"How reliable is the 1997 Mercedes Benz 320?"

"Based on 27 NHTSA complaints, the 1997 Mercedes Benz 320 has a median complaint mileage of 0 miles. The most common issue is SUSPENSION."

"What are common problems with the 1997 Mercedes Benz 320?"

"The most frequently reported component in NHTSA complaints for the 1997 Mercedes Benz 320 is SUSPENSION, accounting for a significant portion of the 27 total complaints filed."

1997 Mercedes Benz 320: Reliability Data

Source: NHTSA — 27 complaints

Total Complaints

SUSPENSION

Top Issue

Crash Reports

What Fails?

Most reported component issues from NHTSA complaints.

SUSPENSION

AIR BAGS:FRONTAL

EXTERIOR LIGHTING:HEADLIGHTS

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:INTERIOR/UNDER DASH

AIR BAGS:SIDE/WINDOW

SUSPENSION:FRONT

VISIBILITY

VISIBILITY:REARVIEW MIRRORS/DEVICES

STRUCTURE:BODY:HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE

POWER TRAIN:MANUAL TRANSMISSION

Severity Assessment

Crashes

Fires

Injuries

Deaths

Sample Complaint Reports

"WHEN DRIVING AT ANY SPEED VEHICLE PULLS VERY HARD TO THE RIGHT, CANNOT KEEP VEHICLE ON THE HIGHWAY. *AK"

"VISUAL SYSTEMS: DOUBLE PANE WINDOW,REAR WINDSHIELD,REAR VIEW MIRRORS: BLURRED IMAGES,CAN'T TELL HOW MANY VEHICLES ARE COMING UP BESIDES DRIVER, DISTORTED HEADLIGHTS. MANUFACTURER DOESN'T SEE A PROBLEM ,BUT IT CAN BE A HAZARD. *AK"

Source: NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Names and identifying details omitted.

When Were Complaints Filed?

Number of complaints by the year the issue occurred.

Where Are Complaints Coming From?

Top states by complaint count.

CA: 10 FL: 3 MD: 3 VA: 2 TX: 2 DE: 2 NY: 1 GA: 1 NC: 1 IL: 1

Who Files Complaints?

48.1%

Original Owners

51.9%

Second+ Owners

Mercedes Benz 320 — Other Years

See how this model compares across different model years.

Year	Complaints	Median Mileage	Top Issue	Crashes
1994	64	135,203	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:FRONT UNDERHOOD	2
1995	39	85,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	7
1998	54	100,000	VISIBILITY:POWER WINDOW DEVICES AND CONTROLS	1
1999	45	50,500	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:12V/24V/48V BATTERY	0
2000	25	92,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	3
2001	41	39,000	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	1
2002	22	18,750	ELECTRICAL SYSTEM	0

Data source: View this vehicle on NHTSA.gov | NHTSA ODI Complaints Database. Public domain.

Methodology: Complaint counts and mileage distributions are computed directly from consumer-reported NHTSA complaints. This data represents reported issues, not failure rates — vehicles without complaints are not represented. Full methodology.

Data through: 2026-03-28