There are 3 owner-reported lighting complaints for the 2004 Mercedes-Benz E-Classin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Mercedes Benz has a KNOWN safety problem with this model and has not put it under recall yet and it needs to be. The wire casing in the wiring harness for the headlights crumbles and leaves exposed wires that touch, short, and draw causing dim headlights. Due to being cited for dim headlights the night before, I called MBUSA on December 27 2023 and they initially REFUSED to take a case from me.
WIRE IN WIRING HARNESS TO TRUNK LID SEVERED, PREVENTING THIRD BRAKE LAMP AND BOTH LICENSE PLATE LAMPS FROM FUNCTIONING. *TR
STRONG GAS SMELL THE PROBLEM FUEL SENDING UNIT LEAKING VAPOR. *TR
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026