Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
As I was driving my 2001 Mercedes Benz s500. My airmatic suspension fail and my car front went down as I was driving on the freeway. My tires start rubbing into my wheel well and started smoking. The problem left the front end damage. I had the problem fix by a Mercedes dealership. Six month later the problem arise again. I don't drive the car for fear that I might get into an accident.
This car has an air suspension system which has a severe problem. The car has no springs, instead each shock absorber has a pneumatic system that supports the weight of the vehicle. When both rear shock absorbers fail at the same time the whole rear of the car drops down and the car has to be stopped, posing no hazard. But when only one of the rear shock absorbers develops a small air leak, the car does not loose much height and there is loss of traction in the tire in the involved side because there is not sufficient vehicle weight being applied to it. This loss of traction in only one tire causes the tire to spin on light to moderate acceleration, but worse, it causes the tire to "lock up" on braking. …
I'm probably not the first complain about this subject, as a simple search on www.google.com would reveal that this problem is nation wide. I own a 2000 s-Class Mercedes-Benz (w220 chasis), and I too got some aromatic (air suspention) problem. While I was driving on a side street, my vehicle displayed a warning sign saying "aromatic stop vehicle too low". I began to pull over toward the side of the street by slightly turning the wheel to the right, when I noticed that the car was shaking from the friction of the wheel rubbing against the bumper (or fender). I did not notice any visible damage to my vehicle other that the car was sitting so low that a good five inches from the top of the tire was inside the fender. It was then that I realized where the noise and vibration came from. The speed that I was traveling when this happened was 20mph. …
Had 2000 Mercedes s500, car in garage for a week, noticed the car is very low, tires almost rubbing the inside of the fenders, turned car on and warning massage said " car is too low, stop aeronautic system" raised the car with a panel button, car raised. Called the dealer, said you can drive it. I drove it and it very noisy, the second day did the same, very low almost on the ground. Same problem happened before about six month ago,while out of the state, told by the dealer it need reselling the aromatic system. Fixed that time (October 2006) cost me about $650. Problem keep going with the same aromatic system. Looked up online, www.benzworld.org and found hundreds of similar complains about the same airmatic system. It is very expensive to repaired, and if repaired, it keep failing over and over. There must be a recall to correct it. …
The airmatic suspension system in my Mercedes Benz s500 finally failed after acting up for some time. The whole car suddenly sank to the ground and made driving unsafe and almost impossible. My research into this problem on bensworld and other sites showed that this is a very, very common problem and an obvious defect in these cars. Mercedes is so well aware of this that they sell a repair kits for leaks in the struts ($126 times 2!) as well as stocking many air compressors ($360) to replace the ones that go bad. Plus mb charges exorbitantly high prices for the parts -- a simple electrical relay for the suspension was $75. The parts cost me over $700, and I did the work myself to keep from being further raped by mb to fix this defect just so I could drive my car.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Mercedes Benz s-500. The contact noticed the suspension had dropped and was not positioned normally. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technicians stated there was a front suspension kit that needed to be installed. The repairs were performed yet the failure recurred within eighteen months. The dealer was contacted and advised that the front suspension would need to be replaced if the kit did not repair the failure. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the front suspension was replaced. The manufacturer was contacted and stated there was a recall under NHTSA campaign id number: 07V263000 ( suspension) but the contacts VIN was not included. The approximate failure mileage was 130,000.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Mercedes Benz s500. The contact stated that the vehicle would ride very low on a constant basis. The air suspension indicator was illuminated on the instrument panel. He noticed that the indicator would illuminate and remain lit immediately after the vehicle was started. The vehicle would lift up and the contact noticed a leak in the air suspension system, which caused the vehicle to decrease in height. The dealer and manufacturer stated that there were no recalls for the issue and offered no assistance. The current mileage was approximately 60,000 and failure mileage was approximately 56,000.
I was driving on 95 north leaving florida and the front end of my car dropped. I was driving about 65 MPH. Fearing for my life I attempted to pull to the side of the road but it was very hard to even turn the wheel. The second time it happen on interstate 83 in baltimore city, the other side drop and I experienced the same thing. The failure that happen in florida I went to Mercedes Benz of orlando and they stated they have been seeing this problem often. The second incident, I took my car to pars auto in towson , md and they stated they have been doing about two to three of these cars a week for the same problem.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Mercedes-Benz s430. While driving approximately 60 MPH, the contact heard a scraping noise and noticed that the vehicle was lower to the ground than usual. The contact pulled over and had the vehicle towed to an authorized dealer. The contact was informed that the airmatic suspension system had allowed the frame to rub the top of the tires. The vehicle was repaired. The failure occurred again five years later. The vehicle was towed to an authorized dealer where it was being repaired again. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000 and the current mileage was 130,038. The VIN was unavailable.
Tl contact owns a 2000 Mercedes Benz s430. While driving 35 MPH, the air ride suspension failure warning light illuminated. The vehicle dropped approximately four inches, which made it impossible to steer. The dealer did not inspect the vehicle. The contact stated that the cause of failure was due to the air compressor that controls the air ride suspension. The dealer replaced the air compressor and no other failures have occurred. The current mileage is 70,000 and failure mileage was 68,000. The consumer stated he would like to know the status of his complaint. Updated 06/20/07.
NHTSA investigations
Air suspension system failure
The subject s-class vehicles contain a compressed air suspension system that uses air struts on each of the four wheels in lieu of traditional springs and shock absorbers.these air struts use compressed air to support the weight of the vehicle and control ride height.in the event of the loss of air from the system, an alert will flash on the instrument cluster warning the driver to either drive carefully or to stop…
Suspension complaints in other S Class years
Frequently asked questions
How common are suspension problems on the 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class?
NHTSA has 21 complaints about the suspension of the 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class, 26% of the model year's 81 complaints. The component named most often is front › springs › air suspension system (10 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class suspension problems?
No. NHTSA lists no suspension recall for the 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class, though it has 5 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2000 Mercedes-Benz S Class suspension problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 80,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 1 fire and 0 injuries to suspension problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.