What 73 owners told NHTSA about the 2017 Mercedes-benz Gle-class Hybrid

Car took off after going over railroad track, and accelerated without driver being able to control it. The breaks and steering went out as well. It’s like car was being driven remotely. Crashed into fence, and there was no warning. The car accelerated. The car bounces back and forth when brakes are on, and again last year stopped in the middle of traffic. Water damage was leaking in as well after 8 months having this car. First major incident was December 2024, but rocking and began one month after purchasing vehicle in August of 2024. Acceleration incident; December 2024: 4 months after purchase; vehicle stopping in traffic: April 2025 8 months after purchase. Apparently new tires were put on. Almost had a blow out within 1 year and 4 months of purchase and found out when getting oil changed this past December 2025. Lights and radio randomly shut off, and gas’s tank is often locked or will not close. This car is scary, and has had problems that someone has covered up for a very long time. I have papers claiming everything was checked upon delivery; However; two incidences alone could have ended in multiple fatalities. Someone is responsible for hiding something something here, and this needs to be reported before someone or multiple people die that is due to a defect in the car. MCC 478-877-5740 478-737-2010

NHTSA ODI 11717901

The contact owned a 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLE350. The contact stated that while slowing at approximately 10 MPH and making a right turn to pull into a driveway, the vehicle unintendedly accelerated and crashed into a fence and came to a stop. The contact had not sustained any injuries, and medical attention was not needed. A Police report was not filed. The contact stated that the fence was damaged. The vehicle was not diagnosed for the failure but was taken to be repaired. The contact then stated that approximately a year later while driving approximately 20-30 MPH, the brake pedal was depressed, but the vehicle unintendedly accelerated, into ongoing traffic at a cross street. The contact pumped the brake pedal several times to stop the vehicle, but the vehicle failed to slow down as intended. The contact also attempted to turn off the vehicle however, the vehicle failed to turn off. The contact swerved right, and side swiped a fence, and the vehicle went through a front lawn of a house, striking some plants, and then struck a light post. The contact stated that the air bags did not deploy. The contact had not sustained any injuries, but the passenger of the vehicle sustained injuries to the back, knees, legs, arms, scrapes on the head, and general aches all over the body. The passenger was taken to the Emergency Room and medical attention was provided. The contact stated that a Police report was filed. The vehicle was towed to a tow lot where the vehicle was deemed a total loss by the insurance provider. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 84,541.

NHTSA ODI 11701558

While driving our 2017 MB GLE 350-4matic at about 40 mph, it spontaneously downshifted to M1. We were in traffic, so this was a very dangerous for us and for the people behind us. We limped to our destination, not knowing what had happened or what to do. When we re-started the car the next day, it seemed ok. But after driving some distance, it spontaneously downshifted to M1 again. We stopped the car, turned it off and re-started it. My mechanic checked the car with his analyzer, which showed that the transmission was not transmitting/displaying gear changes. I am taking my car to another repair shop tomorrow that has a more sophisticated analyzer. When I first explored this problem on the web, there was discussion on a MB website about similar problems. Today, I saw that there is an NHTSA probe into 2015-17 Ford 150 pick-ups having a similar problem to mine, i.e., spontaneous downshifting. Maybe there is a chip problem in the transmission control module for cars of those years. This is a significant safety issue. Thank God we were going 40 mph and not 60 or 70 when this happened.

NHTSA ODI 11650102

The transmission does not shift from first to second and created several dangerous situations in whichI tried to enter the highway. I called the corporate headquarters to make a complaint and was sent to the dealership to file a lemon law complaint. The Transmission specialist at AAMCO said the transmission parts are in good shape, but the problem is that there is too much clearance between the transmission casing and the transmission parts. I told him that this is a defective engineering and these vehicles should be recalled. When I did further research, I found out that I was not alone and that this is a well-documented problem with the Mercedes transmissions. I am reaching out to this agency because I believe that this situation has created a dangerous problem that should be looked into. The following link details these defects. [XXX] The problem with why this has not been reported is that many people that on these cars do not want to look as though they cannot afford the car and just have the vehicle repaired. I truly believe that the government should look into this before someone is seriously hurt because I am not the only one that has had this experience. The repairs/corrections will cost me $7,900 INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11611792

On July 3, 2024 I turned right out of a parking lot onto a busy road. The car sped up on its own and started speeding. It took me a couple of seconds to realize what was happening and put on the brake. The car ran through a red light, other cars were able to avoid hitting me. The car did stop then. There were no warning signs that this was going to happen. The dealership is going to investigate tomorrow. The car seems to be running fine since.

NHTSA ODI 11600446

The contact owns a 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLE550E. The contact stated while driving 70 MPH, an unknown message was displayed. The contact pulled over, and the vehicle was towed to his residence. The vehicle was taken to a dealer, and it was confirmed that no failure was found. The vehicle was then taken to Mercedes-Benz of Anaheim (5395 E La Palma Ave, Anaheim, CA 92807) where it was diagnosed with a transmission fluid leak. The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to House of Imports (6862 Auto Center Dr, Buena Park, CA 90621) and the transmission was repaired; however, while pulling into his driveway, the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration and crashed into the garage. No warning lights were illuminated. No air bags were deployed. No police report was filed. No injuries were sustained. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 80,000.

NHTSA ODI 11501056

CAR NOT STOP .WHEN TURNING TO STOP MY CAR ACCELERATED ON ITS OWN.ON HIGHWAY

NHTSA ODI 11124200

THE CRUISE CONTROL LEVER IS THE SAME AS THE TURN SIGNAL LEVER. WHEN SIGNALLING A TURN, IF I PULLED BACK AND UP OR DOWN ON THE LEVER, THE CAR WOULD LURCH AHEAD AT HIGH SPEED. THIS IS DEFINITELY A DANGEROUS CONDITION. THIS IS A DANGEROUS DESIGN DEFECT, AS THE CAR WOULD ACCELERATE QUICKLY. I HAD IT LURCH ON ME SEVERAL TIMES DURING THE 1 WEEK WHEN I RENTED THE CAR. THE FIRST TIME IT HAPPENED, THE CAR SPED AHEAD FOR ABOUT 10 SECONDS AT 65 MPH(I WAS GOING 50 MPH) WHILE I PLAYED WITH THE LEVER TO TRY TO DISABLE THE CRUISE CONTROL

NHTSA ODI 10969963