Model Year Index

Mercedes-Benz ML

157 complaints across 5 scored model years and 4 recall campaigns.

Which years to avoid

Ownership label · Mercedes-Benz ML Full report
D
Grade 2011–2015
2015 vs model median 2.2×
Model median3× median
Drivetrain 6
Engine 6
Brakes 6
Avoid

2015

Best

2012 · 2013

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
2011
0.47× 15 C
2012
1.00× 28 B
2013
0.66× 23 B
2014
1.35× 35 C
2015
2.16× 49 D

What it costs to run

EPA figures for the most recent model year on record.

Combined MPG17.5
City / Highway15.5 / 20
Engine4.5L, 7 cyl
DriveRear-Wheel Drive
Annual fuel cost$4,650

Recalls

4 campaigns on record, 2 carrying a Park It or Park Outside warning.

Treat that as a minimum. NHTSA's lookup does not answer to this model's published name, so its campaigns are collected one trim at a time and the list may be short of the full count.

Campaign Component Model years Units affected
22V315000 Park it SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM 2011 350,294
22V955000 FUEL SYSTEM, DIESEL:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP:CONTROL/DRIVE MODULE 2012–2015 348,183
19V787000 COMMUNICATION 2013–2015 24,226
24V298000 Park it SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:POWER ASSIST:VACUUM 2011 15,604

Recall work is free at any franchised dealer, whoever owns the car and however old it is. Check a specific car’s VIN on NHTSA’s register before you buy — an unrepaired campaign is among the most commonly missed items on a used vehicle. 2 campaigns here carry a Park It or Park Outside warning, which means NHTSA advised owners to stop driving or parking the vehicle indoors until the work was done.

Others in Midsize 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 MDX
20162020
C
Audi Q7
20172021
C
Audi Q8
2019
C
BMW X5
20112021
D
BMW X6
none flagged
C
Chevrolet Traverse
20102011
C
Dodge Durango
20112012
C
Dodge Journey
20142015
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 2015 ML
Complaints in window
49
Severity-weighted
109
Model median (weighted)
51
vs model median
2.16×
Recall campaigns (weighted)
2
Open investigations
0
Score 41.1 D