AutoUtility currently tracks 34 official NHTSA owner defect complaints for the 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class. Electrical System issues are the most frequently reported category, appearing in 10 complaints (29.4% of submitted records). Among these NHTSA complaint records, 2 filings cite a crash, 3 report one or more injuries, 1 reports one or more fatalities. The 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class belongs to the 7th Generation (W223) platform.

Key Problem Findings
  • • Total NHTSA Complaints: 34 reports
  • • #1 Reported Problem Area: Electrical System (10 reports • 29.4% of submitted complaints)
  • • Secondary Problem Areas: Engine & Cooling (8), Wheels & Tires (8)
  • • Crash-Citing Complaints: 2 filings
  • • Fire-Citing Complaints: 0 filings
  • • Complaints Reporting Injuries / Fatalities: 3 injury filings • 1 fatality filings
Reporting Methodology: Statistics describe unverified consumer submissions voluntarily filed with NHTSA. Complaint volume is not normalized for vehicle sales volume or miles driven. Multiple components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission.
Total Complaints
34
Submitted to NHTSA ODI
Crash-Citing Complaints
2
Filings citing a collision
Fire-Citing Complaints
0
Filings citing smoke or fire
Complaints Reporting Injuries
3
Filings citing one or more injuries
Complaints Reporting Fatalities
1
Consumer filings citing fatalities

Most Reported Problems for 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Top automotive subsystem defect categories ranked by unique owner complaint volume in federal records

#1 Problem Area 29.4% of complaints

Electrical System

10 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
🩹 1 injury report entry
#2 Problem Area 23.5% of complaints

Engine & Cooling

8 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 2 official safety recall campaigns for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#3 Problem Area 23.5% of complaints

Wheels & Tires

8 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
✓ 0 crashes or fires cited
#4 Problem Area 23.5% of complaints

Driver Assistance & Safety Tech

8 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 2 crash reports 🩹 3 injury report entries
#5 Problem Area 8.8% of complaints

Brakes & Traction Control

3 owner complaints submitted to NHTSA ODI
⚠️ NHTSA Recall Context

NHTSA records list 1 official safety recall campaign for this model year involving the same broad component area:

*Component overlap means an official recall exists for the same broad vehicle system. It does not establish that an individual owner complaint was caused by, covered by, or resolved through that recall.
⚠️ 1 crash report 🩹 1 injury report entry
Domain Share Note: Share percentage represents the proportion of unique complaint filings referencing each vehicle system. Because single complaints may cite multiple systems (such as engine and electrical simultaneously), domain percentages represent individual category incidence and may sum to over 100%.

Recent NHTSA Owner Reports for 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Representative defect filings submitted by owners to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation

Suspension NHTSA ODI ID: #11758100
Filed: 08/19/2026

"Shock air leaking front right side. The car has 31,000 miles and is 5 years old. Is this to be expected?"

Incident Date: 08/17/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: SUSPENSION
Engine & Cooling NHTSA ODI ID: #11736544
Filed: 05/08/2026

"The vehicle lost acceleration and the check engine light came on. I took the vehicle to Mercedes dealership. They quoted that the Camtronic actuator has failed and needs to be replaced. Cost $9000. I have now seen online a recall for 2021 mercedes s580's for CAMTRONIC actuator failure issue...."

Incident Date: 05/01/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ENGINE
Electrical System NHTSA ODI ID: #11720070
Filed: 02/24/2026

"False warning message for right taillights/brake lights/signal light in rear lamp."

Incident Date: 02/01/2026 • Raw NHTSA Component: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING
Wheels & Tires NHTSA ODI ID: #11710678
Filed: 01/13/2026

"Three wheels had rim a total of eight cracks that lead to one tire unable to hold air. Loss of air in tire can lead to crash. Mercedes service inspected car after first crack was noticed by Discount Tire when they diagnosed deflation in tire. Mercedes service reported that two additional wheel rims..."

Incident Date: 06/01/2025 • Raw NHTSA Component: WHEELS
Other / Miscellaneous NHTSA ODI ID: #11708011
Filed: 12/31/2025

"Car was in for recall Dec 7,2025 to Mercedes Benz of Rockville Centre service 110 Graham Avenue Hempstead Ny they are having difficulties with the recall it is now Dec 30, 2025 still not repaired they told me it was a parts problem they ordered parts twice now they are saying it might be a software..."

Incident Date: 12/07/2025 • Raw NHTSA Component: UNKNOWN OR OTHER
Consumer Narrative Notice: Excerpts are sanitized text descriptions submitted by vehicle owners to the federal ODI database. They reflect the reporting consumer's observations at the time of filing and have not been independently confirmed by vehicle manufacturers or government investigators.

Complaint History for Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Reported defect complaint volume across sibling model years (2015–2026)

Model Year NHTSA Complaints Crash Reports Safety Recalls Detailed Report
2015 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 51 6 5 View 2015 Problems →
2016 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 29 0 6 View 2016 Problems →
2017 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 22 0 10 View 2017 Problems →
2018 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 29 2 12 View 2018 Problems →
2019 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 16 1 11 View 2019 Problems →
2020 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 7 0 0 View 2020 Problems →
2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class Current Page 34 2 16 Current
2022 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 46 0 9 View 2022 Problems →
2023 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 12 1 5 View 2023 Problems →
2024 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 6 0 2 View 2024 Problems →
2025 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 0 0 0 View 2025 Problems →
2026 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 0 0 0 View 2026 Problems →
Comparative Disclaimer: Complaint totals are unadjusted historical counts and are not normalized for vehicles sold, active fleet size, or total road mileage. Newer model years naturally have had less calendar exposure time to accumulate owner filings.

Detailed NHTSA Component Breakdown for 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Complete distribution of consumer defect reports across all 24 granular NHTSA system and subsystem classifications

Vehicle Component / System Total Complaints Crash Reports Fire Reports Reported Injury Entries Reported Fatality Entries
Engine & Cooling NHTSA category: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING 4 0 0 0 0
Wheels & Hubs NHTSA category: WHEELS 4 0 0 0 0
Electrical System NHTSA category: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,COMMUNICATION 2 0 0 0 0
Tires NHTSA category: TIRES 2 0 0 0 0
WHEELS,UNKNOWN OR OTHER 2 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 1 0
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
Engine NHTSA category: ENGINE 1 0 0 0 0
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
EXTERIOR LIGHTING 1 0 0 0 0
Forward Collision Avoidance NHTSA category: FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE,LANE DEPARTURE 1 0 0 0 0
Fuel System NHTSA category: FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE 1 0 0 0 0
POWER TRAIN,ELECTRICAL SYSTEM,FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM 1 0 0 0 0
SERVICE BRAKES,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 1 0 0 0
Suspension NHTSA category: SUSPENSION 1 0 0 0 0
Other / Uncategorized NHTSA category: UNKNOWN OR OTHER 1 0 0 0 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,POWER TRAIN 1 1 0 1 0
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL,UNKNOWN OR OTHER,LANE DEPARTURE 1 0 0 1 1
Visibility / Glass NHTSA category: VISIBILITY 1 0 0 0 0
VISIBILITY/WIPER,LANE DEPARTURE,FORWARD COLLISION AVOIDANCE 1 0 0 0 0
Data Attribution & Reporting Methodology: Complaints are unverified voluntary submissions to the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI). Because multiple vehicle components can be cited within a single owner complaint submission, component-level rollups may sum to more than the unique complaint count (34). Injury and fatality entries in the detailed table reflect raw values entered by reporting consumers across individual submissions; they are not deduplicated casualty statistics and may include duplicate or unverified entries. Complaint volume is not normalized for sales volume or vehicle mileage and does not represent an audited component failure rate.

Related Official Reports for 2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Cross-reference safety recalls, crash test safety ratings, and EPA fuel economy for this model year

Official US Government Data Provenance

The complaint records on this page are retrieved directly from the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) public database.

Local Production Store Compiled: August 2026 • Deterministic Audited Dataset • Zero Dynamic External API Runtime Latency.