U.S. public vehicle records

2012 Mercedes-Benz ML550: complaints, problems and recalls

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

1 owner complaints analyzed

2 distinct recall campaigns

Not available median reported failure mileage

Scope: 2012 model year. Data updated: 2026-10-01 (October 1, 2026). 0 complaints include usable failure mileage. View data status.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Electrical System is the most frequently named component, appearing in 1 of 1 complaints (100.0%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Electrical and battery issues	1	100.0%

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.

Electrical System

Engine

Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection

Electrical System: 1; Engine: 1; Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection: 1

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

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. 1 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.

2023

2023: 1

Pattern summary

Electrical System leads the component reports. Electrical and battery issues appears in 1 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.

Owner report 11511930 · 2023-03-15 (March 15, 2023)

In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan…

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗

Recall history

2 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.

18V272000 · Suspension:Front

Reported: 2018-04-27 (April 27, 2018)

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2012-2014 ML350 Bluetec 4Matic and ML550 4Matic, 2012-2015 ML63 AMG 4Matic and ML350 4Matic, 2013-2016 GL350 Bluetec 4Matic, GL550 4Matic and GL63 AMG 4Matic, 2017 GLS350d 4Matic, GLS450 4Matic, GLS550 4Matic and GLS63 AMG 4Matic, 2015 ML400 4Matic, 2016 GLE400 4Matic, GLE350 4Matic, GLE63 AMG 4Matic, GLE63S AMG 4Matic, GLE450 4Matic Coupe and GLE63S AMG 4Matic Coupe, 2015-2016 GL450 4Matic and 2013-2014 GL450 4Matic vehicles equipped with the Active Curve System (ACS). In certain driving conditions, if the oil level in the ACS reservoir is below the minimum level, the oil may foam and leak out of the vent holes in the reservoir cap.

Consequence: The leaking oil in the presence of an ignition source can increase the risk of a fire.

Remedy: MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will correct the oil level as necessary and replace the reservoir sealing cap to prevent oil foam from leaking out, free of charge. The recall began August 30, 2018. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2018070015.

NHTSA campaign record ↗

22V955000 · Fuel System, Gasoline:Delivery:Fuel Pump:Control/Drive Module | Fuel System, Diesel:Delivery:Fuel Pump:Control/Drive Module

Reported: 2022-12-23 (December 23, 2022)

Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2012-2014 ML550, 2012-2015 ML350, AMG ML63, 2015 ML250, ML400, 2016 GLE450, GLE300, 2016-2018 GLE350, GLE550, 2016-2019 GLE400, 2017-2019 AMG GLE43, and 2016-2020 AMG GLE63 vehicles. Water might accumulate in the spare tire wheel well and damage the fuel pump control unit, which could cause an engine stall while driving.

Consequence: An engine stall while driving increases the risk of a crash.

Remedy: Dealers will install a water drain plug, inspect for water intrusion, and replace the fuel pump control unit as necessary, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed February 15, 2023. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's numbers for this recall are 2023010002 and 2023010003.

NHTSA campaign record ↗

Explore the data

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.

0.0%Usable mileage0 / 1 records

100.0%Valid incident date1 / 1 records

100.0%Valid filing date1 / 1 records

100.0%Ordered incident and filing dates1 / 1 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.

From model yearThrough model year

Component complaint heatmap
Component	2010	2011	2012	2013	2014
Air Bags	4100.0% ODI 10934298 TAKATA RECALL. HOW MAY I ACCELERATE THE PROCESS OF REPLACING MY RECALLED AIRBAG? THANKS. Look up ODI 10934298 at NHTSA ↗	233.3% ODI 10945302 TAKATA RECALL. HAVE CONTACTED DEALERSHIP NUMEROUS TIMES IN THE LAST YEAR AND HALF REQUESTING WHEN IT WOULD BE FIXED AND ARE TOLD IT IS STILL PENDING. I WOULD EXPECT FASTER SERVICE ON THIS POTENTIAL DANGER WITH THE DEFECTIVE DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG. Look up ODI 10945302 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Electrical System	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	116.7% ODI 10416657 · 8,000 mi YESTERDAY, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2011 MERCEDES ML550 ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY, AND SUDDENLY LOST MY BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNAL LIGHTS AND REVERSE LIGHTS, DUE TO A RODENT EATING THE WIRING OF THE CAR. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR A RODENT HAS EATEN THE WIRING OF THIS CAR. 4 MONTHS AGO A RODENT ATE THE MAIN WIRING LOOM AND THE REPAIR COST $1000. WE HAVE OWNED 5 DIFFERENT MERCEDES BENZ MODELS OVER THE LAST 7 YEARS. THE WIRING FOR EACH OF THESE CARS HAS BEEN EATEN BY RODENTS MORE THAN ONCE AND CAUSED US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE (OBVIOUSL… Look up ODI 10416657 at NHTSA ↗	1100.0% ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	133.3% ODI 11501553 The turn indicators stop working suddenly and randomly giving inaccurate/false indication to the driver of the vehicle that indicators are turned on and no indication of turn signal to the other drivers that can be hazardous especially at the 4 way stop signs where other drivers are assuming that vehicle is going straight where as the vehicle is intending to turn left but it is doing it without the indicator due to sudden failure of turn signal indicators and during lane changing. The hazard warning continues to work just fine and the turn indi… Look up ODI 11501553 at NHTSA ↗
Engine	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	1100.0% ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	133.3% ODI 11315624 · 50,000 mi RIGHT PASSENGER TURBO FAILED AFTER 50,000 MILES SEVERAL THOUSAND DOLLARS TO FIX Look up ODI 11315624 at NHTSA ↗
Electrical System:Wiring	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	116.7% ODI 10416657 · 8,000 mi YESTERDAY, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2011 MERCEDES ML550 ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY, AND SUDDENLY LOST MY BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNAL LIGHTS AND REVERSE LIGHTS, DUE TO A RODENT EATING THE WIRING OF THE CAR. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR A RODENT HAS EATEN THE WIRING OF THIS CAR. 4 MONTHS AGO A RODENT ATE THE MAIN WIRING LOOM AND THE REPAIR COST $1000. WE HAVE OWNED 5 DIFFERENT MERCEDES BENZ MODELS OVER THE LAST 7 YEARS. THE WIRING FOR EACH OF THESE CARS HAS BEEN EATEN BY RODENTS MORE THAN ONCE AND CAUSED US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE (OBVIOUSL… Look up ODI 10416657 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	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.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	133.3% ODI 11501553 The turn indicators stop working suddenly and randomly giving inaccurate/false indication to the driver of the vehicle that indicators are turned on and no indication of turn signal to the other drivers that can be hazardous especially at the 4 way stop signs where other drivers are assuming that vehicle is going straight where as the vehicle is intending to turn left but it is doing it without the indicator due to sudden failure of turn signal indicators and during lane changing. The hazard warning continues to work just fine and the turn indi… Look up ODI 11501553 at NHTSA ↗
Exterior Lighting:Back Up Lights	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	116.7% ODI 10416657 · 8,000 mi YESTERDAY, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2011 MERCEDES ML550 ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY, AND SUDDENLY LOST MY BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNAL LIGHTS AND REVERSE LIGHTS, DUE TO A RODENT EATING THE WIRING OF THE CAR. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR A RODENT HAS EATEN THE WIRING OF THIS CAR. 4 MONTHS AGO A RODENT ATE THE MAIN WIRING LOOM AND THE REPAIR COST $1000. WE HAVE OWNED 5 DIFFERENT MERCEDES BENZ MODELS OVER THE LAST 7 YEARS. THE WIRING FOR EACH OF THESE CARS HAS BEEN EATEN BY RODENTS MORE THAN ONCE AND CAUSED US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE (OBVIOUSL… Look up ODI 10416657 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Exterior Lighting:Brake Lights	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	116.7% ODI 10416657 · 8,000 mi YESTERDAY, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2011 MERCEDES ML550 ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY, AND SUDDENLY LOST MY BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNAL LIGHTS AND REVERSE LIGHTS, DUE TO A RODENT EATING THE WIRING OF THE CAR. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR A RODENT HAS EATEN THE WIRING OF THIS CAR. 4 MONTHS AGO A RODENT ATE THE MAIN WIRING LOOM AND THE REPAIR COST $1000. WE HAVE OWNED 5 DIFFERENT MERCEDES BENZ MODELS OVER THE LAST 7 YEARS. THE WIRING FOR EACH OF THESE CARS HAS BEEN EATEN BY RODENTS MORE THAN ONCE AND CAUSED US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE (OBVIOUSL… Look up ODI 10416657 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	00.0% No examples available for this selection.
Exterior Lighting:Tail Lights	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	116.7% ODI 10416657 · 8,000 mi YESTERDAY, I WAS DRIVING OUR 2011 MERCEDES ML550 ON A CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY, AND SUDDENLY LOST MY BRAKE LIGHTS, TURN SIGNAL LIGHTS AND REVERSE LIGHTS, DUE TO A RODENT EATING THE WIRING OF THE CAR. THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THIS YEAR A RODENT HAS EATEN THE WIRING OF THIS CAR. 4 MONTHS AGO A RODENT ATE THE MAIN WIRING LOOM AND THE REPAIR COST $1000. WE HAVE OWNED 5 DIFFERENT MERCEDES BENZ MODELS OVER THE LAST 7 YEARS. THE WIRING FOR EACH OF THESE CARS HAS BEEN EATEN BY RODENTS MORE THAN ONCE AND CAUSED US THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS WORTH OF DAMAGE (OBVIOUSL… Look up ODI 10416657 at NHTSA ↗	00.0% No examples available for this selection.	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 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.

ComponentPeriod

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	Campaigns announced	Examples
2024-11	None	No examples available for this selection.
2024-12	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-01	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-02	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-03	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-04	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-05	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-06	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-07	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-08	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-09	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-10	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-11	None	No examples available for this selection.
2025-12	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-01	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-02	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-03	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-04	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-05	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-06	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-07	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-08	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-09	None	No examples available for this selection.
2026-10 (partial)	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.

Observation windowFirst model yearSecond model year

2013: 1 complaints · 2014: 0 complaints

Equal observation windows
Model year	Through age 0	Through age 1	Through age 2
2013	0	1	1
2014	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
2013	2	0	1
2014	3	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	Electrical System	Engine	Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection
Electrical System	—	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗
Engine	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	—	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗
Lane Departure: Blind Spot Detection	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	1 ODI 11511930 In the last year, randomly, when starting the vehicle, the yellow check engine light comes on. Turn the vehicle off, it is gone. The side view mirrors have the yellow lights lit up on them when driving down any road, the red warning lights that tell you there's something behind or in front of you start going off for no reason while driving down any road, all the "safety" and lane assist features seem to have a ghost controlling them. The radio will also glitch out from time to time. It will swap through the channels or pull up list of chan… Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗	—

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.

Search patterns

1 patterns with matching reports.

Warning lights and dashboard alerts

1 mentions · 100.0% of complaints

Median mileage: Unavailable (0 usable records).

ODI 11511930

Look up ODI 11511930 at NHTSA ↗

Matching rule

\b(warning light\w*|check engine|dashboard warning\w*|malfunction indicator)\b