There are 5 owner-reported powertrain & transmission complaints for the 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLA-Classin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
Transmission from drive well sometimes shift to neutral while it is at a stand still usually waiting for a light to turn green, after which it takes its time to shift back into drive. While this happened a warning light appeared malfunction take straight to dealer. Yesterday seems as if ABS kicked in while driving, threw me into the steering wheel than stopped shaking within 1-2 sec, and let me accelerate off. Was passing in an individual at the time. Don’t know what to make of it.
Rear differential failed at 55,000 miles. Mercedes-Benz of Lafayette IN last had possession of the part. In a high-speed turn, this could result in loss of control of the vehicle. The differential was replaced at the owner's expense, and the failed part was left with the dealership. I am aware of numerous reports of premature rear differential failure in this model (after the fact). There was an occasional thunking noise during turns that the driver (my son) did not think anything of. The vehicle has been meticulously maintained. Within the week the vehicle was serviced and the rear differential needed to be replaced. No warning lights were present.
The vehicle change's gears and automatically switch to neutral while driving. I almost had a major accident on the interstate. This happened several times and the last time it happened was on September 23rd. The first time the incident happened I was told that it was a sensor in the car and was charged $700 and 4 days later it happened again. I took the car in again and now I am being charged for a new valve body in the transmission and a battery replaced aux battery. In my opinion that is a default not a maintenance issue and I should not have to pay for this, and Mercedes should have a recall on this because it can cause a very serious accident. [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
The transmission is starting to malfunction and is available for inspection. If the car looses power due to loss of pull it could create a hazard. Vehicle has been Inspected my Mercedes and determined to be faulty and this is a common issue with this car. Yes the car makes a grinding noise going into reverse and clunks when going around sharp turns.
The contact owns a 2016 Mercedes-Benz GLA250. The contact stated while at a traffic light the vehicle stalled and shifted into neutral. The vehicle failed to shift into gear. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 17V627000 (Air Bags) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted but the contact was unable to schedule an appointment. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The failure mileage was 101,000. Parts distribution disconnect.
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.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 25, 2026