Owners have filed 101 complaints on the Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class, covering 2015–2023. The system named most often is Power Train (17 reports). Worst years by volume: 2018, 2015, 2016; cleanest: 2022, 2020, 2021. 2 reports describe a crash. On average the car was 6.6 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 101 GLA-Class complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 17 Read
Noise in rear differential, had dealership where I purchased vehicle flush & change the fluid in rear differential. Tech stated it will need to be replaced. Vehicle has 75,000. Research has numerous problems with this issue
In December 2023, the check engine light came on. The dealership said it was the rear differential. The dealership fixed the problem under warranty. In July 2024, the problem returned. The dealership said it could repeat the procedure from December, but that eventually the rear differential will need to be replaced.…
I was driving my vehicle and it shifted into neutral and would not go back into gear until I pulled over to side of the road, turned it off and back on. A check engine light came on when I restarted the vehicle and I took the vehicle to the dealership for diagnosis. They told me they couldn't find an issue and reset…
Engine 16 Read
In reference to Safety Recall N252494000 L87 Engine Loss of Propulsion... Vehicle passed the recall test. But 2500 miles after the test the engine failed. Per dealership, awaiting new engine
I am reporting a severe drivability and engine failure issue with my vehicle. The vehicle has been exclusively maintained by authorized Mercedes-Benz service centers. Immediately following a scheduled 60,000-mile (Schedule B/C) maintenance, the Check Engine Light began cycling on and off. The vehicle simultaneously…
I own a 2022 Mercedes Benz GLA 250 2022. In [XXX], it was pouring rain and I was driving from [XXX] to attain [XXX] to drive home. It was pouring that night and driving conditions were horrible. I was in the middle lane driving roughly 55-65 mph. About 15 minutes into my drive a light on dash came " engine chip…
Electrical System 13 Read
On 2 separate occasions (August 2025 & February 2026), the car has had a "transmission malfunction" light come on while driving on the highway around 65-70 mph. The light comes on and immediately loses ability to accelerate. Both times the car was towed to Greensboro Mercedes. The first time they did not do anything…
Cowl vent grille openings allowed normal environmental debris to accumulate, plug drainage and divert water onto electrical components and potentially result in a fire if not addressed. Some of the debris passes through into the hvac system and cannot be cleaned without dealer removal/repair of the hvac motor, which…
The ABS Sensor light, engine light, anti skid light and 4 matic malfunction, transmission malfunction all lit up on my dashboard on Tuesday July 22, 2025. The stearing would lock up and the brakes would not break it also shifted gears into neutral. The dashboard finally told me in bold red letters (transmission…
Air Bags 6 Read
Incident on [XXX] 1450 GLA 250 approx 6 months old ? Est car was doing 40 mph impacted back of car my GLA 250 (other car was 1955 chevy - driver stated to police and on report he had a brake failure - no brakes ) as she was at the stop light it pushed her car about 4-5 feet almost hitting car in front of her which was…
My car totaled by another car and my air bags did not deploy
Clock spring broke
Structure 6 Read
Twice now, my husband is putting groceries in the back of the vehicle and the top closes on him and this last time, hit him hard in the head. This is a safety issue, what can we do??
Structure body: roof and pillars affected Recall ID: 450977 year 2014- 2020 NHTSA campaign # 23V854000 Vehicle affected 2,976 A detached roof panel can become a road hazard, increasing the risk of a crash. The vehicle is making a loud noise from the panoramic soon roof
Dear NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, I am submitting a safety complaint regarding my 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 (VIN: [XXX] ). On October 28, 2025, while driving southbound on Interstate 5 near the Zamora Exit in California at approximately 8:15 a.m., the fully closed moonroof of my vehicle spontaneously…
Steering 6 Read
1. POWER STEERING: STEERING WHEEL WENT OUT ON A FREEWAY ALMOST CAUSING MASSIVE COLLISION (this has happened twice) 2. Car Jerkiness: reported this to MBZ of San Rafael for 2 years (went into shop 10+ times for same issue and not resolved. It lunges forward while driving. This also is a safety issue almost causing me…
My Mercedes Benz GLA250 has a faulty rear differential and began shuddering and driving poorly when it had 44K miles on it. This is a very premature failure as diagnosed by two repair shops and is happening to thousands of this model Mercedes Benz. The damage can be catastrophic if continued to be driven as the…
The emergency braking system keeps coming on every time I go to drive, my car automatically shifts into neutral gear when driving and I have an error message saying that I can’t reverse. My seat will Not go further back and I have an air bag issue light
Visibility 6 Read
The contact owns a 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA250. The contact stated that the rear passenger’s side of the sunroof had raised up, causing the sunroof to fail to close properly. The vehicle had been taken to a certified mechanic who informed the contact that the sunroof needed to be replaced. The vehicle had not been…
To a sunroof bonding issue that could cause water leakage
See attached document for complaint
Fuel/propulsion System 5 Read
Problem has been confirmed by dealer that the rear differential assembly needs to be replaced. This is a very common defect with gla250’s. It been recalled in the past and Mercedes Benz is putting many drivers at risk. The estimated to replace is $6100! Mercedes Benz corporation refuses to replace the part only…
There was a gas smell that would seep into the driving cabin from the engine. It was intermittent however when it did occur, the smell was strong enough to cause light headedness to the occupants of the vehicle. I took the car to my personal mechanic who told me that this was a common issue with these cars; however,…
Car smell like fuel possibly fuel injectors or fuel line… recall on 2016-2021 models but 2015 having same issue Blind spot assist says inoperative Mercedes changed sensors multiple times still says inoperative
GLA-Class years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Air Bags,seat Belts | 1 | — | |
| 2022 | Engine | — | — | |
| 2021 | Electrical System,structure,engine | — | — | |
| 2020 | Fuel System, Gasoline,engine | — | — | |
| 2019 | Air Bags | — | — | |
| 2018 | Back Over Prevention | — | — | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | — | — | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | — | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 71 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.4 |
| Worst single series | 5 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 6.6 years |
A model average of 1.4 hides a worst series at 5. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the GLA-Class?
By complaint volume, 2018, 2015, 2016 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which GLA-Class years are the cleanest?
2022, 2020, 2021 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Mercedes-Benz GLA-Class have?
101 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2015–2023. Of those, 2 describe a crash and 0 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.