Best and worst Mercedes-Benz S years to buy
Which S years to buy and which to skip, each judged against the others.
Gathering every model year from NHTSA. The first look at a model can take a little while.
Which S years to buy and which to skip, each judged against the others.
Gathering every model year from NHTSA. The first look at a model can take a little while.
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Pick a year to open it. Owner complaints filed with NHTSA are unverified, and not adjusted for how many were sold.
SourceNHTSA’s complaint and recall datasets. Each year’s page links its own NHTSA record. NHTSA, checked Nov 4, 2026.
Worthy years with the fewest owner complaints against a typical year at the same age, none right next to a Maybe or Skip year. A year that sold few cars can also show few complaints, so check how sure its verdict is (the small marks by each year above). Each count below is taken at the same age as the typical year it is set against, so it can be lower than the year's full total in the list above.
Fewer than 3 years of the S are old enough to judge, so there is nothing to compare. Each year’s own page still shows its complaints and recalls.
Judged years that came out Maybe or Skip: more complaints than a typical year, more about costly parts, or inside a run of problem years.
Fewer than 3 years of the S are old enough to judge, so there is nothing to compare. Each year’s own page still shows its complaints and recalls.
Education, not financial or mechanical advice. Have any used car checked by a mechanic you trust before you buy.
Each year’s owner complaints, held up against a typical year of the S at the same age. Popular cars collect more complaints just by selling more, so a year is never compared with another model. The typical year leaves out years that were high themselves, so a run of bad years cannot set its own bar.
“Do not drive” and “park outside” are NHTSA’s own warnings on a recall, until it is fixed.
Scroll the table sideways to see more.
| Year | Verdict | Owner complaints | Recalls | Top problem area |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Not judged | 1 | 0 | Electrical |
| 1995 | Not judged | 1 | 0 | Electrical |
SourceNHTSA’s complaint and recall datasets. Each year’s page links its own NHTSA record. NHTSA, checked Nov 4, 2026.