2008 Mercedes Benz Gl320 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Steering (7) · Seats (2) · Traction Control System (1)
🧭 Reliability snapshot
Compared against other Mercedes Benz Gl320 model years — complaint volume vs the model's median year, recalls and severity. How we score →
Safety recalls (2)
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist:vacuum 2024-04-26 · campaign 24V298000 · 15,604 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2006-2012 ML, GL, and R-Class vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle model details. Moisture may accumulate and cause corrosion in the brake booster housing unit, which can result in reduced brake performance or brake failure.
Risk: Reduced brake performance or brake failure can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy has been performed. Dealers will remove the rubber sleeve, inspect the brake booster, and as necessary, replace the brake booster. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 24, 2024. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MMUSA's number for this recall is 2024050001/2. This recall is an expansion of previous recall number 22V-315.
Service Brakes, Hydraulic:power Assist:vacuum 2022-05-09 · campaign 22V315000 · 350,294 vehicles ⚠ DO NOT DRIVE
Defect: Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2006-2012 ML-Class, GL-Class, and R-Class vehicles. Please refer to MBUSA's recall report for specific vehicle model details. Moisture may accumulate and cause corrosion in the brake booster housing unit, which can result in reduced brake performance or brake failure.
Risk: Reduced brake performance or brake failure can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Owners are advised not to drive their vehicles until the remedy has been performed. Dealers will remove the rubber sleeve, inspect the brake booster, and as necessary, replace the brake booster. All repairs will be performed free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed June 30, 2022. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's numbers for this recall are 2022050014, 2022050015 2022090006, & 2022090007.
Service bulletins (63)
Technical service bulletins are repair instructions manufacturers send dealers for known issues. Unlike recalls, the fix is not automatically free — but naming the bulletin at the service desk can save diagnosis time and support goodwill repairs.
Service Brakes 2026-09-22 · LI42.10-P-078779 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint repeat workshop visit for vehicle vibration while braking from 60mph. note: although the symptom is similar to a tire or wheel vibration, it is usually readily noticeable that it is distinctly different if it happens at all times or only while braking. cause although the cause of the vibra
Structure:body 2026-09-14 · LI82.62-P-078631 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint clanking noise from the area of the speakers in the doors. cause under analysis. remedy to narrow down the cause, first of all remove the door trim. • if the noise continues to occur even with the door trim removed, then continue the diagnosis working towards the speaker and if necessary,
Structure:body 2026-08-06 · LI82.62-P-078631 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint clanking noise from the area of the speakers in the doors. cause under analysis. remedy to narrow down the cause, first of all remove the door trim. • if the noise continues to occur even with the door trim removed, then continue the diagnosis working towards the speaker and if necessary,
Power Train 2026-07-14 · LI35.30-P-058566 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
single throttle lift-off clunking noise from the side shaft when moving off (audible at the outboard end). the noise is heard once in each instance when changing direction of travel. note: sound file in attachment cause if the complaint is eliminated by experimentally loosening the outboard collar n
Exterior Lighting 2026-04-16 · LI82.10-P-078301 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint headlamp, front fog lamp leaky or fogged. cause fogging of the headlamps is a natural phenomenon, which can occur under certain climatic conditions. it does not lead to any technical impairment of the headlamp. if a pressure compensation diaphragm is fitted in the housing cover, then the l
Exterior Lighting 2026-02-25 · LI82.10-P-078307 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint headlamps leaking or fogged cause the fogging of the headlamp is a natural phenomenon which can occur under certain climatic conditions. in contrast to a leaky headlamp, physical fogging does not result in a technical impairment of the headlamp. a leak test must be performed to determine i
Showing the 6 most recent of 63 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2022-08-16 · Service Brakes, Hydraulic“the contact owns a 2008 mercedes-benz gl320. the contact received recall notification of nhtsa campaign number: 22v315000 (service brakes, hydraulic). the local dealer was contacted and informed the contact that they could only repair the vehicle after a month. the contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time to co…”
2022-07-25 · Unknown Or Other“the contact owns a 2008 mercedes-benz gl 320. the contact received notification of nhtsa campaign number: 22v315000 (service brakes, hydraulic) which stated that the tow was free of charge. the contact stated that he has contacted mercedes-benz roadside assistance to arrange for the tow and was redirected to call the mercedes-benz recall hotline. t…”
2020-03-16 · Exterior Lighting · 195,000 mi · 💥 crash“wiriing insulation in headlights deteriorates resulting in sudden and repeated failure of headlamps.information shared with hella (original manufacturer, but they choose not to respond). failed parts available for inspection.…”
2018-07-15 · Unknown Or Other · 127,000 mi“the trailer hitch has been recalled nhtsa campaign number 08v242000 : mb recall # 2008-050004 mb technical service bulletin # 2008050004c. mercedes benz (christian treiber vp customer service thru erick [last name refused] executive referral manager) have in writing denied my request to recognize the need to repair my trailer hitch according to t…”
2018-03-12 · Unknown Or Other · 126,000 mi“mersedes benz customer support and bonita springs dealership fl refused to deal with recall nhtsa campaign id 08v242000 mb campaign 2008050004 because recall was not logged against vin # and refused to log against vin despite seeing recall letter which describes process and seeing entire mb service bulletin. trailer hitch had been inspected by mb…”
2015-11-09 · Steering · 136,000 mi“tl* the contact owns a 2008 mercedes benz gl320. the contact noticed oil leaking from the vehicle while it was parked. while driving 60 mph and making a turn, an abnormal noise was heard from the steering wheel. the failure occurred constantly. the vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the rack and pinion needed to be repl…”
2015-10-31 · Engine · 90,000 mi“the car broke in the middle of the 45 mph road in a very dangerous intersection. towed the car to dealer and they told me the engine is completely damaged and need to be replaced. they told me the timing chain got loose and will cost ~$15k to replace the damaged engine.…”
2015-01-21 · Steering · 53,000 mi“i was making left hand turn, suddenly the power steering assist failed and it was impossible to steer the vehicle to bring it to safety. this happened just prior to us entering the freeway. if we were to enter the freeway and this failure would occur on the freeway, we would end up in a crash. we contacted mercedes. they sent a tow truck and the ve…”
2014-06-06 · Seats · 90,000 mi“i was parked in a parking lot getting into the car and the passenger side adaptive head rest released. this is designed to prevent whiplash but depending on the force it released at (it's mechanical not an airbag) it could cause injury. the vehicle smelled as if an electrical component had melted. i took it to the dealer where i was told there w…”
2014-04-23 · Steering · 74,545 mi“stop and go traffic. car stalled and was almost rear- ended. got to side of road some fluid, restarted after 20 minutes. when restarted weird noise when turning but close to dealer. *tr…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.