Front Seat Heater/cooler Problems of Mercedes Benz ML350

After starting up the car and turning on the seat heaters we noticed a strong burning smell. We had just entered a slip road and my wife (who was driving) felt a burning in her lower left side. Next thing. . . She was on fire! her winter coat bust into flames and after pulling over I grabbed her out of the drivers seat and rolled her in the snow to extinguish the fire, we were amazed that the seat had a large burn hole through the leather and that there wasn't any safety shut off for the seat heater initiated by the vehicle. After a detailed description to the service manager at the local mercedes dealership of what had happened,we were told that a $2578 repair would fix the problem. . . We were amazed at how uncaring they were and that there wasn't a recall active for this defective wiring problem. We were relieved that this didn't cause any fatalities to us or any other people that could have been affected if we would have been on a freeway at a higher speed.

See all problems of the 2008 Mercedes Benz ML350 🔎.

Today, and while driving on a freeway, my car and I almost burned when I turned on the driver seat heater. I started feeling an excessive heat on the left back side. I stoped on the right of the freeway to discover that the seat leather was burned with heating wire, with smoke coming out from the seat. My shirt was damaged with the burn. Searching the web, I found many people complaining about the same issue.

See all problems of the 2007 Mercedes Benz ML350 🔎.

On Jan. 6, 2017 northbound on hwy 52. Drivers seat heater had been on approximately 10 minutes when I felt a very hot spot on my upper left side. Then I smelled something burning. The seat heater had burned through the upholstery on the outboard bolster of the drivers seat and started burning through my coat.

See all problems of the 2006 Mercedes Benz ML350 🔎.

The contact owns a 2007 mercedes-benz Ml350. After activating the seat warmers, the driver's seat became very hot and the contact smelled a burning odor. The contact stopped the vehicle and noticed that the seat was burned on the left side. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the seat was unplugged, but the details of the diagnosis could not be provided. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 96,000.

1) car is having recurring issue with seat burning due to seat heater. Dealer corrected issue but issue persists. Not able to turn heater on. Dealer claims issue is fixed but when heat seater is turned on, burning smell and smoke fills car. Advised dealer that car is leaking water in since noticed water on the truck in the rear where the computers are. Once water is in, all sorts of electrical light issues happen with the car. 2) car is having transmission issue. Upon research, it seems Ml350 has this recurrent issue. Cannot understand why benz is not having this recall. Car stops moving in the middle of highway. Cannot get it to run. Have to turn the car off, push it aside and try multiple times for car to move. This is extremely dangerous with kids inside truck since that is the reason why I bought truck for over more than 35 k. Dealer claims its a transmission cover valve body but does not guarantee repairs. Dealer states even after this repair, the issue could persist and transmission needs to be replaced which could cost another 4000 usd in addition to 2000 to change plate. It is obvious Mercedes Benz has let us down and also has made it dangerous for us to drive their cars. Please investigate this issue. If you go online, everyone with this truck is having this issue and is shelling dollars out to mercedes dealers for fixes that are not guaranteed.

Driving on 295 on new jersey parkway at 60 mph with seat heater turned on. Seat heater caught on fire and burned a hole, the size of a half dollar in leather seat on the left side of driver seat. The left side of lower back. Smoke came out of the seat and damaged and burned a hole in the leather seat and burned a hole in my coat. Called the dealership same day said there was no recalls. Also engine lights remain on had it fixed once still remains on and brakes lights also going out.

I was driving with the driver's side electric seat heater turned on. I noticed a burning smell and felt a burning pain on my back. After exiting the vehicle I saw that the seat heater had burned a hole through the leather driver's seat and through my jacket.

I was driving and I turned on my seat heater, and I saw smoke. I burned my clothing and have a little burn on my back. The seat was burning and had a little fire.

Tl-the contact owns a 2007 mercedes-benz Ml350. The contact stated that while driving 50 mph with the driver's side seat heater activated, burning fumes emitted into the vehicle. Upon further inspection, the contact noticed a hole in the lower side of the driver's side seat. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 128,000. Pam.

Contact was driving, approx. 15 min. After engine start and seat heater turn-on. Contact felt a burning sensation on posterior/hip. Contact stopped car and got out. There was a burn hole in the driver's seat back at lower left. There were two burn holes through contact's pants. Later examination showed a second degree (blister) burn on contact's hip. This is not a warranty claim as the dealer suggests, but, rather a serious manufacturer defect that causes burn injury (check the history of documented complaints on the internet). . .

Wife was idling in car with seat heater turned on. Seat heater caught on fire and burned hole the size of a half dollar in the lower area of the seat in the area of my wife's lower back. Smoke came out of the seat and my wife's coat was damaged. Brought into dealership same day and are waiting for their explanation.

The driver seat caught on fire due to a malfunctioning seat heater. A whole the size of a dime burned through the seat and the flame burned a hole into the coat of the vehicle's driver.

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes Benz Ml350. The contact stated that the seat warmer overheated and caused the coils to burn through. The contact mentioned that she sustained second degree burns. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the seat heater had malfunctioned and the seat needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 86,000.

I started the vehicle and as it was a cold morning I put my drivers seat heater on. Shortly after putting it on I felt a burning on the left side of my back, I pulled the car over and noticed a fire on the lower portion of the drivers seat(back wing). The fire burned through my jacket and burned my lower back.

The contact owns a 2007 Mercedes Benz Ml350. The contact was driving approximately 35 mph with the driver's side seat warmer activated when the temperatures became extremely hot. The defect resulted in a burn hole in the cushion and the contact's clothing. The contact sustained minor burns to the back. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who informed the contact that the seat back warmer was faulty and planned to perform further investigations to determine the cause of failure. The manufacturer was notified of the malfunction. The contact referenced a concurrent investigation under NHTSA action number: pe08030 (seats: front assembly: seat heater/cooler) however, the investigation was closed September 9, 2008. The approximate failure mileage was 45,000.

The contact owns a 2007 Mercedes Benz Ml350. The contact stated that the front driver side seat heater began smoking and burned through the leather seat. There was no personal injury. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer for diagnosis. The manufacturer was not made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 50,000.

As I was pulling out of my driveway, my seat heater burned a hole through my seat, my shirt, and my pants. I saw a small flame and felt a burning on my back and immediately turned off the seat heater.

The driver's side heated seat on my 2007 mercedes Ml350 burned through the leather today while driving down the road. First, I smelled something burning and then felt it burn through my shirt and pants in a matter of 10 seconds. I immediate pulled to the shoulder and found the seat smoldering so I turned off the heater and the fire went out. I reported this immediately to mercedes via their mbrace service and they told me to visit the local dealer.

About 2 minutes after turning on the driver's seat heater, the driver's seat caught on fire. A hole burned through the driver's seat and burned my back. Luckily, I recognized the problem quickly enough that I was only slightly burned. My husband and my 1 year old daughter were in the car with me. I was driving at the time, so my clothes could have caught fire. If we had turned on the seat warmer while warming up the car, the entire car could have gone up in flames.

May 2010 I have problem in my 2004 Ml350. My wife turned on the drivers side seat heater to the high setting. Within a short time the heater had burned through the leather seat. The seat caught fire in a small spot ( like a cigarette burn) while my wife was driving and almost caused her to have an accident. This issue is repeated several times in online searches I did for the 03 and 04 Ml350. I spoke to a benz roadside assistance mechanic and he said he has seen this happen before and that it is a short in the seat wiring. He said he would look into it but I have not heard back from him. I am going to call the dealer today.

See all problems of the 2004 Mercedes Benz ML350 🔎.

The contact owns a 2007 mercedes-benz Ml350. While driving approximately 35 mph with the driver side heated seat activated, there was a burning odor followed by smoke. After the driver pulled to the side of the road, the driver-side seat ignited into small flames. The driver extinguished the seat cushion. The vehicle was able to resume operation with caution to the residence. There were no personal injuries. The vehicle has not been in operation. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer. The failure and current mileages were 35,000. Updated 01/08/10 updated 01/12/10.

Turned on seat heater. The lower portion of the back of the seat (left side) failed and caught fire. The leather seat cover was burnt as well as the drivers shirt. When the smell of smoke became evident in the passenger compartment the seat heater was turned off and the burning stopped. Burn hole in leather is slightly smaller then a dime, burn hole in drivers shirt smaller then a dime also. No injury to driver.

The contact owns a 2007 Mercedes Benz Ml350. The contact observed smoke coming from the drivers heated seat. Prior to turning the heated seat off, the contact suffered minor burns on her left buttock. A road side assistance mechanic towed the vehicle to an authorized dealer and advised the contact not to drive the vehicle. The contact is concerned that the failure could have caused a fire to occur. The current and failure mileage was 27,000. Updated 1/25/10 updated 01/26/10.

The driver seat heater over-heated and caused a minor burn when I took the car to the dealer. The dealer agreed to pay for half the cost of replacement but would not give the defective part back to me even when I specifically asked for it. While searching for more information, I came across other incidents with this car with the exact same problem.

I have a 2004 mercedes Ml350 SUV and I turned on the seat heater and it got so hot that I had to turn it off. The left side of the seat burned so hot that I had to move my body and weight to my right side because it felt like you were sitting on coals - even through the leather interior. I did not use it again because the weather was not that cold. The next person to use it was my mother. She was driving my car and I was next to her and she turned on her seat heater and after a few minutes she screamed because the heat of the seat heater was so piercing. I turned off the heater immediately and she looked and saw smoke and smelled smoke as well. This is a huge hazard that I have heard other ml's have had as well and the manufacturer of the seat heater should be held accountable, as should mercedes!!! she swerved off the road and almost hit a car because of the intensity of heat.

The contact owns a 2007 mercedes Ml350. While driving 50mph, she smelled smoke inside the vehicle, saw flames coming from the passenger seat, the smoke distracted her and caused her to lose control on the vehicle and crash into the median. The left side of the vehicle was damaged. The contact was able to exit the vehicle without injury. The fire department and the police arrived. A report was filed and they stated that the failure might be due to the heater. The vehicle was not diagnosed by a dealer. The contact is aware of the safety risk involved. The failure and current mileages were 24,000.

I had the seat heat on, and waiting to pick up my family in front of a theatre, I smelled burning, I opened the window, to see if something was burning outside, I suddenly felt a pinch in my left lower left back, I opened the door and jumped out of the car, I saw on the lower left side of the driver seat a whole that was glowing bright red, I saw fire was starting, I hit it few times with my hands and put out the glowing fire, the smell was sickening, I turned off the ignition, and started checking myself, I felt a hole in my winter jacket. Thank got this happened when I was stopped, if I was on the highway this would have surely caused an accident. It is hard to describe the panic condition when this happened.

While out of state on vacation, we activated both the driver side and the passenger side seat warmers in my car. After about two to three minutes of activating the seat warmers, we began to smell burning leather. All of a sudden we began to see smoke coming from the driver side of the vehicle. After seeing the smoke, we pulled over to the roadside to see where the smoke was coming from. Once we exited the vehicle we realized my husbands jacket and shirt had been burned by the malfunction in the driver side seat back warmers. After inspecting the seat back, we saw that the seat had a large burn area. We immediately turned off both seat warmers and the vehicle's engine. The burning finally stopped after tuning off both the seat warmers and the vehicle. This was the worst encounter that I ever had with a vehicle, and the vehicle happens to be a brand new mercedes-benz Ml350, 2007 model from downtown la motors. I had always dreamed of owning a mercedes-benz, but I never thought that I would have this kind of experience with such a prestigious vehicle. I thought that I had purchased my dream vehicle, but after this experience I realized that I was mistaken. This experience spoiled our trip, and traumatized my family and I. Not only did it spoil our trip, we were inconvenience and devastated by the damage to the vehicle and also to my husband who was almost burned by the incident. My vehicle is now in the process of being repaired by the dealership. Upon completion of the repairs, I will be hesitant to use the seat warmers in my vehicle again because the confidence and trust I once had in my vehicle has been diminished. I am afraid that it may happen again.

Front drivers side seat, burns when heater is turned on. Burn smell, burned skin of driver. Has there been a recall on this. I have read of many instances of this same complaint on the internet. Mercedes needs to replace seat.

See all problems of the 2003 Mercedes Benz ML350 🔎.

Heated seat, driver side, burnt through seat on left side of thigh and through clothing. Skirt and jacket damaged. Car is under warranty. Would like to know why a national recall has not been done. I understand others, including mgr at mercedes of greenwich who experienced the same problem.

Driver side heated seat burned through the seat causing a burn hole in the seat . Damaged drivers pants and wallet. Dealer to repair/replace seat in mid July.

The driver's heated seat overheat burning a hole through the seat and burned the driver.

2003 mercedes ml 350 seat caught on fire. When the consumer turned on the heat seating device that is when the seats caught on fire.