1994 Mercedes-Benz 280 Recalls
No NHTSA recalls on record for the 1994 Mercedes-Benz 280. That means NHTSA has no open safety campaign for this vehicle — it does not guarantee the absence of problems. Owners have filed 23 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the electrical system. Last updated July 5, 2026.
Complaints by component
What owners report
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“1994 c280 mercedes caught fire after being driven for about 15 minutes. Mercedes was destroyed and car next to it totaled as well. House damaged (cars were in driveway). Fire inspector said fire started under hood, appears it was probably the wiring harness. Firemen had to use special foam to put…”
“Engine wiring harness has brittle insulation; has hundreds of cracks; insulation is falling off of wires; is short circuiting, motor is running rough; missing some; sounds like its not running on all cylinders. Wiring harness is heating where it is short circuiting. I have seen some smoking; was…”
“I have a 1994 mercedez benz c280 and was purchased in 2004 with approximately 94,000 miles. Not long after having the car I start having erratic misfire codes showing up on the computer. I was told that it was possible a wiring harness problem which this make and year of car is having. Now I find…”
“1994 c280 mercedes has engine wiring harness defect due to wires shearing and being exposed. From internet research it is clear that this is a design defect and that the insulation is not heat resistant. The car started to smoke due to exposed wires touching and shorted out a.c. The car cannot be…”
“My 1994 mercedes benz would stop in traffic for no reason. *tr”
“Tl*the contact owns a 1994 mercedes benz 280. Immediately after the vehicle was purchased, it began hesitating and surging on several occasions. The failure was noticed while driving 40 mph. The vehicle was taken to a dealer on six separate occasions and they stated that the wiring harness failed.…”
“The engine wiring harness (that supplies 12 volts dc to the coils that convert it into high voltage for use in the spark plugs), had a critical failure in the wire insulation. Over time the insulation will harden and crack to the point that wires short out. This failure is not limited to only this…”
“Wiring harness insulation disintegration problem with a 1994 mercedes benz c280 [xxx] wiring harness insulation failure causing frequent hesitation of the vehicle . This problem has caused some safety concerns when pulling into traffic. To sum it up mercedes is all to aware of the problem but yet…”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1994 Mercedes-Benz 280 as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.