Owners have filed 282 complaints on the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class, covering 2016–2023. The system named most often is Electrical System (50 reports). Worst years by volume: 2018, 2020, 2019; cleanest: 2016, 2017, 2022. 19 reports describe a crash, 7 a fire, 1 a death. On average the car was 3.5 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 282 GLC-Class complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Electrical System 50 Read
The contact owns a 2023 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 W4. The contact stated that when his wife was parking the vehicle at approximately 5 MPH and when she depressed the brake pedal, the vehicle stalled. The contact stated that his wife said that the brake pedal failed, and the instrument cluster was black. The contact stated…
The contact owns a 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLC300. The contact stated while driving out of a parking lot at 5-10 MPH and making a left turn, the windshield wipers and the rearview camera engaged independently. Additionally, the vehicle accelerated unintendedly and crashed into another vehicle that was unoccupied and parked…
While driving on the [XXX] at the speed of 10 to 15miles per hour, I noticed a smoke in the from hood on the passenger side. I felt a danger and stopped the car and got out of the car immediately along with my friend, leaving my belongings phone and other documents etc. Immediately it caught up the fire. I called 911…
Engine 43 Read
Vehicle has a significant engine oil leak without being driven. Engine oil electronic meter still shows engine oil to be in "Ok" range. Vehicle is 2023 with only 19680 miles and is rarely driven till the last 2 months. Other 2023 Model Year MB GLC300's manufactured at the same Bremen Germany plant are already being…
My 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLC 300 has been diagnosed with a valve seat failure. This requires a full cylinder head replacement. I purchased this vehicle brand new and have driven it with care, putting approximately 60,000 mostly highway miles on it. Throughout my ownership, I have exclusively used the service at an…
Multiple loss of power incidents while driving both on surface streets and highways. Causes vehicle to loss acceleration power, vehicle must be pulled over, shut down and restarted to regain power
Power Train 23 Read
The steering column stalk controls drive, reverse, neutral and parking. I stopped the vehicle on an incline in a parking lot. I had my foot on the brake. I shifted into neutral. The engine was still running. I thought I pushed the park button but the car rolled back into another vehicle
Vehicle sputter and coolant malfunction and engine light came on while driving ( 12-26-23) Took to dealer for some “ update”. After a few weeks of driving the vehicle sputter again and engine light came on again on the (1-19-2024 ) Drove home turned off , loud noises came from engine area. Tried to restart and failed…
The contact owns a 2022 Mercedes-Benz GLC300. The contact stated while driving 76 MPH, the accelerator pedal was depressed; however, the vehicle failed to accelerate as intended. The contact stated that the vehicle speed independently decelerated. The contact safely drove the vehicle to the shoulder of the road. The…
Structure 16 Read
The contact owned a 2018 mercedes-benz glc300. While driving 55 mph, the rear driver's side tire was punctured. The contact stated that the vehicle was equipped with 18 inch run flat tires. The contact pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road. After waiting approximately 70 minutes on the side of the road, the…
The rear door randomly closes with force unexpectantly. We contacted the Mercedes dealer where the car was purchased and is serviced. They responded it can not be fixed and was an ongoing concern of many owners
The glass panel between the windshield and the sun roof shattered spontaneously
Steering 13 Read
Loss of propulsion at highway speeds with subsequent failure of digital light system at night resulting in injury crash
The power steering wheel adjustment stopped working, leaving the steering wheel stuck in a very unconfutable position for driving. The car just ended its 4 yr warranty
There is a significant steering vibration as the front wheel drops in a common pothole turning at speeds above 30 mph. There is a loss of control as if the wheel is skipping. It feels like the shock absorber continues to vibrate for a few seconds. I did mention this to Mercedes-Benz during the annual maintenance…
Air Bags 13 Read
I was involved in a severe front-end collision where my vehicle struck another vehicle with significant force. Despite the major impact, the front airbags did NOT deploy. The entire front end of the vehicle was crushed, including destruction of the radiator, damage to engine components, internal structural collapse,…
The contact owns a 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC300. The contact stated that upon driving through an intersection at 40 mph, another vehicle had run a stoplight. The contact swerved in an attempted to avoid the vehicle, however, she had hit the vehicle's rear driver side tire weld. The contact stated that the driver-side…
We hit a deer at 50mph. Active restraint system pulled us back into our seats. Cabin filled with white smoke/powder. Windows automatically lowered a few inches. Dash display panel issued fault alarms on all airbags and emergency braking systems; front and rear. Vehicle automatically contacted Mercedes SOS and…
Service Brakes 12 Read
The contact owns a 2019 Mercedes Benz GCLCLASS. The contact stated that the brake system failed. The contact stated when driving at 25mph when the brake pedal was engaged the brake pedal went to the floorboard the vehicle crashed a pole and came to stop. There were no warning lights before during or after the failure…
On [XXX], I was driving at 45MPH on a two-lane state road. There was no traffic within 1/4 -1/2 mile of me on that road. There were no guardrails and the road was clear - no birds, animals, people, or construction. For no reason, the car beeped twice and automatically slammed on the brakes so forceful that everything…
First of all, this is a new car produced in 2023. Since I bought it, the engine has shown alarms more than four times. Every time I went to the 4S shop, no problems were found. Today, the engine still shows a yellow alarm. Secondly, the brake disc makes a loud noise when I park the car and then start the accelerator.…
Fuel/propulsion System 9 Read
Car has software issue putting drivers at risk until the update is provided. Response to problem from manufacturer is to drive the car or wait until such time as a solution is developed. This is the 3 issue in less than a year the car's fuel uptake system is interrupted putting drivers at risk when pulling out into…
I was driving back to my house in york, PA. My car all the sudden changed the gear from “D” to “N”. My gas meter was showing 106 miles. My didn’t give sign or alert before it shifted the gear from D to N. I was driving on highway and this was major safety concern as I could have hit by cars coming on highway speed. We…
Driving slowly through a parking lot and had to stop for pedestrians. When the path was clear, the car would not accelerate. It only idled forward and slowly reached about 5 mph. Stepping on the accelerator pedal gave no response after repeatedly trying to accelerate. No warning lights came on to alert me of a…
GLC-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 | Electrical System | 2 | — | |
| 2022 | Air Bags,service Brakes,forward Collision Avoidance | 2 | 1 | |
| 2020 | Air Bags | 3 | 2 | |
| 2019 | Air Bags | 5 | 2 | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 4 | 1 | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 2 | 1 | |
| 2016 | Electrical System,vehicle Speed Control,engine | 1 | — |
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 | 152 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.9 |
| Worst single series | 7 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 3.5 years |
A model average of 1.9 hides a worst series at 7. 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
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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 GLC-Class?
By complaint volume, 2018, 2020, 2019 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 GLC-Class years are the cleanest?
2016, 2017, 2022 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class have?
282 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2016–2023. Of those, 19 describe a crash and 7 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.