The 2003 Mercedes-Benz C230 has 3 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 913,037 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 76 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the engine and engine cooling. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Recall campaigns
VISIBILITY24V8740002024-11-1933,456 affected
Defect
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2001-2011 C-Class, CLK, E-Class, and CLS vehicles. Please see the recall report for a complete list of models and model years. The glass sunroof panel may not be properly secured and can detach.
Consequence
A detached sunroof panel can become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the sunroof panel as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 10, 2025. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. This recall is an expansion of previous NHTSA recall number 22V-954. MBUSA's number for this recall is…
VISIBILITY22V9540002022-12-23131,653 affected
Defect
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2001-2011 C-Class, CLK, E-Class, and CLS vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle model details. The glass sunroof panel may not be properly secured and may detach.
Consequence
A detached sunroof panel may become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
Dealers will inspect and replace the sunroof panel as necessary free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 3, 2023. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. This recall expands NHTSA recall number 19V-918. MBUSA's numbers for this recall are 2023010004, 2023010005, and…
VISIBILITY19V9180002019-12-20747,928 affected
Defect
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2001-2011 vehicles. The bonding between the glass panel and the sliding roof frame may deteriorate, possibly resulting in the glass panel detaching from the vehicle. For a full list of the affected models visit:…
Consequence
A detached glass panel can separate from the vehicle and become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash.
Remedy
MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the glass panel bonding and replace the sliding roof, as necessary, free of charge. The recall began July 10, 2020. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2020040011.
Complaints by component
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
11
1fires
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE
6
POWER TRAIN:AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
6
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
5
AIR BAGS
3
1crashes1injuries
ENGINE
3
1fires
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM
3
EXTERIOR LIGHTING
3
TIRES
3
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY
2
Total complaints76
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal
information removed.
“The contact owns a 2003 mercedes-benz c230. The contact stated that the windshield wipers inadvertently stopped working. The contact jiggled the windshield wiper arm, and the windshield wipers wiped the windshield twice and then stopped operating. There were no warning lights illuminated. The…”
“The contact owns a 2003 mercedes-benz c230. The contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 22v954000 (visibility) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair.…”
“My panoramic roof is malfuctioning and is suck slightly open wont close or budge and now I'm having mulitple electrical issues my lights are flickering cigarette lighter doesnt work my ac works sometimes but then it doesn't and other things as well. There is an open recall on the panoramic roofs…”
“My panoramic roof is malfuctioning and is suck slightly open wont close or budge and now I'm having mulitple electrical issues my lights are flickering cigarette lighter doesnt work my ac works sometimes but then it doesn't and other things as well. There is an open recall on the panoramic roofs…”
“At 178,000 miles the timing chain tensioner failed while the car driving approximately 25 mph and allowed the timing chain to skip several teeth leaving the car stranded and potentially causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to the engine internals. The car was dealer serviced since new and…”
“At 178,000 miles the timing chain tensioner failed while the car driving approximately 25 mph and allowed the timing chain to skip several teeth leaving the car stranded and potentially causing thousands of dollars worth of damage to the engine internals. The car was dealer serviced since new and…”
“Tl* the contact owns a 2003 mercedes benz c230. The contact stated that while driving, it was informed that the tail lights failed to function. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The contact replaced the tail light however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not notified of the…”
“The lcd display for safety items such as checking the oil level fades out and can not be read. There is no other way to check the oil level on this vehicle. Repair shops do not want to service as they can not check oil level. No dip stick on these vehicles.”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL,
FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 2003 Mercedes-Benz C230 as of
July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page
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