AI Damage2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK320: common problems
Owners of the 2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK320 filed 26 complaints with NHTSA, most often about service brakes and electronic stability control. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 26
- involving a crash
- 1
What fails most often
- 1 Service brakes 54% of all complaints
- 2 Electronic stability control 38% of all complaints
- 3 Exterior lighting 31% of all complaints
- 4 Electrical system 23% of all complaints
- 5 Steering 8% of all complaints
- 6 Vehicle speed control 8% of all complaints
- 7 Powertrain 4% of all complaints
- 8 Seats 4% of all complaints
- Service brakes: 14 complaints (54% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Electronic stability control: 10 complaints (38% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Exterior lighting: 8 complaints (31% of all).
- Electrical system: 6 complaints (23% of all).
- Steering: 2 complaints (8% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 26 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 10 | 1 | 0 |
| Exterior lighting | 8 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Seats | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Wheels | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Other | 2 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
Experienced a vibration, squealing noise & slight pull to right. Stopped to investigate possibility of blown tire. Found nothing wrong after visual inspection, so resumed driving. Approx.
Driving low speed, about 30 MPH, right front wheel begins braking in anti-lock mode. Car pulls right. BAS/ESP light comes on. Was just driving, never touched the brake pedal.
while driving on the highway/freeway system in the Portland Oregon area on several occasions one of which i initiated myself activated the cruise control immediately after initiating the vehicle began to increase its speed to the continuing to speeds well beyond the 100 mile per hour mark I was not able to deactivate…
Slk320 car auto applies breaks till cars stops ! Very dangerous
This time I found that my bas/esp light came on. After researching this issue I find that your company dropped the recall issue on this car when this is an extremely serious problem. Most mechanics cannot fix this problem and I see that mercedes knows about this & that there was a potential recall issue.
The bas/esp alarm lights came on and the vehicle seemed to be ok until it was turned off. The alarm cleared when restarted but the vehicle applied brakes again on it's own and the indicators came back on. The repair shop could not get a code because it was not on when they checked it.
I own a 2001 slk320 mercedes bought it a second owner, it had no brakes light in the rear passenger side, electric seats not working either. Replaced the relay for seats but can't get tail lights to work check on recall was not honored what the heck.
The contact stated that the tail light failed to illuminate. The contact mentioned that the vehicle had been serviced 7 years ago under recall nhtsa campaign number: 05v505000 (exterior lighting). The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician stated that the tail light assembly would need to be repaired.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 7,319 of 36,659 model years in the NHTSA data (top 20% most complained about).
On average one model year of the SLK320 has 8 complaints (5 years in the data). This year has 26, above average.
What to check before buying
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Electronic stability control. ABS/ESC sensors, steering angle, codes after suspension repair.
- Exterior lighting. Headlamps, leveling, sensors and mounts after a frontal hit.
- Electrical system. Scan all modules, test the battery and alternator, inspect connectors near the impact zone.
Other years of this model
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK320?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: service brakes, electronic stability control, exterior lighting. Total complaints: 26. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: warning lights, check engine (27%), jerking, harsh shifts (8%), headlights and tail lights (8%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK320?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK320 from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2001 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-06.