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2017 Mercedes-Benz GLS 550 Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
6
Latest Aug 5, 2025
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
3
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
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What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLS 550, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Reports by component

Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category

  • Engine133.3%
  • Fuel system133.3%
  • Powertrain (other)133.3%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Each component in detail

What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words

Engine

Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

We had our Mercedes GLS550 2017 with 59,295 overheat and call for immediate shut down on the Massachusetts Turnpike with my wife and child in the car. It was quite a dangerous situation because the failure caused by hose assembly 166-830-15-00 clamp (as described by the dealer as the reason for the loss of fluid and hose failure) caused almost an immediate overheating. The service advisor stated that it is "a quite common failure". I was quite suspicious, because just 11 days prior and 138 miles prior they had performed an Oil Change (Service B9), and thought their mechanic must have damaged the hose fitting they claimed broke. When I looked at the schematic, the fitting is quite close to the Oil Filter Cap, so I assumed that the mechanic accidentally knocked the plastic clamp and broke it. However, they said this was a "normal failure" on these cars. I am a data scientist and have requested failure rates for similar autos in the data cohorts of 50,000, to 60,000 miles and 4 to 5 years old. It woudl be also nice to see if there was data available that included Post B( service visits for the same failures. I was surprised they tracked this data since I was told it was a common failure of this part. Looking at the design of where the host runs, it is certainly exposed to a mechanics tools removing the Oil Filter wrench. If this is common, I would like to help other families with young children being stranded by the side of a busy highway. In this case, I told my wife to drive to the closest safe point even though the engine warning system said to stop immediately. The engine seems to survive fine. I dont know if you record other data on this type of hose assembly failure, but a redesign with non-plastic clamp might be more durable and more appropriate.

NHTSA ID 11444249 · filed Dec 18, 2021

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Fuel system

Reports naming fuel storage or delivery — tanks, pumps, lines, injectors and fuel leaks.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

Feel unsafe fuel rails and more where recalled in April 2022 Not all gls550 were recalled at the time due to no reason Drive to Florida with my wife and kids and car gave up on the side of a bridge hwy over the ocean We were stuck car smelt like gas and wouldn’t turn on we had nowhere to get out on a 25ft bridge with no ac no emergency lanes with 5 kids all under age of 6

NHTSA ID 11678641 · filed Aug 5, 2025

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Powertrain (other)

Powertrain reports that are not specifically the engine or transmission — driveshafts, axles, transfer cases and differentials.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

REAR AXLE LOCK UP BRIEFLY MADE A SOUND LIKE SOMEONE REAR ENDED THE CAR AND SNAP THE LEFT SIDE REAR CV AXLE. VEHICLE IS AWD AND DOES NOT MOVE ON ITS OWN POWER.. SHOP TOW SUV AND ON THE AIR FOUND THE AXLE INNER JOINT JUST SPINS BUT CAR DOES NOT MOVE, THEY PULLED THE AXLE AND THE IS METAL BURNT INTO THE AXLE SHAFT SEEMS REAR DIFF LOCK UP, OIL WAS CLEAN ON THE DIFFERENTIAL.

NHTSA ID 11340655 · filed Jul 21, 2020

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .