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I have a 2021 GLE 53. It is only 1 year old but last month I had the problem of "12V battery malfunction" twice. Both happened when the car was sitting in the garage. I drive it every day for about 10 miles. So it shouldn't be that battery is not charged.
The first time it happened, I couldn't start the engine. The instrument cluster had a big red battery icon and message "see operator's manual". I had to get it towed to dealer. The dealer then told me it was a software issue and they fixed it by a software update. I took it home but two weeks later the same problem happened again! Now the car is towed to dealer again and I'm waiting for response from dealer.
I'm afraid there is bigger problem hidden in the battery system. I can't imagine this happened to such a new car. Has anyone seen the same problem? I'm wondering whether it is the 48V battery or the 12V battery. I've heard of many issues with the 48V system but mine shows "12V battery malfunction" on the dashboard.
I have a 2021 GLE 53. It is only 1 year old but last month I had the problem of "12V battery malfunction" twice. Both happened when the car was sitting in the garage. I drive it every day for about 10 miles. So it shouldn't be that battery is not charged.
The first time it happened, I couldn't start the engine. The instrument cluster had a big red battery icon and message "see operator's manual". I had to get it towed to dealer. The dealer then told me it was a software issue and they fixed it by a software update. I took it home but two weeks later the same problem happened again! Now the car is towed to dealer again and I'm waiting for response from dealer.
I'm afraid there is bigger problem hidden in the battery system. I can't imagine this happened to such a new car. Has anyone seen the same problem? I'm wondering whether it is the 48V battery or the 12V battery. I've heard of many issues with the 48V system but mine shows "12V battery malfunction" on the dashboard.
Just a thought.
It may have been a software issue that caused the battery to discharge the first time.
And it's possible that the software fix solve the charging problem.
However, if a battery is in a zero state of charge for a prolonged time, that may have killed it, I'm unable to take much of a charge or store it for long.
I would ask them if they load tested the battery after you're fix, or if they should do that before they do anything else
Good luck with this.
It does sound like a 12 volt problem, because I think there's a separate warning icon for 48 volt. When you push the start button into position one and all the dash lights light up, I think you see both 12 volt and 48 volt icons.
I drive it every day for about 10 miles. So it shouldn't be that battery is not charged..
If I were driving that little every day, I'd either put a trickle charger on each night or put a standard battery charger on every weekend until the charge current drops to 1 Amp. I'm just saying ... we don't really know how much the batteries are being discharged by electronics when the ignition is off.
It's too bad that we don't have more info available from our displays about the state of charge of both batteries. In my '19 CLS53 at least there is a display that shows how much the battery is being charged as I drive. From this, one can infer that the battery needs charging or not. It would be better if we had a display that showed the state of charge directly for both batteries.
If I were driving that little every day, I'd either put a trickle charger on each night or put a standard battery charger on every weekend until the charge current drops to 1 Amp. I'm just saying ... we don't really know how much the batteries are being discharged by electronics when the ignition is off.
It's too bad that we don't have more info available from our displays about the state of charge of both batteries. In my '19 CLS53 at least there is a display that shows how much the battery is being charged as I drive. From this, one can infer that the battery needs charging or not. It would be better if we had a display that showed the state of charge directly for both batteries.
What I don't understand is I used to have a C300 and sometimes I don't drive it for 1 month due to travel. It never had any battery problems. And right it's too bad that this car doesn't even show the battery state. If MB expects people to charge their cars on a regular basis, at least it should show battery state on the dashboard and warn people when battery is low. When the car cannot be started, it's too late.
If this happens third time I'm going to sell it and switch to a more reliable brand.
Just a thought.
It may have been a software issue that caused the battery to discharge the first time.
And it's possible that the software fix solve the charging problem.
However, if a battery is in a zero state of charge for a prolonged time, that may have killed it, I'm unable to take much of a charge or store it for long.
I would ask them if they load tested the battery after you're fix, or if they should do that before they do anything else
Good luck with this.
It does sound like a 12 volt problem, because I think there's a separate warning icon for 48 volt. When you push the start button into position one and all the dash lights light up, I think you see both 12 volt and 48 volt icons.
I didn't completely understand how exactly a software issue could fail the car completely the first time they told me. I asked my service advisor to elaborate more but he looks like he just doesn't know much about the car... Do you happen to have a picture for the 48V battery icon?
I didn't completely understand how exactly a software issue could fail the car completely the first time they told me. I asked my service advisor to elaborate more but he looks like he just doesn't know much about the car... Do you happen to have a picture for the 48V battery icon?
Sorry, I was mistaken about the 48 volt icon. On my 53, there's only one battery icon that I can find.
Also searching the owner's manual in car, nothing comes up when I seek for "48v."
Unfortunately the dealer told me today that it is the 48V battery. I'm now a bit more concerned. They are performing several tests required by MB and will report the test results back to MB to see what they should and what they are allowed to do. My service advisor told me that most likely they will have to replace some parts. He said it's likely a problem of the 48V battery or the actuator, but they can only confirm after the tests. I'm also wondering why actuator can cause a battery malfunction...
Unfortunately the dealer told me today that it is the 48V battery. I'm now a bit more concerned. They are performing several tests required by MB and will report the test results back to MB to see what they should and what they are allowed to do. My service advisor told me that most likely they will have to replace some parts. He said it's likely a problem of the 48V battery or the actuator, but they can only confirm after the tests. I'm also wondering why actuator can cause a battery malfunction...
That sucks. Good Luck to you. Does the dealer provide you with a loaner until then?
That sucks. Good Luck to you. Does the dealer provide you with a loaner until then?
No, he said their loaners are booked 3 weeks out... After this fix I think I'm going to sell the car or contact lemon law attorneys to sell it back to MB.
Update: they told me they submitted a case with MB USA and is waiting for approval. Once it's approved, they'll need to change the 48V battery. Fingers crossed this new battery is not a faulty one.
Today my 2021 GLE53 Coupe had a battery malfunction. It wouldn't jump start so it has been towed to the dealer. I hope this isn't the beginning of a recurring problem with this less than 1 year old vehicle.
Today my 2021 GLE53 Coupe had a battery malfunction. It wouldn't jump start so it has been towed to the dealer. I hope this isn't the beginning of a recurring problem with this less than 1 year old vehicle.
I'm sorry to hear that bro. I just picked up my car today after they replaced the 48V battery. Mine is also a 2021 GLE53 coupe. I suspect a lot of late 2020/2021 53s have this faulty battery issue and it's just a matter of time this issue break the battery. I'll see how the new battery works this time. I hope it will fix the problem.
I'm sorry to hear that bro. I just picked up my car today after they replaced the 48V battery. Mine is also a 2021 GLE53 coupe. I suspect a lot of late 2020/2021 53s have this faulty battery issue and it's just a matter of time this issue break the battery. I'll see how the new battery works this time. I hope it will fix the problem.
I experienced the same thing. Mine is just a year old and I drive maybe 15 miles a day and out of town occasionally. I drove it the morning of for about 10 miles and then parked it. When I attempted to go back out at lunch, it wouldn't crank while sitting in my yard. I first had an error on the driver dashboard which stated 'Stop Vehicle...See Operator's Manual'. When I attempted to close that message, another message displayed on the main screen stating '12 V battery is malfunctioning...arrow messages stating 'Stop the vehicle in accordance with the traffic conditions, Do not continue driving and contact a...(which wouldn't allow me to scroll to see the entire message.
What freaks me out is that based upon the messages, this can occur while driving...
do you have a charger that you recommend? Should I just ask the dealer?
I've used 4-5 Schumacher trickle chargers over the past few decades. Thankfully, just a normal 12-volt charger will work cause with our 53 series we do not directly charge the lithium battery. I don't know if the current 63 series is the same. (As I recall, my CLS63S had only a normal 12-volt battery.) With our 53s we charge the normal 12-volt battery via the connections under the hood and the electronics charge the Li battery. (Li batteries require a special charger which does not overcharge and overheat the battery.) If I were buying a charger now, I'd get the one shown via the link below 'cause for a few extra bucks, it does have a 10-amp charge in addition to the trickle maintainer charge. Rather than use a trickle charger you could also use a larger charger once a week or so. I think a lot of problems with the EQ Boost systems can be mitigated by keeping the battery charged. Thankfully, I've had zero problems with my 53s. Here's a link but you can also check with your local parts store which has one that should work just fine.
Mine is back in the shop for the same issue. It occurred the first time a few months ago and again last week. They told me it was a software issue the first time also. They tell me they will probably have to replace the battery this time.
If I were driving that little every day, I'd either put a trickle charger on each night or put a standard battery charger on every weekend until the charge current drops to 1 Amp. I'm just saying ... we don't really know how much the batteries are being discharged by electronics when the ignition is off.
It's too bad that we don't have more info available from our displays about the state of charge of both batteries. In my '19 CLS53 at least there is a display that shows how much the battery is being charged as I drive. From this, one can infer that the battery needs charging or not. It would be better if we had a display that showed the state of charge directly for both batteries.
^This. 10 miles each way isn't much. I just took delivery of a 63S yesterday, and though it left Tuscaloosa this month, I immediately put it on a Battery Tender Plus when I got home. It is still charging and hasn't gotten to maintenance state by this morning yet; I'm not surprised.
^This. 10 miles each way isn't much. I just took delivery of a 63S yesterday, and though it left Tuscaloosa this month, I immediately put it on a Battery Tender Plus when I got home. It is still charging and hasn't gotten to maintenance state by this morning yet; I'm not surprised.
I think his battery must have been bad. My commute is a tad under a mile ea. way, and I’ve never had any issues with mine losing charge.
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12V Battery malfunction twice in a month
