While driving her 2002 Mercedes ML 320 at a steady 70 mph on the freeway my wife had the vehicle anti-lock braking system engage for no reason, locking the brakes and rendering her vehicle uncontrollable and unresponsive to driver input. The only thing that prevented her (and her 3 children) from being hit from the rear was luckily there was no one directly behind her. Nonetheless vehicle shad to swerve around her as her cam to an abrupt stop. Fortunately she was able to power the vehicle via the gas pedal to overcome the ABS locked system and veer the vehicle to the side of the emergency lane. Needless to say had this of occurred at ANY other situation she would have certainly have been hit and suffered senseless injuries. Our vehicle is at the Mercedes dealer now and we are being told it needs a new ABS pump & control module - as a start. It has been estimated the actual "search & repair" could cost in the THOUSANDS. What a nightmare. The vehicle is not even worth it so it is likely we will have to scrap the car - and buy a FORD. At least the "Fix And Repair Daily" is reliable. I have a serious problem with this whole situation where vehicle safety systems engage randomly and jeopardize the safety of the vehicle operator and occupants. THIS IS A SERIOUS DEFECT. I have researched the Mercedes owner forums and found numerous occurrences of this exact defect on several models of Mercedes vehicles. One in particular happened while a gentleman was going at highway speed and Mercedes has done nothing to address this serious life safety risk issue. Who is going to step and demand this over-priced, over-valued, overly expensive range of vehicles be examined and made safe for those of us who spend hard-earned dollars to buy what they THOUGHT was a safe vehicle?