2009 Mercedes Benz CL550: complaints, problems and recalls
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
1 owner complaints analyzed
0 distinct recall campaigns
108,000 mi median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2009 model year. Data updated: . 1 complaints include usable failure mileage. View data status.
This selection has limited data. It remains available for lookup but is excluded from search indexing.
Most common problems
Exterior Lighting is the most frequently named component, appearing in 1 of 1 complaints (100.0%). A complaint can name multiple components.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting | 1 |
| Structure | 1 |
Exterior Lighting: 1; Structure: 1
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| Under 25,000 | 0 |
| 25,000 to 49,999 | 0 |
| 50,000 to 74,999 | 0 |
| 75,000 to 99,999 | 0 |
| 100,000 to 149,999 | 1 |
| 150,000 and above | 0 |
Under 25,000: 0; 25,000 to 49,999: 0; 50,000 to 74,999: 0; 75,000 to 99,999: 0; 100,000 to 149,999: 1; 150,000 and above: 0
100,000 to 149,999 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (1). 0 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.
Complaints over time
Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.
| Category | Count |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 |
2016: 1
Pattern summary
Exterior Lighting leads the component reports. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.
Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.
Examples from the source records
Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.
Owner report 10853505 · 2016-04-05 (April 5, 2016)
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000.
Owner-reported narrative. 108,000 miles reported. Look up ODI 10853505 at NHTSA ↗
Recall history
0 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.
No recall campaigns are recorded in this snapshot.
Vehicle analysis explorer
Inspect model-year patterns, reported mileage, monthly activity and the evidence behind each signal.
Data completeness
1 unique complaints in this selection. Analysis snapshot: 2026-10-01.
Missing, zero and invalid mileage is excluded. Dates after the snapshot are excluded. Examples are limited selections, not a representative sample.
Problems by model year
Model-wide comparison of the eight most reported components across the model. Cells show counts and shares within each model year. Open a cell for source examples.
| Component | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 571.4%ODI 10474167 · 22,000 miCAR MADE NOISE & STOPPED SUDDENLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD, OIL LEAKAGE HAPPENED BEFORE 30,000 MILEAGE ,DRIVEWAY FULL OF OIL LEAKAGE ,TOOK TO THE DEALER, INITIALLY COULD NOT FIND ANY DEFECT ,AFTER INSISTING THAT THERE IS DEFINITELY A PROBLEM, THEY CALLED ME & SAID THERE IS SOME TUBE NEEDS TO BE CHANGED ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT ANY WARNING SIGN, STOPPED AGAIN ,MERCEDES ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE CAME & CHANGED THE BATTERIES ,AGAIN STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHIN 3MONTHS OF CHA… | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Electrical System | 342.9%ODI 10474167 · 22,000 miCAR MADE NOISE & STOPPED SUDDENLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD, OIL LEAKAGE HAPPENED BEFORE 30,000 MILEAGE ,DRIVEWAY FULL OF OIL LEAKAGE ,TOOK TO THE DEALER, INITIALLY COULD NOT FIND ANY DEFECT ,AFTER INSISTING THAT THERE IS DEFINITELY A PROBLEM, THEY CALLED ME & SAID THERE IS SOME TUBE NEEDS TO BE CHANGED ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT ANY WARNING SIGN, STOPPED AGAIN ,MERCEDES ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE CAME & CHANGED THE BATTERIES ,AGAIN STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHIN 3MONTHS OF CHA… | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Fuel System, Gasoline | 114.3%ODI 10550707 · 82,456 miNOTE: DATE LISTED IS NOT FIRST TIME NOR ONLY TIME, THIS IS DATE OF LAST FILL UP. CAR HAS STRONG GAS ODOR INSIDE OF VEHICLE AFTER FILLING UP. THIS LASTS FOR A FEW DAYS. THIS HAS HAPPENED NUMEROUS TIMES BUT DOES NOT STEM TO HAPPEN EVERY TIME. THERE IS NO EVIDENCE OF LEAKING UNDER CAR OR UNDER HOOD. WHEN CHECKING ONLINE, THERE WERE NUMEROUS REPORTS OF SAME CONDITION, INCLUDING A CLASS ACTION LAWSUIT REGARDING THIS DEFECT. *TR | 114.3%ODI 10664204 · 79,000 miSTRONG ODOR OF GAS AFTER FILL THE TANK UP. THE ODOR WAS OUTSIDE, AND IT EVENTUALLY DISAPPEARED WHEN THE LEVEL OF GAS IS LOWER. THERE WAS ALSO GAS LEAKING UNDERNEATH (DRIVER'S REAR SIDE). I WAS TOLD TO REPLACE THE FUEL GASKET, AFTER DOING THAT, THE ODOR IS NOW INSIDE THE CAR, CONSTANT FUEL ODOR, IT NEVER DISAPPEAR. DRIVING THE CAR IS IMPOSSIBLE, AND GAS LEAKING UNDERNEATH CONTINUES, SAME SPOT. *TR | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Power Train | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 228.6%ODI 10717074 · 59,000 miTRANSMISSION COOLER WHICH IS IN RADIATOR CRACKED AND ALLOWED TRANSMISSION FLUID TO ENTER MOTOR COOLING SYSTEM AND COOLANT TO ENTER TRANSMISSION COMPLETELY RUINING THE TRANSMISSION ALL COMPONENTS AND COMPUTER TALKED TO MERCEDES THEY WOULD DO OOHING ABOUT TOTAL COST TO REPAIR $5000.00 | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Seat Belts | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 228.6%ODI 10605381 · 31,000 miI AM WRITING TO INFORM YOU OF A VERY TROUBLING INCIDENT THAT OCCURRED RECENTLY. I OWN A 2008 MERCEDES BENZ CL550 WITH 31,000 MILES ON THE ODOMETER. ON JUNE 16, 2014, THE SEATBELT ON MY VEHICLE WOULD NOT RELEASE FROM THE SEAT, LEAVING ME UNABLE TO BUCKLE MY SEAT. ON TOP OF THE OBVIOUS SAFETY HAZARD, ILLEGALITY OF DRIVING WITHOUT A SEAT BELT, CONSTANT DINGING FROM THE VEHICLE TO REMIND ME THAT I WAS NOT BUCKLED, WHICH DID NOT ALLOW ME TO SPEAK WITH MY CLIENTS BY PHONE IN THE VEHICLE, I HAD TO DEAL WITH VERY POOR HANDLING OF THIS MATTER BY MBUS… | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Engine | 114.3%ODI 10474167 · 22,000 miCAR MADE NOISE & STOPPED SUDDENLY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD, OIL LEAKAGE HAPPENED BEFORE 30,000 MILEAGE ,DRIVEWAY FULL OF OIL LEAKAGE ,TOOK TO THE DEALER, INITIALLY COULD NOT FIND ANY DEFECT ,AFTER INSISTING THAT THERE IS DEFINITELY A PROBLEM, THEY CALLED ME & SAID THERE IS SOME TUBE NEEDS TO BE CHANGED ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD ,STOPPED AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHOUT ANY WARNING SIGN, STOPPED AGAIN ,MERCEDES ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE CAME & CHANGED THE BATTERIES ,AGAIN STOPPED IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD WITHIN 3MONTHS OF CHA… | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
| Exterior Lighting | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 1100.0%ODI 10853505 · 108,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000. |
| Service Brakes | 114.3%ODI 10648741 · 55,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2007 MERCEDES CL 550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT AN UNKNOWN SPEED, THE BRAKE FLUID LOW MESSAGE SUDDENLY DISPLAYED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO THE DEALER. THE TECHNICIAN REPAIRED THE REAR BRAKES. IN A SEPARATE INCIDENT, THE ACTIVE BODY CONTROL SYSTEM SENSOR LIGHT SUDDENLY DISPLAYED INDICATING TO STOP THE VEHICLE IMMEDIATELY. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALER TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 55,000...UPDATED 12/11/14 *BF … | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. | 00.0%No examples available for this selection. |
Darker cells indicate a larger share of submitted complaints. Components overlap. This measures complaint composition, not failure probability.
Failure mileage by component
Median and middle 50% of usable owner-reported mileages. Ranges require at least five records.
| Component | Mileage range (25th–75th percentile) | Median | Usable records | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting | Too few reports for a range | 108,000 mi | 1 (sparse) | ODI 10853505 · 108,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000. |
| Structure | Too few reports for a range | 108,000 mi | 1 (sparse) | ODI 10853505 · 108,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000. |
Complaint and recall timeline
Explore monthly filing activity alongside recall announcements. Up to ten years of monthly history is available.
Solid line: filed complaints. Dashed amber lines: recall announcement dates for this vehicle selection; markers include all recall components. The latest month is partial. Temporal proximity does not establish causation.
Monthly counts, recall campaigns and complaint examples
| Month | Complaints | Campaigns announced | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024-11 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2024-12 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-01 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-02 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-03 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-04 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-05 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-06 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-07 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-08 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-09 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-10 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-11 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2025-12 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-01 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-02 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-03 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-04 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-05 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-06 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-07 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-08 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-09 | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
| 2026-10 (partial) | 0 | None | No examples available for this selection. |
Emerging complaint spikes
Complete months in the latest six months with at least 10 complaints, at least twice the preceding 12-month average, and at least three square-root deviations above that average.
This is a descriptive screening rule, not a statistical defect finding. Publicity and reporting changes can increase submissions.
No complete months meet the spike thresholds for this selection.
Equal-age model-year comparison
Model-wide cumulative reports during the first three or five calendar years, starting with the model year (age 0). Only fully elapsed windows are compared.
2008: 1 complaints · 2009: 0 complaints
| Model year | Through age 0 | Through age 1 | Through age 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2009 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Date coverage across each selected cohort
| Year | Incident dates used | Filing date fallbacks | Excluded dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| 2009 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Incident date is preferred when valid and no later than filing; otherwise filing date is used. Model year approximates age. Equal observation time does not adjust for sales, distance driven or reporting delays. One complaint linked to multiple model years can appear in each cohort.
Components reported together
Each cell counts unique complaints naming both components. Open a nonzero cell for examples.
| Component | Exterior Lighting | Structure |
|---|---|---|
| Exterior Lighting | — | 1ODI 10853505 · 108,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000. |
| Structure | 1ODI 10853505 · 108,000 miTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2009 MERCEDES-BENZ CL550. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THERE WAS AN ABNORMAL SMOKE ODOR UNDER THE PASSENGER SIDE DASHBOARD. UPON INSPECTING UNDERNEATH THE DASHBOARD, THE CONTACT FOUND EVIDENCE THAT THE LIGHTING COVER WAS MELTED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 108,000. | — |
Co-reporting does not establish that one component caused another concern.
Recurring narrative patterns
Specific keyword mentions beyond broad component labels. Matching includes negations and comparisons and does not confirm a diagnosis.
0 patterns with matching reports.
No narratives match the published patterns.