2022 Mercedes Benz S 500: what breaks, and at what mileage
What breaks on the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500
On the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500, the failure owners report most often is cruise control failure, with 11 reports on file. Across every failure mode on this year, half the dated reports were filed before 2,000 miles. Overall it scores 86 out of 100, severe risk for a 2022.
Severe risk for a 2022 — 5th riskiest of the 243 2022 vehicles we can rate. 39 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork.
What breaks on the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500
Owners have reported 13 named failure modes on the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500, and the three most-reported carry 49% of everything filed.
Cruise control failure leads with 11 reports and about 8.1 per 1,000 vehicles.
Tire blowout or tread separation follows with 5 reports, median 2,000 miles.
Fuel pump failure follows with 3 reports, median 10,000 miles.
By system, the reports fall mostly into adas (17), wheels (5) and fuel (5).
The mileage the reports cluster at
8 of the reports on the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500 came with an odometer reading, and half of those were filed before 2,000 miles.
The busiest stretch is between 0 and 10,000 miles, which alone holds 75% of the dated reports.
100% of the dated reports were filed below 36,000 miles, which is early enough that a fair number of these cars were still under a factory warranty when the owner complained.
Tick median reported mileage Solid middle half of reports Faint 10th to 90th percentile Colour how bad the failure is when it happens
Showing the 12 most-reported failure modes of 13. The full list is in the table below.
How reports accumulate
Every report with an odometer reading, cumulative, from 0 to 200,000 miles. A curve that climbs early is a car with early problems, whatever its total.
- Line share of reports filed by that mileage
- Dashed the median reported mileage
What happens when these parts fail
Across the named modes, 2 an injury. Those are the words owners used in their own complaints, and NHTSA does not verify them, but they are the closest thing in this data to a measure of what a failure actually did.
The average severity weight across every report on this year is 4.67, where a stalled engine or a failed airbag weighs many times more than a rattling trim panel, and a figure this high means the reports are dominated by failures with safety consequences rather than annoyances. The weighting is set out in full on the methodology page.
What the top failures cost to put right, as editorial estimates for an independent US shop rather than figures from NHTSA: cruise control failure at $200–$1,400, tire blowout or tread separation at $200–$1,500, fuel pump failure at $600–$2,600 and automatic braking for no reason at $0–$1,500. Dealer labour, a seized bolt or a part that is no longer made can push any of these past the top of its range.
3% of the reports on this year sit in the engine, transmission, drivetrain or cooling systems — the four where a repair bill is usually four figures.
Every reported failure mode
| Failure mode | System | Reports | With reading | 25th | Median | 75th | Per 1,000 | Typical repair | Severity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cruise control failure | adas | 11 | 0 | — | — | — | 8.1 | $200–$1,400 | High |
| Tire blowout or tread separation | wheels | 5 | 3 | — | 2k | — | 3.7 | $200–$1,500 | Critical |
| Fuel pump failure | fuel | 3 | 1 | — | 12k | — | 2.2 | $600–$2,600 | High |
| Automatic braking for no reason | adas | 3 | 0 | — | — | — | 2.2 | $0–$1,500 | Critical |
| Other driver assistance problem | adas | 3 | 1 | — | 5k | — | 2.2 | $250–$1,800 | High |
| Backup camera failure | infotainment | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 1.5 | $250–$1,200 | Moderate |
| Headlight failure or clouding | lighting | 2 | 2 | — | 2k | — | 1.5 | $150–$1,800 | Moderate |
| Other electrical problem | electrical | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 1.5 | $250–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Other fuel system problem | fuel | 2 | 1 | — | 34k | — | 1.5 | $300–$2,200 | High |
| Other body or interior problem | body | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 1.5 | $200–$2,000 | Moderate |
| Alternator or charging system failure | electrical | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.7 | $450–$1,600 | High |
| Other engine problem | engine | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.7 | $300–$4,000 | High |
| Other brake problem | brakes | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.7 | $300–$1,800 | High |
| Unclassified problem | other | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 0.7 | — | Moderate |
Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound. Repair costs are typical independent-shop ranges for the failure, not figures from these reports.
How often, against how many were built
Scaled by an estimate of how many of these cars exist, the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500 draws about 29 per 1,000 vehicles, which puts it in the 96th percentile of complaint rates among 2022 vehicles we can rate.
That denominator is the weakest number on the page and it is fair to say so plainly. Rate per 1,000 uses a fleet-size estimate derived from recall paperwork for this exact model year. It is a lower bound.
The working figure is 1,355 vehicles. If the true number is twice that, every rate on this page is half what it says; the ranking against other 2022 vehicles, which is what the risk score uses, is far more robust than the rate itself.
Recalls on the 2022 model year
NHTSA has issued 7 recall campaigns covering the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500, affecting an estimated 3,267 vehicles. A recall is a different kind of evidence from a complaint: it is the regulator and the manufacturer agreeing that something has to be fixed, and the fix is free for as long as the car exists.
The campaigns cover service brakes, hydraulic:foundation components, fuel system, gasoline:delivery:fuel pump and structure:interior panels:dashboard. Whether the work was actually done on the car in front of you is a question only the VIN can answer, and the manufacturer or NHTSA will answer it free.
Recalls also distort complaint counts. Publicity about a campaign reminds owners that complaining is possible, so reports for a recalled component often spike after the recall rather than before it.
SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS
20,339 vehicles 2025-02-24- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2021-2022 S 500, Maybach S 580 4MATIC, 2021-2023 S 580 4MATIC, 2022 S 680 4MATIC, and 2023 S 580e 4MATIC vehicles. The front brake hoses may rupture and leak brake fluid.
- Consequence
- A brake fluid leak can extend the distance needed to stop the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the front brake hoses, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 25, 2025. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2025030007.
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
79,676 vehicles 2023-12-21- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2021-2024 GLE, GLS, C-Class, E-Class, S-Class, SL, GLC, CLS, AMG GT, and G-Class vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle details. The fuel pump may shutdown, causing a loss of drive power.
- Consequence
- A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on June 28, 2024. Owner notification letters will be mailed in phases, on February 23, 2024, April 19, 2024, June 28, 2024, August 9, 2024, October 1, 2024, and December 2, 2024. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. This recall is an expansion of NHTSA recall number 23V-445.
FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP
143,551 vehicles 2023-06-26- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2021-2023 C-Class, E-Class, S-Class, CLS, SL, GT, GLC, GLE, GLS, and G-Class vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle details. The fuel pump may shutdown, which can result in a loss of drive power.
- Consequence
- A loss of drive power can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on June 14, 2024. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2023070012.
STRUCTURE:INTERIOR PANELS:DASHBOARD
1 vehicles 2022-12-16- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling one 2022 S 500 vehicle. The dashboard may be insufficiently attached, which can result in an improper front passenger air bag deployment in the event of a crash.
- Consequence
- Improper deployment of an air bag can increase the risk of injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace a portion of the dashboard, free of charge. The owner notification letter was mailed January 20, 2023. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2023010001.
POWER TRAIN:AXLE ASSEMBLY
12 vehicles 2022-03-28- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2022 S580Z, S500V, and S580V vehicles. The sub frame weld for the thrust arm on the rear axle carrier may have been improperly welded, causing the thrust arm to break and detach.
- Consequence
- A detached thrust arm can cause a sudden loss of vehicle control, or cause the vehicle to pull to one side during emergency braking, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy has been performed. Dealers will inspect the sub frame weld on the rear axle carrier and replace the rear axle carrier as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed April 8, 2022. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for the recall is 2022030028.
STEERING: STEERING WHEEL/HANDLE BAR
8,396 vehicles 2022-03-25- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2021-2022 C-Class, E-Class, S-Class, SL, EClass Coupe/Convertible, CLS, AMG GT 4-doors Coupe, and EQS vehicles with a heated leather steering wheel. Due to a software error in the hand detection control unit, the hands-off detection might not detect when the driver's hands are away from the steering wheel when using the Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC system.
- Consequence
- Deactivated hands-off detection will prevent DISTRONIC system features from functioning, including warnings to grab the steering wheel and calling first responders as part of the Active Emergency Stop Assist, which can increase the risk of a crash or injury.
- Remedy
- Dealers will update the hand detection control unit software for the DISTRONIC system, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed May 6, 2022. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2022040010.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:SOFTWARE
227 vehicles 2021-11-29- Defect
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2021 S580, 2022 EQS450, EQS580, and S500 vehicles with an active and connected Mercedes me connect account. The MBUX infotainment system might allow activation of the television and internet display while driving, causing a distraction for the driver.
- Consequence
- Driver distraction can increase the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- MBUSA has updated their computer server to correct the issue for most vehicles, free of charge. For vehicles that were not able to be updated remotely, dealers will provide the software update, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed January 25, 2022. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.
Recall work is free at a franchised dealer regardless of the car's age. Check the VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls before assuming it was done.
How it ranks in the 2022 field
The score at the top of the page, placed among its peers. The zones are the same thresholds the scorer applies, read out of the scorer itself, so the picture and the band word cannot disagree.
Scores are ranked within the model year, never across years, because an older car has had longer to accumulate reports.
- Left fewer and less serious reports
- Right more, or worse
- Marker this vehicle
Better and worse years of the same car
Severe risk for a 2022 — 5th riskiest of the 243 2022 vehicles we can rate. The comparison is always within the same model year, so an older car is never penalised for having had longer to break.
Scores compare each year against other cars of the same model year, so a low number on an older car is a real result and not an artefact of age.
What this page cannot tell you
39 owner reports; fleet size estimated from this year's own recall paperwork. Every count on this page is therefore a floor: it is the number of owners who went to the trouble of filing with a federal agency, which is a small and self-selected fraction of the owners who had the fault.
Of those 39 reports, 8 carried an odometer reading, so the mileages here describe 21% of the sample rather than all of it. Owners also round: readings pile up on multiples of ten thousand, which is why this site publishes "about 90,000 miles" and not "91,438".
Named failure modes come from matching phrases in the complaint text, so a badly worded complaint can land in the wrong bucket. The effect washes out across hundreds of reports and does not wash out across five.
And nothing here predicts what one car will do. These are other people's complaints, filed years apart, on cars maintained by strangers. Read the page as a map of where this model year has previously gone wrong, then have the specific car in front of you inspected.
Questions this page answers
What are the most common problems with the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500?
The most-reported failures are cruise control failure (11 reports), tire blowout or tread separation (5 reports, median 2,000 miles) and fuel pump failure (3 reports, median 10,000 miles). Counts come from owner complaints filed with NHTSA, which are voluntary, so they show what owners bothered to report rather than every fault that occurred.
Is the 2022 Mercedes Benz S 500 reliable?
It scores 86 out of 100 on our risk index, which is severe — 5th riskiest of the 243 2022 vehicles we can rate. The score is a comparison against other 2022 vehicles, not a prediction about any individual car, and it is built from complaint rates, severity and how early failures appear.
Where this comes from. Every figure above is computed from NHTSA owner complaints and recall records for this exact make, model and year. Complaints are voluntary and self-selected, so treat counts as a floor. The methodology page writes out each formula, and the same numbers are available as JSON.
What breaks at my mileage Compare with another car
Source Owner complaints and recall records published by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, model years 1996–2027 Figures rebuilt Published by AtWhatMileage How every figure is computed