Ask the Car People.SM


Mercedes-Benz GL450 Reliable?

86 messages,  Last post on Apr 18, 2013 at 9:36 PM

You are in the Mercedes-Benz GL Class Forum.

What is this discussion about? Mercedes-Benz GL-Class, SUV

    

Messages Page 4 of 9

#29 of 86 07's have a whole host of issues by watkinst

Feb 26, 2010 (3:23 pm)

The original post was regarding 08's
 
As for the fire thing - the battery is a high tech AGM battery we use in the boating industry very good product which has a long life and Gel format so have little risk of spilling etc in an accident.
 
As for electrical fires you need to be very cautious of after market and even dealer add on products that require electrical work in any new high tech car given the electrical systems being modified or altered can cause fires and other major issues.
 
Once a car leaves the factory there is no telling what is done to it even by the dealer before its sold.
 
I have a good friend with a private company that specializes in MB electrical work and fixes. The local MB dealer has started shipping their cars to his business given they were having all sorts of issues caused by 3rd party attempts to add alarms - radio equipment - back up cameras - entertainment systems etc.
 
Not to mention there are electrical standards regarding this sort of work which nearly no 3rd party small shop is up to speed on or certified for.

#30 of 86 Re: 07's have a whole host of issues [watkinst] by kurtz350

Jun 22, 2010 (11:57 am)

Replying to: watkinst (Feb 26, 2010 3:23 pm)
Hi I HAD a 08 GL. It caught on fire. Investigation still pending. I cannot tell if the fire started from the engine or interior due to smoke travelling from vents at the time or incedence. The car is burnt to a crisp and took the fireengines around 25 minutes to respond due to my location. My question is since you have knowledge, do you know if the computer can be salvaged to acquire information on how the fire got started or give a brief history on the step by-step problems that occured prior to combustion?

#31 of 86 Re: Reliability Issues... [mbbq]...FIRE FIRE FIRE [st99] by wk0312

Jul 25, 2010 (8:20 pm)

Replying to: st99 (Oct 01, 2009 8:38 pm)
Thank you for sharing your experiences. My wife and I was considering a 07 GL450 at our local MB dealership. Now that I have read the threads we will no longer be pursuing this vehicle.
 
Many Thanks,
 
Wayne

#32 of 86 Reliability Issues Fire,Fire by priority1

Jul 28, 2010 (8:25 am)

I was contemplating buying a certified 2008 GL. This is the first I heard of any fires! What did MB attribute the causes to? Is this a problem in 2007 and 2008 models only? I would appreciate any updates on this issue?
 
Thanks

#33 of 86 Fire on 2008 Diesel by darinhill7

Aug 14, 2010 (12:31 pm)

I just lost my MB 2008 320 GL last night. The fire was so hot it melted both the front and back license plates. I am so thankful that my kids were not in the car...we just had a wedding last week, and we have had many relatives riding in the car up until the day before the fire. I planned on replacing the car with another MB GL, but now, after reading these posts, I am very concerned. I had never heard of any issues until now!

#34 of 86 Re: Fire on 2008 Diesel [darinhill7] by steve_ HOST

Aug 14, 2010 (11:24 pm)

Replying to: darinhill7 (Aug 14, 2010 12:31 pm)
Yikes!
 
Were you driving the car at the time or was it parked somewhere?

#35 of 86 Re: Fire on 2008 Diesel [steve_] by darinhill7

Aug 15, 2010 (1:58 pm)

Replying to: steve_ (Aug 14, 2010 11:24 pm)
It was being driven back to the dealership by a driver for repair...the check engine light had come on and I had been having problems with acceleration, so I was sending it to the dealer. Apparently, the driver was flagged down and told the back of the car was on fire.

#36 of 86 Burnt while driving GL450 by ermsam

Aug 28, 2010 (6:44 pm)

OMG! I thought I was going crazy until I began reading these posts! Today, I was driving my recently purchased pre-owned 07 GL-450, with my wife and kids when I started feeling intense pain to the left side of my lower back! I thought I had gotten bitten by an insect! But when I reached back, I felt heat. I looked at the heated seat indicator and noticed it on. How it came on is a mystery, because it was 101 degree outside and I did not turn it on. The pain intensified to the point where I had to pull over on the side of the highway. When I got out, I smelled smoke and noticed what appeared to be a circular burn in the vinyl seat approximate to a burnt area on back. Upon arriving home, I took a thermometer, placed it on the burnt area on the seat, started the car and turned on the driver side heated seat on low. In less than 30 seconds the seat began to smoke and the thermometer spiked and broke! I moved the car out of my garage. I believe the car is still smoldering even though some time has passed and now we are afraid to go near it! I would be surprised if the heated seat function isn’t really the cause of all these internal fires. We’ve had the car less than a month, have yet to pay the first payment, and have had to have this car serviced 4 times by Mercedes. I wonder if I am protected by the lemon law! To think I traded a fully loaded Nissan Pathfinder LX in for this very expensive Piece of Crap! Mercedes use to stand for something!

#37 of 86 R350 FIRE by 06_r350_fire

Sep 05, 2010 (12:26 pm)

last night my R 350 caught fire in my driveway. Yesterday we were having problems, and since is is under warranty, the mercedes tech was dispatched to my work and home yesterday to troubleshoot why the alarm was going off/rear hatch malfunction. after the second time of responding we left the car in the driveway annoyed that the car was having problems again. We have had a history of electrical issues with this car for some time
  Later that night our child was crying in his room. The alarm had woken him up. Thankfully, I went outside to turn off the alarm and noticed the entire rear right quarter-panel was engulfed in flames. The flames were so fierce it destroyed the entire inside of the car and melted the entire back of the R350. When the fire was put out the car was gone. It was evident that the fire started in the back right corner of the vehicle (right where a computer system is located).
   Anyway, has anyone heard of this happening before? It seems like some of you have experienced this problem in the GL, and I was curious the outcome... Have any of you contacted Mercedes USA about these issues...? Any help will be greatly appreciated....
 
Thanks

#38 of 86 Re: Reliability Issues... [mbbq] by 06_r350_fire

Sep 05, 2010 (12:41 pm)

Replying to: mbbq (Jan 29, 2009 2:34 pm)
Hello
 
this happened last night to my R350 mercedes... Where you able to make some headroom with Mercedes, i.e. replacement car, etc? I am thinking about going after them...

Messages Page 4 of 9

To POST a message, please Sign In.

Advertisement

Browse by Category

Browse by Vehicle
   View All Vehicles

Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
View All Topics

Edmunds Community

Advertisement