Mercedes-Benz USA recalls 2025-2026 GLE 350 4MATIC for rear-center seat belt child locking issue

Michael Powers, Editor

01:10 03-01-2026

Mercedes-Benz USA has announced a recall of certain 2025 and 2026 GLE crossovers in the GLE 350 4MATIC specification. The issue isn’t tied to software or the powertrain, but to the rear center seat belt: some vehicles may have been fitted with a version that lacks the child-seat protection/locking function, essentially missing the proper locking mode. According to NHTSA, this can increase the risk of injury to a child in a crash—an uncomfortable miss for a family-focused SUV.

The manufacturer links the problem to a deviation in a supplier’s production process that may have mixed different belt variants in shipments. The supplier Lear is mentioned in the documentation. Owners might notice an indirect clue: after fully extending the belt, the customary ratcheting sound that typically indicates the locking mode may be absent.

The investigation, as noted in the publication and report, began in the summer of 2025, after which the factory applied updates to vehicles still within the company’s reach. It later became clear that some cars might have reached customers with the wrong belt, prompting Mercedes to compile a list of potentially affected VINs. Dealers were notified on December 19, 2025, and owner letters are scheduled to go out no later than February 9, 2026. The rear-center belt will be replaced free of charge. The sequence of steps reads like a move from in-plant containment to a full field campaign as the scope crystallized.