There are 3 stored owner reports matching the electrical system leading-label group for the 2011 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class in our NHTSA-sourced dataset. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
This group counts stored reports whose component label starts with one of this site's matching prefixes, ignoring case. Each matching report counts once within the group. Components mentioned later in the label or only in the narrative are not searched. How component counts work
Loaded 3 of 3 matching reports.
Open the full vehicle complaint log (all categories)We smelled smoke from under the passenger seat. We had the car in for a recall and service recently and didn’t understand what was happening. Our three Children smelled the smoke too. Everyone exited the car and it burst into flames.
Intermittently car does not engage when key fob is inserted into eis (electric ignition switch) and turned. No dash lights turn on, car does not start. Car has turned off while driving. Car has remained running when key was removed. Key will lock and unlock doors and open hatch.
THE ELECTRONIC IGNITION SWITCH EITHER WON'T START THE ENGINE OR WILL FINALLY START AFTER A LONG DELAY OR AFTER REPEATED ATTEMPTS ARE MADE TO TURN THE KEY AND START THE ENGINE USING EITHER OF THE TWO ELECTRONIC KEYS. THE CAR HAS FAILED TO START CAUSING MY WIFE TO BE STRANDED ON NUMEROUS OCCASIONS AND POSES A SERIOUS SAFETY PROBLEM. MERCEDES HAS A SERVICE CAMPAIGN #2013040001 THAT APPLIES TO THIS VERY VEHICLE TO CORRECT THIS VERY PROBLEM BUT I WAS TOLD THAT MY VIN NUMBER HAS NOT BEEN INCLUDED FOR THIS CAMPAIGN. THIS IS CLEARLY A DEFECTIVE ELECTRONIC IGNITION SWITCH (EIS) PROBLEM WITH MOST OF THESE 2011 - 2012 VEHICLES AS ANY GOOGLE SEARCH WILL REVEAL.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
NHTSA source checks for this vehicle year
Checks are recorded separately for each dataset, not for the whole page. Dates use UTC. A missing check date does not mean no records exist.
Vehicle import recorded: Aug 31, 2026. This is the stored import date, not confirmation that every source was successfully refreshed.