What breaks most · 1998 to 2009 model years
Mercedes-Benz SLK problems by year
Owners have filed 74 safety complaints with NHTSA about the Mercedes-Benz SLK across model years 1998 to 2009. Three years stand out: 2002 for visibility complaints, 2001 for visibility complaints and 2003 for electrical system complaints. The quietest years are 1998, 2000 and 1999.
- Years to check closely: 2002, 2001, 2003
- Fewest complaints: 1998, 2000, 1999
- Complaints on file
- 741998 to 2009, all trims
- Worst year
- 200225 complaints
- Crashes reported
- 20 fires · 5 injuries · 0 deaths
- Typical failure mileage
- 44kMedian where owners gave mileage
- Recall campaigns
- 13Across the years shown
Complaints by model year
Raw filings with NHTSA, not adjusted for how many were sold.
| Model year | Complaints | Crashes | Recalls | Most-reported component |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Electrical system (1) | |
| 6 | 0 | 1 | Exterior lighting (3) | |
| 3 | 0 | 3 | Engine and cooling (2) | |
| 19 | 0 | 2 | Visibility (6) | |
| 25 | 1 | 2 | Visibility (7) | |
| 9 | 0 | 1 | Electrical system (3) | |
| 6 | 1 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (4) | |
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Powertrain and transmission (2) | |
| 2 | 0 | 1 | Stability control (1) |
What fails on the 2002 Mercedes-Benz SLK
| Component | Share of complaints | Filings | Crashes | Parts for this job |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VisibilityMirrors and glass | 28% |
7 | 1 | Shop all visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Electrical systemAlternators, starters and ignition | 20% |
5 | 0 | Shop all electrical system parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Exterior lightingHeadlights, tail lights and bulbs | 16% |
4 | 0 | Shop all exterior lighting parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Speed control and throttleThrottle and pedal sensors | 12% |
3 | 0 | Shop all speed control and throttle parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Brakes (hydraulic)Brake pads, rotors and calipers | 8% |
2 | 0 | Shop all brakes (hydraulic) parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Wipers and visibilityWiper motors and blades | 4% |
1 | 0 | Shop all wipers and visibility parts, not filtered to this vehicle |
| Traction Control System | 4% |
1 | 0 | — |
| Tires | 4% |
1 | 0 | — |
One complaint can name more than one component, so shares add to more than 100%. "Unknown or other" is NHTSA's uncategorized bucket and is shown but never ranked.
In owners' words
Complaint narratives as filed with NHTSA, trimmed for length.
-
Dt*: the contact stated the brake light has darkened and it is not related to the bulb. The electrical system has become defective causing the vehicle left rear brake to darkened. There is a similar recall on the mercedes 170, but not on the slk series.*ak
-
5 year old car with 15,000 miles (sunny day driver). Rear view mirror has the auto tinting feature. The liquid tint bled between the layers of glass causing difficulties seeing the rear. Dangerous driving condition.
How to read this page
Every figure comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's public complaint database, which holds every safety-related defect complaint filed by owners since 1995. We refresh it monthly and count each complaint once per component it names. Data through September 6, 2026.
NHTSA only accepts safety-related complaints. Rattles, paint, infotainment bugs and other annoyances are under-reported here, so this page is a map of what fails in ways owners consider dangerous, not a full reliability score.
Counts are raw. Use the year-over-year shape and the component mix, not the absolute numbers. Where a component maps to parts we stock, the row links to that category filtered to the year you are viewing. Air bag and seat belt complaints link to the recall checker instead, because those repairs are almost always covered.
Common questions
Which Mercedes-Benz SLK years have the most problems?
By NHTSA complaint volume, 2002, 2001, 2003 carry the most filings on the Mercedes-Benz SLK. The 2002 alone has 25 complaints, led by visibility.
What is the most common Mercedes-Benz SLK problem?
On the 2002 model year, the most-reported component is visibility with 7 complaints. The table above lists the top components for every year.
At what mileage do Mercedes-Benz SLK problems start?
The median mileage at failure across all Mercedes-Benz SLK complaints that include mileage is about 44,000 miles. Older model years skew higher; the per-year figure is in the "at a glance" card.
Are these complaints verified?
No. NHTSA publishes complaints as submitted and does not investigate individual filings. Patterns across hundreds of complaints are meaningful; a single one is not.