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What 315 owners told NHTSA about the 2016 Mercedes-benz C-class Hybrid

These are the actual owner complaints behind this car’s reliability verdict, filed with the federal government, unedited. They’re unverified reports, not confirmed defects: read them as leads for your pre-purchase inspection, not a diagnosis.

All (315)Crash / fire / injury (16)Engine (99)Fuel system (67)Electrical system (37)Body & structure (32)Visibility & wipers (23)Transmission & drivetrain (21)Steering (17)Brakes (9)Airbags (7)Wheels (7)

32 of 315 complaints match · Body & structure · clear filters · page 2 of 2

Nov 26, 2020Body & structure

FRONT GLASS PANEL ON PANORAMA ROOF DETACHED WHILE DRIVING ON FREEWAY ON A STRAIGHT SEGMENT AND FLEW OFF. I IT APPEARS THAT THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH ADHESION THAT IS USED TO SECURE AND THERE ARE A NUMBER OF MERCEDES MODELS WITH PANORAMA ROOFS OF VARIOUS YEARS ALL HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM. IT COST OVER $2000 IN DEALER REPAIR AND REPLACEMENTS.

NHTSA ODI 11376425

Nov 6, 2020Body & structure

GLASS PIECE IN FRONT OF SUNROOF OF PANORAMA ROOF FLEW DETACHED AND FLEW OFF WHILE DRIVING. I WAS DRIVING ON FREEWAY ABOUT 80 MILES PER HOUR ON A STRAIGHT STRETCH. IT WAS NOT HIT BY ANYTHING. JUST THE WIND. COST TO REPAIR $2178 AT MB AUTHORIZED DEALER.

NHTSA ODI 11373459

Apr 7, 2020Body & structure

THE VEHICLE HAS A PANORAMIC SUNROOF AND I HAD OPENED THE ROOF WHILE I WAS PARKED AND WHEN I STARTED DRIVING SOMETHING POPPED AND THE FRONT OF THE SUNROOF LIFTED A LITTLE CAUSING IT TO IT THE BACK GLASS PORTION OF THE PANORAMIC ROOF. I PULLED OVER TO CHECK IT OUT AND SAW THE THE FRONT GUIDES WERE BROKEN/DETATCHED. I HAD TO FIND A WAY TO FORCE THE SUNROOF TO CLOSE. I WAS ONLY GOING AROUND 25 MPH WHEN THE GUIDES GAVE UP. IF I WOULD'VE BEEN GOING FASTER, THE FORCE WOULD HAVE BROKEN THE BACK GLASS.

NHTSA ODI 11320417

Mar 10, 2020Body & structure

AS PER THIS RECALL LISTED 2016 MERCEDES-BENZ C300, C450 AMG 4MATIC RECALLED FOR PANORAMIC SUNROOF DEFECT. I BOUGHT THIS CAR AS A CERTIFIED USED MODEL FROM A MERCEDES DEALERSHIP AND WHILE DRIVING THE PANORAMIC SUNROOF ATTEMPTED TO STAND UP VERTICALLY BUT I QUICKLY CAUGHT IT. I PULLED OVER AND MANAGED TO GET IT TO CLOSE AND LATCH AND TOOK IT TO THE DEALER NAMED IN THE REPAIR ESTIMATE. I PROVIDED THEM WITH THE PLASTIC PIECES SHOWN IN THE PICTURE THAT I FOUND BROKEN INSIDE THE FRAME AND THEY WOULD NOT REMEDY THE DEFECT WITHOUT A CHARGE OF OVER $3200 WHICH INCLUDED PARTS THAT ARE NOT MALFUNCTIONING. INSTEAD I WAS SENT BACK OUT WITH THE VEHICLE IN THE SAME CONDITION

NHTSA ODI 11317270

Nov 3, 2018Body & structureVisibility & wipers

PANORAMIC SUNROOF SHATTERED WHILE DRIVING NORMALLY IN HIGHWAY, SHARDS OF GLASS FROM THE SUNROOF ALSO DAMAGED/CHIPPED REAR PART OF THE CAR. CAUSE UNKNOWN. VEHICLE WAS NOT INVOLVED IN COLLISION.

NHTSA ODI 11145066

Oct 15, 2016Electrical systemLightsBody & structureFire1 injury

ON OCT 14TH AT NIGHT CAR WAS DRIVEN IN HEAVY RAIN OFF INTERSTATE I5 OFF RAMP TO EXIT INTERSTATE. THERE WERE CARS BOTH IN FRONT AND BEHIND US EXITING AND UPON DRIVING FURTHER NOTICED THERE WAS STANDING WATER. OTHER CARS WERE MAKING IT THROUGH SLOWLY, THERE WAS NO ROOM TO TURN AROUND. THIS CAR ALMOST MADE IT TO THE END OF THE OFFRAMP AND THEN STALLLED. OTHER CARS WERE FORCED TO GO AROUND. TRIED TO RESTART THE CAR TO NO AVAIL. CALLED FOR ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE. NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE HOOD AND THEN ALL LIGHTING WENT DARK IN CAR. THEN SAW FLAMES FROM THE HOOD. QUICKLY RAN THROUGH WATER TO ESCAPE AND FLAMES GOT SEVERAL FEET HIGH. PASSER BY'S HAD CALLED 911 AS ENTIRE FRONT OF CAR WAS ENGULFED IN FLAMES. FIRE DEPARTMENT HAD TO CUT OPEN CAR HOOD TO PUT OUT FIRE. CAR DAMAGED BEYOND REPAIR AND THEY TOO WERE INCREDULOUS THAT A NEW CAR WOULD BE ENGULFED IN FLAMES AFTER STALLING IN THE RAIN.

NHTSA ODI 10916229

Sep 17, 2016Electrical systemBody & structureSpeed controlCrash

AFTER STOPPING AND WAITING AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT FOR 15-30 SECONDS, I HAD MY FEET ON THE BRAKES AND LEFT TURN INDICATOR ON. THE "HOLD" OPTION TO LOCK MY BRAKES WAS NOT ENGAGED. THE CAR WAS STATIONARY. WITHOUT WARNING, THE CAR SHIFTED INTO DRIVE AND JOLTED FORWARD INTO THE VEHICLE AHEAD OF ME AT THE LIGHT. (I WAS THE SECOND CAR IN LINE, AND I STOPPED ABOUT A HALF CAR LENGTH BEHIND THE OTHER DRIVER.) THE ACCELERATION WAS NOT A TYPICAL, GRADUAL MOVEMENT ASSOCIATED WITH WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I RELEASE MY FOOT FROM THE BRAKE TO DRIVE. IT WAS A SUDDEN AND JARRING JUMP REGARDLESS OF THE FACT THAT MY FOOT NEVER LEFT THE BRAKE. I TRIED TO PRESS THE BRAKES MULTIPLE TIMES TO STOP THE FORWARD MOVEMENT, BUT MY CAR HIT THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME TWICE. THE STEEL BUMPER OF THE OTHER VEHICLE WAS NOT DAMAGED. THE FRONT AREA OF MY HOOD (EMBLEM AND GRILL) WERE CRUSHED. I REPORTED EARLIER ELECTRONIC ISSUES TO MY LOCAL DEALERSHIP AS NOTABLE ODDITIES, BUT NONE MADE ME THIS CONCERNED ABOUT SAFETY OF OTHERS, MY PASSENGERS, AND MYSELF. AS RECENTLY AS A WEEK EARLIER, MY REAR-VIEW CAMERA FROZE AND LOCKED AS I WAS REVERSING INTO MY GARAGE, SO HAD I TRUSTED THE SCREEN IN MY CAR, I WOULD HAVE REVERSED ANOTHER 5-10 FEET INTO MY GARAGE. I COULD NOT UNFREEZE IT WITHOUT PUTTING THE CAR BACK INTO DRIVE AND RESTARTING MY CAR. MONTHS EARLIER, THE SENSOR ON MY SIDE MIRRORS STARTED TO GO OFF WITHOUT ANY OTHER SOURCE OF DANGER OR COLLISION ON VACANT STREETS. THE AIR PRESSURE ALERT WARNED THAT MY TIRES WERE BECOMING DANGEROUSLY FLAT; HOWEVER, EN ROUTE TO THE GAS STATION, THE PRESSURE MONITOR NOTED THAT ALL TIRES WERE NOW RETURNING TO NORMAL PRESSURE LEVELS AND NO INFLATION WAS NEEDED. THERE HAVE BEEN MANY PECULIAR EVENTS WITH THIS NEW C300 IN RECENT MONTHS, BUT MY PRIMARY CONCERN AS A CAREGIVER IS THE SUDDEN ACCELERATION FROM A STOPPED POSITION--OR FROM ANY POSITION--WITHOUT MY DIRECTION OR INTENT.

NHTSA ODI 10907333

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Working with the data? Download all 315 complaints as CSV · fetched from NHTSA July 25, 2026

How to use these: a complaint is one owner’s report, filed voluntarily and published unverified. Patterns matter more than any single story. If several owners describe the same failure at similar mileage, put that system at the top of your pre-purchase inspection list. Back to the full 2016 Mercedes-benz C-class Hybrid verdict →