Skip to content
Electrical systemPart report

2008 Mercedes-Benz GL450 Electrical system Problems

Complaints
4about this part
Share
7%of 55 total for the year
Median mileage
150,500miles
Trend
Not enough dataFewer than 15 complaints, too few for a reliable trend.

NHTSA recorded 4 complaints about the electrical system of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz GL450, 7% of the 55 complaints for this model year. Where a mileage was given, the median is 150,500 miles. 1 of these say a crash was involved and 1 a fire, according to the filers.

Fewer than 15 complaints name this part, so treat the figures as a rough indication only.

Example complaints

Selected from NHTSA records; personal details are removed. They are consumer reports, not findings.

“Driving on the 99 freeway when out of no where a loud explosion hit my car from behind or on top of my car it scared me so bad, I pulled over to emergency lane but I did not find or know what hit me so I continued home slowly afraid to drive. When I got home I was. checking my car and on top of my car there is a section that has. Electrical or computer components and it had broke lose that is what slammed into my vehicle the electrical cords are still connected or somebody would have been serious hurt Sept 15, 2026 430 in the afternoon”

NHTSA complaint #11768587, filed 2026-10, 229,000 miles

“This vehicle, and all others Mercedes-Benz manufactures with an automatic transmission shift selector of this type need an added safety feature to disallow a shift from the neutral position to reverse or drive unless the brake pedal is depressed. …”

NHTSA complaint #10489054, filed 2012-12, 72,000 miles

“Vehicle caught fire in my garage. Vehicle was running fine 2 hrs prior. My husband entered the vehicle to run an errand and the vehicle would not start. Tons of light came on the dash, including the airbag had deployed, though the airbag had not deployed. Vehicle was off but still sounded like it was running. Windows or nothing would work. We raised the hood and was not able to discover the issue. We could smell something, but was not sure what it was. We proceeded to go inside our home, but left the garage and hood open so the smell from the vehicle would leave the garage. …”

NHTSA complaint #11444483, filed 2021-12

Related service bulletins

Electrical system: other model years

YearComplaintsShare of year
2015211%
2014314%
2013822%
201224%
201147%
2010512%
200917%
200847%
20072723%

Other parts of the 2008 Mercedes-Benz GL450

Steering
21 complaints
Suspension
15 complaints
Brakes
7 complaints
Air bags
6 complaints
Engine
5 complaints
Other or unknown
5 complaints
Body and structure
4 complaints
Transmission and drivetrain
4 complaints
Visibility (wipers, defrost, mirrors)
4 complaints
Wheels
4 complaints
Engine cooling
2 complaints
Seat belts
2 complaints

← All problems reported for the 2008 Mercedes-Benz GL450

About this data. Data from NHTSA (ODI) complaints, recalls, TSBs and investigations, updated Oct 31, 2026. Complaints are unverified consumer reports and may be duplicated or inaccurate.

To check a specific vehicle for open recalls, use its VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls. Methodology