2014 Mercedes-Benz GLK250 Problems

The contact owns a 2014 Mercedes-Benz GLK250. The contact stated that the front passenger’s side air bag warning light failed to function as designed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the mechanic informed the contact that the sensor light was permanently disabled. The contact then stated that he was informed of NHTSA Campaign Number: 19V010000 (Air Bags). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and advised the contact to call the NHTSA Hotline. The failure mileage was approximately 75,000.

SUMMARY: MERCEDES-BENZ USA IS RECALLING CERTAIN MY 2010-2017 C-CLASS, GLK-CLASS, SLS-CLASS AND E-CLASS COUPE MERCEDES-BENZ VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH PASSENGER-SIDE FRONTAL AIRBAGS AFFECTED BY THE DEFECT DECISION OF TK HOLDINGS, INC. ( TAKATA ). UNDER CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES DURING A CRASH THAT NECESSITATES FRONTAL AIRBAG DEPLOYMENT, THE DEFECT IN YOUR PASSENGER-SIDE FRONTAL AIRBAG INFLATOR MAY CAUSE THE INFLATOR TO EXPLODE. A PASSENGER-SIDE INFLATOR EXPLOSION DURING DEPLOYMENT COULD RESULT IN METAL FRAGMENTS STRIKING THE FRONT PASSENGER OR OTHER OCCUPANTS, POSSIBLY CAUSING SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH. SAFETY RISK: ACCORDING TO TAKATA, IN THE EVENT OF AN INFLATOR EXPLOSION, METAL FRAGMENTS COULD PASS THROUGH THE AIR BAG CUSHION MATERIAL, WHICH MAY RESULT IN INJURY OR DEATH TO VEHICLE OCCUPANTS.

The contact owns a 2014 Mercedes Benz GLK250. The contact stated while driving at a slow speed and seeking a parking spot, the vehicle accelerated independently and caused her to crash into a parked vehicle. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The air bags did not deploy. The contact stated she did not sustain any injuries and her daughter (front passenger side) was feeling dizzy but declined to seek medical attention. A police report was filed. The vehicle was not drivable. The contact towed the vehicle to an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. A dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer had not been informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 122,000. The consumer was told to obtain a EDR from Mercedes who than stated, you have to request that information from the officer who filed the report to request a subpoena from a Judge, but the request was denied by the officer. Also, the vehicle was deemed as totaled but the air bags did not deploy. UPDATE: 07/01/2023- This letter is a follow-up to my initial telephone complaint over 4 ½ months ago filed with NHTSA concerning the uncontrollable acceleration of my vehicle on January 6, 2023, resulting in a collision with a parked vehicle. The details are again attached for your review in the following correspondence: •March 31, 2023 update and completed DOT Owner's Questionnaire •February 18, 2023 update •April 20, 2023 letter from Mercedes Benz •My accident photos •Police Report and other supporting documentation

Left side boost tube blown twice on my vehicle. Technical part info: 204-528-00-00, Charge Air Hose Both incidents involved sudden loss of power in the middle of the free way driving. First incident: Christmas Day 2018, on the way to Las Vegas from Grand Canyon visit, on highway 93. Fortunately, no vehicle was behind when I lost the power, moved to right lane and continued driving slowly to reach the hotel in LV (about 50 miles at low speeds). Check engine light came on immediately after loosing the power. Next day morning, visited the local Mercedes dealer to repair the vehicle, it costed me $520.19 This was in the middle of a long road trip from Phoenix to San Fransisco. Second incident: July 29th 2021, right after I picked up the vehicle from a repair shop to repair the rear bumper. Vehicle pick up was slow, no check engine light. Next day morning, on the way to work on I-17, vehicle lost the power while merging onto Freeway. Almost got hit a by trailer truck which was right behind me. Moved back to right lane and slowly drove to work. Check engine light came on after few minutes of driving. Took the vehicle to repair on August 6th to a local dealer. This time they didn't charge me for the repair and said it's covered under warranty. I don't have any warranty. Seems like it's a design issue with turbo charge air hose and/or a faulty part. It's a real safety issue if it blown in the middle of driving.

Left side boost tube blown twice on my vehicle. Technical part info: 204-528-00-00, Charge Air Hose Both incidents involved sudden loss of power in the middle of the free way driving. First incident: Christmas Day 2018, on the way to Las Vegas from Grand Canyon visit, on highway 93. Fortunately, no vehicle was behind when I lost the power, moved to right lane and continued driving slowly to reach the hotel in LV (about 50 miles at low speeds). Check engine light came on immediately after loosing the power. Next day morning, visited the local Mercedes dealer to repair the vehicle, it costed me $520.19 This was in the middle of a long road trip from Phoenix to San Fransisco. Second incident: July 29th 2021, right after I picked up the vehicle from a repair shop to repair the rear bumper. Vehicle pick up was slow, no check engine light. Next day morning, on the way to work on I-17, vehicle lost the power while merging onto Freeway. Almost got hit a by trailer truck which was right behind me. Moved back to right lane and slowly drove to work. Check engine light came on after few minutes of driving. Took the vehicle to repair on August 6th to a local dealer. This time they didn't charge me for the repair and said it's covered under warranty. I don't have any warranty. Seems like it's a design issue with turbo charge air hose and/or a faulty part. It's a real safety issue if it blown in the middle of driving.

BLUE TEC SYSTEM FOR DIESEL FUEL EMISSIONS IN MY 2014 MERCEDES BENZ GLK250 MODEL IS INHERENTLY FLAWED WITH REPEATED FAILURES THAT CAUSE THE CAR TO "GO LIMP" (UNABLE TO START AFTER 10 OR LESS STARTS WHEN THERE IS A FAILURE IN THE BLUE TEC SYSTEM.) AS A RESULT, THE CAR IS NOT ONLY UNRELIABLE, IT IS UNSAFE SHOULD THE CAR "GO LIMP" WHEN NEEDED FOR EMERGENCY OR ON A ROAD TRIP OR UNABLE TO DRIVE OUT OF AN UNSAFE AREA, ETC., SINCE ONLY A MERCEDES BENZ DEALER CAN RE-SET THE SYSTEM AFTER REPAIRS SO THAT THE CAR WILL START AGAIN. TO DATE (5/16/19) MY 2014 GLK250 HAS 28,388 MILES AND HAS BEEN RETURNED TO THE DEALER 6 TIMES (FIRST TIME, DEC. 6, 2014 AND 5 MORE TIMES SINCE) DUE TO THE ELECTRONIC WARNING MESSAGE "10 REMAINING STARTS/ADD BLUE" WHICH HAS ALWAYS TURNED OUT TO BE AN ELECTRONIC FAILURE IN THE BLUE TEC SYSTEM. THE MESSAGE MAY APPEAR WHEN THE CAR IS PARKED AND THE IGNITION IS TURNED ON OR WHILE DRIVING. SOMETIMES, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT MAY FIRST APPEAR FOLLOWED BY THE "REMAINING STARTS" MESSAGE A FEW DAYS LATER. THERE IS NO LOGIC OR SET SEQUENCE. AND WHEN IT APPEARS, THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO IMMEDIATELY GO TO THE DEALER FOR REPAIRS AND TO RE-SET THE COMPUTER SO THE COUNT DOWN STOPS AND THE CAR CAN BE STARTED. THE REASON THIS IS NOT A WIDELY KNOWN PROBLEM IS THAT THERE WERE NOT MANY GLK 250 BLUE TEC CARS SOLD IN THE U.S. AND MERCEDES BENZ NO LONGER BUILDS THIS MODEL AND HAS STOPPED OFFERING DIESEL PASSENGER CARS IN THE U.S. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON COMPLAINTS, SEE LINK.: HTTPS://MBWORLD.ORG/FORUMS/GLK-CLASS-X204/517220-2014-GLK250-CONTINUED-ISSUES-BEWARE.HTML NOTE: THE DATE BELOW IS THE START DATE OF THE BLUE TEC PROBLEM FOR MY CAR AND THE MILAGE BELOW WAS FOR THE FIRST TIME THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TO FIX THE PROBLEM FOLLOWED BY 5 MORE TIMES AFTERWARDS SINCE 12/6/14

1. Windshield wiper assemblies failed to operate. 2. During severe rainstorm in Northern California, driver side wiper arm stopped working while I was driving on freeway. 3. Confirmed by independent service center. He showed me a broken part under the hood. He said it would cost close to $1000.00 to repair. 4. I will be taking the car to a Mercedes Benz dealer for a second opinion. 5. No warning lights appeared.

"SPONTANEOUS SUNROOF EXPLOSION" - MY 2013 MERCEDES GLK250 BLUETEC EXPERIENCED A SPONTANEOUS SUNROOF EXPLOSION WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. AN ACCIDENT NEARLY OCCURRED AS A RESULT OF THE GUNSHOT LIKE IMPACT EXPERIENCED INSIDE THE CABIN OF THE VEHICLE AS A RESULT OF THE SUNROOF EXPLOSION. I HAD SEVERAL CHARDS OF GLASS EMBED IN MY SKIN AND IN MY EYE, AS THE EXPLOSION PRODUCED AN ULTRA FINE DUST OF SAFETY GLASS PARTICLES THAT WERE UNAVOIDABLE. NO IMPACT DEBRIS OR FOREIGN OBJECT WAS ATTRIBUTABLE TO THE CAUSE OF THE EXPLOSION, HINTING AT MANUFACTURER DEFECT.

Left side boost tube blown twice on my vehicle. Technical part info: 204-528-00-00, Charge Air Hose Both incidents involved sudden loss of power in the middle of the free way driving. First incident: Christmas Day 2018, on the way to Las Vegas from Grand Canyon visit, on highway 93. Fortunately, no vehicle was behind when I lost the power, moved to right lane and continued driving slowly to reach the hotel in LV (about 50 miles at low speeds). Check engine light came on immediately after loosing the power. Next day morning, visited the local Mercedes dealer to repair the vehicle, it costed me $520.19 This was in the middle of a long road trip from Phoenix to San Fransisco. Second incident: July 29th 2021, right after I picked up the vehicle from a repair shop to repair the rear bumper. Vehicle pick up was slow, no check engine light. Next day morning, on the way to work on I-17, vehicle lost the power while merging onto Freeway. Almost got hit a by trailer truck which was right behind me. Moved back to right lane and slowly drove to work. Check engine light came on after few minutes of driving. Took the vehicle to repair on August 6th to a local dealer. This time they didn't charge me for the repair and said it's covered under warranty. I don't have any warranty. Seems like it's a design issue with turbo charge air hose and/or a faulty part. It's a real safety issue if it blown in the middle of driving.

MERCEDES SERVICE CAMPAIGNS 2019010001 AND 2019080019 MY DEALER (WAGNER MERCEDES OF SHREWSBURY, MA) HAS TOLD ME THAT NO REPLACEMENT PARTS ARE AVAILABLE FOR 2019010001 EVEN AFTER A YEAR OF WAITING. IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE NHTSA WWWEB SITE ("IF THE MANUFACTURER HAS FAILED OR IS UNABLE TO REMEDY THIS SAFETY RECALL FOR YOUR VEHICLE IN A TIMELY MANNER, PLEASE CONTACT THE NHTSA VEHICLE SAFETY HOTLINE AT: 1-888-327-4236 OR TTY: 1-800-424-9153 OR FILE AN ONLINE COMPLAINT WITH NHTSA."), I AM FILING THIS COMPLAINT.

BLUE TEC SYSTEM FOR DIESEL FUEL EMISSIONS IN MY 2014 MERCEDES BENZ GLK250 MODEL IS INHERENTLY FLAWED WITH REPEATED FAILURES THAT CAUSE THE CAR TO "GO LIMP" (UNABLE TO START AFTER 10 OR LESS STARTS WHEN THERE IS A FAILURE IN THE BLUE TEC SYSTEM.) AS A RESULT, THE CAR IS NOT ONLY UNRELIABLE, IT IS UNSAFE SHOULD THE CAR "GO LIMP" WHEN NEEDED FOR EMERGENCY OR ON A ROAD TRIP OR UNABLE TO DRIVE OUT OF AN UNSAFE AREA, ETC., SINCE ONLY A MERCEDES BENZ DEALER CAN RE-SET THE SYSTEM AFTER REPAIRS SO THAT THE CAR WILL START AGAIN. TO DATE (5/16/19) MY 2014 GLK250 HAS 28,388 MILES AND HAS BEEN RETURNED TO THE DEALER 6 TIMES (FIRST TIME, DEC. 6, 2014 AND 5 MORE TIMES SINCE) DUE TO THE ELECTRONIC WARNING MESSAGE "10 REMAINING STARTS/ADD BLUE" WHICH HAS ALWAYS TURNED OUT TO BE AN ELECTRONIC FAILURE IN THE BLUE TEC SYSTEM. THE MESSAGE MAY APPEAR WHEN THE CAR IS PARKED AND THE IGNITION IS TURNED ON OR WHILE DRIVING. SOMETIMES, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT MAY FIRST APPEAR FOLLOWED BY THE "REMAINING STARTS" MESSAGE A FEW DAYS LATER. THERE IS NO LOGIC OR SET SEQUENCE. AND WHEN IT APPEARS, THERE IS NO ALTERNATIVE BUT TO IMMEDIATELY GO TO THE DEALER FOR REPAIRS AND TO RE-SET THE COMPUTER SO THE COUNT DOWN STOPS AND THE CAR CAN BE STARTED. THE REASON THIS IS NOT A WIDELY KNOWN PROBLEM IS THAT THERE WERE NOT MANY GLK 250 BLUE TEC CARS SOLD IN THE U.S. AND MERCEDES BENZ NO LONGER BUILDS THIS MODEL AND HAS STOPPED OFFERING DIESEL PASSENGER CARS IN THE U.S. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON COMPLAINTS, SEE LINK.: HTTPS://MBWORLD.ORG/FORUMS/GLK-CLASS-X204/517220-2014-GLK250-CONTINUED-ISSUES-BEWARE.HTML NOTE: THE DATE BELOW IS THE START DATE OF THE BLUE TEC PROBLEM FOR MY CAR AND THE MILAGE BELOW WAS FOR THE FIRST TIME THE CAR WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER TO FIX THE PROBLEM FOLLOWED BY 5 MORE TIMES AFTERWARDS SINCE 12/6/14