2003 MERCEDES-BENZ C320 4MATIC WAGON Owner's Manual

87 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Opening the tailgate
The handle is located above the rear li-
cense plate recess.
1Handle
Lift the tailgate.
The tailgate swings open upwards. Always
make sure that there is sufficient overhead
clearance.
Closing the tailgate
1Handle
Lower tailgate by pulling firmly on
grip1.
iThe vehicle must be unlocked.
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the tail-
gate opening when closing the tailgate. Be
especially careful when small children are
around.Warning!
G
Only drive with the tailgate closed as,
among other dangers such as visibility
blockage, exhaust fumes may enter the ve-
hicle interior.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 87 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

88 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingOpening the doors from the inside
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
1Locking knob
2Inside door handle
Pull on door handle2.
If door was locked, locking knob1 will
move up.
Automatic central locking
The doors and the tailgate automatically
lock when the ignition is switched on and
the wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or more.
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.Information on towing the vehicle can be
found in the “Practical hints” section
(
page 310).
You can deactivate the automatic locking
using the control system (
page 125).
iIf the vehicle was previously been
locked from the outside with the
SmartKey, opening a door from the in-
side will trigger the alarm.
To cancel the alarm, do one of the fol-
lowing:

Press button
Œ
or
‹
on the
SmartKey.


Insert the SmartKey in the starter
switch.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact ex-
ceeds a preset threshold.
The vehicle automatically locks when
the ignition is switched on and the
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or
more. You could therefore lock yourself
out when the vehicle

is pushed or towed


is on a test stand
S203 MY03_A.book Page 88 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

89 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Locking and unlocking from the inside
You can lock or unlock the doors and the
tailgate from inside using the central lock-
ing switch. This can be useful, for example,
if you want to lock the vehicle before start-
ing to drive.
The fuel filler flap cannot be locked or un-
locked with the central locking switch.The switch is located in the center console.
Central locking switch1Locking
2Unlocking
Locking
Press upper half1 of the central lock-
ing switch.
If both front doors are closed, the vehi-
cle locks.Unlocking

Press lower half2 of the central lock-
ing switch.
The vehicle unlocks.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the starter switch, and lock the ve-
hicle. Do not leave children unattended in
the vehicle, or with access to an unlocked
vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle equip-
ment may cause an accident and/or serious
personal injury.
iYou can open a locked door from the
inside. Open door only when conditions
are safe to do so.
If the vehicle was previously centrally
locked using the SmartKey, it will not
unlock using the central locking switch.
If the vehicle was previously locked
with the central locking switch

while in the selective remote con-
trol mode, only the door opened
from the inside is unlocked.


while in the global remote control
mode, the complete vehicle is un-
locked when a door is opened from
the inside.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 89 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

90 Controls in detailSeats
SeatsInformation on seat adjustment can be
found in the “Getting started” section
(page 32).
Easy-entry/exit feature*
With the easy-entry/exit feature activated,
the steering wheel tilts upwards and the
driver’s seat moves to the rear.
This allows easier entry into and exit from
the vehicle when the driver’s door is
opened. However, the engine must be
turned off.
When the SmartKey is inserted in the start-
er switch and the driver’s door is closed,
the steering wheel and the driver’s seat re-
turn to their last set positions.You can activate the following functions:


Steering column:
Only the steering column is adjusted.


Steering column and seat:
The steering column and the seat are
adjusted.
The easy-entry/exit feature can be
switched on or off in the individual setting
menu of the control system (
page 126).
Warning!
G
You must make sure that no one can be-
come trapped or injured by the moving
steering wheel and the driver’s seat when
the easy-entry / exit feature* is activated,
the driver’s door is being opened and the en-
gine is turned off or the SmartKey is re-
moved from the starter switch. Do not leave
children unattended in the vehicle, or with
access to an unlocked vehicle. Unsuper-
vised use of vehicle equipment may cause
an accident and/or serious personal injury.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Children could open the driver’s door and
unintentionally activate the easy-entry/exit
feature*, which could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 90 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

91 Controls in detail
Seats
Head restraints
Information on head restraint adjustment
can be found in the “Getting started” sec-
tion (
page 32).Front seat head restraints, manual seat
Removing front head restraints

Pull head restraint to its highest posi-
tion.

Push button1 and pull out head re-
straint.
Installing front head restraints

Insert head restraint and push it down
to the stop.

Push button1 and adjust head re-
straint to desired position.Front seat head restraints, power seat*
Removing front head restraints

Press switch1 upwards and hold until
the head restraint is fully extended.

Pull out head restraint.
Installing front head restraints

Press switch1 upwards and hold for
about five seconds.

Push the head restraint down until it
engages.

Adjust head restraint to desired posi-
tion.
Warning!
G
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust head restraint to support the back of
the head approximately at ear level.
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat
head restraints. Head restraints are intend-
ed to help reduce injuries during an acci-
dent.iTilt the backrest to the rear for easier
removal and installation of the head re-
straints.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 91 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

92 Controls in detailSeatsRear seat head restraints (outer seats)Removing rear head restraints

Pull head restraint to its highest posi-
tion.

Push button1 and pull out head re-
straint.
Installing rear head restraints

Insert head restraint and push it down
until it engages.

Push button1 and adjust head re-
straint to desired position.
Warning!
G
For safety reasons, always drive with the
rear head restraints in the upright position
when the rear seats are occupied.
Keep the area around head restraints clear
of articles (e.g. clothing) to not obstruct the
folding operation of the head restraints.iThe center rear seat head restraint can-
not be removed.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 92 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

93 Controls in detail
Seats
Multicontour seat*
Some models may be equipped with driv-
er’s multicontour seat. This seat has a
movable seat cushion and inflatable air
cushions built into the backrest to provide
additional lumbar and side support.
The seat cushion movement, backrest
cushion height and curvature can be con-
tinuously varied with regulators on the
right side of the seat after turning the
SmartKey in the starter switch to
position2.1Seat cushion depth
2Backrest bottom
3Backrest center
4Side bolster adjustment
Adjusting the multicontour seat in the or-
der listed above is recommended.

Check that the ignition is switched on.
All lamps in the instrument cluster light
up.The seat cushion movement, backrest
cushion height and curvature can be con-
tinuously varied with regulators1, 2
and3).
The side bolsters of the backrest can be
adjusted with rocker switch4:

Press to the left.
Side support will be increased.

Press to the right.
Side support will be decreased.iWhen the engine is turned off, the last
cushion setting is retained in memory,
and the cushion is automatically ad-
justed to this setting when the engine
is restarted.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 93 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM

94 Controls in detailSeatsHeated seats*
Both switches for the front seats are locat-
ed in the center console.
1Normal heating
2Rapid heating
Make sure that the ignition is switched
on.
All the lamps in the instrument cluster
light up.
Switching on seat heating

Press upper switch position1.A red indicator lamp on the switch
lights up.
Switching on rapid seat heating

Press lower switch position2.
Both red indicator lamps on the switch
light up.Switching off seat heating

If one indicator lamp is on, press upper
switch position1.

If both indicator lamps are on, press
lower switch position2.
!If one or both of the lamps on the seat
heater switch are blinking, there is in-
sufficient voltage available since too
many electrical consumers are turned
on. The seat heater switches off auto-
matically.
The seat heater will switch back on
again automatically as soon as suffi-
cient voltage is available.iThe system switches over to normal
heating mode after approximately five
minutes. Only one indicator lamp re-
mains lit.
iThe seat heater will be automatically
switched off after approximately
30 minutes.
S203 MY03_A.book Page 94 Tuesday, January 28, 2003 2:22 PM