Mercedes BENZ GLS Class Reliability by YearBest & worst years, problems & recalls — NHTSA data

As I approached a red light and removed my foot from the gas pedal to brake, my dashboard displayed several alarming messages: “Active Brake Assist Functions Limited See Owner's Manual,” “Active Blind Spot Assist Inoperative,” “To Deselect P or N Depress Brake and Start Engine,” and “Traction Control Inoperative See Owner's Manual.” Subsequently, all dashboard lights illuminated, the engine turned off, and the car shifted into neutral from drive, preventing me from restarting it. Despite turning on my hazard lights, I was stuck in the middle lane while the light turned green. My husband recorded the event on his phone. Eventually, the car restarted, and we continued to his doctor’s appointment. After the appointment, which lasted approximately 45 minutes, I noticed the check engine light was still on when we got into the car. Despite this, I drove home and then to the dealership, where I explained the situation and showed the video to the service writer. Later that day, our service writer informed me via text that there were “No faults in system that would indicate issue that would cause vehicle stalling” and suggested a transmission update recall might be related. I requested the code for the check engine light but was told “no code stored for check engine light.” Given these circumstances, I have several pressing concerns: My car turned off in the middle of a busy street and wouldn’t restart immediately, creating a hazardous situation. This incident poses a significant safety risk. What if this had occurred on a freeway or my daughters were driving my car? The dealership's assertion that no issues were found is hard to believe given the clear malfunctions and present check engine light. Mercedes-Benz's response has not addressed my concerns about the vehicle's safety. A car should not "just turn off while actively driving." I am not at all comfortable with the dealership’s statement that “sometimes this can just happen.” This should NEVER happen

When coming into the proximity of devices along the highway that transmit radio/communication signals, message appears with several indicator symbols illuminated, “Temporarily Unavailable-Sensors are Dirty”. None of the ADAS functions work until you stop and restart the engine, or sometimes will return in a few 3-5 minutes or it may be an hour if you don’t restart the car. The dealer is aware this is a problem with Merc Benz but has no solution. Besides being a nuisance this can be very dangerous if assuming systems are working.

While driving it goes to neutral by it self

The car radar system apparently had a glitch and locked up the wheels while I was driving 25 mph. Yes, it is available for inspection. We are afraid to drive the car, it is just sitting. The car locked up so suddenly it made the rear wheel come off and rear of car fell to the ground. I was bruised by the seatbelt from the sudden stop. The dealer acted like they were unable to inspect it, I had the car towed there since it is under warranty. They said it had been in an accident. It had not been in an accident. I had to have policemen direct traffic until the tow truck arrived since the car was literally stopped in the middle of the street. We had an independent shop verify the issue and replace the tire and wheel that had fallen off. The car has had multiple warning messages about active brake assist inoperable, engine overheating, etc. The dealer has not been responsive at all. Seems they are trying to dodge responsibility.

I heard a very loud boom. It scared me. The sunroof exploded. I did not see anything in the road or any object flying toward me. Then I heard cracking and the sunroof started falling in above me. Thankfully, the fabric cover kept the glass from falling on me. Otherwise, the glass would have fallen on me. I could see pieces of glass. I pulled over and looked at the glass. I started towards my home and the shattered glass started flying off behind me and towards the car behind me. I did not want it to cause issues for them so I slowed down to about 30 mph so the glass would not continue to crack and fly off behind me and put on my hazard lights. My daughter called within 30 sec to a minute after it happened. She said when I clicked on the phone (through the car speaker) she heard me say a few words and the cracking of the glass. She called at 4:17 on May 24th, 2023. It was a clear sunny day. When my husband looked at the sunroof and noticed the glass coming up as opposed to caving in. So he said something did not fall through it it had to explode. We did call the dealership and they said they did not have an appointment until June 6th. My husband said we would have to clean up and take most of the glass out to be able to drive it. We did that and put cardboard over it so bugs could not get it. There was no damage to any other part of the windshield or car.

Car went into limp mode which causes loss of acceleration on major highway. This same issue of going into limp mode happened August of 2022 when the vehicle has less than 1000 miles. The car has 5750 miles and the temperature gauge showed yellow. Then the the yellow engine light came on and then the car went into limp mode where the engine loses power.

I had been driving the car for about ten minutes when the 48v battery malfunction light came on. Within seconds, another warning appeared that said coolant was too hot, and the acceleration stopped accelerating and then went to a complete stop in the middle of the road. I didn't have time to pull over. It was dark and we were completely stalled. I turned the car off, put my hazards on, and waited a minute. When I restarted the car, it worked fine and I was able to make it home. If this had happened on the interstate, I would not have had time to make it to the side of the road. The car only has 25,000 miles on it.

The contact owns a 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLS450. The contact stated that while his wife was driving approximately 35 MPH, the vehicle lost motive power and stalled. Additionally, the power steering was inoperable. There were several unknown warning lights illuminated; in addition to the check engine warning light being illuminated. The driver was able to pull over safely stop after coasting the vehicle. The vehicle was restarted; however, the check engine warning light remained illuminated. The vehicle was driven to the dealer. The dealer diagnosed the failure with the accelerator pedal, pin connector, and an unknown electrical failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 200. The VIN was not available.

The front vehicle hood keep saying it open but is lock keep getting a message saying is open I am afraid is might come out lock and cause me to an accident

I am reporting a serious safety defect in my 2019 Mercedes-Benz GLS450. My vehicle experienced low oil pressure warnings and engine warning lights, which were diagnosed as a faulty oil pump solenoid valve. The repair required removing major engine components, resulting in a cost of $5,000 that I paid personally. It is important to note that Mercedes-Benz updated the valve design in the following model year, indicating that the company was aware of a defect in the original design. This demonstrates that the failure is recurring and not isolated, creating a serious safety risk—low oil pressure can lead to catastrophic engine failure while driving, endangering the driver and passengers. I request that NHTSA: Document this as a potential safety defect. Investigate the prevalence of this issue. Consider initiating a recall or safety notice for affected GLS450 vehicles.

When I attempt to shift from park to to drive or reverse or even neutral the car wont respond. this has happened a couple of times in the last two months. I press on the brake in order to shift and it wont respond to any commands . I then have no choice but to turn off the car and then turn it back on. that usually works. this is unsafe if i was at an open parking lot or even on the street doing a U-turn and I don't turn right then having to reverse and the car doesn't respond. very scary stuff.

The panoramic sunroof spontaneously shattered while driving down the road. The glass blew out from the inside out. There didn't appear to be any issues with the sunroof before this. As far as safety, just the noise of the explosion was enough to surprise the driver causing a jerking of the steering wheel into the opposite lane of traffic which could have caused a head on collision. If the sunroof shade would have been open, the glass would have came down the drivers and passengers as they were going down the road. Saying this was distracting is an understatement. I called the local Mercedes dealership and was completely dismissed by them. They said it would have to be repaired by a glass company which is incorrect. The glass was replaced by the local collision center.

See attached document for complaint.