Known Recalls

Model year record

1990 MERCEDES BENZ 500SL

1 recall campaign on file for this model year. 3 owner complaints on file.

Recalls

Recall campaignNHTSA 93V067000

Service brakes, hydraulic: power assist

Component
Service brakes, hydraulic: power assist
Manufacturer
MERCEDES-BENZ USA, INC.
Vehicles affected
14,300
Reported to NHTSA
1993-04-28
Owners notified
1993-05-14

Defect description

DURING THE REMOVAL AND INSTALLATION OF THE AIR FILTER HOUSING WHILE SERVICING THE VEHICLE, IT IS POSSIBLE TO MISROUTE THE PREFORMED VACUUM HOSE AND DAMAGE THE CHECK VALVE IN THE VACUUM HOSE. IF THE CHECK VALVE IS DAMAGED, LOSS OF SUFFICIENT BRAKE POWER ASSIST WILL OCCUR.

Safety risk

LACK OF SUFFICIENT BRAKE POWER ASSIST WILL INCREASESTOPPING DISTANCE AND COULD RESULT IN A VEHICLE ACCIDENT.

Manufacturer remedy

REPLACE THE PREFORMED VACUUM HOSE WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED PREFORMED HOSE WITH A RELOCATED CHECK VALVE WHICH WILL ELIMINATE THE POSSIBILITY OF THE CHECK VALVE BEING DAMAGED.

Owner complaints

A complaint is one person's report to a federal agency. It is not a finding.

ComponentComplaintsMedian mileage
Tires181,740 mi
Tires: sidewall1—
Visibility: windshield wiper/washer1—

The 1991 model has roughly the same number of complaints as this one. These figures reflect raw complaint counts, not failure rates. Higher-selling model years naturally receive more complaints.

Safety recall repairs are provided free of charge by franchised dealers, regardless of vehicle age or mileage. This page displays aggregated data for the model year. To check recall status for a specific vehicle, search its VIN at nhtsa.gov.