I have to agree with you. Own a 2004 E320 W211 with SBC. The only disadvantage of this system is that is a money pit. But I'd rather pay $1000 for a new SBC pump than have the brakes system of the facelift W211. I've driven my friend's facelift W211 without SBC, it's good. But I very well noticed the difference of not having SBC. It saved my ass several times, and while it is expensive, those extra dollars that you put into it might someday save your life!

It's true I have a 2006 E320CDI and that is a really special year for the car because it has the CDI inline 6 turbo diesel and the SBC. I really like the SBC, yeah it has kind a plastic like feel and it's not the most precise modulation of power, but it can control the brake way better then I can on my own and when I'm driving hard and I need it, it's there way faster then any human could ever be. There's a few times I was going fast in traffic and suddenly the car in front stopped and I just went down on the brakes and it knew I needed full power instantly and the brakes were able to achieve full braking power way faster then a normal brake system can achieve plus if I needed to steer the fact that the car can use the brakes to steer the car for me is really impressive. Honestly I think most of these cars had the SBC system replaced with new one that have 25 year warranties on them so I'm not worried. I think it was a very special year mercedes with a revolutionary technology that was actually pretty far ahead of its time. I also think that mercedes continues to use this technology on their commercial trucks and buses to this day as well

They're fantastic when new. It's all downhill after the first couple years....

@@mosesberkowitz3298 not when Mercedes gives you a new updated unit. There is a 25 year warranty in the U.S. on these SBC units. The new units come with larger brushes and upgraded wiring harness. I have had no issues since.

How do I benefit from the replacement I am in Nigeria I own a E350 4matic benz the SBC is giving me serious issues.

​@@oyeinkurokakemomarcodinhoa528 Try contacting Weststar (a Mercedes-Benz distributor in Lagos). They MAY know how to go about that.

Sitting right now in an s211 2003mod. E200 Kompressor. And 394,000km on the odometer. Still the original SBC system, no problems yet. A fantastically good braking system, as long as it works properly. 👍

Don't forget about the HOLD function too, it was also carried over from the SBC system

They had these features even before SBC in 98. Brake drying, emergency priming (BAS), hold in 2001, etc. The only real benefit SBC had above the prior system is the hydraulic reservoir, it allowed the brake pressure to get up to full a few milliseconds earlier than the time it took the electric motor operated unit to spin up, though this would only be a benefit at times when the brakes were actuated by a control system and not the driver. Though I believe this could be replicated in the prior system though this would mean the electric motor would be running at all times basically. I believe the face lifted w163 ML performed this replication when the low gear transfer case was selected (and at certain speeds)

@@SpenserRoger BAS was Introduced in the 90's, W140 mercedes with the V8 and V12 engines had it.

Extended Warranty on SBC now 25 years in US.

@@doxland Yup! I actually just got a letter from Mercedes saying their extending the warranty to 25 years/unlimited millage. It's great that their still supporting this unit

@@elkillerx Yeah, it's great that they do this in the US, but in the EU, you have to pay for it yourself. And the SBC pump isn't cheap, considering how cheap the cars are.

Anthony word! I got an 06 E350

@@doxland what about people in Europe do Mercedes have a 25-year warranty on their cars as well or is it US only

I heard it was 300,000 counts, also there are much more than 8, perhaps 8 fatalities because of sbc? and hundreds of cases of brake failure. www.carcomplaints.com/Mercedes-Benz/E320/2003/brakes/service_brakes.shtml

Apparently there were a few instances where the electric system failed and the back up mechanical hydraulic master brake cylinder didn't work properly, leaving the driver with no brakes at all.

Sitting right now in an s211 2003mod. E200 Compressor. And 390,000km on the odometer. Still the original SBC system, no problems yet. A fantastically good braking system, as long as it works properly. 👍

​@@saccoearth007 Why does it get problem? do i need to change the brake fluid every 2 years? What do u recommend me

@@AS.MA_ The brake fluid should be changed every other year or 35,000 km as recommended by Mercedes. But the problem with SBC (Sensotronic Brake Control), I'm not entirely sure, probably has something to do with the brain of the system that controls everything. But this could happen tomorrow or never. our car has done 394,000km and is now 20 years old, still has the original SBC system and no problems. I think it's a bit of bad luck when it breaks, but anything can break on a car, that's just the way it is... But really, a fantastic system as long as it works!

Most cars will still function with out the battery

This system would be perfect if there was a reasonable exchange system for a fair price. instead cars with sbc trouble now end up scrapped and thats just sad.

The brushes in the sbc motor can be changed easily at low cost which makes them serviceable. It nearly put me off til I found out this.

I think Mercedes now has a 25 year warranty on the SBC pump which wasn't available at the time I wrote my original comment 10 years ago :)

Only in the USA….

Sitting right now in an s211 2003mod. E200 Kompressor. And 394,000km on the odometer. Still the original SBC system, no problems yet. A fantastically good braking system, as long as it works properly. 👍

@@Slavic_Boer what do i do when i get to the dealer?

Yeah finally mb warranties something screwed up for a real period of time, you're lucky. Unlike when their 90s cars got random wiring harnesses made of biodegradable soybean oil that "biodegraded" in the car way sooner than expected. No recall cause failure modes were just loss of engine running at worst. No extended warranty coverage for any appreciable amount of time cause hey screw you! Also let's double fist the customer and not sell replacement harnesses any longer than required by law! Another good one is the circa 98' E class models, the front spring mount is like a pocket where it mounts to the frame, as you can imagine this fills up with water soaked road debris and rusts it out causing the suspension to collapse. No recall because MB convinced the safety board the spring perch only collapsed while the tire was being steered at stop or slow speed. No extended warranty or anything but they did provide a terrible bolt on affair to repair it after it brakes! Oh, does coolant in the transmission absolutely ruin the transmission? It does? Well let's make sure to combine the two systems in a particularly weak plastic radiotor for almost no reason at all. Are some of those radiators ticking time bombs? Who cares! A service bulletin will do, No soup for you!

Spenser Roger yeah when merc and Chrysler were together, their product were bad quality. The earlier 3.5 v6 have a soft balance shaft that would go bad at 50k and a leaky gas tank. Good thing Mercedes extended warranty on the gas tank, but the balance shaft issue was per case issue. After they got rid of the sbc and Chrysler. The 2017-2019 w211 are very reliable cars.

because it kept failing in cars.

Class action lawsuit made them give the us owners a extended warrant which is good because I just bought a e320 cdi with sbc

M&N Distribution 2006 + series don’t have sbc

@@zbifyidek I think it depends how early in 2006 it was made. And sometimes car is made in 2005 but registered in 2006. So 2007+ is best to be sure.

Don't blame mb, they didn't build or design the unit

Your car may have no brake fluid - leaked out. If that is the case you have to find the leak , refill the system (MB synthetic brake fluid) repair, bleed the brakes. W211 requires special procedure if equipped with SBC.

i had a 2003 e320 and after starting the car, the brake pedal would VIBRATE and make a wirrring noise. the brake fluid was good and there was no leaks or anything. it was unsettling

This is notmal it was pre charging

They wanted instant pressure for any of the electronic driving aids so they could function a few milliseconds faster

@Matthew Dawood Khaghani actually one of the big reasons I've since learned is when you have a direct hydraulic mechanical coupling to the brake and the ABS turns on, the pulsating back action in the pedal frightens drivers and tends to reduce their willingness to apply enough brake pressure, sometimes even causing them to lift off completely. The other benefit of brake by wire is you can have the brake pedal feel setup however you like, making it easier for example.

@Matthew Dawood Khaghani Yeah, theyre bad drivers some of them, but the studies reveal it's a common phenomenon...and I'd rather not get hit by them if I run into a situation with them on the road. I guess the lack of feel you describe, that must be why some drivers describe the driving of the car as "video-gamey". They must mean in the pedal too. Still, the feeling of the brake pedal should still be the same, more or less pressure on the pedal means more or less pressure in the caliper cylinders, means more or less stopping force. Modulating the brake to prevent activation of the ABS while still achieving maximum braking is almost impossible in a situation where the adhesion factor and tire loading is different for every wheel. Ie: anything other than braking in a straight line on dry pavement. I would therefore agree with you that a system like SBC that doesn't normally have a direct mechanical-hydraulic connection would not be ideal for track or racing driving. In other situations though, I'd disagree. And like I said earlier, a system like SBC is very safe when designed with features like redundant microprocessors & control electronics, redundant battery, back up direct mechanical-hydraulic master brake cylinder, and programming to do initial and continuous self checking of all elements as well as activation of the parking brake and engine braking in a fault condition. It's only that SBC had some well publicized failures that caused a few reported/alledged no backup master brake cylinder activations, plus the whole shut down at x number of activations fiasco and that when the back up cylinder was activated people complained of the unexpected pedal force required to stop car. Also; Modern ABS is much more effective at maintaining the highest braking rate with the best wheel slip factor than old "dumb" systems with less finer wheel speed sensors,, less algorithms, less valves/channels and lack of individual wheel braking, etc. I think the old systems is where a lot of the beliefs and truisms like "brakes are most effective at the point before the abs control range" come from. Based on your statement and theory about modulating the brake to before abs activation for example, let's say you're attempting to come to a panic /emergency brake stop and you feel 'ABS kick on' so you modulate your brake pedal force...well it's likely only one wheel was into the ABS control range, and now with your reduced pressure your well below the maximum brake force for much of the stop on all the other wheels and you've increased your required stopping distance! Not good chief! Also, I believe most other manufacturers are going or have gone to a non mechanical connection brake system, ie: brake by wire. It's the future.

Don't be an apologist for Mercedes. They have worked hand in hand with Bosch for decades, and even if it was Bosch's design, Mercedes is responsible for testing it and approving it for their (supposedly) high-end motorcars. No outside supplier tells Mercedes what to do. I gave up on Mercedes almost 15 years ago precisely because of poor engineering like this. Their cars used to stand for excellence and durability. Now they just stand for greed.

Or save about £,1000 and change the brushes in the motor. So many mercedes models needlessly sold/given away because people can't be arsed to do a bit of research.

if you don't change brake fluid i have w211 400 000km no pronlems.dirty oil can ruin enythying

​@@sigmaSERVIS I am now sitting in a s211 2003mod with 390,000km on the odometer. SBC works exactly as it should. No issues. An absolutely fantastic system as long as it works properly. 👍

Simon Inglis you are comparing an older budget car to a much heavier luxury car. Of course the larger and heavier w211 will have a harder time braking than a Saab. Also, you can use conventional pads and discs on the w211.

design is good, but like everything, complicated stuff can break

Happened to me 3 times wasn’t able to stop had to put the car in neutral and pull over

I think the 300k limit was intended to have you replace the brushes on the electric motor, or the entire motor itself. This is an easy, inexpensive repair and having a warning threshold was a good idea. The real design fault though is in how the emergency brake system is only on the front brakes and without power. It should just be a fully functional system then people have no reason to complain and no real reason to freak out and if you think about it the only extra part you would need is a cheap power brake vacuum reservoir thing, oh and a line tap into the back brakes. However the biggest faux pas appears to be activating the threshold warning while the car is driving. People freak out at any mention of the brakes and possible reduced function and thus remember the incident way different as a result and you end up with thousands of reports online of people claiming they were driving and then all of a sudden their brakes wouldn't work! Omg

I bought a new SBC module direct from Mercedes and it was 1000 USD, rebuilt. Sucks to drop money but not the end of the world.

Glad my 2009 doesn't have it

They have an extended the warranty to 10 years. Check with a dealer before you pay to replace it, I had my sbc pump act up back in 2009 and Mercedes replaced it free of charge and extended the warranty till 2019. The sbc pump itself did not fail it was more of a wiring issue that would cause the pump to shut off. Either way Mercedes replaced the entire pump and modified the wiring to prevent future problems.