired; it does not tell you which ones.

The federal paperwork

Source: nhtsa.gov

Filed documents

NHTSA has not published the scanned filings for this campaign, or has not published them yet. The campaign record itself is on their site.

Check one specific vehicle

A recall applies to a build range, so year, make and model cannot settle it. NHTSA checks a VIN against the manufacturer's own list and tells you whether the repair is still outstanding on that vehicle.

NHTSA VIN recall lookup →

Campaign 16V363000

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Common questions

Source: NHTSA, 49 CFR Part 573

Does this recall repair cost anything?

No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to remedy a safety defect or a compliance failure at no charge, for vehicles up to 15 years old measured from the date of first sale. A dealer that asks you to pay for a recall repair is in the wrong.

How do I know whether my vehicle is included?

By VIN, not by model year. The manufacturer files a build range with NHTSA and only vehicles inside it are covered, so two identical-looking cars from the same year can differ. NHTSA's own lookup checks a VIN against the manufacturer's list.

What if the repair is not available yet?

It happens, and often. Manufacturers must notify owners when a defect is found even if the parts or the software are not ready, then notify them a second time once the remedy exists. The remedy filed for this campaign is described above.

What did the manufacturer say was wrong?

The problem, risk and fix quoted on this page are the manufacturer's own words as filed with NHTSA under 49 CFR Part 573. WhichTrim does not paraphrase them.

Who started this recall?

NHTSA's record credits NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation. A recall can begin with the manufacturer's own testing, with a defect investigation, or with a compliance test against a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard.