2003 MERCEDES-BENZ ML320 child lock

65 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
BabySmart
TM
airbag deactivation
system
Special BabySmart
TM compatible child
seats, designed for use with the
Mercedes-Benz system and available at
any authorized Mercedes-Benz Center, are
required for use with the BabySmart
TM air-
bag deactivation system. With the special
seat properly installed, the passenger front
airbag will not deploy.
The
7
indicator lamp located in the in-
strument cluster will be illuminated, ex-
cept with the key removed or in the
steering lock position0.
Infants and small children should never
share a seat belt with another occupant.
During an accident, they could be crushed
between the occupant and seat belt.
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle and
the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint.
Warning!
G
Children too big for child restraint systems
must ride in back seats using regular seat
belts. Position shoulder belt across chest
and shoulder, not face or neck. A booster
seat may be necessary to achieve proper
belt positioning for children from 41 lbs. to
the point where a lap / shoulder belt fits
properly without one.
When the child restraint is not in use, re-
m o v e i t f r o m t h e v e h i c l e o r s e c u r e i t w i t h t h e
seat belt to prevent the child restraint from
becoming a projectile in the event of an ac-
cident.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system. Unsupervised chil-
dren in a child restraint system may use ve-
hicle equipment and may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
iThe system does not deactivate the
door mounted side impact airbag, the
window curtain airbags and the emer-
gency tensioning device.

66 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetySelf-test BabySmart
TM
without special
child seat installed
After turning key in steering lock to
position 1 or 2, the
7
indicator lamp lo-
cated in the instrument cluster comes on
for approximately 6 seconds, extinguishes,
then blinks once.
If the indicator lamp should not come on or
is continuously lit, the system is not func-
tioning. You must see an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center before
seating any child on the front passenger
seat.
More information can be found in the
“Practical hints” section (page 232).
BabySmart
TM is a trademark of Siemens
Automotive Corp.
Warning!
G
The BabySmart
TM airbag deactivation sys-
tem will ONLY work with a special child seat
designed to operate with it. It will not work
with child seats which are not BabySmart
TM
compatible.
Never place anything between seat cushion
and child seat (e.g. pillow), since it reduces
the effectiveness of the deactivation sys-
tem. The bottom of the child seat must
make full contact with the passenger seat
cushion. An incorrectly mounted child seat
could cause injuries to the child in case of an
accident, instead of protecting the child.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for
installation of special child seats.
When using a BabySmart
TM compatible
child seat on the front passenger seat, the
front passenger airbag will not deploy only if
the
7
indicator lamp remains illuminat-
ed.
Please be sure to check the indicator every
time you use the special system child seat.
Should the light go out while the restraint is
installed, please check installation. If the
light remains out, do not use the
BabySmart
TM restraint to transport children
on the passenger seat until the system has
been repaired.
Warning!
G
Do not place powered-on laptops, cell
phones and like electronic devices on the
passenger seat. Signals from such devices
may interfere with the BabySmart
TM system.
Such signal interference may cause the
7
indicator lamp not to come on during
self-test or be continuously lit, indicating
that the system is not functioning.

69 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Blocking of rear door window operation
1Switch for rear door window override
Slide the switch to the right.
A dot becomes visible. The rear win-
dows can no longer be operated using
the switch in the rear doors.For more information on power windows,
see the “Controls in detail” section
(
page 134).
Warning!
G
Install child seat according to manufactur-
er’s instructions.
T h e c h i l d s e a t m u s t b e f i r m l y a t t a c h e d i n t h e
right and left side anchors1.
An incorrectly mounted child seat may come
loose during an accident.
Damaged or impact damaged child seats or
child seat mounting fittings must be re-
placed.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system.
Children too big for child restraint systems
must ride in back seats using regular seat
belts. Position shoulder belt across chest
and shoulder, not face or neck. A booster
seat may be necessary to achieve proper
belt positioning for children from 41 lbs. to
the point where a lap / shoulder belt fits
properly without one.
Warning!
G
Activate the override switch in the rear when
children are riding in the car. The children
could otherwise injure themselves, e.g. by
becoming trapped in the window opening.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the steering lock, 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.

85 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Unlocking
Unlocking the driver’s door and fuel
filler flap
Press button
Œ
once.
All turn signal lamps blink once to indi-
cate that the driver’s door and the fuel
filler flap are unlocked.Global unlocking

Press button
Œ
twice.
All turn signal lamps blink once to indi-
cate that all doors, fuel filler flap and
liftgate are unlocked.
Unlocking the liftgate

Press button
Š
.
Only the liftgate unlocks.
Locking

Press button
‹
once
All turn signal lamps blink three times
to indicate that all doors, the liftgate
and the fuel filler flap are unlocked.
iUnlocking the vehicle with the remote
control deactivates the anti-theft
alarm.
The vehicle will lock again automatical-
ly and reactivate the anti-theft system
within approximately 40 seconds of un-
locking if neither door nor liftgate is
opened.
iLocking the vehicle with the remote
control activates the anti-theft alarm.
iIf the turn signal lamps do not blink
three times, one of the following ele-
ments may not be properly closed:

a door


the liftgate


the hood
Close the respective element and lock
the vehicle again.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the steering lock, and lock your 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.

88 Controls in detailLocking and unlocking
Closing the liftgate
1Recessed grip
2Grip molding

Pull down on recessed grip1.

Close liftgate by using grip molding2.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the steering lock and lock the vehi-
cle. Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle. Children could open the liftgate
from inside, which could result in an acci-
dent and/or serious personal injury.
Warning!
G
When closing the liftgate, use extreme cau-
tion not to catch hands or fingers. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Do not close the liftgate from the inside by
pulling on the handle.

90 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingLocking and unlocking from the inside
You can lock or unlock the vehicle from in-
side using the central locking switches.
This can be useful, for example, if you want
to unlock the passenger door from the in-
side or want to lock the vehicle before
starting to drive.Locking

Press upper part1 of central locking
button (
page 89).
If all the doors are closed, the vehicle
locks.
Unlocking

Press lower part2 of central locking
button (
page 89).
The vehicle unlocks, if the vehicle was
not previously centrally locked with the
remote control.
iYou can open a locked door from the
inside. Open door only when conditions
are safe to do so.
If you have locked the vehicle with the
remote control, the central locking
switch does not work.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the steering lock and lock the 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.

116 Controls in detailAutomatic transmission
Effect
N
Neutral
No power is transmitted from the en-
gine to the drive axle. When the
brakes are released, the vehicle can
be moved freely (pushed or towed).
To avoid damage to the transmission,
never engageN while driving.
If the ESP is deactivated or malfunc-
tioning:
Only move selector lever toN if the
vehicle is in danger of skidding (e.g.
on icy roads).
D
The transmission shifts automatical-
ly. All five forward gears are avail-
able.
!Coasting the vehicle, or driving for any
other reason with selector lever inN
can result in transmission damage that
is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.Warning!
G
Getting out of your vehicle with the selector
lever not fully engaged in positionP is dan-
gerous. Also, positionP alone is not intend-
ed to or capable of preventing your vehicle
from moving, possibly hitting people or ob-
jects.
Always set the parking brake in addition to
shifting to positionP (
page 50).
When parked on an incline, turn the front
wheels towards the road curb.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle always remove the
key from the steering lock and lock the vehi-
cle. Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, or with access to an unlocked vehi-
cle. Children could move the selector lever
from positionP, which could result in an ac-
cident and/or serious personal injury.

134 Controls in detailPower windows
Power windowsOpening and closing the side windows
The power window switches are on the
front center console.
1Left front
2Right front
3Switch for rear door window override
(
page 69)
4Left rear
5Right rear Additional switches for the rear windows
are located on the rear center console.
6Left rear
7Right rear
To operate the power windows, turn key to
position2 (
page 33) in the steering lock.
Warning!
G
When closing the windows, make sure that
there is no danger of anyone being harmed
by the closing procedure.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from steering lock and lock your vehicle.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and/or serious personal
injury.