2003 MERCEDES-BENZ E320 Climate

175 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
The automatic climate control is a 4-zone
intelligent climate control system. Your ve-
hicle interior is divided into 4 zones.With the help of a sun sensor, the automat-
ic climate control determines the relation
of the sun to the vehicle and automatically
adjusts the inside temperature for every in-
dividual zone.
You can set the temperature for each of
the 4 zones separately. These settings can
be assigned to a key and stored in memory
(
page 144).
The automatic climate control is operation-
al whenever the engine is running. It cools
the vehicle’s interior according to the an-
gle and intensity of the sun’s rays, the out-
side temperature and the selected
temperature.The activated charcoal filter, when
switched on, markedly reduces odors and
removes pollutants from the air entering
the passenger compartment.
The automatic climate control is operation-
al whenever the engine is running. You can
operate the climate control system in ei-
ther the automatic or manual mode. The
system cools or heats the interior depend-
ing on the selected interior temperature
and the current outside temperature.iCondensation may drip from under-
neath the vehicle. This is normal and
not an indication of a malfunction.
!If the interior has been heated, air the
vehicle out before driving.
Keep the air intake between the hood
and the windshield free of snow.
Do not cover the ventilation slot be-
tween the rear shelf and the rear win-
dow.

176 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control*Nearly all dust particles, pollutants and
odors are filtered out before outside air en-
ters the passenger compartment through
the air distribution system.
The air conditioning will not engage (no
cooling) if the economy mode AC
OFF
is se-
lected (
page 174).
Setting the temperature
Use temperature control3 for the left side
or5 for the right side to separately adjust
the air temperature on each side of the
passenger compartment. You should raise
or lower the temperature setting in small
increments, preferably starting at 72°F
(22°C).Increasing

Push top of temperature control rocker
switch3 and/or5.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Decreasing

Push bottom of temperature control
rocker switch3 and/or5.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Heating:
Only in manual air distribution mode is it
possible to lower the temperature in the
headroom by adding outside air using
thumbweel7 (
page 172) in the dash-
board.
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for heat-
ing and cooling given on the following pag-
es. Otherwise the windows could fog up,
impairing visibility and endangering you and
others.
iIf the vehicle interior is hot, ventilate
the interior before driving off.
Keep the air intake grille in front of the
windshield free of snow and debris.
Do not obstruct air flow by placing ob-
jects on the air flow-through exhaust
slots below the rear window.iWhen operating the climate control
system in automatic mode, you will
only rarely need to adjust the tempera-
ture, air volume and air distribution.

177 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Adjusting air distribution
Adjusting manually
Turn air distribution controls1 and7
(page 174) to manually adjust to the
desired air distribution on each side of
the passenger compartment.
The indicator lamp in the U button
goes out.The following pages use symbol set 1 to
explain the operation of the air distribution
control. Please see above chart for refer-
ence to the corresponding function of sym-
bol set 2 should your vehicle show those
on the air distribution control switch.
Adjusting automatically

Press left or right U button again.
The indicator lamp in the U button
illuminates. The air distribution is ad-
justed automatically
Windshield fogged on the outside

Switch the windshield wipers on.

Press the left or right U button.
Adjusting air volume
Adjusting manually
Nine blower speeds are available.
Press˜ to decrease or Q to in-
crease air volume to the desired level.
The
Auto
display disappears and the
automatic mode is switched off. The
selected blower speed is shown in the
display.
Adjusting automatically

Press left or right U button.
The air volume is adjusted automatical-
ly.
Maximum cooling MAX COOL
If the left and right air distribution controls
as well as the airflow volume control are
set toU and there is a high need for
cooling, the display "MAX COOL" appears
in the front and rear display.
Symbol
Function
Set 1
Set 2
Õ
a
Directs air through the
center, side and rear
passenger compartment
air outlets
Ô
Z
Directs air to the win-
dows
Ò
X
Directs air into the entire
vehicle interior
Ó
Y
Directs air to the foot-
wells

178 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control*This provides the fastest possible cooling
of the vehicle interior (when windows and
sliding/pop-up roof are closed).Defrosting
Activating
Press buttonP.
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.

Switch off air recirculation, if selected.

Press buttonO.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.

Close center air outlets.

Adjust side air outlets upwards.Deactivating

Press buttonP.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. Defrosting is turned off.
Air recirculation mode
Switch to air recirculation mode to prevent
unpleasant odors from entering the vehicle
from the outside. This setting cuts off the
intake of outside air and recirculates the
air in the passenger compartment.
Activating
Press buttonO.
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
iThese settings should only be selected
for a short time.
Warning!
G
When the outside temperature is below
41°F (5°C), only switch to air recirculation
mode for short periods to prevent window
fogging.
iIf you keep buttonO pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof* will be closed.
The air recirculation mode is activated
automatically:

at high outside temperatures


if the concentration of carbon mon-
oxide and nitrogen oxide in the out-
side air increases, for example in a
tunnel (charcoal filter activated
(page 180))
If you have turned off the air condition-
er (
page 170) or the outside
temperature is below 41°F (5°C), the
air recirculation mode will not switch
on automatically.

179 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Deactivating
Press buttonO.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.The air recirculation mode is deactivated
automatically:


after five minutes if the outside temper-
ature is below approximately 41°F
(5°C)


after five minutes if the air conditioner
is turned off (AC
OFF
)


after 30 minutes if the outside temper-
ature is above approximately 41°F
(5°C)
At outside temperatures above 79°F
(26°C) the system will not automatically
switch back to outside air. A quantity of
outside air is added after approximately
30 minutes.
Warning!
G
Never operate the windows or slid-
ing/pop-up roof* if there is the possibility of
anyone being harmed by the opening or
closing procedure.
In case the procedure causes potential dan-
ger, the procedure can be immediately halt-
ed by releasing the control button. To
reverse direction of movement press
button
Œ
for opening or
‹
for clos-
ing.
iIf you keep buttonO pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof* will be returned to their previous
position.

180 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control*Charcoal filter
An activated charcoal filter markedly re-
duces bad odors and removes pollutants
from air entering the passenger compart-
ment.
Activating
Press buttone.
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.
The system switches automatically to the
air recirculation mode if the carbon
monoxide (CO) or nitrogen oxide (NO
X)
concentration of the outside air increases
beyond a predetermined level.Deactivating

Press buttone.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
The automatic air recirculation mode does
not function if economy mode AC
OFF
is se-
lected or if the outside temperature has
fallen below 41
°F(5
°C).
The activated charcoal filter should be
switched off when windows fog up on the
inside, or if the passenger compartment
needs to be quickly heated or cooled
down.
Rear window defroster
The rear window defroster uses a large
amount of power. To keep the battery
drain to a minimum, switch off the defrost-
er as soon as the rear window is clear. The
defroster is automatically deactivated af-
ter approximately 6 to 17 minutes of oper-
ation depending on the outside
temperature.
Activating
Press buttonF.
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
Deactivating

Press buttonF again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
iIf you keep buttone pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof* will be closed.
iIf you keep buttone pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof* will be returned to their previous
position.

181 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Air conditioner
The air conditioner is operational while the
engine is running and cools the interior air
to the temperature set by the operator.
Deactivating
It is possible to deactivate the air condi-
tioning (cooling) function of the automatic
climate control system. The air in the vehi-
cle will then no longer be cooled or dehu-
midified.
Press buttonAC
OFF
.
The indicator lamp on the
buttonAC
OFF
lights up.Activating
Moist air can fog up the windows. You can
dehumidify the air with the air conditioner.

PressAC
OFF
again.
The indicator lamp on
theAC
OFF
button goes out.
The air conditioner uses the refrigerant
R134a. This refrigerant is free of CFCs
which are harmful to the ozone layer.
Warning!
G
Any accumulation of snow and ice should be
removed from the rear window before driv-
ing. Visibility could otherwise be impaired,
endangering you and others.!If the rear window defroster switches
off too soon and the indicator lamp
starts blinking, this means that too
many electrical consumers are operat-
ing simultaneously and there is insuffi-
cient voltage in the battery. The system
responds automatically by deactivating
the rear window defroster.
As soon as the battery has sufficient
voltage, the rear window defroster au-
tomatically turns itself back on.
iCondensation may drip out from under-
neath the vehicle. This is normal and
not an indication of a malfunction.
!If the air conditioner cannot be turned
on again, this indicates that the air con-
ditioner is losing refrigerant. The com-
pressor has turned itself off.
Have the air conditioner checked at the
nearest authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.

182 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control*Residual heat and ventilation
With the engine switched off, it is possible
to continue to heat or ventilate the interior
for up to 30 minutes. This feature makes
use of the residual heat produced by the
engine.
Activating
Turn the key in the starter switch to
position1 o r r e m o ve i t f r o m t h e s t a r t e r
switch.

Press buttonT.
The indicator lamp on buttonT
comes on.
Deactivating

Press buttonT.
The indicator lamp on buttonT
goes out.The residual heat is automatically turned
off


when the ignition is switched on


after about 30 minutes


if the battery voltage drops
Rear air conditioning
1Swiveling left rear center air outlet
2Swiveling right rear center air outlet
3Thumbwheel, left rear center air outlet
4Temperature rocker switch, left
5Display
6Temperature rocker switch, right
7Thumbwheel, right rear center air out-
let
iHow long the system will provide heat-
ing depends on the coolant tempera-
ture and the temperature set by the
operator. The blower will run at speed
setting1 regardless of the air distribu-
tion control setting.