10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
1 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
16,460 miles

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« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #21

Jan 222015

CLA250

  • 14,000 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Mercedes Benz Cla250. The contact stated that while driving at 30 mph, the engine stalled as the message board displayed inoperative pre safe functions limited see owners manual. Additionally, the vehicle failed to accelerate. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 14,000.

- Sherwood Forest, CA, USA

problem #20

Mar 172014

CLA250

  • 1,800 miles
I am approximate on the date without going back to service files. The car was new to me at the end of January 2014. Then in mid-March, a couple of thing were happening. The crash avoidance alarm would go off for no apparent reason. Then, inside of a couple of weeks the car lost all ability to accelerate. First time I was in the middle of an intersection. The other two times, open road, in early morning so luckily little traffic. In all 3 cases of the acceleration loss, I was able to coast to the shoulder. It is not as if is a drive train issue...if you press on the gas as you are coasting, the engine is just idle. Does not rev. Once stopped completely and restarted, everything was fine. The dash warnings that came up were "inoperative. See owner's manual" (no lie?!) and then "presafe functions limited. See owners manual." Conditions were clear in all cases. Speed at the time of incidents, once 15 mph, twice around 40 mph. I took the car to the dealership. They had for 2+ weeks and the issue would not replicate itself. When I picked up, I was told there was an "update" that was done and maybe that would prevent it from happening again. It did...until two weeks ago. Fast forward to January 2015. The same thing has occurred 3 times in two weeks. Two times inside of 15 minutes in one case. Once in a very risky merging traffic situation. I am writing this on the day that the last two incidents took place. Taking the car in tonight. I really don't want the car back until I know it is fixed or they just replace it. I find it very odd that this has not occurred for approx. 6 months now a rash of the incidents. I am so thankful this has never occurred in heavy traffic. I'm gun shy now.

- Arlington Heights, IL, USA

problem #19

Oct 042014

CLA250

  • 8,100 miles
Purchase my 2014 cla 250 in January 2014 for my daughter. In may my daughter call and said the car just stopped running while she was driving it. Didn't really think anything of it because she was a new driver. About 3 weeks later she said it did the same thing. Again in October 2014 I was driving the car. Driving about 40mph and the car just stop moving. A message of inoperative came the screen. I was able to pull to the side of the road. The steering was very hard to turn and nothing would work except for the brakes. If you turn the car off and start it again the car will start working again. Put the car into the shop. They said it was a computer update. Mercedes dealer updated the system. As they were driving the car back to me the same thing happened. So they took it back to the dealer kept if a week and said they fixed the problem. Three months later exactly 1 year having the car. My daughter was driving to school and it stop running again and this time the tire lights came on. So I picked the car up from school and on the way home the car stop running again received the same message as always the car is inoperative. This has happened in one year of owning the car 6 times. This is very dangerous. I do not advise anyone to purchase this car.

- Belle Chasse, LA, USA

problem #18

Jan 062015

CLA250

  • miles
The pre safe mode has happened 5 times on my cla 250 since I bought the car last January. I think the pre safe mode is not safe at all. All of a sudden, the car just lost power, no any feedback when I stepped the gas pedal, the best thing is the brake still worked. After restarting the car, the car went well but the engine light was on. However, after two days, the engine light was off so I didn't even have a chance to show to the dealer. It's very dangerous to drive this car on high way, especially in traffic jam.

- Houston, TX, USA

problem #17

Dec 312014

CLA250

  • 13,000 miles
Vehicle's transmission & throttle response is jerky & unpredictable. Rotors went bad at 5,000 miles, beginning to go bad again at 12,000. Numerous unknown interior rattles.windshield wiper completely flew off vehicle while driving in heavy rain - visibility instantly reduced to near-zero. On two occasions, the car displayed "pre-safe functions limited/esp inop" message followed by engine immediately losing power on freeway, which could have ended very badly. Not only is this vehicle of poor quality, it is becoming increasingly dangerous to drive. Seriously considering pursuing state lemon law.

- Brandon, FL, USA

problem #16

Oct 192014

CLA250

  • 14,900 miles
Driving on interstate at 70-75 mph engine lost power without warning and speed reduced to 30 mph with no response from gas pedal. A semi ran up behind me and swerved to the fire lane. This is the third incident in one month. The other two were at 45 mph. Each time I was able to pull over and stop the car. Once it is started it runs at full power, until it decides to stall again. I had the car towed to dealership and will not drive again. I could have easily been in a serious accident. I am in discussion with GM at dealership to work something out. I will be unable to sell this car later in my opinion based upon the commonality of the problem, yet the dealer acted like they had never heard of it. I should have googled it first and then reminded them of the issue. This is unacceptable.

- Shepherdsville, KY, USA

problem #15

Oct 282014

CLA250

  • 10,000 miles
Pulling off from a cold start, the car slams into 2nd gear. This has happened 4 times, each time from a cold start. A loud bang is heard inside the engine. This seems very damaging to the car. I took it too the dealer the 2nd time it happened and they were unable to replicate.

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #14

Oct 172014

CLA250

  • 15,200 miles
On October 17, 2014, vehicle 'pre safe functions limited, inoperative' light came on the vehicle while driving on interstate at approximately 50-60 mph. Vehicle would not accelerate so coasted to side of interstate and came to a stop. Tried to accelerate from a stop, car would only move at a few mph and the transmission felt like it was stuck in the highest gear. Turned car off and back on. Problem seemed to reset and was able to drive home. Did not take to dealership for this incident due to reading about others' experience and that dealerships are unable to replicate.

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #13

Sep 102014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 20,000 miles
On September 10, 2014 and September 21, 2014, vehicle 'pre safe functions limited, inoperative' light comes on the vehicle and the vehicle loses power. Both times driving approximately 50-60 mph. First time driving on street and was able to coast home. Second time I was on major highway....very dangerous! unable to accelerate both times. Took vehicle into local dealership on September 11th, they were unable to replicate issue and returned car. Did not drive vehicle for 1 week due to travel, returned and within 2 days of driving the car, error message returned and I was unable to accelerate car. To get the car to function, must turn the vehicle off and back on and then it drive-able. Vehicle is currently back at the dealership for repair. This issue actually occurred several weeks prior but I did not report to the dealership because the light came on and quickly went back off. Also experienced slow acceleration issues when moving from a complete stop.

- Grand Prairie, TX, USA

problem #12

Aug 082014

CLA250

  • 5,200 miles
Traveling approximately 15mph and slowly accelerating, vehicle became completely unresponsive to throttle input, and engine remained at idle speed. Displayed showed the messages "pre-safe inoperable" and "see owner's manual." After the engine was shut off and restarted, the car drove normally. It was taken into the dealer for inspection and repair, and was returned to me after the service adviser advised me that they could "find no codes." The very same error occurred a few days later. This time the service adviser said that error codes were found, that there was a "conflict in the programming", that all of the hardware checked out, and that "reprogramming the module" will fix it. 36 hours later it occurred again. This time the adviser said that a Mercedes Benz service database indicated that the problem was with a wiring harness in the throttle, and that replacing that harness will fix the problem.

- Fairfax, VA, USA

problem #11

Aug 262014

CLA250

  • 5,000 miles
I was driving on a main road when suddenly the car shuts off completely. I could not get it to start, nor put it on neutral gear, to at least push it away. A message in red pops up on the screen that says "service required, do not shift gears, visit dealer". I could not push the car at all, because the gear shifted automatically to parking and it won't move to neutral. I was stuck on the main road for 15 minutes. I was lucky not to get hit or run over by the incoming traffic. I caused a panic on the street because I was blocking it. Fortunately, a police car showed up, and the officer helped me by diverting the traffic away from me. I had the car checked two months prior to this incident at the dealer, and they told me that there is nothing wrong with the car, and that they have updated its software to the latest version. I had the car towed back to Mercedes-Benz now, and will wait the results.

- Corvallis, OR, USA

problem #10

Jul 162014

CLA250 6-cyl

  • 550 miles
I was turning on to a busy 3-lane road during rush hour, speed limit 45 mph with most cars traveling at 50 mph. While accelerating after making a right turn on to the street, my car suddenly received a "pre-safe" error to the dashboard and stopped accelerating while heading approximately 40 mph. As I had just shortly made the turn, I had not caught up to the speed of traffic and the sudden stall caused the car to decelerate. The abruptness of the malfunction nearly caused me to get into two rear end accidents while just using momentum to reach a spot on the road whereby to safely stop the car. The car would not accelerate despite restarting and required a tow. The car is 3 weeks old and was bought brand new.

- Miami, FL, USA

problem #9

Jul 052014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 7,000 miles
While driving the vehicle loses power and barely has any accelerations. The warning sign said inop see owners manual. I had to pull over, restart car then it was back to normal. This has happened twice at the exact same road. I was at a stop light, made a left turn, drove about half a mile then this started. This is very dangerous!

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #8

Jul 152014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 7,300 miles
While driving down the road the car suddenly went into park. The park button was not touched, nothing was near it, and it could not have been accidentally pressed. The car slammed into park on it's own.

- Fayetteville, NC, USA

problem #7

May 152014

CLA250

  • 5,800 miles
The contact owns a 2014 Mercedes Benz Cla250. While making a left turn at an unknown speed, the vehicle stalled in the middle of an intersection. The inoperable power warning indicator illuminated during the failure. The failure occurred several times. After each failure, the contact was able to restart the engine and resume normal function. The vehicle was taken to the dealer multiple times, but they could not duplicate the failure. The dealer concluded that nothing was wrong with the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. The failure mileage was 5,800.

- Catskill, NY, USA

problem #6

May 112014

CLA250

  • 4,200 miles
Car completely shutoff tonight on the highway and luckily I was able to get pulled over without incident. I had numerous messages on the display, including "service required, do not shift gears, visit dealer" and "esp inoperable, see operator's manual". the car would not do anything once I pulled over, nothing happened when I turned the key, no noises, nothing. Mb roadside assistance came and tried to jump start and disconnect the battery to no avail. So, off on the tow truck it went.

- Severn, MD, USA

problem #5

Apr 242014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 7,407 miles
While driving the vehicle suddenly the accelerator started to have a delayed response. Pressing the accelerator would not do anything for between 3 to 5 second after the car was stopped. After the delay, the car would respond and was drivable, but after every subsequent stop, the 3 to 5 second delay would return. This continued for the 20 miles that I drove to the dealership to have them look at the car and repair it. I believe this unresponsiveness of the accelerator to be a dangerous condition as it prevented me from being able to driving normally and could have prevented me from moving my vehicle if it was stopped and a situation required it to be moved quickly. At this time this occurred the following warning lights appeared on the dash. The check engine light came on. The esp warning light came on, the esp system "off" light came on, and a message stating that "presafe functions were unavailable" appeared on the dash board computer screen. This was the second time this happened to me. The first time was at the beginning of April. I pulled the car over. Restarted the car and the condition fixed itself. This time, restarting the car did not clear the condition.

- Shelton, CT, USA

problem #4

Jan 172014

CLA250

  • 3,000 miles
This has happened multiple times starting in Jan. 2014 and most recently April 15, 2014: Come to a stop at red light (or stop sign) and when I step on gas to go when light turns green, etc., no power or, at most, car barely coasts to shoulder of road. It does not sound like the engine engages. I turn the ignition off and then on again and the car runs. This happens when eco stop/start function is on and also happens when it is off. I am afraid to drive the car because this happens without warning. I could be driving the car for a week with no problem and then it happens.

- New Windsor, NY, USA

problem #3

Feb 092014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 991 miles
I have partial video if this incident. Incident occurred at 991 odometer miles. After driving approx. ~300 mostly contiguous, flat, rural highway miles in-between Lincoln, ne and St. Louis, mo (heading to atlanta, ga) in approx. 30 weather on dry pavement, the engine stopped producing enough engine power to propel the vehicle at the 70-75 mph that I was traveling. At approx. 60-65 mph, I applied additional pressure to the gas pedal which was not effective. Pushing the gas pedal to the floor did nothing except, occasionally, the transmission would switch quickly in-between the same two gears, which registered slightly on the tachometer but did nothing to accelerate the vehicle or maintain speed. It almost felt as if the traction control was activating (but malfunctioning) despite the ground being totally dry. By approx. 50 mph I was being flanked and tailgated by two clearly disgruntled semi-trucks as I tried to pull over to the right. The vehicle seemingly would maintain a max. Of 35 mph. Upon restarting the car (normal start), letting it idle (normal idle), and then attempting to drive to a safer location, its acceleration felt restricted at lower rpms, but it did back up to highway speed and the restricted feeling ended up being temporary. The nearest dealer was mb of marion, il., approx. Another 200-300 miles away. On the way to this dealership, the same malfunction occurred again about 50-75 miles later. I went through the same process and restarted the vehicle. At the marion, il dealer, the mechanic found the following code in the computer: PO29921 - boost pressure of turbocharger too low. The mechanic at the marion, il dealer and, later, at another dealer closer to where I live (Mercedes of South atlanta) was not able to replicate this code and therefore no repairs have ever been attempted or made. This issue has not re-occurred here in Georgia.

- Stockbridge, GA, USA

problem #2

Feb 112014

CLA250 4-cyl

  • 5,354 miles
1st- on Feb 11th & 12th my 2014 cla which was purchased at the mb of pembroke pines had been towed to the mb of pompano, fl dealership because of the eps lights, "inoperative" warning messages that were coming up as well as the stalling and delayed acceleration, which I took photos of. It was towed to pompano form my job, my car was kept at the dealership for 4 days (as opposed to the few hrs I was told that it would take to fix the computer issues). Not only was my car in the shop for 3 days, but a part that had been ordered, which means something obviously wasn"T functioning properly so it had to be replaced. 2nd - I picked up my vehicle on sat Feb 15th from the pompano, after getting onto the I95 and driving 2 mins, the same warning signs came back up. I exited driving 15mph and trying to keep the vehicle stable. Mr. Mike rodriguez was instructed to test drive the vehicle, however, when he did so the warning signals were gone. Why" because a service guy restarted the vehicle and drove it into the service area. Being that the signal was no longer visible, the GM suggested that if there was ever a signal sent to the vehicle it would show up in some sort of reading they were able to do on the vehicle. When they returned, both the GM and Mr. Rodriguez informed us that the vehicle showed them there was no signal that was sent to the vehicle all day. I litterally just saw it not 30 mins ago. We left & about 2 mins from my home in boca raton, the signal was back with vengeance! at this point I took pictures. I pulled into my drive way, but this time I left the vehicle running. 3rd -on March 2nd at around 2:45pm, after about a week of having my vehicle back, I was driving when the same warning signs and acceleration problems were back. I left it running with all the signals up and it had to be towed back. This is a summary of the incidents.this has to stop! not safe!

- Boca Raton, FL, USA

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