NHTSA Owner Complaint Log
This page lists owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA for the 2014 Mercedes-Benz ML-Class. Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA and do not by themselves prove a defect or defect rate.
Data synced from NHTSA on May 4, 2026
VEHICLE MADE A RIGHT-HAND TURN UPHILL AND COMPLETELY SHUT OFF FOR 25 MINUTES; ENGINE AND ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS. REQUIRED TO MANUALLY HOLD IN THE BRAKE ON AN INCLINE UNTIL VEHICLE RESTARTED. DEALERSHIP CANNOT REPLICATE THE ISSUE AND IS RETURNING THE VEHICLE.
TAKATA RECALL- INTERMITTENT BURNING SMELL COMING FROM THE HOOD OF THE CAR. SMELL NOTED WHEN CAR IS PARKED AFTER DRIVING FOR SOME TIME.
SUDDENLY IN THE MORNING 3 DAYS AGO WITHOUT HIT ANYTHING, A CRACK APPEARED ON MY WINDSHIELD. A LONG LINE ON THE RIGHT SIDE WHERE THE PASSENGER IS SITTING, LESS THAN 1$ BILL. I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT HAPPEN IN THIS WAY.
Vehicle: 2014 Mercedes-Benz ML350 VIN: [XXX] I have experienced repeated failures of the Blind Spot Assist / driver-assist system since purchasing this vehicle. When I first purchased the ML350 in Texas, the vehicle already showed warning messages (“Blind Spot Assist Inoperative / Pre-Safe Function Limited”). The dealer attempted repairs before delivery, but the defect persisted. After moving to New York, the problem continued. On June 26, 2023, I took the vehicle to The Automaster Mercedes-Benz in Shelburne, VT. Their diagnosis confirmed water intrusion into the blind spot radar sensors, consistent with Mercedes-Benz TSB LI54.71-P-056477. Both left and right sensors and wiring require replacement. This is a safety defect because Blind Spot Assist and Pre-Safe features are disabled without warning, increasing risk of collision when changing lanes. Many other owners have reported the same issue, and Mercedes has issued a TSB acknowledging the defect, but no recall has been provided. I request that NHTSA investigate this recurring safety problem and require Mercedes-Benz to provide coverage or a recall for affected vehicles. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The contact owns a 2014 Mercedes-Benz AMG ML63. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the check engine warning light illuminated on the instrument panel with the "Low Hydraulic Fluid" message displayed. After a visual inspection of the engine compartment, the contact observed hydraulic fluid covering the engine. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but did not assist. The failure mileage was 50,000.
THE VEHICLE'S HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING SYSTEMS ('HVAC SYSTEMS') HAVE A SERIOUS DESIGN DEFECT THAT CAUSES THE HVAC SYSTEM TO (A) ACCUMULATE MOLD AND MILDEW RESIDUE OR GROWTH WITHIN THE HVAC SYSTEM; (B) EMIT A MOLDY OR MILDEWY ODOR THAT PERMEATES THE VEHICLE CABIN WHEN THE HVAC SYSTEM IS ACTIVATED; AND (C) CAUSE THE VEHICLE'S PASSENGER CABIN TO BE UNBEARABLE AND THUS UNUSABLE FOR ITS INTENDED PURPOSE. IT LACKS A WAY TO PROPERLY DISPOSE OF THE WATER LEFT IN THE SYSTEM DUE TO CONDENSATION AND THIS IN TURNS CREATES A SUITABLE ENVIRONMENT FOR THE GROWTH OF BACTERIA, FUNGUS, MOLD, AND SPORES, WHICH THEN ARE BLOWN INTO THE PASSENGER CABIN WHEN THE HVAC SYSTEM IS IN USE. THIS SEEMS TO BE A KNOWN ISSUE WITH MERCEDES-BENZ CARS WHICH HAS NOT BEEN ADDRESSED BY THE MANUFACTURER. IT MAKES IT VERY UNPLEASANT TO DRIVE THE CAR WHEN YOU NEED TO TURN ON THE A/C FOR A CAR THAT IS PRACTICALLY NEW.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING VARIOUS SPEEDS, THE LANE ASSIST FEATURE FAILED. THE LANE ASSIST INOPERABLE WARNING LIGHT ILLUMINATED. THE FAILURE HAPPENED INTERMITTENTLY. MERCEDES-BENZ OF NOVI (39500 GRAND RIVER AVE, NOVI, MI 48375 (248) 426-9600) DIAGNOSED AND REPAIRED THE SENOR BUT THE FAILURE REOCCURRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE BUT WAS NOT ABLE TO HELP. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 60,000.
I OWN A MERCEDES BENZ ML 350 2014 AND NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH IT UNTILL THIS PASS FRIDAY MARCH 31ST I WAS DRIVING TO WORK THAT MORNING I SAME WAY I ALWAYS GO AND WHILE GOING AROUND THE SMALL ROUNDABOUT THE SUV SHOT OF AND STARTED PULLING TO THE LEFT AND IT SOUNDE LIKE A PIECE OF IRON BEING DRAGED ON CONCRETE.IT CAUSED ME TO HIT AND OTHER SUV AND IT WAS VERY SCRAY FOR ME SO MERCEDES DID SOME DIAGNOSTIC TESTING AND SAID THAT THE CAR WAS FINE..I DONT BELIEVE THAT IF ANY CAR DOES WHAT MINE DID THAT IT WOULD BE FINE SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH IT I AM NOW AFRAID TO DRIVR IT ..I TOLD THE HEAD OFFICE OF MERCEDES IN NEW JERSEY THAT THE SARASOTA FL DEALERSHIP CAN KEEP THE CAR FOR A MONTH OR SO AND DO SOME ADDITIONAL TEST AND CHECH UP ON THE ENGINE BUT I HAVE NOT HEARD BACK FROM THEM AS YET. UPDATED 05/10/17*LJ UPDATED 08/03/2017*JS
DRIVER'S SIDE AIR BAG WARNING LIGHT STAYS ON, DEALER SAYS IT'S THE WIRING IN STEERING COLUMN OR THE CONTROL MODULE AND WANTS ABOUT $1100 TO FIX. JUST ALL OF A SUDDEN CAME ON WITH NO OTHER EVENT HAPPENING.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350. THE CONTACT STATED THAT FOR THE PAST YEAR, THE FRONT PASSENGER SIDE AIR BAG WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED, WHICH WAS A SAFETY CONCERN. ALSO, THE 'PULL OVER AND READ SERVICE MANUAL' AND 'FRONT AIR BAG REQUIRES SERVICE' MESSAGES APPEARED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER (MERCEDES-BENZ OF LITTLETON, 8070 S BROADWAY, LITTLETON, CO 80122) WHERE THE TECHNICIAN INFORMED THE CONTACT TO "IGNORE THE MESSAGES" AND "THAT IT HAPPENS TO ALL MERCEDES-BENZ VEHICLES'. THE DEALER DID NOT DIAGNOSE OR REPAIR THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE AND THE CONTACT WAS AWAITING A CALL BACK. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 29,000.
DIESEL FUEL FILTER AND/OR DIESEL FUEL HOSE LEAKS SPILLING HIGHLY FLAMMABLE DIESEL FUEL ON THE ROAD. THE DIESEL FUEL COULD LEAK NEAR THE HEAT SOURCE OR LEAK ONTO THE ROAD. THIS COULD LEAD TO A CRASH OR CAUSE A FIRE IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE.
DIESEL FUEL LEAKS FROM A TINY CRACK FORMING ON THE OIL FILTER HOUSING. THE FILTER HAS MANUFACTURING OR DESIGN DEFECT THAT CAUSES THE BOTTOM HOUSING OF THE FILTER TO FORM SMALL CRACKS PREMATURELY. THE MERCEDES PART NUMBER OF THIS FILTER IS A 642 090 60 52 MANUFACTURED BY MANN , MADE IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC. I HAVE SEARCHED THE INTERNET AND THIS APPEARS TO BE A SYSTEMIC PROBLEM WHERE THE FILTER FORMS CRACKS AND LEAKS DIESEL FUEL. THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ISSUED FOR THIS IMMEDIATELY BEFORE THERE ARE ANY VEHICLE FIRES AS A RESULT OF THIS DEFECT. WHEN THE FILTER LEAKS, THE FUEL STREAMS DOWN THE CENTER OF THE ENGINE BLOCK AND THROUGH A WEEP HOLE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE VEHICLE NEAR THE EXHAUST. THIS IS IN VERY CLOSE PROXIMITY TO THE EXTREMELY HOT EXHAUST PIPING THAT COULD IGNITE THE FUEL AND CAUSE A FUEL FIRE RESULTING IN SERIOUS INJURY OR FATALITIES.
2014 ML350 SHUT OFF WHILE DRIVING IN THE FAST LANE OF A MAJOR HIGHWAY. I HAD TAKEN THE VEHICLE FOR SERVICE, THEN THREE WKS LATER BECAUSE THE CAR WAS LOSING POWER. THE DEALERSHIP CHECKED IT OVER THE NEXT DAY AND ASSURED ME THE CAR WAS PERFECT AND HAD FOUND NO PROBLEMS. THE NEXT DAY THE CAR SHUT-OFF ON THE HIGHWAY. THE CAR WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP WHERE THEY EVENTUALLY DISCOVERED A DEFECT IN THE CAR. I NO LONGER FEEL SAFE DRIVING THIS VEHICLE.
I WAS IN A COLLISION IN WHICH I REAR ENDED ANOTHER SUV. THE SPEED CONTROL DID NOT ENABLE AND I HIT THE OTHER VEHICLE HARD ENOUGH TO CAUSE $20,000 WORTH OF DAMAGE TO MY CAR. I BELIEVE THE CAR BRAKING RESPONSE WAS SLOW AND THE AIRBAG SHOULD HAVE DEPLOYED IN A CRASH THAT SIGNIFICANT, BUT IT DID NOT.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350. WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE "A-SERVICE" INDICATOR ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE CONTACT TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED AND A BASIC SERVICE WAS PERFORMED, WHICH INCLUDED AN OIL CHANGE AND THE FLUIDS WERE TOPPED OFF. THE FAILURE RECURRED AND THE CONTACT DID A "DEEP STICK" CHECK FOR OIL, WHICH DID NOT REGISTER ANY OIL. THE CONTACT CALLED THE DEALER AND WAS INFORMED TO BRING THE VEHICLE TO THE SHOP. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE AND REFERRED THE CONTACT TO THE DEALER. THE CONTACT STATED THAT HE COULD NOT UNDERSTAND WHY THE VEHICLE WAS OUT OF OIL SO SOON. THE CONTACT INSTEAD TOOK THE VEHICLE TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR AN OIL CHANGE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 18,000.
PULLING INTO GARAGE, PUT CAR INTO "PARK" AND ALL OF SUDDEN, WENT INTO "NEUTRAL" CAR STARTED TO ROLL BACK (FLOOR OF GARAGE HAS SLIGHT ANGLE). AT FIRST COULD NOT PUT CAR INTO "DRIVE". FINALLY GOT IT INTO DRIVE, MOVED CAR FORWARD AND THEN WAS ABLE TO PUT IT INTO "PARK" THIS HAPPENED ONCE BEFORE, LAST YEAR, MERCEDES COULD NOT FIND ANYTHING WRONG. CAR BEING BROUGHT TO MERCEDES ON OCTOBER 5, 2015
WHILE ENTERING THE HIGHWAY, THE VEHICLE SHIFTED AT EXTREMELY HIGH REVS, THEN BECAME 'STUCK' IN FOURTH GEAR. THE MANUAL SHIFTING PADDLES WOULD NOT SHIFT THE TRANSMISSION UP OR DOWN. PLACING THE VEHICLE IN NEUTRAL, AND THEN BACK INTO DRIVE HAD NO IMPACT. VEHICLE REMAINED IN FOURTH GEAR. BECAUSE I WAS ON A HIGHWAY, IN HIGH SPEED TRAFFIC, IT WAS A DANGEROUS SITUATION. EVENTUALLY, I WAS ABLE TO PULL OF THE HIGHWAY, TURNED OFF THE CAR AND ONCE IT WAS RESTARTED, THE CAR SHIFTED NORMALLY. THE HIGH-REV SHIFTING EVENT HAD OCCURRED ONE TIME BEFORE (APPROXIMATELY 3 MONTHS AGO), BUT BECAUSE OF THE SHORT NATURE OF THE TRIP, I NEVER REQUIRED SPEEDS ABOVE 35 MPH.
THE VEHICLE SENSORS ALL STARTED FLASHING, INCLUDING THE STABILITY CONTROL SYSTEM, PARKING BRAKE, TEMPERATURE GAUGE, ETC. THE SPEEDOMETER FLUCTUATED WILDLY, THE CAR WOULD NOT SHIFT OUT OF DRIVE AND WOULD NOT SHUT OFF. I WAS TRAPPED IN THE VEHICLE, UNABLE TO SHIFT THE CAR OUT OF GEAR INTO PARK OR NEUTRAL AND THE CAR WOULD NOT SHUT OFF. I HAD TO KEEP MY FOOT ON THE BRAKE, BUT I OBVIOUSLY COULD NOT GET OUT OF THE CAR WHILE IT WAS IN GEAR AND RUNNING. AFTER ABOUT 3 MINUTES OF TRYING TO GET THE CAR INTO PARK I WAS ABLE TO TURN OFF THE ENGINE. IT WAS EXTREMELY SCARY. THIS VEHICLE IS UNSAFE. *TR
I BOUGHT THIS VEHICLE NEW ON MARCH 2013. WITH THE TIME WE HEAR A STRANGE NOISE, WE THOUGHT IT WAS NORMAL BUT THAT NOISE WAS STRONGER SO WE WENT TO THE DEALER GARAGE ISLA VERDE MERCEDES BENZ, TO THE MAINTENANCE WE TOLD TO THE PERSON ABOUT THAT NOISE, SO THEY SAID TO US THAT EVERYTHING IS OK THEN WE ASK ABOUT THE NOISE IN THE ENGINE AND THEY TOLD THAT "IS A PROBLEM IN THE ENGINE AND MERCEDES BENZ KNOWS THAT, IS AN INTERN ENGINE PROBLEM AND THERE IS A PART THAT CAN'T BE CHANGED! AND ALSO OTHERS MODELS LIKE GLK, E AND ML HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM".. SO I'M WORRY ABOUT THIS BECAUSE THE WARRANTY IS ONLY FOR 40,000 MILES..SO WHAT I CAN DO???? *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2014 MERCEDES BENZ ML350. WHILE DRIVING 40 MPH, THE ENGINE STALLED. THE CONTACT WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO A DEALER WHO STATED THAT THE ENGINE MODULE PINS WERE DEFECTIVE AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 6,138. UPDATED 7/23/15*CN THE CONSUMER REQUESTED TO HAVE THE POST REMOVED.
2014 MERCEDES-BENZ ML 350 CHECK ENGINE LIGHT ILLUMINATED AND ROUGH RUNNING. *MW THE CONSUMER STATED THE DOOR WOULD STICK, THE ELECTRONICS MODULE AND DUEL DOOR CENTRAL LOCK WERE REPLACED. *JB
HIT IN THE HEAD IN APRIL 2015 BY SUV REAR POWER LIFT GATE CAUSING TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY. DESIGN FLAW IN MOST SUV REAR LIFT GATE. I BELIEVE CHRYSLER HAS ONE THAT BEEPS WHEN LIFT GATE IS LOWERING BUT OTHERS DO NOT. ALSO THEY SHOULD BE DESIGNED LIKE GARAGE DOORS IN THAT A SENSOR CAN STOP PROGRESSION OF DOWNWARD MOVEMENT WHEN TAILGATES LOWERS THERE BY STOPPING ANY FURTHER INJURY TO INDIVIDUALS - ESPECIALLY OLDER INDIVIDUALS AND CHILDREN.