MODELYEARINDEX

Mercedes-Benz GLC

624 complaints across 6 scored model years .

Which years to avoid

Ownership label · Mercedes-Benz GLC Full report
D
Grade 2016–2021
2016 vs model median 2.0×
Model median3× median
Brakes 26
Engine 20
Airbags & Restraints 16
Avoid

2016

Best

2019 · 2020

Year by year

Severity-weighted complaints filed in each model year’s first 60 months on the road, so every year is measured over an identical window.

Year Complaint volume vs median Reports Grade
2016
1.97× 109 D
2017
1.31× 66 C
2018
0.88× 42 B
2019
0.70× 39 B
2020
0.96× 52 B
2021
1.04× 67 B
2022 P
1.52× 83 C
2023 P
1.63× 100 C
2024 P
0.56× 33 A
2025 P
0.81× 32 B

P — provisional. These years have not completed 60 months on the road, so their totals are incomplete and they are excluded from the verdict.

What it costs to run

EPA figures for the most recent model year on record.

Combined MPG27
City / Highway24 / 32
Engine2L, 4 cyl
DriveRear-Wheel Drive
Annual fuel cost$2,800

Recalls

No recall campaigns are on record for this model.

Others in Compact SUVs

Same body and size class. Each grade describes that model against its own history — these are not ranked against each other.

Model Years to avoid Grade
Acura RDX
20192020
C
Audi Q5
20182021
C
Audi SQ5
none flagged
C
BMW X3
20132019
C
Buick Envision
2017
C
Cadillac SRX
2013
C
Cadillac XT5
2017
C
Chevrolet Blazer
none flagged
C

How this was calculated

Every model year is scored over an identical window: complaints filed with NHTSA during the first 60 months after that model year went on sale. Without this, older cars look worse purely because they have had longer to accumulate reports.

Limitations. Complaints are unverified reports submitted voluntarily by owners; they are allegations, not findings, and reporting rates vary between models. Model years with fewer than 60 months on the road are marked provisional and excluded from verdicts. Cross-model comparison is withheld pending production-volume data.

Full methodology · Sources · Data vintage August 9, 2026

Working 2016 GLC
Complaints in window
109
Severity-weighted
172
Model median (weighted)
87
vs model median
1.97×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
0
Open investigations
1
Score 47.4 D