Mercedes V-Class MPV - Reliability & safety
Mercedes' reliability ratings have slipped, but the V-Class safety credentials are strong
The Mercedes V-Class gets even more safety tech than before, although the brand falls behind in our Driver Power owner satisfaction survey.
Mercedes V-Class reliability
While the V-Class itself hasn’t yet featured in our 2023 Driver Power customer satisfaction survey, we’ve not heard any horror stories about it or the Vito commercial van on which it’s based, and the 2.0-litre diesel engine is a tried and tested unit.
That said, Mercedes hasn’t performed well as a brand in the most recent survey, coming in 25th place out of 32 manufacturers overall – reliability was slightly lower than average, with 28% of Mercedes owners reporting an issue with their car in the first year. Most of these issues were reported as electrical or ‘other’ faults.
Safety
Even the most basic vans now have high levels of crash protection, meaning van-based MPVs like the V-Class enjoy ever higher standards of safety. Indeed the pre-facelift V-Class scored a full five-star rating when it was tested by Euro NCAP in 2014.
Thanks to updates for its facelift, there’s now even more safety equipment fitted as standard. All cars now get blind-spot assist, autonomous emergency braking tech, lane-keep assist, driver attention monitoring system, blind-spot assist, and adaptive cruise control among other features.
