2021 Mercedes-Benz GLA 250 4MATIC: complaints, problems and recalls
Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.
Key facts
3 owner complaints analyzed
1 distinct recall campaigns
Not available median reported failure mileage
Scope: 2021 model year. Data updated: . 0 complaints include usable failure mileage. View data status.
This selection has limited data. It remains available for lookup but is excluded from search indexing.
Owner-reported patterns
Most common problems
Engine is the most frequently named component, appearing in 3 of 3 complaints (100.0%). A complaint can name multiple components.
Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic
Matching reports
Share of complaints
Engine operation
2
66.7%
Electrical and battery issues
2
66.7%
Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.
Component breakdown
Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.
Engine
3
Service Brakes
1
Component breakdown data
Category
Count
Engine
3
Service Brakes
1
Engine: 3; Service Brakes: 1
Reported problems by failure mileage
Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.
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
0
150,000 and above
0
Reported problems by failure mileage data
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
0
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: 0; 150,000 and above: 0
No usable failure mileage is recorded. 3 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.
2026
3
Complaints over time data
Category
Count
2026
3
2026: 3
Pattern summary
Engine leads the component reports. Engine operation appears in 2 complaint narratives. Electrical and battery issues appears in 2 complaint narratives. 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.
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
I recently purchased my vehicle with under 30k miles in July of 2026. Not long after my purchase my car began roughly idling with a blinking check engine light, and soon after the engine began misfiring. This also cause loss of power when attempting to accelerate creating dangerous conditions in high traffic/fast paced areas. After lots of research I found several reports of owners with cylinder failures. The dealership only responded to fixing the issue after calling them out directly on the issue.
On 7/17/26, while driving at highway speed, the check engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power and shut off. I safely pulled over. It would not restart; a red battery warning displayed. Towed to Mercedes-Benz of Wilkes-Barre, RO #8388432. Dealer found battery severely discharged, replaced it, then found engine would not turn by hand. Diagnosis: internal engine damage/seized; recommended full engine replacement, est. $20,128, on a 2021 GLA 250 with 82,137 miles. MBUSA TSB MC-10241534-0001 (8/4/2023) extends the emission warranty on t…
1 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.
26V481000 · Latches/Locks/Linkages:Doors:Lock
Reported: 2026-07-24 (July 24, 2026)
Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2020-2021 CLA, 2019-2022 A-Class, 2022-2023 C-Class, 2024 CLE, 2020-2026 GLA/GLB, and 2023-2024 GLC vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific model information. The micro-switch in the driver's door lock may corrode and fail to detect an open door, preventing the electronic parking brake or "Auto-Park" feature from engaging automatically. This may result in a vehicle rollaway.
Consequence: A vehicle rollaway increases the risk of a crash or injury.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the driver's door lock, free of charge. Owner notification letters are expected to be mailed September 18, 2026. This will be a phased campaign, with the remedy becoming available in different phases based on model and model years. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning July 31, 2026.
Inspect model-year patterns, reported mileage, monthly activity and the evidence behind each signal.
Data completeness
3 unique complaints in this selection. Analysis snapshot: 2026-10-01.
0.0%Usable mileage0 / 3 records
100.0%Valid incident date3 / 3 records
100.0%Valid filing date3 / 3 records
100.0%Ordered incident and filing dates3 / 3 records
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 complaint heatmap
Component
2021
2022
2023
2024
2025
Engine
3100.0%ODI 11715960
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
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 failure mileage distribution
Component
Mileage range (25th–75th percentile)
Median
Usable records
Examples
No usable records for this analysis.
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
Monthly complaint and recall timeline
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
1
None
ODI 11715960
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
I recently purchased my vehicle with under 30k miles in July of 2026. Not long after my purchase my car began roughly idling with a blinking check engine light, and soon after the engine began misfiring. This also cause loss of power when attempting to accelerate creating dangerous conditions in high traffic/fast paced areas. After lots of research I found several reports of owners with cylinder failures. The dealership only responded to fixing the issue after calling them out directly on the issue.
On 7/17/26, while driving at highway speed, the check engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power and shut off. I safely pulled over. It would not restart; a red battery warning displayed. Towed to Mercedes-Benz of Wilkes-Barre, RO #8388432. Dealer found battery severely discharged, replaced it, then found engine would not turn by hand. Diagnosis: internal engine damage/seized; recommended full engine replacement, est. $20,128, on a 2021 GLA 250 with 82,137 miles. MBUSA TSB MC-10241534-0001 (8/4/2023) extends the emission warranty on t…
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.
2022: 0 complaints · 2023: 0 complaints
Equal observation windows
Model year
Through age 0
Through age 1
Through age 2
2022
0
0
0
2023
0
0
0
Date coverage across each selected cohort
Date basis for all complaints in selected model years
Year
Incident dates used
Filing date fallbacks
Excluded dates
2022
1
0
0
2023
0
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 co-occurrence matrix
Component
Engine
Service Brakes
Engine
—
1ODI 11715960
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
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.
2 patterns with matching reports.
Stalling or loss of power
3 mentions · 100.0% of complaints
Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).
ODI 11715960
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
I recently purchased my vehicle with under 30k miles in July of 2026. Not long after my purchase my car began roughly idling with a blinking check engine light, and soon after the engine began misfiring. This also cause loss of power when attempting to accelerate creating dangerous conditions in high traffic/fast paced areas. After lots of research I found several reports of owners with cylinder failures. The dealership only responded to fixing the issue after calling them out directly on the issue.
On 7/17/26, while driving at highway speed, the check engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power and shut off. I safely pulled over. It would not restart; a red battery warning displayed. Towed to Mercedes-Benz of Wilkes-Barre, RO #8388432. Dealer found battery severely discharged, replaced it, then found engine would not turn by hand. Diagnosis: internal engine damage/seized; recommended full engine replacement, est. $20,128, on a 2021 GLA 250 with 82,137 miles. MBUSA TSB MC-10241534-0001 (8/4/2023) extends the emission warranty on t…
Matching rule\b(stall\w*|loss of power|lost power|engine shut\w* off)\b
Warning lights and dashboard alerts
3 mentions · 100.0% of complaints
Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).
ODI 11715960
Component/System: Engine cooling and lubrication system. Coolant was found mixing with engine oil (milky oil), indicating internal engine failure (I was informed it could be oil cooler/housing, thermostat, head gasket, or related components). Vehicle is currently at an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealership and available for inspection. The front left inner lining of my front break pad also "failed" inspection and the other 3 front break pads say "caution" and I never received a notification or warning about my breaks. Safety Risk: Coolant contami…
I recently purchased my vehicle with under 30k miles in July of 2026. Not long after my purchase my car began roughly idling with a blinking check engine light, and soon after the engine began misfiring. This also cause loss of power when attempting to accelerate creating dangerous conditions in high traffic/fast paced areas. After lots of research I found several reports of owners with cylinder failures. The dealership only responded to fixing the issue after calling them out directly on the issue.
On 7/17/26, while driving at highway speed, the check engine light illuminated and the vehicle lost power and shut off. I safely pulled over. It would not restart; a red battery warning displayed. Towed to Mercedes-Benz of Wilkes-Barre, RO #8388432. Dealer found battery severely discharged, replaced it, then found engine would not turn by hand. Diagnosis: internal engine damage/seized; recommended full engine replacement, est. $20,128, on a 2021 GLA 250 with 82,137 miles. MBUSA TSB MC-10241534-0001 (8/4/2023) extends the emission warranty on t…