2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500 Driver assistance Problems

The contact owns a 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact stated that on several occasions when the vehicle was started, the message "Distance Assistance Currently Unavailable" was displayed. The contact also stated that while driving on several occasions at various speeds, the cruise control was activated, but the option failed to appear on the screen. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 8,149.

NHTSA ID

11613946

Incident

Sep 5, 2024

Mileage

8,149 mi

Depressing accelerator while in 'D'rive or 'R'everse does not increase RPM or power and vehicle does not move. While keeping the pedal pressed to the floor it will then slowly RPMs will increase and it will creep forward. It will rev. while in park or neutral.

NHTSA ID

11600124

Incident

Jul 7, 2024

The Crosswind Assist feature of this van has caused near-accidents for me several times over the last few years, and especially last week while on vacation. It is a KNOWN problem with owners with no known recall as far as I am aware. It is an extremely abrupt maneuver that has pushed me halfway into the other lane during just moderate winds. I am a professional driver, having pulled double 45' tractor trailers and am very skilled in my driving. This crosswind assist feature is DANGEROUS, and I can barely retain control when it kicks in. It applies the brakes on the side that is getting pushed by the wind and tries to correct the steering all at the same time. It is way too abrupt. The tendency of the driver at that point may be to correct this as it is happening. If this was on icy roads the results would be catastrophic. It is hazardous even on dry roads. This is not a feature that Mercedes allows to be disabled. How can NHTSA allow this hazardous feature to not be included in a recall? I am scared for my safety and for that of my family. I have discussed this with the dealership with no affirmation that there is a problem. I am putting this in your hands with a Certified letter to go out to both your Executive Director Jack Danielson as well as Mercedes US CEO, Dimitris Psillakis requesting action for all Sprinter van owners that have this Crosswind Assist feature. Thank you.

NHTSA ID

11597997

Incident

Jun 25, 2024

The contact owns a 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds with the stability crosswinds feature engaged in windy weather, the brakes independently activated without driver input, and the vehicle swerved and was uncontrollable. There were no warning lights illuminated. The contact called the local dealer, but the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 80,000.

NHTSA ID

11581121

Incident

Mar 21, 2024

Mileage

80,000 mi

The adaptive distance assist system shuts down if no vehicle is sensed for approximately 1.5 hours. The system typically will not re-engage until the vehicle is restarted with an object in front of the vehicle enabling the system to self confirm that the sensors are functioning properly. This is a defect as the system should never turn off due to lack of vehicle detection. A typical drive across west Texas or SW New Mexico makes this happen all the time.

NHTSA ID

11511473

Incident

Mar 12, 2023

The "Distronic" Front radar sensor that controls Forward Collision Warning , Emergency Braking and Adaptive cruise control failed twice during a 900 mile road trip. Once the sensor literally fell out of it's bracket leaving the system non working and putting my family at risk. Second time it failed during a snow storm with limited visibility in Wyoming. There are numerous reports in Mercedes forums that this sensor fails frequently jeopardizing the safety of occupants. There were not warnings prior to the failure and Mercedes

NHTSA ID

11496277

Incident

Nov 25, 2022

The automatic emergency braking feature is regularly activated while driving on the highway when driving under bridges and large overhead road signs. Sometimes, the van only beeps at me, indicating that an obstruction was detected but not doing anything in response. More alarmingly, however, the van has slammed on the brakes while going full speed on the highway several times, sending my tools flying forward and almost creating an accident with the car behind me. The dealership has tried to fix it 3 times and it’s still doing it. They first told me to keep the windshield clean, then they told me to keep my bumper radars clean. They replaced the camera on my last visit but the problem still exists. It seems evident to me that this is a defective system altogether and i don’t think the dealership will be capable of fixing it. I’m afraid to drive my van and I’m not sure what to do about it

NHTSA ID

11494521

Incident

Nov 21, 2022

The contact owns a 2019 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter 2500. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the MBUX multimedia system became inoperable resulting in the rear-view camera not functioning as designed. Upon investigation, the contact associated the failure with NHTSA campaign number: 21V411000 (Electrical System, Back Over Prevention). The vehicle was diagnosed and repaired; however, the failure persisted. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 24,000.

NHTSA ID

11427071

Incident

Jul 13, 2020

Mileage

24,000 mi

THE VEHICLE HAS SOME EMERGENCY STEERING CONTROL THAT IS AUTOMATICALLY BUILT IN. IF YOU GO OUTSIDE OF THE LANES, IT NOT ONLY STEERS YOU BACK TO WITHIN THE LANES, BUT ALSO SLAMS ON THE BRAKES. IT IS AUTOMATICALLY ON. IT CAN BE SHIFTED OFF EVERY SINGLE TIME YOU START THE VEHICLE, BUT IT IS A DEFAULT SETTING. THIS HAS PROVEN TO BE EXTREMELY DANGEROUS IN APPROXIMATELY 5 SITUATIONS WHILE DRIVING THE VEHICLE, AND I JUST BOUGHT THE VEHICLE FOUR MONTHS AGO. TO ILLUSTRATE IT: WE WERE DRIVING THROUGH A CONSTRUCTION ZONE. AT TIMES IN CONSTRUCTION/WORK ZONES, THE FLOW OF TRAFFIC FORCES YOU OUTSIDE OF THE LINES FOR SAFETY PURPOSES. HOWEVER, THE VAN TRIED TO FORCE US BACK "INTO THE LINES" MULTIPLE TIMES, IN CONSTRUCTION, AT NIGHT, WITH MANY OTHER VEHICLES. IT ACTUALLY FORCED OUR VEHICLE BACK ACROSS THE LINE AND INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC IN MULTIPLE SCENARIOS. THIS IS A CASE OF AN AUTOMATIC "SAFETY" SETTING GONE WRONG. IT IS HIGHLY, HIGHLY DANGEROUS TO HAVE IT AUTOMATICALLY DO THIS, WHETHER IT'S DUE TO ONCOMING TRAFFIC, SAME DIRECTION TRAFFIC, CONSTRUCTION OBSTACLES OR EVEN SWERVING TO AVOID DEBRIS OR ANIMALS. THIS LANE ASSIST MUST BE DISABLED TO ALLOW FOR SAFE OPERATION OF THIS VEHICLE.*DT *TR

NHTSA ID

11362197

Incident

Aug 7, 2020

Mileage

4,000 mi

THIS VEHICLE IS EQUIPPED WITH SOME SORT OF WIND SHEER WARNING SYSTEM THAT DETECTS CROSS WINDS AND SUDDENLY SLAMS ON THE BRAKES, WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT. I WAS DRIVING THE SPEED LIMIT ON I-40 IN ARIZONA AT 75 MPH ON CRUISE CONTROL, AND WAS PASSING A TRUCK IN THE LEFT LANE. IT WAS A SOMEWHAT WINDY DAY, BUT I WAS DEALING WITH THE WIND AS ANY NORMAL DRIVER WOULD DO, BY STEERING INTO THE WIND A BIT, AND DEALING WITH GUSTS AS THEY AROSE. AS SOON AS THE NOSE OF MY VEHICLE PASSED THE FRONT OF THE TRUCK, MY VAN SUDDENLY BRAKED WITHOUT WARNING. I DID NOT EXPECT IT AND THE CAR BEHIND ME DID NOT EITHER. I SUDDENLY GRABBED THE WHEEL WITH BOTH HANDS, AND TRIED TO CORRECT THE STEERING, NOT KNOWING WHAT WHAT GOING ON, AND NEARLY VEERED OFF THE ROAD. THE VAN SWERVED NEXT TO THIS TRUCK, RIGHT TO LEFT IN THE LANE, AND I BATTLED TO REGAIN CONTROL WHEN THIS UNEXPECTED SUDDEN SLAMMING ON THE BRAKES RANDOMLY HAPPENED THAT I DID NOT DO. THIS SUDDEN BRAKE-SLAMMING OCCURRED AT LEAST 5 MORE TIMES IN THIS 4 HOUR TRIP. THIS IS SOMETHING THAT YOU DON'T EXPECT AND WHEN YOU ARE DRIVING AND CONVERSING WITH SOMEONE AND SUDDENLY THE BRAKES ARE SHARPLY APPLIED WHILE YOU ARE ON CRUISE CONTROL, WITHOUT ANY SORT OF WARNING. THIS IS A VERY SERIOUS AND POTENTIALLY LIFE-THREATENING PROBLEM. I CALLED MERCEDES AND THEY SAID THERE WAS NOTHING THEY COULD DO ABOUT THE PROBLEM. I ASKED THEM TO TURN THIS FEATURE OFF, AND THEY TOLD ME THAT THEY COULD NOT DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT, AND MORE OR LESS IMPLIED THAT WE HAD TO "LIVE WITH IT". THIS HAS ALSO HAPPENED TO ONE OF MY OTHER DRIVERS THAT ROUTINELY DRIVES THIS VEHICLE AS WELL. AND HE REACTED IN THE SAME VIOLENT WAY THAT I DID, TRYING TO OVERCOMPENSATE FOR THIS SUDDEN AND UNPLANNED BRAKING. THIS IS GOING TO KILL SOMEONE FOR SURE IF WE CANNOT GET IT TURNED OFF. IT IS A VERY DANGEROUS FEATURE TO HAVE ON A VEHICLE!.

NHTSA ID

11341715

Incident

Mar 14, 2020

Mileage

15,000 mi

NEW PURCHASE 02-29-2020; THE MERCEDES SPRINTER 2500 THAT WAS UPFITTED BY AIRSTREAM INTO THE AIRSTREAM INTERSTATE NINETEEN. I DROVE ABOUT 60 MILES AND WHEN BACKING FROM A PARKING SPOT I FELT A SUDDEN GRAB/JOLT FROM THE RIGHT FRONT UNDERCARRIAGE AS IF BACKED OVER A DOG/CHILD. THANKFULLY NOTHING. THREE MORE TIMES THIS OCCURRED OVER TWO DAYS BUT W/O FINDING A CAUSE I CHOSE TO DRIVE 800 MILES TO SEATTLE FROM CALIFORNIA VIA I-5. ABOUT 40 MILES ENROUTE I WAS GOING 70 MPH ON A STRAIGHT, SLIGHT DOWNGRADE STRETCH WHEN THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY GRABBED TO THE RIGHT WITH A SHORT/ABRUPT JERK ON THE STEERING WHEEL. THIS WAS THE SAME AS THE BACKWARD BUT NOW FORWARD AND FRIGHTENING. FORTUNATELY I HAD BOTH HANDS ON THE WHEEL WITH A FIRM GRIP DUE TO THE UNFAMILIAR DARK ROADWAY AND DOWNGRADE STRETCH. THIS OCCURRED FIVE OTHER TIMES OVER THE NEXT 70-100 MILES AT A REDUCED SPEED OF 40-50 WITH A FIRM GRIP ON THE WHEEL AND EXPECTING IT SO I STAYED IN THE FAR LEFT LANE TO AVOID GOING OFF THE ROADWAY ON THE RIGHT. THE FOLLOWING DAY I RESUMED THE DRIVE AT ABOUT 40-50 MPH AND FELT THE SAME GRAB INTERMITTENTLY. I CALLED MERCEDES ROADSIDE ASSIST THROUGH THE VEHICLES ELECTRONIC CONNECTIONS ON THE NAV/MEDIA SCREEN AND THEY PROMPTED ME THROUGH DEACTIVATING THE BRAKE ASSIST. I DEACTIVATED ALL THE OTHER SENSOR DEVICES LIKE LANE ASSIST, PARKTRONICS ETC THAT I COULD FIND TO BE AS SURE AS POSSIBLE IT WAS NOT GOING TO OCCUR AGAIN WHILE DRIVING. THESE ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS REACTIVATE EACH TIME YOU TURN THE IGNITION OFF SO I HAD TO REMEMBER TO DO THAT PRIOR TO DRIVING EACH TIME I STOPPED. I DROVE THE 800 MILES HOME W/O THE SENSORS ACTIVE AND THE PROBLEM DID NOT RECUR. AIRSTREAM'S UPFIT MAKES IT LESS STABLE AND THE WEIGHT NOW ABOUT 10,000-13-000 POUNDS VERY DANGEROUS. IF CRUISE CONTROL WAS ENGAGED MUCH MORE OF A PROBLEM OR WINDING ROADS. I'M A RETIRED COMMERCIAL PILOT AND IT SCARED ME; NEEDS INVESTIGATED SOON.

NHTSA ID

11317084

Incident

Mar 3, 2020

Mileage

130 mi