# 2002 MERCEDES BENZ CL500 — ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
> NHTSA complaint `936558` · 2012-08-28 · Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC
## Severity
- **Deaths:** 0
- **Injured:** 0
- **Fire:** Yes
- **Crash:** No
- **Police report:** No
- **Medical attention:** No
- **Vehicle towed:** No
## Vehicle
- **Make:** MERCEDES BENZ
- **Model:** CL500
- **Year:** 2002
- **Manufacturer:** Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC
- **Component:** ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
- **Miles at failure:** 109,000
- **Speed:** 35 mph
## Narrative
WHILE DRIVING MY 2002 MERCEDES CL500, I NOTICED SMOKE COMING FROM THE ENGINE BAY AND THE SMELL OF SOMETHING BURNING. UPON INSPECTION IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT A HYDRAULIC SUSPENSION HOSE RUPTURED AND SPRAYED FLUID ONTO A CATALYTIC CONVERTER. THIS RESULTED IN A LARGE AMOUNT OF SMOKE AND SMALL FLAMES STARTING TO APPEAR RIGHT BEFORE THE PASSENGER SIDE ENGINE BAY WAS HOSED DOWN WITH WATER.    THE MERCEDES DEALERSHIP ADVISED THIS WAS A KNOWN ISSUE AND A RECALL WAS ISSUED/PERFORMED BACK IN 2005/2007. MERCEDES ADVISED ME NO FURTHER WORK WOULD BE DONE UNDER THE RECALL.    I AM REPORTING THIS TO NHTSA AS THIS IS A DANGEROUS SAFETY RELATED RECURRING DEFECT REPORTED ON MANY WEBSITES/FORUMS, YET MERCEDES REFUSES TO TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION TO PERMANENTLY RESOLVE IT.  *TR
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*Source: [NHTSA ODI](https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/downloads/) · AI Analytics · CC0 1.0*