4 sourced reports, with what to check before you buy. Each one links to the page it was reported on.
3 of these reports describe a fire, explosion or shock risk.
Costly or dangerous
EQB 250+ 70.5 kWh Farasis battery: internal short-circuit fire risk, replacement delayed to 2028
Safety risk
The EQB 250+ with the 70.5 kWh Farasis battery (2021-2024) carries an internal short-circuit fire risk. The recall covers more than 51,000 vehicles worldwide (~4,700 in Germany), and battery replacement may be delayed until March 2028 due to limited parts availability.
What to check. Owners of the EQB 250+ face a long wait for the replacement battery. Until then they must keep charge at or below 80% and avoid parking in garages or underground car parks.
KBA official recall 16136R: 50,000 EQA/EQB get new high-voltage batteries
Germany's KBA published official recall 16136R covering roughly 50,000 EQA/EQB vehicles worldwide, including several thousand built in Germany between February 2022 and July 2024, with full high-voltage battery replacement.
What to check. For EU-market EQB owners, this is the official German recall number to reference. The remedy is a free full battery replacement; until then charging power and usable capacity are limited.
Third fire-related recall 26V073 replaces software fix; EQB 250+ affected
Safety risk
Mercedes issued a third fire-related recall (26V073) for 11,895 EQBs from 2022-2024 model years after a software update failed to stop fires. The affected variants include the 2023-2024 EQB 250+.
What to check. The software fix did not resolve the risk; Mercedes now plans full battery replacement. Check your VIN against recall 26V073 and do not rely on a prior software update as a final remedy.
Court ruling: charging/parking restrictions alone make EQA/EQB unusable; fire risk unresolved
Safety risk
Mercedes identified battery-related fire risk in about 51,729 EQA/EQB models built between February 2021 and July 2024 (4,677 in Germany). A Stuttgart court ruled the charging and parking restrictions alone made the car unusable, awarding rescission of the sale contract.
What to check. The fire risk is unresolved and the interim restrictions (park outside, charge max 80%) are significant. A court has allowed a buyer to return the car; this is a case-specific ruling, not an automatic right for all owners.
These reports come from the pages linked under each item: owner forums, repair guides and workshops. They are not a diagnosis of any one unit, and a careful check of the one you are buying still applies.
Text from the Kriko Electric cars catalog, version 0.1.1, under the CC-BY-SA-4.0 license.
