2003 MERCEDES-BENZ CL500 warning

52 Getting startedParking and locking
Press the seat belt release button
(page 41).
1Lock button on the door handle

After exiting the vehicle, press lock
button1 on the door handle or on the
trunk lid (
page 86).
The locking knobs on the doors move
down. The turn signal indicators light
up briefly.More information can be found in the
“Controls in detail” section (
page 80).
!If you hear a warning signal you have ei-
ther

forgotten to turn off the lights, or


not put the gear selector lever inP
before opening the driver’s door.
Turn off the lights or place the gear se-
lector lever inP.
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure that there
is no possibility of someone getting caught
in a door during closing.
iOpening a door causes the windows on
that side of the car to open slightly.
They will return to the up position when
the door is closed.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the starter switch, take the KEY-
LESS-GO* card with you, and lock your vehi-
cle. Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, or with access to an unlocked vehi-
cle. Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment
may cause an accident and/or serious per-
sonal injury.

55 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Airbags
Warning!
G
In the event that the
1
malfunction indi-
cator lamp lights up during driving or does
not come on at all, the SRS may not be op-
erational. For your safety, we strongly rec-
ommend that you visit an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center immediately to have
the system checked; otherwise the SRS may
not be activated when needed in an acci-
dent, which could result in serious or fatal
injury, or it might deploy unexpectedly and
unnecessarily which could also result in inju-
ry.
Improper work on the restraint systems, in-
cluding incorrect installation and removal,
can lead to possible injury through an unin-
tended activation of the SRS.
In addition, through improper work there is
a risk of rendering the SRS inoperative or
causing unintended airbag deployment.
W o r k o n t h e S R S m u s t t h e r e f o r e o n l y b e p e r -
formed by an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Warning!
G
Airbags are designed to reduce the potential
of injury and fatality in certain frontal im-
pacts (front airbags), side impacts (side im-
pact airbags and head protection window
curtain airbags) or rollovers (head protec-
tion window curtain airbags). However, no
system available today can totally eliminate
injuries and fatalities.
The activation of the SRS temporarily releas-
es a small amount of dust from the airbags.
This dust, however, is neither injurious to
your health, nor does it indicate a fire in the
vehicle. The dust might cause some tempo-
rary breathing difficulty for people with asth-
ma or other breathing trouble. To avoid this,
you may wish to get out of the vehicle as
soon as it is safe to do so. If you have any
breathing difficulty but cannot get out of the
vehicle after the airbag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or door.
Warning!
G
To reduce the risk of injury when the front
airbags inflate, it is very important for the
driver and front passenger to always be in a
properly seated position and to wear your
seat belts.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated position
with your back against the seat backrest.
Fasten your seat belt and ensure that it is
properly positioned on your body.
Since the airbag inflates with considerable
speed and force, a proper seating and hands
on steering wheel position will help to keep
you at a safe distance from the airbag. Oc-
cupants who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in-
jured by an airbag as it inflates with great
force in the blink of an eye:

Sit properly belted in an upright position
with your back against the seat back-
rest.

56 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety

Adjust the driver’s seat as far as possi-
ble rearward, still permitting proper op-
eration of vehicle controls. The distance
from the center of the driver’s breast-
bone to the center of the airbag cover on
the steering wheel must be at least
10 inches (25 cm) or more. You should
be able to accomplish this by a combina-
tion of adjustments to the seat and
steering wheel. If you have any prob-
lems, please see your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.


Do not lean with your head or chest
close to the steering wheel or dash-
board.


Keep hands on the outside of steering
wheel rim. Placing hands and arms in-
side the rim can increase the risk and
potential severity of hand/arm injury
when driver front airbag inflates.


Adjust the front passenger seat as far as
possible rearward from the dashboard
when the seat is occupied.


Occupants, especially children, should
never lean their heads in the area of the
door where the side airbag inflates. This
could result in serious injuries or death
should the airbag be triggered. Always
sit upright, properly use the seat belts
and appropriate size infant or child re-
straint system.


Children 12 years old and under must
never ride in the front seat, except in a
Mercedes-Benz authorized
BabySmart
TM compatible child seat,
which operates with the BabySmart
TM
system installed in the vehicle to deacti-
vate the passenger front airbag when it
is properly installed. Otherwise they will
be struck by the airbag when it inflates
in a crash. If this happens, serious or fa-
tal injury will result.
Failure to follow these instructions can re-
sult in severe injuries to you or other occu-
pants.
If you sell your vehicle you are responsible
to make the buyer aware of these points. Be
sure to give the buyer this Operator’s Manu-
al.
Warning!
G
Accident research shows that the safest
place for children in an automobile is in the
rear seat. Should you choose to place a child
12 years old or under in the front passenger
seat of your vehicle, you must properly use
a BabySmart
TM child restraint which will
turn off the passenger front airbag.
BabySmart
TM will not, however, turn off any
side impact airbag.
It should be noted that with respect to both
front and rear side impact airbags there is a
possibility for a side airbag related injury if
occupants, especially children, are not prop-
erly seated or restrained when next to a side
airbag which needs to deploy rapidly in a
side impact in order to do its job.
To help avoid the possibility of injury, please
follow these guidelines:
(1) Occupants, especially children, should
never place their bodies or lean their
heads in the area of the door where the
side airbag inflates. This could result in

58 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetySafety guidelines for the seat belt,
emergency tensioning device and
airbagWarning!
G


Damaged seat belts or belts that were
highly stressed in an accident must be
replaced and their anchoring points
must also be checked. Use only belts in-
stalled or supplied by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.


Airbags and ETDs are designed to func-
tion on a one-time-only basis. An airbag
or emergency tensioning device (ETD)
that was activated must be replaced.


No modifications of any kind may be
made to any components or wiring of
the SRS. This includes changing or re-
moving any component or part of the
SRS, the installation of additional trim
material, badges etc. over the steering
wheel hub, front passenger airbag cov-
er, door trim panels, or door frame
trims, and installation of additional elec-
trical/electronic equipment on or near
SRS components and wiring. Keep area
between airbags and occupants free
from objects (e.g. packages, purses,
umbrellas, etc.).


Do not pass belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.


Do not make any modification that could
change the effectiveness of the belts.


Do not hang items such as coat hangers
from the coat hooks or handles over the
door. These items may turn into projec-
tiles and cause head and other injuries
when curtain airbag is deployed.


An airbag system component within the
steering wheel gets hot after the airbag
has inflated. Do not touch.


Improper work on the system, including
incorrect installation and removal, can
lead to possible injury through an unin-
tended activation of the SRS.


In addition, through improper work
there is a risk of rendering the SRS inop-
erative or causing unintended airbag de-
ployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by an au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.


For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the airbag
unit or emergency tensioning device,
our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These instructions are available
from your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.


Given the considerable deployment
speed and the textile structure of the
airbags, there is the possibility of abra-
sions or other injuries resulting from air-
bag deployment.

60 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyThe front passenger side impact airbag 2
will only deploy if the system senses that
the front passenger seat is occupied.
The window curtain airbags fill up the area
between the A and C pillars (see arrows).
1Window curtain airbag
2Front side impact airbags
3Rear side impact airbags
Seat belts
The seat belt nonusage warning lamp
<

in the instrument cluster lights up and a
warning sounds for a short time when you
turn the key in the starter switch to
position2 or press the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button twice and the drivers
seat belt is not fastened.
After starting the engine, the seat belt non-
usage warning lamp blinks for a brief peri-
od to remind the driver and passengers to
fasten the seat belts.
The use of seat belts and infant and child
restraint systems is required by law in
most states, the District of Columbia and
all Canadian provinces. Even where this is
not the case, all vehicle occupants should
have their seat belts fastened at all times
when driving or riding in the vehicle.
Information on fastening seat belts is
found in the “Getting started” section
(
page 40).
iFor information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and re-
straint systems for infants and chil-
dren, see “Children in the vehicle”
(page 63).

61 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Warning!
G
Always fasten your seat belt before driving
off. Always make sure your passengers are
properly restrained, even those sitting in the
rear and pregnant women.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and po-
sition your seat belt greatly increases your
risk of injuries and their likely severity in an
accident. You and your passengers should
always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your injuries
can be considerably more severe without
your seat belt properly buckled. Without
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury or
death is lessened if you are properly wearing
your seat belt. Airbags can only protect as
they are designed if the occupants are prop-
erly wearing their seat belts.
Warning!
G
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
backrest reclined. Sitting in an extremely re-
clined position can be dangerous. You could
slide under the seat belt in a collision. If you
slide under it, the belt would apply force at
the abdomen or neck. That could cause se-
rious or even fatal injuries. The seat back-
rest and seat belt provide the best restraint
when the wearer is in an upright position
and the belt is properly positioned on the
body.Warning!
G
Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are seat belts available. Be sure
everyone riding in the vehicle is correctly re-
strained with a separate seat belt.
Warning!
G
Damaged seat belts or belts that were highly
stressed in an accident must be replaced
and their anchoring points must also be
checked.
Only use seat belts which have been ap-
proved by Mercedes-Benz.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to unintended activation
or to failure.
Have all work carried out only by an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.

62 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY

Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this sec-
tion, as that could result in serious inju-
ries in case of an accident.


Each occupant should wear their seat
belt at all times, because seat belts help
reduce the likelihood of and potential
severity of injuries in accidents, includ-
ing rollovers. The integrated restraint
system includes SRS (driver’s airbag,
front passenger airbag, side impact air-
bags, head protection window curtain
airbags for side windows), ETD (seat belt
emergency tensioning device), and front
seat knee bolsters. The system is de-
signed to enhance the protection of-
fered to properly belted occupants in
certain frontal (front airbags) and side
(side impact and window curtain air-
bags) impacts which exceed preset de-
ployment thresholds and in
certain rollovers (window curtain air-
bags).


Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoul-
der. In a crash, your body would move
too far forward. That would increase the
chance of head and neck injuries. The
belt would also apply too much force to
the ribs or abdomen, which could se-
verely injure internal organs such as
your liver or spleen.


Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eyeglasses, pens, keys etc., as these
might cause injuries.


Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo-
m e n . I f t h e b e l t i s p o s i t i o n e d a c r o s s y o u r
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries
in a crash.


Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat
belt around a person and another per-
son or other objects.


Belts should not be worn twisted. In a
crash, you wouldn’t have the full width
of the belt to manage impact forces. The
twisted belt against your body could
cause injuries.


Pregnant women should also use a
lap-shoulder belt. The lap belt portion
should be positioned as low as possible
on the hips to avoid any possible pres-
sure on the abdomen.


Never place your feet on the instrument
panel or on the seat. Always keep both
feet on the floor in front of the seat.

63 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Emergency tensioning device (ETD),
seat belt force limiter
The seat belts for the front and rear outer
seats are equipped with emergency ten-
sioning devices and belt force limiters.
The ETD is designed to activate in the fol-
lowing cases when the seat belts are fas-
tened:

in frontal or rear-end impacts exceed-
ing a preset severity level


in certain vehicle rollovers


if the restraint systems are operational
and functioning correctly. See
1
in-
dicator lamp (
page 54).
In an impact, emergency tensioning devic-
es remove slack from the belts in such a
way that the seat belts fit more snugly
against the body. Belt force limiters reduce
the force exerted by the seat belts on oc-
cupants during a crash.Automatic comfort-fit feature seat belt
An automatic comfort-fit feature for front
seats reduces the retracting force of the
seat belts when they are in normal use.
Children in the vehicle
If an infant or child is traveling with you in
the vehicle:

Secure the child using an infant or child
restraint appropriate to the age and
size of the child and recommended for
use by Mercedes-Benz.


Ensure that the infant or child is prop-
erly secured at all times while the vehi-
cle is in motion.
Infant and child restraint seats and infor-
mation on choosing an appropriate re-
straint system can be obtained from any
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Infant and child restraint systems
Use only a BabySmart
TM compatible child
restraint for the front passenger seat in
this vehicle.
We recommend all infants and children be
properly restrained at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
Warning!
G
An emergency tensioning device (ETD) that
was activated must be replaced.
When scrapping the emergency tensioning
device, our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These are available at your autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.!Do not place objects heavier than 20
lbs (9 kg) on the front passenger seat.
This could cause the front or side im-
pact airbag on the front passenger side
to deploy in a crash which exceeds the
system's deployment threshold.