What 23 owners told NHTSA about the 2023 Mercedes-benz E-class Cabrio

RE: Continental Pro Contact GX SSR MOE 245/40 R19 98 H M+S Original factory installed Mercedes E450 tires. I had 3 blowouts from hitting small potholes on 3 different tires in 1.5 years. These are complete immediate blowout going completely flat on impact. It could have very dangerous if I were driving a little faster and fortunately there was no other damage to the car or other persons. In each case, I hit a small pothole, and the tire blew out, flat to the ground. Because these are run flat tires, on the first 2 incidents I was able to drive home and to the dealer for tire repair/replacement. The third one was so bad that I could not drive all the way home and had to get towed. But all 3 incidents were scary and dangerous because of the sudden blowouts. The tires were not repairable and had to be replaced. I believe that the Mercedes Tire inflation instructions is unsafe and they should put more air in the tires to protect from the rim cutting into the tire when hitting a pothole. The driver's door "B" pilar placard says the "cold tire pressure: Front 41 psi Rear 47 psi". Mercedes repair shop inflates the tires according to the Fuel Filler Door decal that says " Front 36 psi, Rear 36 psi." That is a big difference in pressure -- as much as possible 11 psi under pressure. I believe these run flat tires failed because of too low of tire pressure when hitting the pothole. If the tires were inflated with the higher pressures as on the door pilar, the wheel rim would not have been able to cut into and through the tire wall because the higher tire pressure would prevent the impact of the rim cutting through the tire sidewall. I believe this a serious safety issue and Mercedes should be inflating this type run flat MOE tires to a much higher pressure and should not use the low-pressure instructions that are on the fuel door label. There should be a recall and repair instructions to increase run flat tire pressure on Mercedes E class vehicles.

NHTSA ODI 11696441

RE: Continental Pro Contact GX SSR MOE 245/40 R19 98 H M+S Original factory installed Mercedes E450 tires. I had 3 blowouts from hitting small potholes on 3 different tires in 1.5 years. These are complete immediate blowout going completely flat on impact. It could have very dangerous if I were driving a little faster and fortunately there was no other damage to the car or other persons. In each case, I hit a small pothole, and the tire blew out, flat to the ground. Because these are run flat tires, on the first 2 incidents I was able to drive home and to the dealer for tire repair/replacement. The third one was so bad that I could not drive all the way home and had to get towed. But all 3 incidents were scary and dangerous because of the sudden blowouts. The tires were not repairable and had to be replaced. I believe that the Mercedes Tire inflation instructions is unsafe and they should put more air in the tires to protect from the rim cutting into the tire when hitting a pothole. The driver's door "B" pilar placard says the "cold tire pressure: Front 41 psi Rear 47 psi". Mercedes repair shop inflates the tires according to the Fuel Filler Door decal that says " Front 36 psi, Rear 36 psi." That is a big difference in pressure -- as much as possible 11 psi under pressure. I believe these run flat tires failed because of too low of tire pressure when hitting the pothole. If the tires were inflated with the higher pressures as on the door pilar, the wheel rim would not have been able to cut into and through the tire wall because the higher tire pressure would prevent the impact of the rim cutting through the tire sidewall. I believe this a serious safety issue and Mercedes should be inflating this type run flat MOE tires to a much higher pressure and should not use the low-pressure instructions that are on the fuel door label. There should be a recall and repair instructions to increase run flat tire pressure on Mercedes E class vehicles.

NHTSA ODI 11696446

RE: Continental Pro Contact GX SSR MOE 245/40 R19 98 H M+S Original factory installed Mercedes E450 tires. I had 3 blowouts from hitting small potholes on 3 different tires in 1.5 years. These are complete immediate blowout going completely flat on impact. It could have very dangerous if I were driving a little faster and fortunately there was no other damage to the car or other persons. In each case, I hit a small pothole, and the tire blew out, flat to the ground. Because these are run flat tires, on the first 2 incidents I was able to drive home and to the dealer for tire repair/replacement. The third one was so bad that I could not drive all the way home and had to get towed. But all 3 incidents were scary and dangerous because of the sudden blowouts. The tires were not repairable and had to be replaced. I believe that the Mercedes Tire inflation instructions is unsafe and they should put more air in the tires to protect from the rim cutting into the tire when hitting a pothole. The driver's door "B" pilar placard says the "cold tire pressure: Front 41 psi Rear 47 psi". Mercedes repair shop inflates the tires according to the Fuel Filler Door decal that says " Front 36 psi, Rear 36 psi." That is a big difference in pressure -- as much as possible 11 psi under pressure. I believe these run flat tires failed because of too low of tire pressure when hitting the pothole. If the tires were inflated with the higher pressures as on the door pilar, the wheel rim would not have been able to cut into and through the tire wall because the higher tire pressure would prevent the impact of the rim cutting through the tire sidewall. I believe this a serious safety issue and Mercedes should be inflating this type run flat MOE tires to a much higher pressure and should not use the low-pressure instructions that are on the fuel door label. There should be a recall and repair instructions to increase run flat tire pressure on Mercedes E class vehicles.

NHTSA ODI 11696449

The contact owns a 2023 Mercedes-Benz E450 Convertible equipped with Continental Tires, Tire Line: ProContact GX SSR, Tire Size: 245/40/R19, DOT Number: 16YOF989F4623. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed over a bumpy road surface, the front driver's side tire experienced a blowout several times, requiring the vehicle to be towed to the dealer, where the front driver's side tire was replaced four times by the dealer. Additionally, the contact stated that the failure recurred while driving, and a tire was replaced. The vehicle manufacturer was notified of the failure, but no assistance was provided. The tire manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle failure mileage was approximately 50. The tire failure mileage was approximately 50. The VIN was not available.

NHTSA ODI 11667542

Have replace 5 tires since April 2024 due to damage from pot holes

NHTSA ODI 11640840