Buying a used German luxury car can either be a gift or a curse and a used Mercedes is not exempt from this fact. Do you know what you are getting yourself into before you begin this potentially financially devastating journey? It has long been known that German cars don't tend to be as reliable as their Japanese equivalents and also cost more to fix when they break. Yet, is this still true in 2024? Well, the most recent data available supports this fact and the last couple of decades of automotive history will also give you the same answer.
What data exactly? Well, Consumer Reports recently released their latest analysis of 26 car brands' reliability based on a selection of 5-to-10-year-old models. Mercedes ranked 10th out of 26 with a 46 score in their "Reliability Verdict", 3 points behind 7th place BMW, and 4 points ahead of 16th place Audi.
For context, the top five highest-scoring brands are all Japanese, with Toyota and Lexus beating out the entire field by a solid margin. Mercedes, despite being 32 points away from 1st place leader Lexus in this study, has still offered some of its most reliable vehicles within the last 10 or so years. What we did was take a look at every single Mercedes model that Consumer Reports has reviewed and ranked them to find the most reliable models of the last decade. Let's break it down!
In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from Mercedes-Benz and other authoritative sources. The models below have been ranked based on their Consumer Reports' Reliability Verdict.
Covering all levels of the SUV segment, here's what you can expect from Mercedes-Benz's luxury lineup regarding their reliability.
Kicking off our list is the latest redesign of Mercedes' mid-sized SUV, the GLE. The fourth generation of this German SUV served as the introduction of a new set of powertrains for the GLE family, including the turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four found in 350 models and the mild hybrid turbocharged 3.0 inline-six found in 450 models.
Engine | 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six + 48V mild hybrid system |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 362 horsepower |
Torque | 369 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.7 seconds |
Top Speed | 155 mph (limited) |
The 2020 model year was the first of this current generation and, like most first-year models, did not have the best reliability score. However, the proceeding 2021 model year would score a 3/5 in the reliability verdict, giving it the highest score of any GLE model year within its generation.
Next comes the first-generation Mercedes GLC crossover SUV, which has seen a long production run from 2016 to 2022. In 2020, the GLC saw a major refresh, of which the most important change was the new set of next-gen Mercedes powertrains.
Engine | 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 255 horsepower |
Torque | 273 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 6.2 seconds |
Top Speed | 149 mph |
The 2021 model year is the highest rated on the reliability verdict for this 1st generation refresh, which spanned for three years. The turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four found in this generation refresh would be the last iteration of the platform before moving onto the combination of this engine with the more complex mild hybrid 48-volt system found on current generation Mercedes models.
Our first C-class sedan featured on the list is the fourth-generation, which was available from 2015 to 2021. For the 2019 model year, there was a significant refresh of this compact Mercedes sedan, including its powertrain options moving forward to the 48V mild hybrid combo that is now the modern Mercedes standard.
Engine | 2.0-liter inline-four + 48V mild hybrid system |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 255 horsepower |
Torque | 270 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.7 seconds |
Top Speed | 155 mph (limited) |
Of every Mercedes C-class model year between 2015 and 2021, the final 2021 model year received the highest reliability verdict score of 3/5. If you are looking at this generation of C-class, we recommend the 2019+ model years as, on average, all the post-refresh years managed higher reliability scores than pre-refresh models.
The 300SL drives like a vintage race car, because it essentially is. It also feels a lot more modern than it looks.
Our next Mercedes is the third-generation C-class which was available from 2008 to 2014. About a decade ago, this Mercedes sedan was the best-selling Mercedes model on the market back in an era when the C 300 model still offered a 3.5-liter V-6 engine at its helm.
Engine | 3.5-liter V-6 |
Transmission | 7-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 248 horsepower |
Torque | 251 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 7.1 seconds |
Top Speed | 130 mph (limited) |
The 2012 model year of the third-generation C-class offered a welcome refresh, which included a much-needed overhaul of the C-class' not-so-nice interior along with global powertrain updates. The 2014 model year is the last year of this generation, and it also scored the highest reliability verdict of 3/5 for any year within the third-generation C-class.
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Before there was a GLC-Class, there was its predecessor, the GLK-Class SUV, which was, in essence, a C-Class SUV. The GLK was first available in 2010, but a major refresh in the 2013 model year would prove to be a smart decision for the German luxury brand.
Engine | 3.5-liter V-6 |
Transmission | 7-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 302 horsepower |
Torque | 273 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.8 seconds |
Top Speed | 130 mph |
The first model year of the refresh, 2013, would score an impressive 4/5 reliability verdict, placing it among the most reliable modern Mercedes models. The GLK 350's 3.5-liter V-6 is in one of its most refined and developed iterations in the 2013 model. Interestingly, the final model year of 2015 has a staunchly contrasting score of 2/5, despite no changes in powertrain or major design elements.
The predecessor to the current GLK-Class is the M-Class, Mercedes' full-sized SUV, which saw the name change occur after the 2015 model year for its mid-cycle refresh. Yet, it was the penultimate year of the pre-refresh model of this third-generation German SUV , the 2014 model year, that shines above the rest of the available years.
Engine | Twin-turbo 4.6-liter V-8 |
Transmission | 7-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 402 horsepower |
Torque | 443 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.3 seconds |
Top Speed | 155 (limited) |
The 2014 model year managed an impressive 4/5 reliability verdict, in stark contrast to the 2015 model year which only had a 2/5 score. The tried and true 3.5-liter V-6 found in the Ml 350 models was without question the most reliable powertrain available for the M-Class, but the ML 500/550 with its twin-turbo V-8 engine offers serious power at the expense of some extra cost.
Standing out as a top choice in almost every area, the Mercedes-Benz GLE 450 does its best to justify its higher price tag in 2024.
After the GLK-Class crossover SUV disappeared in 2015, the first-generation GLC-Class would come to take its place for the 2016 model year. Rarely does the first model year of a new generation offer the best reliability and, more often than not, the first year tends to be a guinea pig to improve upon.
Engine | 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 242 horsepower |
Torque | 273 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.9 seconds |
Top Speed | 130 mph |
Despite this fact, the 2016 GLC offered the highest reliability verdict of any year within its generation with a 4/5 score, which spanned from 2016 all the way to the 2022 model year. We can say that much of this success is due to the increasingly efficient powertrain options across the entire GLC line-up when compared to the previous generation.
What is the most consistently reliable Mercedes model of the last decade? The fifth generation E-Class takes the cake by offering three different 4/5 reliability verdict scores all within the same generation, a feat only seen in the E-Class. The fifth generation E-Class continues to be an outlier as its first model year, 2017, is one of the three top-rated model years despite large changes compared to the previous generation.
Engine | 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 242 horsepower |
Torque | 273 lb.ft |
Driveline | RWD |
0-60 MPH | 6.2 seconds |
Top Speed | 155 mph (limited) |
The amount of models and powertrain options offered in the fifth-generation E-Class could best be described as messy and confusing. Base models E 300s got the turbo-four while the E 400 offered a twin-turbo V-6, not to mention the twin-turbo V-8 found in the E 63 AMG. Yet, there is still the mild hybrid turbo inline-six model found in the E 53 AMG along with mild hybrid versions of the turbo-four, and we haven't even mentioned the hybrid or diesel engines.
Despite the sheer number of body styles and powertrain options found in the pre-facelift fifth-generation E-Class, the turbo-four found in the starting trim E 300 and 350 models is the most reliable of the bunch. The twin-turbo V-6 found in the E 450 would see its final application in an E-Class model, replaced by the mild hybrid turbocharged inline-six powering the current generation of 400/450-badged Mercedes models.
Engine | 3.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-6 |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 362 horsepower |
Torque | 369 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 4.6 seconds |
Top Speed | 155 mph (limited) |
Despite how encompassing the model line-up is, the fifth-generation E-Class still managed to be successful because of its foundation. This generation of E-Class would be the first E-Class to use the Mercedes' modern modular chassis platform, known as MRA. The MRA was a smash hit across a variety of segments and many of the models we have discussed all share this same foundational architecture.
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Our final model year on the list is the 2022 Mercedes E-Class, which saw a major facelift during the 2021 model year. No aspect of this facelift was as impactful as the overhaul of the entire powertrain department, which was convoluted and way too expansive for its own good.
Engine | 2.0-liter inline-four + 48V mild hybrid system |
Transmission | 9-speed automatic |
Horsepower | 255 horsepower |
Torque | 270 lb.ft |
Driveline | AWD |
0-60 MPH | 5.6 seconds |
Top Speed | 130 mph (limited) |
This 2021+ facelift brought a well-needed simplification to the entire Mercedes powertrain option list. The facelifted E 300 offers the current standard mild hybrid turbo-four combo setup, while the E 450 models offer the mild hybrid turbocharged inline-six setup. The iconic E 63 twin-turbo V-8 model also came to an end with this generation as Mercedes continues its prerogative of engine downsizing, for better or for worse.