What 79 owners told NHTSA about the 2020 Mercedes-benz Sprinter 2500 Crew

I had 5 recalls completed at the MB Sprinter dealership in Pleasanton CA on 11/06/2025. Had hardly driven it 100 miles or 5 times since then when I noticed it was not always going into park. One recall had to do with not going in park when you push park button while foot on brake. I was not having that problem until the MB Sprinter dealership did the recall work. Now every 5th time or so it does not go in park when I push park button while foot on brake. Dealership insists I must pay to have this fixed even though their recall work caused it. This is a severe safety hazard that could result in death!

NHTSA ODI 11703605

Driving at speed (70-75 mph) in the HOV lane of the I-5 Freeway south of Los Angeles, a warning signal would occasionally light up and sound when the van passed under HOV signage indicating HOV exits. Then, with a completely clear lane ahead – no vehicles, no obstacles – the van's braking system activated just before the van reached one of these overhead signs. The brakes fully locked, the van skidded briefly before the brakes released. The driver of the car following behind slammed on his/her brakes to avoid rear-ending the van. A very dangerous situation and major accident was only avoided because the traffic was relatively light in that particular section of the freeway at that time of day.

NHTSA ODI 11532181

On 10-27-22 the van was parked in my home driveway where it had been parked overnight. The engine was running for approximately 10 minutes while loading things into the vehicle. The vehicle was in park and the hand parking brake was not engaged. Prior to leaving I noticed the dash icon showing the rear door was not fully shut and went back to close it. Once I closed the rear door it then appeared that the transmission shifted itself into neutral and the van rolled back into the garage while I was standing outside of it. I have home surveillance camera footage showing the incident as it happened. I have tried to convey this information to Mercedes Benz but interactions with them have been less than helpful.

NHTSA ODI 11498070

Adaptive Cruise Control as well as Forward Collison warning fail to work properly when in use. Both unexpectedly malfunction for no apparent reason and vehicle will not cruise control will not function at all. The vehicle was taken back to the dealership where it was supposedly addressed and fixed, however, the issue has not been fixed. The vehicle presents the same issues as prior to the inspection and "repair" from the dealership. While driving with Adaptive Cruise Control/Forward Collison Warning, the system will malfunction. A light on the dash will indicate that it has been disabled, simultaneously, the vehicle will lose cruise control, foward collision warning immediately. Vehicle will not regain any form of cruise control or forward collison warning for an unspecified amount of time. Could be minutes, hours, or even days. Dash warnings also include cleaning sensors and cameras. Doing so does not correct the problem.

NHTSA ODI 11493007

The vehicle was put into parked and somehow disengage itself from parked and rolled into a house.

NHTSA ODI 11489157

I have called the Mercedes dealer in Collierville Tennessee a dozen times and left messages to get the vehicle in for the recall. i cant get a return call from the Sprinter service manager there. very very frustrating and made me loose faith in the brand for customer service and a blatant disregard for my safety.

NHTSA ODI 11454048

My husband was stopped at a stop light on Sept. 9th when the van randomly (and without provocation) shifted itself from drive into park. We called the dealership to explain the problem and ask that they look into it. We made an appointment and dropped off the vehicle yesterday. Service Department called and verbally stated that they had taken a van on a test drive and that the van had acted "normally" and that they anticipated returning the van to us with the instruction that if we experienced the problem again to contact them. I was not happy with this response as I felt that the problem was a severe safety issue and not enough had been done to investigate it. I quickly googled "mercedes going into park on its own" and found an article detailing reports of 2010 mercedes sedans going into park on their own while the driver was slowing to stop (exactly as we experienced). An accompanying official mercedes benz service department memo in the article confirmed the problem, mentioned the "auto p" feature and blamed the problem on a faulty ignition switch. I called the service department back, referenced the memo and asked if a faulty ignition switch could be to blame. The service department stated that it would be impossible because the ignition switch has changed. They stated that my husband must have taken off his seat belt and engaged the auto p feature. My husband did not unbuckle his seat belt that day. The dealership returned the van noting that they were able to duplicate the issue and engage the auto p feature by unbuckling the driver's seat belt at low speed. My husband and I tried to duplicate and engage the auto p feature ourselves by unbuckling the driver's seat belt after it was returned but were unable to do so. Interestingly, mercedes benz has recently issued a recall for driver's manuals because they acknowledge that the directions for how to engage the feature as explained in the manual are incorrect. Unbuckling will not engage auto p.

NHTSA ODI 11433961

The contact owns a 2020 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact received notifications of NHTSA campaign numbers: 20V802000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic), 21V055000 (Electrical System), and 21V411000 (Electrical System, Back Over Prevention) however, the dealer informed the contact that the parts for the recall repairs were not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repairs. The manufacturer was not notified of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. VIN tool confirms parts not available.

NHTSA ODI 11425962

The contact owns a 2020 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the brakes applied independently. The contact stated that the brake warning light was illuminated. The local dealer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not diagnosed and continued to experience failure. The manufacturer had been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 18.

NHTSA ODI 11423116

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2020 MERCEDES-BENZ SPRINTER 2500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE COOLANT WARNING LIGHT INTERMITTENTLY ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE CONTACT HAD TAKEN THE VEHICLE TO MERCEDES-BENZ OF SPRINGFIELD (295 BURNETT RD, CHICOPEE, MA 01020) WHERE THEY DISCOVERED NO FAULT WITH THE COOLANT SYSTEM HOWEVER, THE WARNING LIGHT CONTINUED TO ILLUMINATE INTERMITTENTLY. THE CONTACT THEN PERFORMED A VIN SEARCH ON THE NHTSA WEBSITE AND DISCOVERED NHTSA CAMPAIGN NUMBER: 21V055000 (ELECTRICAL SYSTEM) AND 21V152000 (SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC) HOWEVER, THE PARTS TO DO THE RECALL REPAIRS WERE UNAVAILABLE. MERCEDES-BENZ OF SPRINGFIELD (295 BURNETT RD, CHICOPEE, MA 01020, (413) 624-4100) WAS CONTACTED AND IT WAS CONFIRMED THAT THE PARTS WERE NOT YET AVAILABLE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE ISSUE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE MANUFACTURER HAD EXCEEDED A REASONABLE AMOUNT OF TIME FOR THE RECALL REPAIR. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 1,000. VIN TOOL CONFIRMS PARTS NOT AVAILABLE.

NHTSA ODI 11405317

WHILE DRIVING ON A HIGHWAY AND PASSING UNDER A ROAD SIGN DESCRIBING THE NEXT EXIT, THE SPRINTER VAN AUTOMATIC CRASH AVOIDANCE KICKED IN, CAUSING THE VAN TO AUTOMATICALLY JAM ON THE BRAKES AND LOSE APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH WHILE CAUSING THE WHEEL TO PULL DECIDEDLY TO THE LEFT. THERE WERE NO VEHICLES IN FRONT OR BEHIND, AND THANKFULLY ENOUGH NONE CLOSE ENOUGH TO CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. THIS IS A FAIRLY COMMON OCCURRENCE, AND EVEN IF THE BRAKES DO NOT ENGAGE, THE CRASH AVOIDANCE ALERT SOUND WILL OFTEN TIMES CHIME AND STARTLE THE DRIVER FOR OTHER OVERHEAD OBSTACLES LIKE TRAFFIC SIGNS AND TUNNEL ENTRIES. THIS FEATURE, ALONG WITH LANE DEPARTURE ASSIST (WHICH ALSO IS BUGGY) AUTOMATICALLY TURNS ON AFTER EVERY RESTART, EVEN AFTER BEING TURNED OFF MANUALLY. IT IS UNSAFE.

NHTSA ODI 11397255

THE ACTIVE LANE KEEPING ASSIST IS HIGHLY DANGEROUS AND NEEDS TO BE PERMANENTLY DISABLED OR REMOVED FROM THE VEHICLE. I NARROWLY AVOIDED GETTING INTO A ACCIDENT. I WAS DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY IN THE LEFT LANE AND HAD TO SERVE AROUND SOME DUMP ITEMS THAT FELL OF THE BACK OF THE TRUCK AHEAD. THE ACTIVE LANE KEEPING ASSIST FORCED THE VAN BACK INTO THE LANE AND TOWARDS THE JUNK IN THE ROAD AND ENDED UP RUNNING OVER IT. IT COULD OF BEEN A LOT WORSE IF THE OBJECT WAS BIGGER, A CAR, PERSON OR ANIMAL. I SHOULD BE ABLE TO TURN IT OFF ONCE! NOT EVERY TIME I HAVE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE. THIS WORRIES ME ESPECIALLY. WITH ALL THE SPRINTER VANS I SEE OUT THERE ON THE ROAD EVERYDAY

NHTSA ODI 11352167