2006 Mercedes-Benz ML350

Do not drive

Owners filed 172 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the engine. It has been recalled 2 times.

When it fails
020k40k60k90k120k200k

136 complaints record an odometer reading. Failures cluster around 60,00075,000 miles; the median is 69,000 miles.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Engine31
000
Power Train27
101
Electrical System19
070
Seats14
0106
Engine and Engine Cooling10
000
Service Brakes9
201
Power Train › Automatic Transmission8
101
Air Bags7
200
Steering6
000
Service Brakes, Hydraulic4
000

2 safety recalls

Part 573 reports
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Power Assist › Vacuum24V298000Do not drive
Filed Apr 26, 202415,604 vehiclesMercedes-Benz Usa, Llc

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.

Remedy. 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 › Vacuum22V315000Do not drive
Filed May 9, 2022350,294 vehiclesMercedes-Benz Usa, Llc

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.

Remedy. 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.

What owners reported

Newest filings
Service Brakes
Filed Aug 31, 2026NJ

While my vehicle was having a mandatory safety recall performed on the brake booster, my brake line was damaged and now the dealership is asking for $7,000 to repair something caused by them and directly related to a safety recall. The car was in working condition prior to being brought to the dealership and now it is at the dealership and inoperable.

Air Bags
Filed May 14, 2025TX

After starting the car, two messages appeared on the dash board. Center Gauge read: SRS Restraint System Malfunction Service Required Fuel Gauge read: SRS (in red) Took the car to our certified mechanic. After his diagnostic check- He said it was the Air Bag Module is out. Needs to be replaced at Mercedes Dealership.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Filed Feb 7, 2025163,450 milesCT

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz ML350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V298000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) and the vehicle was taken to the dealer for the recall repair. The contact stated that upon starting the vehicle a week later, the brake warning light and the check engine warning light were illuminated, and the message "Take to Service Center" was displayed. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer, but no assistance was provided. The contact stated while driving at various speeds and depressing the brake pedal, the brakes made an abnormal rubbing and squeaking sound, and the vehicle jerked. The vehicle was taken back to the dealer for the failure to be corrected under the recall, but no assistance was provided. The contact stated that the recall repair failed to correct the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 163,450.

Power Train
Filed Jan 9, 2024GA

My car was included in the balance right shaft recall as 2nd owner I was just made aware as a result my check engine light came on. It was also learned that the car was included in faulty “balance shaft”. I should be included because my car has same diagnosis as defective equipment

Steering
Filed Oct 31, 2023KY

The fuel system faild had it replaced twice gss leaking as well as the power steering leaking badly went out while driving I had both replaced power steering is out again several months later car been sitting since then i looked up to see if there were any safty recalls I did find both on Kelly blue book and a few other sites I contacted dealership was told I could bring vehicle the the recalls don't expire once the vehicle was there received a phone call they had my vehicle however the said they didn't know what kind it was or why it was there I asked how could u not know that was told they had keys but haven't went out to look I gave all my information before the vehicle was picked up I told them the issue again I was told then that as long as it's a recall problem no charge two days later I received another call same thing not knowing what type of vehicle I explained the situation again this time I was told they see 7 recalls all expired but 1 on the break system and I will have to pay $198 plus tax $233 for diagnostic ran and that price doesn't count towards repairs I waited a few hours called in act like someone else and was told recalls don't expire when I explained what was going on and who I was they told me my recalls closed and can't reopen and the was told they didn't see anything about power steering recalls however it was before I had my car towed if this was a safety recall hiw can I tell what information is correct with old recalls and how do I get them to fix

Power Train
Filed Sep 21, 2023VA

I encountered a major issue with the Mercedes ML350, while doing a 3 point turn in a busy suburban Toronto street.The electronic shift module left me stuck in Road way. Causing traffic back up and could not move vehicle.neither forward or reverse.tried pushing and different tactics to move vehicle off road. Had to call CAA-AAA. It was a caos situation,first tow truck could not load vehicle,all wheels were locked in drive and would not shift. Had to wait for special tow Have all four wheels lifted off onto dolly. Tow truck driver said it is a common problem.with MB,BMW and Audi.Vehicles towed to dealer sat at dealer. parts on back order and Not available for repair.Since was in Toronto away from Home. Had to source original equipment supplier to purchase part.Dealer and factory Mercedes could Not source part.back ordered.The dealer agreed to install the factory OEM part they could not source. My concern to all owners including myself in line traffic a basic traffic maneuver stuck in blocking traffic. Cannot moving vehicle jammed in gear that controlled by a shift module.no safe limp mode or emergency shift to neutral to move vehicle safely.

Exterior Lighting
Filed Jul 18, 2023IN

Driver Side Low beam headlight turns off and on randomly whether the vehicle is off or on. I lose view of the road because lights turn off randomly and others cannot see me at night as well. I've tried taking my vehicle to the shop, but no one can trace down this problem. No warning was shown until recently.

Engine
Filed Jul 8, 2023TX

THEY HAVE TIMING CHAIN ISSUES . THE BALANCE SHAFTS ABD TIMING CHSIN SPROCKETS FAIL AND CAUSE CATASTROPHIC FAILURE . THIS IS MY 3RD ML350 TO HAVE THE ENGINE GO OUT BECAUSE OF SOMETHING THE MANUFACTURER COULDBE PREVENTED IF IT WAS RECALLED YEARS AGO IF YOU DONT BELIEVE THEN RESEARCH IT THANK YOU

Service Brakes
Filed May 31, 2023AR

Brakes feel spongy,, when letting off accelerate feels as if transmission has a brake applied

Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Filed Sep 14, 2022151,831 milesFL

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz ML350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V315000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic) however, the recall repair was not performed by the dealer. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle intermittently experienced phantom braking with the ABS warning light illuminated. Additionally, the brake pedal went to the floorboard while depressed and made an abnormal sound; however, the brakes failed to stop the vehicle immediately. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the ABS sensor was faulty. The vehicle was then towed to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the ABS sensor needed to be reset. The dealer reset the ABS sensor and informed the contact that the brake system housing was corroded and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 151,831.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Filed Jul 22, 2022TX

The contact owns a 2006 Mercedes-Benz ML350. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V315000 (Service Brakes, Hydraulic). The manufacturer was made aware of the issue and referred the contact to the dealer for assistance. The contact was given an appointment by the dealer weeks in advance and was notified in the recall notice to stop driving the vehicle immediately. The manufacturer assured the contact on multiple occasions that the dealer would provide an alternative form of transportation until the recall was serviced; however, the dealer failed to provide the contact another form of transportation. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect.

Engine
Filed Jul 15, 2022CA

Balance shaft failure

Structure › BodyCrash
Filed Jul 6, 2022AL

Brake delay. Caused an at-fault traffic accident on Saturday, April 16, 2022.

Service Brakes
Filed Jun 12, 2022IL

Hello, There is a safety recall from the manufacturer and they have advised not to drive the vehicle. The vehicle does take a little more press on the breaks for it to function so we are assuming that we are affected by this recall. I have writen emails and called the Mercedez hotline on June 1st 2022 and they assured me over the phone that the dealership will be able to help. When i called the dealerships in St Louis, namely Plaza motors and St Louis Mercedez they declined to inspect the vehicle and advised that i can keep driving untill they inspect the vehicle. The recall from mercedez clearly states that the vehicle should not be driven. When i told them about it they changed the story and told me they dont know when they can do the inspection. Upon calling Mercedes back, they told me that they are sorry about the misinformation ad that I can rent a vehicle for reembursement but when asked about the process of getting the money back, they could not provide an answer. We did not feel comfortable renting a vehicle before knowing the process in detail so we called Mercedes back and the next person told me that the rentals will not be reimbursed. We are really in a tough situation as the car is not safe to drive per the recall and neither Mercedes or the local dealers are willing to help even after a month of the recall notice. We are hoping that either they can inspect the vehicle, give us a loaner vehicle or reimburse us for a rental vehicle. We have a small family with a 3

Engine
Filed Jun 9, 2022OK

Car suddenly stalled out while driving in traffic and was told that the engine went out, was very dangerous and also seen on the website that 100s of other owners with the same problem and mercedes has not done anything about the problem.

Electrical System
Filed Jun 7, 2022AZ

Since my significant others and I purchased this 2006 Mercedes Benz SUV - ML-350, over three months ago, we were wondering why the "Engine check light was always on" so we purchased (4) sensors and replaced the sensors of where OBD tests pointed out for the engine, deleted the Engine Check Light several times but it will go back on after we driven it for another 50 to 100 miles away to normal highways and freeways driving to relearn the computer system and the Check Engine Light On again and again but not blinking? We called our friendly mechanics and he said it maybe faults recalled that part of the electronics or maybe the computer is giving that "engine check" light on because it has some safety components is malfunctioning, the braking is also hard and sometimes it is too soft when I push it with my right foot to stop the car and also the car is using too much gas. So, we kept postponement of bringing this car to the dealership for repairs because we cannot afford the repairs. Then today, I check to my email and I see the Recall email from NHTSA about MB - ML-350 / recall number 2022050015 / NHTSA # 22V315, since we cannot smog check it because of the "Engine Check On" it is always on we were puzzled why this light and this car cost too much to use and sometimes hard and sometimes soft to push on it's braking power? Please let us know on what to do next? Shall we call the MB-Dealerships to tow this car to their shop because we have stop using this car about over (3) month

Engine
Filed Jun 6, 2022WA

Engine has low power and a whine. Also has a Check Engine Light indicating Center Balance Shaft issue. I took it to Merz dealer and they said it’s known issue of soft metal sproket internal to engine that occurs often. Many times at 50k miles but I bought my car at 150k. Was told engine could stop moving forward at any time.

Service BrakesCrash
Filed May 17, 2022WA

While trying to slow in to a corner, the brakes did not work, pushing harder on the brakes caused pulling and vibration. The vehicle left the road causing damage to right fender, bumper, wheel, tire and door. The vehicle has been inspected, brake pads and brakes seemed fine. This continues to happen on a rare occasion, maybe once every 30 times vehicle is driven. This is very scarry to have brake failure, so the vehicle is rarely driven now because no remedy has been offered.

Engine
Filed Apr 7, 2022NC

There was a class action suit regarding Balance Shaft issues. I was not aware and having issues now.

Electrical System
Filed Jan 18, 2022CA

During a rainstorm Dec 25 2021 brake lights gas gauge windshield wipers and truck all stopped working. Trunk will not open no automatic interior lights.

20 of 172 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2006
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
201552500Routine
201468420Routine
201356530Routine
201265410Routine
2011110330Do not drive
2010101320Do not drive
200993360Do not drive
200867260Do not drive
2007832250Do not drive
2006 — this page1722190Do not drive
200523030Routine
200435030Routine
200325040Routine
20011000Routine

Compare every ML350 year →

Reading this record

NHTSA has issued a do-not-drive warning for a recall on this vehicle.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Recall repairs are free for as long as the recall stands. Check whether a specific car still has open work at NHTSA's VIN lookup.

Most recent recall on file: Apr 26, 2024. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.