2016 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
Problems, recalls and owner-reported issues
Engine is the leading concern among 316 owner complaints filed for this model year. This is the 8th highest complaint count among 23 C-Class model years with reports.
Of the 2016 reports, 7 involved a crash and 5 involved a fire. 8 people were injured.
What owners report most often
Recalls and investigations
No safety recalls on file.
Representative owner complaints: other or unspecified
73 reports, newest first. Show all
Other or unspecified, Sep 14, 2026
Vehicle has prematurely rusted subframe. It is a know manufacturer defect, for which the manufacturer is covering repair cost for owners of the preceding model, but refuses to acknowledge responsibility on this model. (W204 model covered — W205 Mercedes (only offered $500.00 on a repair they value at over $6,000.00.))
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Fuel/propulsion system, Apr 27, 2026
I’ve been driving my car since September when it was purchased I just got it from dealership 4/9/26 spent over $1100 and have been working like regular full time schedule, I wake up today 4/27/26 trying to work and car is stalling. Not sure what’s going on with these mechanics and technicians. I pay to dollar to ensure my family safety on the road here I am stuck without support due to my circumstances. Also, my car just idles the shuts off doesn’t turn mall the way on, magically a check engine light flashed then car just immediately stalled and won’t turn back over all the way.
Structure, Other or unspecified, Apr 24, 2026
Panoramic sunroof fails to open/ close evenly due to binding issue and plastic track failure. One side binds while the other moves, causing glass to tilt and jam. Risk of dangerous injury including glass shattering, sudden detachment, distraction while driving, and water intrusion affecting airbags/electronics.
Other or unspecified, Mar 30, 2026
A lot of times when I park even on flat surfaces my parking brake engages and It’s hell being able to leave because I have to turn the car off open the door close door start the again put in drive while my foot is on the brake and pull and push the parking brake button 4 times. Then I’m able to drive. This has been happening more frequently and there is an open recall for the parking brakes calLED ESP RECALL
Other or unspecified, Feb 19, 2026
Spontaneous explosion of sunroof while car is in motion on the expressway 83 and could have caused an accident while my daughter was driving
Other or unspecified, Fuel/propulsion system, Dec 5, 2025
My 2016 Mercedes Benz C300 started giving off funky fumes last year in 2024, now the fumes have turned into the smell of gas in 2025. Everytime that I call the dealership on Rockside Rd./ Broadway, located in Bedford Ohio, they give me an excuse as to why it's not their responsibility to correct the issue. What can I do?
Other or unspecified, Jul 7, 2025
Upon purchasing my 2016 C300, I starting experiencing a right pull whenever I press on the brakes. I was very concerned as I use this vehicle to assist with dropping and pick up of my 2 grandchildren. The more I drove the car, the more unsafe especially when I attempt to bring my car to a stop. I took the car to a local mechanic and I was advice to take it to a Mercedes dealership. The mechanic also advice that it was an issue with the REAR SUB FRAME. A week later I took the car in to Mercedes as suggested and a day later I received a call and video from Mercedes that the subframe was broken and that is why I am getting that hard pull whenever I brake. Mercedes also stated that the control arm bracket is barely on and it is causing the vehicle to flex.
Power train, Other or unspecified, Fuel/propulsion system, Apr 20, 2025
The panoramic sunroof is locked in an open position and will no longer close.
Structure, Other or unspecified, Dec 28, 2024
the roof panel cracked straight down the middle
Other or unspecified, Nov 25, 2024
My car on has 80,000 miles and the camshaft position sprockets needs to be replaced. I went to a Mercedes dealer and this was the diagnostic. This causes the engine light to come on, hesitant engine, low acceleration while driving. The dealer said it will cost $8,000 to be replaced and still can go bad. There was a recall for this issue before. RecallCampaign2015100007
Other or unspecified, Sep 9, 2024
Error Code: P052E Crankcase Ventilation Valve Malfunction. Part was changed before and Engine Light still comes on. Vehicle is available for inspection. Vehicle was inspected by Mercedes Dealership several times. Part is on Backorder Nationwide. Car Does not pass emissions inspection, therefore cannot renew registration either for several months.
Other or unspecified, Jul 29, 2024
On my way to work driving 25 miles per hour I could hear my sunroof moving without me touching the controls . I am terrified the sunroof is going to fly off . After work today my car will stayed park . Merecedes benz needs to make this right . To many complaints on this panoramic sunroof on this year of car .
Structure, Other or unspecified, Jul 24, 2024
On [XXX] I was on my way home from running errands and proceeded to open my panoramic sunroof using the button inside of my car. When I arrived home, I pressed the button again to close the sunroof. As it began closing and went into the forward position, once it reached the top of my roof, the back of the sunroof would not go down back into place. This left the sunroof open in the venting position. On [XXX], I went to RBM of Atlanta where I purchased the vehicle [XXX] to report and resolve the issue. The service center was rude and brushed off my concerns. They were able to manually close the sunroof as a temporary fix and informed me not to use the sunroof button, but they were unable to assist with my diagnostic or repair inquires. However, one of the service employees advised that this was a common issue that was previously recalled. I immediately contacted MBUSA where I was connected to a Sales rep at RBM of Atlanta who also informed me that this was a common issue. Today, 07/24/2024, I went to a diagnostic appt. at RBM of Alpharetta and was told by the service advisor that there had been at least 9 recalls for this issue and my sunroof has all of the defective parts that were supposed to be replaced when these recalls took place. He also informed me that I should have been advised of this issue before the vehicle was sold to me. I have attempted to resolve the issue with RBM on five different occasions to no avail. My vehicle is available for inspection upon request. I believe this issue puts myself and others at risk because if the entire sunroof is defective, it can detach at anytime and possibly hit and injure someone while I'm driving, which would make me liable. As stated previously, I have received confirmation that my sunroof is defective and should have been added to one of the several recalls. The last multi-point inspection was done nearly a year before I bought the car and a repair diagnosis was done today. There were no other signs. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Other or unspecified, Jul 18, 2024
Panoramic sunroof has not worked since I bought my car. Today it started making a weird sound . My sunshade started opening and closing on its own . I have had enough with this sunroof . I feel is no longer safe . There needs to be a recall on it . I have seen other complaints about the sunroofs . I don’t want my sunroof to fly off and cause and injuries to anyone !
Other or unspecified, Jun 29, 2024
So many Mercedes Benz owner have issues with the code p052e code postive crankcase ventilation regulator valve This should be a recall
Other or unspecified, Jun 21, 2024
The vehicle is not passing emission inspection because the Positive Crank Case Valve/Ventilation failed to work after 48K miles.
Other or unspecified, Jun 6, 2024
P052e positive crankcase ventilation valve. Check engine light triggered by this code.
Other or unspecified, May 31, 2024
I opened my panoramic sunroof it didn’t open all the way and slammed shut . It didn’t break but if it had there would have been injuries. This is a known problem with this years car . And it needs to corrected .
Other or unspecified, May 17, 2024
While driving on the highway, I tried to open my panoramic sunroof, it made a grinding sound and was stuck in the open position with one corner for the sunroof slanted higher than the other. I was afraid that the sunroof would shatter or that the wind would blow off components. Afterward, the sunroof would not close even after I took it to the dealership. They informed me that they could not close the sunroof and my only option was to repair it for $4,000 or buy another car. After looking at the costs of replacement cars, I decided to pay for the repairs out of pocket. I found on multiple reddit and mercedes forums that this is a common issue in Mercedes C class vehicles made on and around 2016. My service advisor told me that he has so many customers from these panoramic sunroofs failing due to a cost cutting measure from Mercedes who decided to use plastic tracks instead of metal. He also informed me that they went back to metal a few years after my car was manufactured. This leads me to believe that Mercedes acknowledged the issue and is trying to hide it from NHTSA. Here is a link to a forum post that has a similar picture to how mine looked, notice that one side is stuck in a higher position. [XXX] Here is another post with others with similar issues [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
Structure, Other or unspecified, Apr 27, 2024
My brother was driving his car on the highway and out of no where the sunroof literally exploded causing the glass to shatter on him and the front panel to detach from the vehicle. Swinging and hanging on the side of the car causing dents, scratches, and chips making this a safety hazard. Thank god my brother was able to safely merge over to the emergency lane without causing any accidents my brother was shocked with glass raining down on him when this happened but he wasn’t injured glad no one was injured in this incident because anything could’ve happened. A lot of Mercedes have a recall for the sunroofs front panel which causes it to detach from the vehicle while driving which I believe is what happened here this can cause a significant safety risk because the person might get jump scared causing him/her to swerve into other cars beside them. My brothers year and model is on the same recall list but his vin number was not included on the recall. Which leads me to think this was a mistake on the manufacturer end. We spoke to Mercedes USA (Manufacturer) And a Mercedes dealership said they cannot help us out or do anything for us to help us fix the sunroof because his vin doesn’t have that recall I asked if there could be a possibility that the car has that recall but it’s just not listed under and the recall they said that could be a possibility but they won’t fix it unless it’s under the vin which just now leaves us to pay 6-7 thousand dollars out of pocket to fix the sunroof, dents, and scratches that were causes by the sunroofs front panel flying off the car. There was not any warning lights or symptoms of this happening and I know for a fact a rock did not hit because the sunroof was closed at the time that this happened and we would have felt and heard it. Our only option now is to file claim with NHTSA and wait to hear back. The vehicle is available to see upon request.
Other or unspecified, Apr 5, 2024
I was taking my son to work and I heard my sunroof open and close when the controls were not being touched . I’m afraid if it opens and it closes on its own that it could fly off my car and hit someone else’s car and possibly injure some one .
Other or unspecified, Mar 25, 2024
PCV Valve Malfunction, common in my model year.
Other or unspecified, Feb 23, 2024
PCV valve
Other or unspecified, Feb 21, 2024
Positive Crankcase ventilation regularly Valve. This issue is in so many c300s and should be recalled for that reason.
Electrical system, Other or unspecified, Engine, Feb 16, 2024
Crankcase Ventilation Valve Emission Modification -Error P052E71 -Error P06DA00