What 8 owners told NHTSA about the 2026 Mercedes-benz GLE 350 4matic

On May 26, 2026 I was driving our new Mercedes 2026 GLE350 to [XXX]. The car had 737 miles on it, when it died in traffic on [XXX]. The car was purchased new on April 11, 2026 from the Mercedes dealer in Monterey, CA. When the car died in traffic, an emergency message appeared on the screen "Automatic brake assist not working, Stop the car immediately, Do Not Drive". I was barely able to cross two lanes of traffic in order to get to the right shoulder of the very busy freeway. The dealer in Monterey was contacted and said it sounded like an electrical issue. The car was towed to the nearest Mercedes dealer in Stevens Creek, San Jose Ca. (phone [XXX]) The service advisor at Stevens Creek is named Erica Flores. After 4 days at that dealership, she advised us that they "were unable" to duplicate the problem and that a software fix would have to be addressed by the main shop in Germany. No one knows when the software will be available. We were able to get copies of the repair order, Invoice number XXX. The car was returned to us and we drove back home to Pacific Grove, CA without any other issues. On XXX my wife was once again traveling to [XXX]. At approximately 1:15 pm the car did the exact same thing. Losing power while she was traveling at 65 miles per hour on the busy [XXX]. Again, the computer screen displayed several messages including the braking system, the cooling system and instructed her to turn the car off immediately and not to drive. The car now has approximately 1150 miles on it. We notified the dealer in Monterey Ca, and also the dealer in San Jose (Stevens Creek). My wife spoke again with Erica Flores at the Stevens Creek Mercedes dealer. Erica told my wife she could not help her and that all they could offer is a storage facility for us, with a cost of approximately 160 dollars per day. These issues represent a major safety concern which needs to be addressed by M.B. USA. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11743941

The contact leased a 2026 Mercedes-Benz GLE450 4Matic. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, there was an unknown warning light flashing on the instrument panel. The speed limit was displayed and was flashing. The contact turned off the feature, but the light continued to flash on the instrument panel. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer on two occasions, where an unknown diagnostic result was provided. The manufacturer was working on an update for the fix. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was mailed a letter, and a subject matter expert contacted and informed the contact that there would be a fix within the first quarter of the year. The failure mileage was unknown.

NHTSA ODI 11728321

While driving on a limited-access highway at 65 mph with cruise control engaged, the vehicle unexpectedly reduced speed to 50 mph without any driver input under steady traffic and road conditions. No braking was applied by the driver, and no warnings or alerts were displayed prior to or during the speed reduction. Separately, the vehicle’s displayed speed-limit information was unstable during highway driving. The display repeatedly changed between the correct posted speed limit, a blank display, and “---” under consistent conditions, without changes in roadway, signage, or map context. This behavior was observed multiple times and was captured on video recording. The unexpected reduction in speed created a safety risk due to loss of speed relative to surrounding traffic.

NHTSA ODI 11712886