2012 Mercedes-Benz Cls550 problems, complaints & recalls
Most-reported problem areas: Fuel/Propulsion System (7) · Engine (3) · Suspension (2)
Safety recalls (3)
Electrical System:software 2017-03-14 · campaign 17V177000 · 51 vehicles
Defect: Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC (MBUSA) is recalling certain 2016 AMG GT-S, GLC300, CLA250 and GLE300d 4Matic vehicles, 2013 C250, E350 BlueTec and G63 AMG vehicles, 2008-2014 C300 vehicles, 2013-2014 C300 4Matic and ML350 4Matic vehicles, 2009 C350 vehicles, 2014 CLS550, E350 4Matic, E350 Coupe 4Matic, E350 Wagon 4Matic, GLK350 and SL550 vehicles, 2012 CLS550 4Matic vehicles, 2012-2016 E350 vehicles, 2016-2017 GL450 4Matic vehicles, 2012-2014 ML350 4Matic BlueTec vehicles, 2015 S550, S550 4Matic and C30
Risk: If the air bags do not deploy as intended in the event of a crash, there would be an increased risk of injury in the event of a crash.
Fix: MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will update software in the affected control units, free of charge. The recall began April 21, 2017. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372.
Exterior Lighting 2015-03-10 · campaign 15V137000 · 30,141 vehicles
Defect: Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. (MBUSA) is recalling certain model year 2015 CLS 400 and CLS 400 4matic, 2012-2015 CLS 550 and CLS 550 4matic, 2012-2013 CLS 63, 2014 CLS 63, and 2014-2015 CLS 63P. The affected vehicles have LED tail lights that may not light on the sides, reducing the rear side visibility of the vehicle. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 108, "Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment."
Risk: Reduced rear side marker illumination may prevent other drivers from seeing the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
Fix: MBUSA will notify owners, and dealers will update the lighting controller software, free of charge. The recall began April 6, 2015. Owners may contact MBUSA customer service at 1-800-367-6372. MBUSA's number for this recall is 2015030005.
Latches/Locks/Linkages:hood:latch 2012-11-06 · campaign 12V533000 · 23 vehicles
Defect: Mercedes-Benz is recalling certain model year 2012 CLS550 and CLS550 4Matic vehicles, manufactured December 01, 2011, through December 13, 2011. The bolts that hold the hood's secondary latch striker may have been insufficiently tightened.
Risk: The reduced torque of the striker bolts might lead to a loosening of the bolts. If two of the four bolts securing the striker became loose, the secondary hood latch function would become ineffective. If this problem combines with a failure of the primary hood lock or if the hood is not properly closed, the hood could open while driving, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
Fix: Mercedes-Benz will notify owners, and dealers will check and retighten the bolts as necessary. Mercedes-Benz notified the owners by phone for this campaign starting on 11/21/2012. Owners may contact Mercedes-Benz at 1-800-367-6372.
Service bulletins (111)
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
Electrical System 2026-05-26 · LI82.85-P-080507 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint after successful commissioning of the hermes control unit (n112/9) with xentry diagnosis dvd 03/2026, the message "sos - service not activated" appears on the instrument cluster. in addition, the following two conditions are also met: • hermes (n112/9) control unit: event code b15ce00 is a
Electrical System 2026-05-26 · LI82.85-P-080559 · Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions
complaint the customer requests deactivation of the n112/9 hermes communication module note: deactivation of the hermes control unit (n112/9) is not supported for gray-market vehicles. cause before deactivating the hermes control unit (n112/9), it must be clarified by the legal department of the res
Showing the 6 most recent of 111 bulletins. Search all of them free at nhtsa.gov.
What owners report
2025-10-05 · Suspension“mercedes-benz offers an extended warranty, effectively a 20-year/unlimited mileage coverage, for the rear subframe due to corrosion with perforation, covering specific model years my vehicles make and model are included. i’m having the issues they claim free repair for.…”
2025-10-03 · Fuel/Propulsion System“for several months i been smelling different odors from my 2012 cls550, getting stronger as the weeks go by now smelling like gas, would noticed puddles whenever i parked from rear driver side area towards middle, just got the news from the mechanic that the driver side fuel gas pump is cracked and leaking gas and passenger side is also cracked. l…”
2025-07-27 · Fuel/Propulsion System“there is a strong odor of gasoline coming from the drivers side rear. i conducted a google search on the issue and there are a lot of instances of the same thing. it appears to be the gas tank sending unit, they have a tendency to crack and leak. …”
2025-03-19 · Fuel/Propulsion System“i have mercedes benz cls 550. whenever i fill up a tank full, i smell gas in the car and in my garage. after researching the cause of this issue , i found its a common issue with mercedes benz older vehicles where the fuel sender unit cracks and start leaking gas which is located under the rear seat driver side. mercedes benz sent a recall notice…”
2025-01-27 · Unknown Or Other“the vehicle sunroof exploded while traveling on the interstate. stopped and inspected the vehicle to find no impact objects inside the vehicle. later reviewed online that this was a common problem with this modern mercedes and the item is already under recall but not my year. i have a 2012 and the recall stops at 2011 although 2012 sunroofs are exp…”
2024-08-30 · Suspension“premature rusting on brake and fuel lines which lead to further issues with driveability and saftey. this us caused by the same defects leading to the premature rust on the subframe that can cause a serious wreck on the interstate.…”
2023-09-12 · Visibility · 25,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 mercedes-benz cls550. the contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, upon adjusting the sun visor, the sun visor detached, compromising driving visibility. the vehicle was taken to the dealer and the contact was informed that the sun visor needed to be replaced. the vehicle was repaired, but the failure reocc…”
2023-09-08 · Visibility:sun/Moon Roof Assembly · 86,000 mi“the contact owns a 2012 mercedes-benz cls550. the contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the sunroof exploded. the vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired by an independent mechanic or dealer. the manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. the approximate failure mileage was 86,000.…”
2022-12-15 · Unknown Or Other“the rear subframe rusted from the inside out causing structural failure of the subframe. this lead to twisting of the chassis under hard braking causing difficulty in controlling the vehicle. as you can imagine, controlling a vehicle when needing to abruptly stop is very important. the rear end felt like it was getting loose and it was very difficu…”
2022-03-26 · Unknown Or Other“it has been confirmed by a glass company that the car has an improper seal/bonded windshield. the windshield is the original and the car has never been in an accident. a few years ago, i noticed a rattling that i was unable to identify. this was reported during one of the regular maintenance services but the sound was not replicated (as it wo…”
Excerpts of consumer complaints filed with NHTSA, lightly truncated. They are owner statements, not verified findings.