Admin Edit:
M-B warranty for this issue has been extended as of August 17, 2018. For more complete information and directions on this warranty, please follow the links provided at the bottom of this Edit. Excerpts from a PDF version of the official letter are as follows.
IMPORTANT EXTENDED WARRANTY INFORMATION UPDATE
The warranty on the SBC Hydraulic Unit for MY 2003-2006 Model 211, MY 2006 Model 219, and Model Year 2003-2012 Model 230/231 was extended from the original 4 years/50,000 miles to 25 years with no mileage limitation. The SBC Hydraulic Unit extended warranty applies to all conditions that justify the replacement of the SBC Hydraulic Unit and specific listed components under the standard New Vehicle Limited Warranty terms and conditions. Please note that the warranty extension now includes: Model Year 2004-2012 Model 240, and Model Year 2005-2009 Model 199 vehicles.
The following vehicle model and model years are covered:
Model : Model Years
E-Class : 2003-2006
CLS-Class : 2006
SL-Class : 2003-2012
Maybach : 2004-2012
SLR-Class : 2005-2009
Discussion of the warranty begins at Post 109 (link provided).
A PDF attachment of the warranty letter is at Post 134 (link provided).
Admin Edit end. Original Post begins below.
I have been in contact with the NHTSA regarding the SBC service threshold issue. They advised me to have as many owners of vehicles with these units to contact them via www.safercar.gov and file a complaint. This is the only way the NHTSA will take any action.
This is a safety issue since the brakes go into backup mode with no prior warning. At the very least MB should issue a recall to interrogate the units with STAR DAS.
Thanks for your help.
John
Below is what I submitted to the NHTSA website. It will ask for date of incident, but just use the date you file.
This vehicle is equipped with Sensotronic Brake Control that has a service threshold. When this threshold is reached the brake system defaults to non power assisted hydraulic mode to the front wheels only. This occurs without any prior warning and results in increased stopping distance. I have sent a copy of the Mercedes service bulletin S142.46-P-0012A which addresses this issue. Mercedes stopped installing this system in 2006. At the very least, Mercedes should issue a mandatory recall to interrogate these vehicles with STAR DAS to determine how close to the service threshold the SBC unit is and replace them at the dealer's expense. This is a major safety issue that needs to be addressed.
M-B warranty for this issue has been extended as of August 17, 2018. For more complete information and directions on this warranty, please follow the links provided at the bottom of this Edit. Excerpts from a PDF version of the official letter are as follows.
IMPORTANT EXTENDED WARRANTY INFORMATION UPDATE
The warranty on the SBC Hydraulic Unit for MY 2003-2006 Model 211, MY 2006 Model 219, and Model Year 2003-2012 Model 230/231 was extended from the original 4 years/50,000 miles to 25 years with no mileage limitation. The SBC Hydraulic Unit extended warranty applies to all conditions that justify the replacement of the SBC Hydraulic Unit and specific listed components under the standard New Vehicle Limited Warranty terms and conditions. Please note that the warranty extension now includes: Model Year 2004-2012 Model 240, and Model Year 2005-2009 Model 199 vehicles.
The following vehicle model and model years are covered:
Model : Model Years
E-Class : 2003-2006
CLS-Class : 2006
SL-Class : 2003-2012
Maybach : 2004-2012
SLR-Class : 2005-2009
Discussion of the warranty begins at Post 109 (link provided).
A PDF attachment of the warranty letter is at Post 134 (link provided).
Admin Edit end. Original Post begins below.
I have been in contact with the NHTSA regarding the SBC service threshold issue. They advised me to have as many owners of vehicles with these units to contact them via www.safercar.gov and file a complaint. This is the only way the NHTSA will take any action.
This is a safety issue since the brakes go into backup mode with no prior warning. At the very least MB should issue a recall to interrogate the units with STAR DAS.
Thanks for your help.
John
Below is what I submitted to the NHTSA website. It will ask for date of incident, but just use the date you file.
This vehicle is equipped with Sensotronic Brake Control that has a service threshold. When this threshold is reached the brake system defaults to non power assisted hydraulic mode to the front wheels only. This occurs without any prior warning and results in increased stopping distance. I have sent a copy of the Mercedes service bulletin S142.46-P-0012A which addresses this issue. Mercedes stopped installing this system in 2006. At the very least, Mercedes should issue a mandatory recall to interrogate these vehicles with STAR DAS to determine how close to the service threshold the SBC unit is and replace them at the dealer's expense. This is a major safety issue that needs to be addressed.