GLK350: Common problems?
 

2010 MB GLK350 4MATIC

If you own one or know about it, what are some common problems that occur?

I know this model is new so it's really hard to say in the long run, but so far have you guys had any issues with the car?

My main concern is long-term reliability, because I've heard rumours that ever since MB was bought off by Chrysler, reliability has become a common issue with MB cars. Now that Chrysler is bankrupt, maybe they're trying to cut down cost on the MB? Who knows..

Thanks in advance for the feedback!

I don't know if it is a problem or not, but my GLK would sometimes downshift roughly from 2nd to 1st when slowing down. It happens when I am slowing down to around 30 km/h, the car will downshift more roughly and I can feel the car jerk.

It doesn't happen often, and there are no error message on the MFD. But I'd ask to have it checked out during my first service.

Chrysler and MB terminated their relationship couple years back and it was MB who purchased and sold Chrysler.

reliability in German cars are on and off. Just do a google on 'bmw lemon' or 'benz reliability'

if you are coming off a japanese luxury, then you should be prepared for a downgrade in both services and reliability.

yes, these are my own conclusion and experience after owning acura, infiniti, bmw and now a benz.

edit: oh, my issue with GLK is creaking sound on interior door handles and plastic rattles when going over bumps.

This topic has been brought up on here before and as a follower of this board, I have to say the GLK has been the best MB product to date as far as problems go, or lack there of. The owners reporting problems have been so few and far between it almost seems this car is perfect. If you were to log on here back when the w204 C class came out it was a whole different story. There are pages and pages still of people having problems and while the GLK is based off the C class architecture it appears to have been spared by the same problems.

So the problems with reliability between German and Jap cars are night a day then..........but I'm sure these are only minor problems that are covered by warranty right? Since it has the same ML350 engine, I really don't expect any major engine problems, maybe some electrical issues.

I actually hear that a lot of people get the door handles thing, and where do you hear the plastic rattles?

So I guess MB is trying to make up for their mess from the past decade. I'm not buying another car til 2 months from now, so I'll do some more research and wait for any more updates. Who knows what may happened to a GLK 2 years from now...

P.S. What you're saying is the C-class is really bad then?

I had it twice too, after having the car for 1 month. at about 25 km/hr when i lightly pull feet from the gas. It sounds like down gearing at wrong time and the car jerked a little.

I also heard other people had this problem in S class. Some say resetting the computer will resolve it. Does it makes sense?

The jerky transmission, my other choice also has that problem apparently (328xi)....

The reliablity of mb has be topnotch since numerous changes in the mb company since 05-06. Since the release of the 221 S class in late 06 they have improved vastly. Check J.D
power you can enter your car in the main page.

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/Mercede.../Sedan/ratings This one is the S class

http://www.jdpower.com/autos/Mercede.../Sedan/ratings This is the E class

The GLK isn't rated yet but MB as a whole has improved quality, fit,feel.

I've been noticing this too lately. Can I reset the computer without going to the dealer?

I found this thread in the C class forum about resetting the TCU:

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...ts-thread.html

Get inside the front seat and its the handle you pull to close the door. Squeeze the bar with your fingers on the plastic backside, you will hear squeaks (This doesn't happen if the car is left outside under hot sunny day, expansion of plastic..etc). Door rattles while going over bumps slowly: Turn off all AC and music. ride over bumps SLOWLY and listen to creaking sounds... its like timber grinding.

If your primiary consideration when purchasing a vehicle is reliability, then you shouldn't be looking at Germans. This is backed by JD powers. In fact, if you believe in JD Powers surveys, then Buick and Jaguars are you top choices, followed in 3rd place is Lexus.

I know exactly what I'm getting myself into when I purchased GLK; I was willing to deal with minor quirks, just like my BMW, for the great balance of engineering/drive/comfort.

If the sudden downshift 2nd to 1st is TCU issue, I wonder if its caused by frequent sudden stops/brakes during its initial learning phase... hence a false positive on the downshift. if so, another reason to "break in" you car despite ppl claiming modern cars don't need to do so.

Tried in my car, it squeaks very little only i twist the aluminum bar, not squeeze. Feels like the plastic part is not a solid piece, or mounted firmly.

If this is gonna be the GLK issue we talking about in the forum, I will be so happy.....

Yeah this door handle thing is so minor. As long as there's no engine, electrical, or any of those serious technical problems, then I'd love this car just a bit more.

2k no problems. There are certain things that I'd like different aka the way transmission works, but that's not a problem, that's the way it operates.

Knock on wood, I have not had this "door handle noise". Was upstate and it was in 50's and still no weird noises.

The only semi-issue I've been having is power tailgate. Sometimes takes me a few times to open it with remote as it unlocks starts openning and then closes right back. Could be that I'm doing something wrong, haven't looked too much into this yet.

6800kms no problems...
 

yes, since taking delivery in mid april, i have logged on 6,800kms on my glk. so far no problems. however, i do notice weird things about the transmission:

1. it does that jerky downshift thing once in a while
2. just yesterday, i placed the gear lever in reverse, and the car wouldn't move. the engine just revved as if the car was still in park or neutral.
3. two days ago, while driving normally (40km/h on a small street), the esp warning light came on and the car started jerking. i stopped wondering what it could be since it has been a dry couple of days and there was nothing on the road that would have caused the car to slip. i drove again, and the warning light came on again. everytime the light comes on, the esp cuts my throttle input (thinking that the car is slipping). i stopped the car, put it in park, and shut it off for a few seconds. after starting, the problem never occured again.

on another note: the COMAND crashes once in a while especially when dealing with bluetooth pairings. it's easy to fix though, just push the "On" button in the middle of the dash to restart the computer.

aside from those four things, the car has been absolutely flawless in its operation.

This happened to me too once... It was as if it didn't get into gear at all.
I did everything to recreate it but it never happened again.... attributed it to the shifter not engagin properly and my inexperience with the car ... I only had it for 2 days when it happened.

That reverse thing seems like a big problem, something not so minor. Did you guys end up getting it checked up by the dealer?

If this becomes common, I just might have to go with the Bimmer instead......

you haven't read about bimmer trannys? 328 has GM supplied tranny, and many 5 series have trannys die at 100k.

P.S. Haven't had any problems with tranny at all. It does take a bit longer to go in reverse, but that's just the way it's made to prevent getting into reverse while still rolling forward.

What is it lately with alot of issues with different manufacturers in getting the tranny right. I would definitely take it in immediately and have them take a look, rather than get stuck.

Ryan, what you have described is very similar on how my tranny died in my SC Acura 3.2 CL's. The tranny was on it way out, and gave those symptoms. But Acura had a recall so got a new tranny for no cost.

actually, my old car, a mazda6 did the same thing, roughly. i would be on the highway, and when accelarating, the tranny would just suddenly go into neutral. it's a very scary situation sometimes. of course, the tranny was replaced under warranty. i'm hoping that if there's a tranny issue, that it would show up soon, so it can be replaced at no cost.

i think that's what it was: i just didn't put it in reverse fully? i don't know, but ya, i haven't been able to recreate the situation.

if it happens more than once from now on, then i'll have it looked at. but a one-time thing is hard to get looked at, as they may not see what is happening. i had to wait till my mazda6 tranny problem got worse before they'd believe me.

i honestly have a lot of confidence with mercedes transmissions, as their auto trannies get nothing but rave reviews and seldom are they complained about when it comes to reliability. now their electronics, on the other hand, is a different story.... but even that seems to have been solved. after all, the COMAND in the glk is made by mitsubishi, i believe.

Ryan, what do you mean by electronic problems by MB?

I have driven my GLK for about 2 weeks now, and I don't have experience with that jerky downshift, but my wife once said when she pressed on the brake, she had that feeling of jerky downshift. In Canada, you can buy 2 extra more years of extended warranty before the original warranty expires. I saw it somewhere that this extra 2 years of warranty would cost around $2k Cdn. My previous 02 C class had only 1 major issue in year 6, which is some kind of fauty motor right behind the center console, making some annoying noise. The motor is only $200 but the labor costs was about $1,200, they said they had to take off all the center console to replace that. Yeah, the repair costs after the warranty period is very expensive. The salesman said since they cannot offer extened warranty to cars older than 6 years. Any trade in MB older than 6 years would have to go to auction, so don't expect too high a trade-in value if you want to keep your MB for more than 6 years.

i've only put 2000km on my glk, but i experienced both jerky downshift and that weird transmission behavior - only in my case it happens every time after i back up and then immediately put the lever to "D". The car wouldn't move for a couple of seconds no matter how hard i press the accelerator - engine just revs up, but the car stands still. To get it moved i have to count to three and only then floor it. Could this be how anti roll back system works?

Yes, MB's transmissions take a bit to go between D and R. I saw this being a complaint by some on C forum, I don't think it's a problem tho, more of "safety" for transmission feature.

When I try to go in reverse quick it doesn't get in R as quickly as I'd like sometimes, but again it's not an issue that's how it works, and operating this way preserves transmission.

As webada pointed out those of you with hard downshifts might want to try reseting the transmission back to factory setting and "re-teaching" it.