2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550: recalls and complaints
NHTSA lists 3 recall campaigns for the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550. The newest campaign is 17V177000. NHTSA received the report on 14 Mar 2017. The NHTSA record gives the component Electrical System / Software. NHTSA has 23 complaints on file for this model year. 1 NHTSA investigation names this model year.
The NHTSA recall file shows no do-not-drive advisory and no park-outside advisory on these campaigns.
This page cannot show if a recall applies to one vehicle. The NHTSA VIN lookup shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle.
Remedy of the newest campaign, 17V177000, in the NHTSA record
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.
Complaint information entered into NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation vehicle owner's complaint database is used with other data sources to identify safety issues that warrant investigation and to determine if a safety-related defect trend exists.
NHTSA publishes these words. Source: NHTSA Datasets and APIs, section Complaints, read on . Complaint file through . Recall file through .
Since the last update
No tracked figure of this page changed in a data update. What the log tracks
Recall campaigns
3 campaigns, newest first. 30,215 units in total.
17V177000Received . 51 units.
Electrical System / Software
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
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 C300 4Matic Sedan vehicles, 2015-2016 C300 Sedan vehicles, and 2017 SL63 AMG vehicles. Various control units on these vehicles may have been updated with incorrect software, potentially affecting the correct deployment of the air bags in the event of a crash.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
15V137000Received . 30,141 units.
Exterior Lighting
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
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."
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
Reduced rear side marker illumination may prevent other drivers from seeing the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.. Manufacturer campaign number 2015030005. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
12V533000Received . 23 units.
Latches/Locks/Linkages / Hood / Latch
- Defect, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Consequence, in the NHTSA record
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.
- Remedy, in the NHTSA record
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.
Report filed by Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.. Owner notification date in the NHTSA record: .
The campaign number opens the NHTSA record. Each quotation is the text of the NHTSA recall file.
Recall campaign: One recall in the NHTSA recall file, with one campaign number. A campaign can name many makes, models and model years.
Units: The number of vehicles or products that a recall can include. The manufacturer or the firm reports the number to the agency.
Complaints by component
23 complaints, 31 component mentions.
A complaint can name more than one component. Each component that a complaint names is one component mention. This model year has fewer than 50 component mentions, so the table shows the number of mentions only.
| Component | Mentions |
|---|---|
| Fuel/Propulsion System | 8 |
| Engine | 4 |
| Service Brakes | 3 |
| Power Train | 3 |
| Electrical System | 3 |
| Unknown or Other | 3 |
| Steering | 2 |
| Visibility | 2 |
| Suspension | 2 |
| Wheels | 1 |
- Complaints that report a crash
- 1
- Complaints that report a fire
- 0
- Injuries in the complaints
- 2
- Deaths in the complaints
- 0
- Date of the newest complaint
- 5 Oct 2025
These figures are the entries of the persons who sent the complaints.
Complaint: A report about a possible safety problem that a person sends to NHTSA. This site shows the number of complaints and not their text.
Investigations
| Number | Type | Subject | Component | Opened | Closed | Campaign |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EA21002 | Engineering analysis | Desiccated Air Bag Inflator Rupture | Air Bags / Frontal / Driver Side / Inflator Module | 17 Sep 2021 | Open |
Investigation: A study of a possible safety defect by the NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation. An investigation with no closing date in the NHTSA file is open.
Other model years
The number under each year is the number of recall campaigns.
A year without a link has fewer than 2 campaigns and fewer than 25 complaints. It has no page.
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Official channels
- NHTSA VIN lookupNHTSA shows the unrepaired recalls of one vehicle from its VIN or its license plate.
- NHTSA: report a safety problemThe NHTSA form for a complaint about a vehicle, a tire, a child seat or equipment.
- NHTSA page of the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550The recalls, the complaints and the investigations that NHTSA shows for this model year.
Cite this page
Recall Register. 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550: recalls and complaints. https://recallregister.com/vehicle/mercedes-benz/cls550/2012/. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation, recall, complaint and investigation files. Data through .
Sources
- Source
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation
- Licence
- US government work, public domain
- Recall file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- Complaint file through
- 30 Sep 2026
- First complaint in the file
- 1 Jan 1995
- Manufacturer in the recall file
- Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC.
The NHTSA record is the authority. A complaint count is the number of different complaint numbers for the make, the model and the model year. How the register is made. Report an error.
Questions
- How many units are in the recall campaigns for the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550?
- 30,215 units in 3 campaigns. A campaign can name other models and model years, and its units include them.
- How many recall campaigns does the Mercedes-Benz CLS550 have for all model years?
- NHTSA lists 11 recall campaigns for the Mercedes-Benz CLS550, model years 2006 to 2017. 3 of them name the 2012 model year.
- Which component do the complaints about the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550 name most often?
- Fuel/Propulsion System: 8 of 31 component mentions.
- Is an NHTSA investigation of the 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550 open?
- 1 investigation has no closing date in the NHTSA file, of 1 that name this model year.