2003 Mercedes-Benz SL Class Brakes Problems
- Complaints
- 3about this part
- Share
- 33%of 9 total for the year
- Median mileage
- 9,132miles
- Trend
- Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.
NHTSA recorded 3 complaints about the brakes of the 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL Class, 33% of the 9 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 9,132 miles. 2 recall campaigns on record are filed under a similar system.
Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.
Example complaints
Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.
“My wife was driving about 1/2 mile from our house when the brakes completely failed. She was on a back road and had to brake for a stop sign. She was able to pull off on the side of the road, to avoid rear ending a car stopped at the stop sign, and finally bring the car to a stop. The brakes started to work with about 1 of pedal from the floor. She said it was so hard to push on the pedal that she could barely do it. Luckily she was not hurt. Had this happened on a major road or highway the results could have been catastrophic. …”
NHTSA complaint #10553115, filed 2013-11, 71,525 miles“Hydraulic brake failure, totally unexpected. Car is a marcedes benz sl500, 2003. Only 8,500 k. On 6-24-04, mb issued a safety bulletin (NHTSA campaign id no. 04v296000)mb has not notified owners like me. I run a 4-way stop sign and a large pick-up truck was within 1 or 2 feet from hitting me on the drivers' side. Iwas able to stop the car about 50 yards after the stop sign. Messagge --in red letters in the dashboard-- wich said reduced brake effect. Visit workshop .. I was not injured physically, but this was a near death experience. This happened on 7-26-04. …”
NHTSA complaint #10086211, filed 2004-08, 8,000 miles“The vehicle (2003 mb slk320) was purchased on 4/14/2004 in az and began noticing problems on the drive back to nm. The most significant safety problem involves the transmission, which has been serviced by the manufacturer 8 times without resolution. The vehicle slips in and out of gear at highway speeds. The vehicle has spent a total of over 68 days in the shop for unsatisfactory repairs in a one-year period. To this date, the manufacturer has been uncooperative in resolving these problems forcing me to seek legal services.”
NHTSA complaint #10095713, filed 2004-10, 9,132 milesRelated recalls
- 05V133000Apr 1, 2005On certain vehicles, the sensotronic brake control (sbc) system may prematurely shift to the hydraulic back-up function mode, due to deterioration of the…Covers: Mercedes-Benz SL Class 2003–2005, E Class 2003–2005, CLS Class 2006
- 04V296000Jun 22, 2004On certain vehicles, the electronic monitoring system of the sensotronic brake control (sbc) is designed to monitor the pressure gradient within the high…Covers: Mercedes-Benz SL Class 2003–2004, E Class 2003–2005
Related service bulletins
- 10030939Jul 31, 2009Mercedes: parktronic intermittently not functioning. The function works again after a short time or distance. When the foot operated parking brake is applied, the parktronic…
- 10030929Jun 15, 2009Mercedes: corrosion protection coatings for brake components and hardware may be damaged and or stripped away if highly concentrated acid based cleaners are used. Once the…
- 10030964Jun 5, 2009Mercedes: the limited warranty on the sbc hydraulic unit for models 211, model 219 and models 230 was extended from the original 4 years/50,000 miles to 10 years with no mileage…
- 10018832Jan 1, 2006Inspect sbc suction hose, replace if necessary, to improve the brake bleeding process.
- 10014573Mar 2, 2005Activation of the sensotronic brake control (sbc) system with das software 02/05. Mercedes-benz models 199, 211, 219, 230 my 2003-2006.
- 10011739Jan 31, 2005Voluntary recall campaign sensotronic brake control system.
Brakes: other model years
| Year | Complaints | Share of year |
|---|---|---|
| 2003 | 3 | 33% |
| 1998 | 3 | 25% |
Other parts of the 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL Class
2 complaintsEngine cooling
2 complaintsBody and structure
2 complaintsSuspension
2 complaintsVisibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
2 complaintsAir bags
1 complaintsBack-over prevention (rear camera)
1 complaintsExterior lighting
1 complaintsFuel system
1 complaintsInterior lighting
1 complaintsTires
1 complaintsTransmission and drivetrain
1 complaints
← All problems reported for the 2003 Mercedes-Benz SL Class
About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.
To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology