MERCEDES-BENZ Complaints

Around 4pm 2/26/2026 my wife was driving southbound on I-65 around Middle River Bridge just north of Mobile AL. We were in the right lane when the car began to hydroplane; she immediately took her foot off of the accelerator and did not apply breaks. I was in the back seat due to a previous day surgery. The rear of the vehicle swayed back and forth a few times as the vehicle drifted. Then it was violently moved from one side of the lane to the other and eventually into a hard and distinct left hand 720 spin. We then collided into the concrete barrier next to the left hand lane. It was intense but a glancing blow mostly on the driver’s side. The spin ended with us pointing northbound in the left lane. Just as I thought the crash was over the car lunged in the forward direction like it was going to take off and quickly came to a stop. The weather was very hard rain and my wife was slowing for traffic ahead (which turned out to be another accident going up the General W.K. Wilson Jr. Bridge. Incredibly the car was still running and I was able to slowly drive to safety and not cause any further accidents. Later in the evening (screen shot shows 6:42pm) after reporting to my insurance I looked on Google maps to find the approximate area our crash occurred I could see another accident happened with a significant backup of traffic. I believe the lane assist and brake assist tried to correct the drifting and over corrected the vehicle into a spin. Lane assist in the 2024 Mercedes-Benz 450GLE is difficult to turn off and comes back on with restarting the ignition. I could not turn off Ln Assist and stay off when I purchased the vehicle, so believed it would operated like my 2022 Ford F-150 which stays off. Neither Cruise control, or Self drive was engaged. I believed lane assist could not be turned off and there are no warnings issued by Mercedes-Benz of the potential hazard although I now find Lane Assist can definitely be linked to hydroplaning accidents

2021 Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 W. APROX: 30,000 MILES. PURCHASED THE VEHICLE 3 YEARS AGO, WHEN IT HAD 17,000 MILES ON IT. WHEN DRIVING AT TIMES THE PASSENGER REAR SHOCK WILL START MAKING SQEAKING / CREAKING NOISES. BEEN LIKE THIS FOR ALMOST 1 YEAR NOW. I DONT DRIVE THE VEHICLE VERY OFTEN, BUT WHEN I DO DRIVE IT IT IRRITATES ME. THE DEALERSHIP SAID THE SHOCK NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. THERE ARE NO VISIBLE LEAKS, NO ABNORMAL RIDE QUALITY, ETC.

The contact owns a 2026 Mercedes-Benz. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, an SRS warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer, where it was diagnosed as having an electrical issue that needed an SRS replacement. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure reoccurred. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 32,000.

While driving my 2024 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 on California highways, the vehicle has repeatedly experienced sudden uncontrolled deceleration, unexpected transmission downshifts into 2nd gear, severe transmission jerking, and complete loss of accelerator response. The first major incident occurred on March 7, 2025, while traveling on Interstate 5 at approximately 70 mph. The transmission suddenly jolted and downshifted directly into 2nd gear. The vehicle immediately lost power and slowed to approximately 20 mph without warning. I exited the highway and restarted the vehicle before it temporarily resumed normal operation. A second major incident occurred on May 7, 2026, while driving on Interstate 5 near Flag City, California at approximately 65 mph. The vehicle suddenly decelerated uncontrollably to approximately 20 mph. The transmission again shifted directly into 2nd gear, and the accelerator pedal became completely unresponsive. I was forced to make an emergency stop on the shoulder of the freeway with hazard lights activated due to the risk of being rear-ended by high-speed traffic and trucks. A third incident occurred on May 13, 2026, while accelerating onto Highway 99 in Modesto, California. During a shift from 4th to 5th gear, the transmission jerked violently and the vehicle suddenly lost power while merging into highway traffic. The vehicle has been taken to Mercedes-Benz of Stockton multiple times for diagnosis and repair attempts. The dealership has performed software updates and extensive testing, and dealership personnel have personally verified the transmission defect during road testing. Mercedes-Benz engineering has also become involved in the diagnosis process. However, the defect remains unresolved. This defect creates a serious highway safety hazard due to sudden loss of propulsion, uncontrolled deceleration, and loss of accelerator response while driving at freeway speeds.

I had to take a detour one night coming home, the detour led to a bridge that connects to a highway. Approaching the bridge my car started to jerk and pop up with all of these notification about “blind spot assistance” is down, “car engine failure, please check user manual”, “car malfunction” with a engine battery symbol. All the while the engine light was on. All these warning was popping up one after another, while I was trying to merge onto the bridge. Mind you there is no shoulder currently during the active merging or on the bridge, but I didn’t think of what would happen next. As I merge onto the bridge at 35mph the car shuts off completely on me. My car automatically sets itself into Neutral mode and I was rolling on the bridge at 35mph, no shoulder and no brakes or gas to move properly. I called the police but they won’t dispatch a officer unless I am in a accident or about to cause on, but they heard I am rolling at 35mph and they said from her words herself “I can’t send a officer over for your reason ma’am, are you a threat to others or about to crash? Can’t you just brake?” My car system never turned back on, I stepped my foot on the brakes all the way praying something will work as I existed the bridge onto a small shoulder. The emergency brakes came on as I keep swerving onto the grass. As everyone was going 65mph I don’t know why I wouldn’t impose as a threat if I have no control over my car from oncoming traffic. This is a very dangerous situation, and my service shop said we try to retest the issue/diagnostics but couldn’t replicate the situation and told me that my car is fine. But this isn’t the first time that happened and it also wasn’t the last. I don’t know what test they’re running but telling me it’s a simple system malfunction error every time is playing with my lifespan. Do not recommend.

The vehicle involved is a Mercedes-Benz vehicle that experienced severe corrosion and deterioration of the rear subframe component. The subframe is available for inspection upon request and has been identified as unsafe due to excessive rust and structural corrosion. The corrosion created a major safety risk because the subframe supports critical suspension and stability components. The condition could have caused loss of vehicle control, suspension failure, or an accident while driving, placing both myself and other drivers at risk. The problem has been confirmed by a dealership and/or independent repair facility. I was informed that Mercedes-Benz has acknowledged similar rear subframe corrosion issues and that this condition may fall under a manufacturer warranty or extended coverage program. The vehicle and damaged component have been inspected by service technicians, and repair estimates/documentation are available. The corrosion appears excessive for the age and normal use of the vehicle. Prior to discovering the failure, there were symptoms including unusual noises from the rear suspension area, instability while driving, and visible rust underneath the vehicle. The issue became more noticeable over time before the inspection confirmed severe subframe corrosion.

Brake pads completely worn after 11K miles - this seems like premature wear and like there is a potential issue with the braking system on the GLS450.

Approximately in March 2026, I started noticing a very strong gasoline odor coming from my 2004 Mercedes-Benz E 500 4-matic with original miles approximately 56,300. The fuel odor always got stronger whenever I would fill up the gas tank. The history on my car is such that it has always been garage kept. The gasoline odor coming from my car started getting stronger and stronger while in my garage. On Memorial Day 2026 I called HQ, Mercedes Benz and told them about the gas odor coming from my car. After the call ended I decided that the car needed to be towed to the nearest Mercedes Benz service center. I considered that the gas order to be very dangerous so I parked my car in the driveway. Once parked in my driveway, there was no longer a gasoline order in my garage. Now even while parked in my driveway, I could smell gasoline around the rear of my car when I opened the doors the gasoline smell was very strong. All of this happens suddenly and only grew worse within the last four days. The gasoline smell was probably there for a long time but I didn’t notice it since I do not drive the car very often. That should be obvious because there is only approximately 56,300 miles on the car and those are original miles. I called Mercedes-Benz headquarters and requested a tow to the nearest Mercedes-Benz repair shop which is in Tampa Florida. As my car was being placed on the flatbed tow truck gasoline started spilling out onto the bed of the tow truck. That is a very dangerous situation. My car could’ve caught fire if it hit something hard or if I had been in an accident. I read where there is a 15 year extended warranty from year the analysis was actually completed in 2012 by the ODI NHTSA. I believe my car falls under the purview of the extended warranty. I’m reporting this problem because it is very dangerous and there could be other vehicles out there.

On a recent drive, my 2024 Mercedes-Benz E350 VIN: [XXX] suffered a catastrophic safety hazard involving a complete loss of drive power and sudden engine shutdown while operating at highway speeds. I had to navigate across active highway lanes with no engine propulsion to reach safety. ?Simultaneously, the vehicle experienced a widespread failure of its master interior electrical grid. The driver's power seat became permanently frozen in a fully reclined position while driving, creating an immediate driver-ergonomic safety hazard. Multiple interior USB charging ports and the passenger-side power seat also lost power entirely. ?This combination of engine stalling and localized interior electronic failure strongly aligns with NHTSA Recall 24V-115, which involves faulty 80-Amp fuses in the main fuse box causing a loss of propulsion. The vehicle also currently displays an open, unresolved safety recall for its airbag systems. The manufacturer's dealership is attempting to charge multiple diagnostic fees to investigate these interconnected issues rather than processing them under an active safety campaign. I am filing this report to document a severe, active propulsion failure in the field that represents an immediate threat to life and highway safety. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

My 2021 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT 43, VIN [XXX] , has had a recurring safety issue with the transmission wiring harness and connector X279. Mercedes-Benz said this connector can let water in, which can cause a short circuit, overheating, and a fire risk while the car is parked and off. That is why the vehicle was covered by recall 24V445 / MBUSA Campaign 2024100002. This same issue was already addressed once before in January 2023 under MBUSA Campaign 2022080010 / NHTSA 22V-533, when the connector was checked and reworked and a bracket was installed. Even after that, the car later had to go back again on November 29, 2024 for the newer recall repair, when the original two-part harness was replaced with a one-part harness. The part that concerns me most is that this is not just a routine repair issue. It is a fire risk that can happen while the vehicle is parked with the ignition off. I am also concerned that the recall and service records do not clearly show the exact completion date in the manufacturer’s system. I am asking NHTSA to record this complaint and review the defect history and repair history for this vehicle. I can provide the recall notices, service records, purchase contract, vehicle history report, and the notice I already sent to Mercedes-Benz USA. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)