We parked the vehicle in a store parking lot after driving for 40 minutes, went into the store for 30 minutes came out and car would not start, steering would not unlock and shifter would not come out of park. Towed to Mercedes Benz of san jose and was told electronic steering lock had failed. Contacted Mercedes Benz as vehicle only had 52,000 miles and Mercedes customer relations stated this was not the first time they had heard of this. They gave $200 toward the $1100 repair. I asked if this could of happened while I was driving and he stated he never heard of that but did not guarentee it was not possible. If this had happened while driving the wheel would have locked and I would not have been able to steer.

- San Jose, CA, USA

Hello, I inserted my key into my 2008 C300, but the car won't start. It turns as it should, but the car isn't starting. The battery for the car is new and reads 12.6 V when tested. The radio and lights work, but the windows won't roll up or the sunroof, and the glove compartment doesn't light up. With the key inside the ignition and the door opened, the car notifies me to remove the key from the ignition. I am not sure what's going on, any ideas?

- Montclair, CA, USA

Parked car left for an hour came back and tried to start vehicle and it would not start dealership said it was the eis (electronic ignition switch) and charged me $1900 to fix it, also before I took it in for that repair the sunroof would not work properly and rear right brake light went out they fixed that under recall free after that my sunroof worked fine. Now my serpentine belt broke and shredded while I was driving looked in my engine and the belt was all over engine in pieces.

- Pikesville, MD, USA

Update: Oct 19, 2015 my car wouldn't turn over. The lights, radio and battery were fine. I tried to jump the car just in case (it wasn't the battery) had the car towed to the dealership the next day. The following day the dealership informed me it was the eis switch (electronic steering lock). Price tag $1212 and some change.

- Dallas, TX, USA

My 2008 C300 was parked. I came outside to head out and my ignition would not turn over but all lights, radio, seat, etc were working just fine. Windows and sunroof don't work. My car is stopped at 68,018 miles.

- Dallas, TX, USA

2nd time with same eis issue in one year. Ignition would not turn over but all lights, radio, etc were working just fine. It cost me $1300 to get it fixed the first time after having it towed to a dealership. Was not covered by warranty. A year later I have to do it all over again"!"! it is ridiculous that Mercedes does not recall this issue as it is so common after reading so many posts about it.

- Jersey City, NJ, USA

Drove my car home and it ran fine. The next morning the car would not start. Dash lights and radio came on but engine would not turn over. Took my vehicle to dealer and found out it was the eis switch that is bad which seems to fail in the model. It cost me $1500 to replace switch. Mercedes needs to do a recall or reimburse for repairs because there are over 2,000 complaints on this part and year vehicle.

- Cedar Hill, TX, USA

Ignation switch complely dead. Battery ok. Vehicale was in my driveway. Used vehicale in morning ran fine. Went used vehicale afternoon. Ignation switch complely dead. They must be recall on this ignation switch problem. Please look into this matter.

- Malverne, NY, USA

Having problems with the electronic ignition switch and/or steering wheel locking mechanism. Vehicle will not start. This is a problem with many C 300's

- Cleveland Heights, OH, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Mercedes Benz C300. While driving approximately 30 mph, the fuel gauge failed. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 08V303000 (electrical system). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 73,000.

- Indianopolois, IN, USA

The contact owns a 2008 Mercedes Benz C300. While driving approximately 20 mph, the vehicle stalled without warning and failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the ignition switch or the computer system needed to be replaced or updated. The vehicle was not repaired. The vehicle was towed to a dealer where it was diagnosed that the electronic steering ignition and lock needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 74,000.

- New Jersey City, NJ, USA

Same issue as literally thousands of others are complaining of...car fails to start due to either a faulty steering wheel ignition lock or eis not recognizing the key and therefore not starting. It has happened twice to me, dealer service advisor knew immediately and even guessed at the model and year of my vehicle, which tells me that this is a prevalent issue, supported by the thousands of posts I have read on various forums. This is a potential safety nightmare waiting to happen, similar in nature, if not scope, to the GM ignition switch recall! the same thing could happen if the failure occurs at highway speed.

- Marshfield, MO, USA

Last week 8/11/2015 I drove to the lumbar store, parked the car and upon returning to the car, the key turned completely to the right, the dash lights came on, the ringing noise sounded, but the car did not turn over, nothing happened. The dash read remove the key from ignition. I called my mechanic with the issue and he said use your key fob to lock and unlock the car; that did not work, still nothing. I called the tow company the battery was fully charged ( I purchased it last year 2014). The tow company disabled the cable to the battery waited 30 seconds and reconnected the battery, still the key would not turn the engine over. Because the lumber yard locked their gate at 5 pm the car was scheduled to be towed the next morning. The car started the next morning, I allowed the tow company to tow it anyway and have their mechanic assess the problem. Thorough-out the day the tow mechanic attempted to turn the car on and determined the car would intermittently start. The next day I drove the car to a foreign car service shop, they stated the eis system is not always recognizing the key and only a mb dealership can fix ignition related problems. I called and got a quote, the eis part and labor will cost me $872.31 includes taxes (assuming this is the problem). As a note, I used my other key and still had the same problem. This morning I used the key I always use and it started. Off to the mb dealership.

- N Charleston , SC, USA

Car has faulty steering lock and has to be replaced at a high expense. This seems to be a very common problem as I learned visiting various websites and forums.

- Irvine, CA, USA

These parts pose a risk vehicle safety and may exist on other vehicles of this design and manufacture. Please review air bags, steering lock. Electrical main system. And tires used on this car.....updated 03/15/16 updated 03/17/16.

- Miami Gardens, FL, USA

Car would not start, locked in park. Battery checked ok. Alternate key did not start car. Appears to be electronic ignition switch -- which will require replacement. Noted many online forum similar complaints, along with the below mbusa campaign. Campaign no. 2008020003, March 2008 subject: Model 204, model year 2008 replace electronic ignition switch daimler ag has determined that the eis may malfunction preventing the electric steering lock and the central locking from functioning. Dealers will replace the eis on the affected vehicles during the next workshop visit.

- Marietta, GA, USA

The key locks and unlocks the doors the lights come on and the dash lights up. You can insert and turn the key but the car will not start. The stering wheel is locked and it is stuck in park. I tried power jumping and it did nothing, I didn't think the battery was the problem but had it checked anyways. The battery checked out fine. I check the fuses that are associated with the starter and all was fine also. Only thing left was get it towed to the Mercedes dealership, found out that the steering wheel lock issue is a common thing with my car model, eis failure seems increasingly common on 2008 models for some reason.

- Miramar, FL, USA

When I left the gym my car wouldn't not start. I had to walk home and have my car towed. Battery is fine but the ignition won't turnover. Bad eis just like the other hundreds of people complain about.

- Princeton, IN, USA

Car will not start. Very common for this type of problem. The key will not start the engine

- Placentia, CA, USA

Eis/ steering wheel lock failure. Left stranded for 4 hours.

- Marshfield, WI, USA