jjparkusa

Have any of you guys thought about filing a safety complaint with the DOT? I discovered this thread after buying my GL450 last week. The second row is unusable and unsafe for my 11 year son with the headrest in the down and up position. Seems like an issue that MB will have to deal with one way or another with the DOT.

vkk0210

I've a 4 yr old in Britax Boulevard and I'm having the same issue. I may have to adjust with what other members did here. But my wife sits with my kid in the back and its annoying for her in long journeys. She's not comfortable at all with the head rest positioning. I hope a fix is on the way as this design is a disaster already!

jjparkusa

I have been trying to get help from MBUSA and so has my dealer. Bottom line is they are just ignoring us. The regional rep will not return my dealers requests and I am being handled by a kid in a call center. "Jorel" doesn't even return my calls. When I finally got a supervisor to find him, his response was that he a huge load of phone calls to handle so he is very busy. Great service after buying an 80k car! He has since never called me back or acknowledged my emails.

I have just filed a complaint with the NHTSA for unsafe product design and I would encourage others to do so- it is really easy and you could help save someone from a serious injury.
https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/Vehicl...nt/index.xhtml

patsy1099

This really is a bad design. how did they miss that? Don't they test the seats with people of different heights, especially children?

They really should recall this and fix it. I think submitting a complaint might be the right idea because then maybe MBUSA will either recall/fix this or instruct all dealers to remove/reinstall these headrests for free. I think we should all consider filing.

wamochi

thanks for the pics jjpark. that really puts it in perspective. did you send those photos to MBUSA and your dealer?

i thought people using child seats had it bad, but your situation is far worse, and i agree that it is not safe (nor comfortable). i take it your son has been out of a booster for quite a while, but have you tried using a seat booster temporarily just so his head can reach the headrest?

there will be an outrage brewing as more and more X166's get out on the road. at some point, they will have to address this stupid headrest issue and hopefully provide free of charge a clamp removal and/or redesigned flush headrest.


i suspect that the engineers were so hell bent on providing power easy entry that they neglected the headrest issue. in the previous X164, the headrest tilted back when you lifted it up, making it flush with the seat back. but of course this is not going to be an option with the power easy entry because the mechanism releases the headrest and makes it slide down without human hands.

our GL is on lease, so at the end of these 3 years, my older son will be 8. if this hasn't been addressed by then, sadly i will be moving on to another vehicle.

jjparkusa

I did send the pics to MBUSA. Finally got a response and it is "#@!% you and the horse you rode in on." Their response is that the product group has reviewed the issue and the headrests are compliant with all regulations and there is nothing that they can suggest or do. Will probably trade in the car at a huge loss. They have lost me as a customer for life.

patsy1099

wow that is incredible. What a terrible response. How can they say that after seeing those pictures. I can't believe MB would have a response like that. That's a sure way to lose a lot of customers.

finalwish

this only happens with power entry option, right? so better to not get that option for now if they don't fix this issue

ahh.. nevermind, power entry is part of P1 package for MY14

patsy1099

yes only with power entry and the very interesting thing is that power entry will now be included with premium pkg 1 for 2014 and I'm guessing nearly everybody gets premium pkg 1 so unless they scramble to remove it from prem pkg 1 OR fix the issue before then, EVERYBODY who buys a 2014 will have this same problem.

b.west1

THANKS for recommending the complaint route. I have been trying to get my dealer, the one that removed the clamps on the headrests for me at its expense, to put me in touch with MB reps to no avail (evidently they don't want MB to know they modified the vehicle in a way that is not "factory approved"). I certainly hope that MB gets the message on this unsafe design.

63girl

I am just about to cancel my GL63 allocation secondary to the headrests. I brought my 4 children in to see how they fit etc. in a 450 or 550 and I did note this issue. I searched google for 2013 GL and headrest problem and found this. My kids range from 6 to 14 so for years I will have this issues. I am a physiatrist (and know a lot about spinal cord injuries) and biomechanically speaking this design could cause a neck injury in a crash. IIHS has not tested this vehicle yet but maybe they will with different sized crash dummies. Some of the headrests in the M class were not getting the best ratings. I am only 5'2" and did not feel comfortable in the rear seats. Very poor design. I will not purchase this car. I was hoping when I searched the thread MBUSA would have come up with a resolution (should be a redesigned headrest) by now.

Disappointed in MBUSA!

JimBarnhart

Not defending anything here, but just for clarity, if you don't have the easy entry, they are ok. In that case the headrests rotate back and out of the way if raised above the back. Easy entry is an option you can choose not to order.

If you have easy entry, the only fix appears to be removal by the dealer.

cookstar

I read somewhere that the dealer can somehow fix this by removing something, it was months ago so cant recall exactly what was removed.

patyoung

Are there any people with children that are out of car seats with the power fold that don't find the headrest a problem?

Just curious as there are obviously a good number of people that find it to be a bad design/issue but wonder if for most people it wouldn't be a problem.

wamochi

we should figure out what height(s) are the problem areas. i am 5'7 and sat back there yesterday and found it to be comfortable. my mother in law is coming to town soon and she's only 5'0 so i'm worried she's going to experience the headrest problem also. if so, she's probably going to have to sit in the third row.

jjpark - how tall is your son?

JoeMa

I posted this back in February but it is still relevant to this thread. In my opinion, MB made a mistake with the EASY-ENTRY system by including the headrest in the operation when the button is pressed. When they decided to include the headrest in the operation they had little choice but prevent it from swiveling so it could be lowered prior to folding the seat. This decision created a problem for owners with small children or those using child safety seats because they cannot remove the headrest without help from the dealership.

One possible solution would have been to provide an audible beep when the button is press and the headrest is not lowered. A simple sensor could have been used to detect if the headrest has been lowered all the way down or not. Making it the responsibility of the operator to first lower the headrest would have allow MB to include the swivel feature and allow the headrest to be removed for a child safety seat. This is exactly how the headrest function when EASY ACCESS is not included and the operator needs to fold the seat to allow access to the third row.

Another solution would be to allow the headrest to swivel in when in the up position and also allow it to be easily removed when needed but automate the swivel when the button is pressed. This solution would require a redesign of the swivel mechanism so it is swiveled out automatically. Going down this path could increase the cost of this feature but would be the best of both worlds.

One final comment, the headrests are comfortable for an adult when in the up position. At least my friends who have rode in the second row have told me they are comfortable. Still, MB should have introduced a solution to satisfy the needs of "all" their GL customers for the MY14 builds and the problem remains.

MB reps, please read this thread carefully. We are your valued customers and this is a problem for many who bought a 13 or 14 GL.

63girl

The headrest either remains all the way down or all the way up. MB missed the big picture on this one. The people buying this vehicle are more likely than not transporting children. Removing the headrest for carseats is not too much of an issue as the child should be contained within the carseat. In the event of an accident they are safe. The problem becomes the in between period - my 9 year old, 12 year old and myself did not feel comfortable with the headrest extended. It is unsafe for it to be removed as there would be too much of a hyperextension in the event of an accident when those kids coming out of carseats grow. Is the dealer then going to reinstall the headrests??? Will it be safe after the clips are removed??

I have a call into my salesman to see if the power entry can be deleted. I do not have it on my R63 and the kid seem to do fine. I have it on my Yukon Denali XL and they don't even use it. Kids tend to like to climb over seats. That being said, I still need to see the no power entry seats. I am not spending that much money on a car that I feel is unsafe for my children.

I do hope the reps are reading this (and show it to their engineers). I am also hoping IIHS looks into this. It looks like some of MBs have had marginal headrest ratings in the past.

patyoung

So, I had the power fold option removed from my 2014 order. It was locked, but I guess with this confusion over it being included or not in the P1 package it was still removable.

I like the idea of the power fold, but certainly not if its going to cause problems with the headrests.

Thanks for pointing out the issue.

Mbenz260e

My mother in law is a little over 5' and doesn't find the rear seat comfortable i can tell (but is very polite about it).

I really hate this issue. It's really the only gripe I have with the car. I am making do now with one child seat in the 3rd row (annoying for cargo) and 1 in the 2nd row. I am afraid as soon as the kids are out of that though I need to look for something else besides a GL? Really kills me to do that though as we love the car (aside from this issue) and it leaves us without options really for a 7 passenger diesel. Still 2-3 years though I am hoping so I should relax...

octurbo

Remember you don't have to order the easy power entry option- it's no longer in P1. Maybe in a few years, it will be time for a new bluetec without that option!

Mbenz260e

True, maybe I am looking at this wrong, may be a good excuse to upgrade in a few years (but downgrade the rear seat entry)

jjparkusa

My son is about 4' 10". My wife is 5' 5" and she thinks the headrest is not comfortable but OK.

fabbrisd1

Please understand the 2014 GL EZ Entry headrest is a bit more comfortable for adults than the 2013 GL EZ Entry headrest - slightly modified design..

Mbenz260e

Thanks for the info. I am wondering if the poles are the same if I can buy 2014 headrests and have them installed without clips...

JoeMa

What exactly did MB modify?

Also, adults that have rode in my GL have commented that the second-row headrests feel good. Small children and safety seats are the issue.