jtjbt20x

file a report at https://www.nhtsa.gov/report-a-safety-problem#index if more people file these reports perhaps MB will do something about it.

Dave4850

I'm new to this forum and found it after having my own 48 volt breakdown at speed yesterday. I have a 2021 GLE 450 with over 13k miles on it. Yesterday, in morning rush hour traffic, the orange 48 volt warning popped up on the dash, followed almost immediately by the red temperature warning. When I went to accelerate to move around traffic and get to the shoulder, the accelerator was totally unresponsive. With some guy tailgating me (at 80), I wasn't thrilled to be without throttle control.

After a less-than-satisfactory experience with MB Connect and their Roadside Assist, I got the car back to the dealer where the responses I received were varied. The Service Rep admitted that he had dealt with a couple of these in the past year and that there was no recall, just dealing with them on a case-by-case basis. The Sales Manager, who I like, attributed the accelerator issue to what he "believed" was an intentional safety engineering design by MB. The Service Manager stated that there had been a small number of cases with these batteries and in many cases it was more so an issue with contacts (discussed elsewhere here) and that MB was aggressive in initiating recalls way before other manufacturers. At this point, I just want my 450 back in good order.

Ron.s

In all honesty it has been what seems like a high percentage of those with batteries from a bad batch…the dates are unclear but late 3rd Q 2020 to sometime in the 1st Q 2021 are close. Mileage doesn’t seem to be a factor-some failed in a few miles others take much longer. Other than that there have been only one or two 48 volt failures reported on the GLE. I reported mine to the NHTSA as mentioned above. It’s a safety issue that Mercedes has decided to dodge for one reason or another…cost being one probable factor, IMO.

mikapen

The overheating issue could well result from a 48v system problem, since the water pump is driven with 48v.
I sure wouldn't want to overheat an all-alloy engine. So I would want a definitive answer about that.
If you were in fact, overheating, the engine would likely go into a protective mode (limp home or other) and could describe your situation.

Let's hope the dealer can read codes and decipher your problem, and describe it, along with the solution, to you. It may not be the battery.

Dave4850

Got the 450 back after almost two weeks in the shop. (See the included PDF if you're interested in the minutiae of the repairs.)
TLDR: They performed MB's multitude of prescribed tests; notably, they removed, replaced, and retorqued all bolts at various battery contact points. So far, so good.

mikapen

I know there was a technical bulletin about ground points, and I thought there was a recall of affected cars.
Did you get a recall notice?

I also saw last Monday, an article that stated that 17 cars had been produced with a faulty ground screw, and that those 17 cars would be recalled. Don't know if the article was accurate.

Dave4850

I was told by the Service Manager, at that time, that there was no recall. The low incidence of reported issues had not reached a threshold where they would issue a recall. FWIW, the SM tried to convince me that MB was actually very aggressive in issuing recalls, i.e., they don't wait around for a blowup, but would rather act pre-emptively. Don't know how accurate that statement is.