2003 MERCEDES-BENZ S500 4MATIC Air system

176 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlThe 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.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 184).
Warning!
G
When operating the automatic climate con-
trol, the air that enters the passenger com-
partment through the air vents in the
footwell can be very hot or very cold (de-
pending on the set temperature). This may
cause burn or frostbite to unprotected skin
in the immediate area of the air vents. Al-
ways keep sufficient distance between un-
protected parts of the body and the footwell
air vents. If necessary change the air flow
using the air distribution controls to direct
the air away from the footwell air vents
(page 178).
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.
iThe current climate control settings
(ON/OFF, temperature, air volume, ac-
tivated charcoal filter, etc.) are stored
for each SmartKey before it is removed
from the starter switch or when the ve-
hicle is locked using the KEYLESS-GO*
card (if so equipped) (
page 100).
If 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 volume by placing
objects on the air volume-through ex-
haust slots below the rear window.

177 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Setting the temperature
Use temperature controls (
page 175)
10for the left side or8 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 / decreasing

Press button 10 or 8 repeatedly until
the display shows the desired tempera-
ture.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.Adjusting the temperature for center
air vents
When outside temperatures are low, you
can manually raise the air temperature for
the center and side air vents.
Thumbwheel4 is located between the cen-
ter air vents (
page 174).
Automatic temperature control

Turn thumbwheel 4 to A.
The indicator lamp above the thumb-
wheel lights up. The temperature is au-
tomatically adjusted to the set value.Turning on warm air

Turn thumbwheel 4 in the direction of
the white marking.
Warm air will enter from the center air
vent.
Turning on cooler air

Turn thumbwheel4 in the direction of
the blue marking.
Cooler air will enter from the center air
vent.
iWhen operating the climate control
system in automatic mode, you will
only rarely need to adjust the tempera-
ture, air volume and air distribution.

181 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Deactivating
Press button
O
(page 175).
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 conditioning
is turned 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.
iThe 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.
Please note that the charcoal filter
must be activated (
page 182) for
the air recirculation mode to be ac-
tivated automatically.
If you have turned off the air condition-
ing (
page 184) or the outside tem-
perature is below 41°F (5°C), the air
recirculation mode will not switch on
automatically.
iIf you keep button
O
pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof return to their previous position.

182 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlCharcoal filter
An activated charcoal filter markedly re-
duces bad odors and removes pollutants
from air entering the passenger compart-
ment.
Activating
Press button
e
(page 175).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.
Deactivating

Press button
e
(page 175).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.The system automatically switches 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.
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.
iIf you keep button
e
pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof will be closed.
Warning!
G
Never operate the side windows and the
sliding pop/pop-up roof if there is the possi-
bility of anyone being harmed by the closing
procedure.
In the event that the procedure causes po-
tential danger, the closing of the side win-
dows can be immediately halted by pressing
the respective window switch. The closing of
the sliding/pop-up roof can be immediately
halted by moving the sliding/pop-up roof
switch in the overhead control panel in any
direction.
iIf you keep button
e
pressed, the
side windows and the sliding/pop-up
roof will be returned to their previous
position.

183 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Rear window defroster
The rear window defroster uses a large
amount of power. To keep battery drain to
a minimum, switch off the defroster as
soon as the rear window is clear. The de-
froster is automatically deactivated after
approximately 6 to 17 minutes of opera-
tion depending on the outside tempera-
ture.
Activating
Press button
F
(page 175).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.
Deactivating

Press button
F
(page 175) again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.Deactivating the climate control sys-
tem
Deactivating
It is possible to completely deactivate the
automatic climate control system. 
Press button
M
(page 175).
The display shows “0”.
Reactivating
There are several ways to reactivate the
automatic climate control system:

Press one of the following buttons, M
, P
, U
, a temperature con-
trol switch (
page 175) or air volume
switch 9 on the automatic climate con-
trol panel.
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 switches on again.

184 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlAir conditioning
The air conditioning is operational while
the engine is running and cools the interior
air to the temperature you have set.
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
(page 175).
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 condition-
ing.

PressAC
OFF
again (
page 175).
The indicator lamp on the AC
OFF
but-
ton goes out.
The air conditioning uses the refrigerant
R134a. This refrigerant is free of CFCs
which are harmful to the ozone layer.
Storage compartment ventilation
The storage compartment below the front
armrest (
page 225) has its own air vent.
Ventilation of the storage compartment
below the front armrest is possible only
when the climate control system is on. The
air volume depends on the setting of the
air distribution control, the air volume con-
trol, and the air vents in the dashboard.
The switch is located inside the storage
compartment in the front armrest
(
page 225).
Opening air vent

Push upper portion of switch.
Closing air vent

Push lower portion of switch.
iCondensation may drip out from under-
neath the vehicle. This is normal and
not an indication of a malfunction.
!If the AC
OFF
button on the automatic
climate control panel starts to blink,
the air conditioning may be losing re-
frigerant. The compressor was turned
off. The air conditioning cannot be
turned on again.
Have the air conditioning checked at
the nearest authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.

185 Controls in detail
Automatic 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 SmartKey in the starter switch
to position1 or remove it from the
starter switch.

Press button
T
(page 175).
The indicator lamp on button
T

comes on.
Deactivating

Press button
T
(page 175).
The indicator lamp on button
T

goes off.The residual heat is automatically turned
off:


when the ignition is switched on


after about 30 minutes


if the battery voltage drops
!Do not obstruct the air vent in the stor-
age compartment.iThe storage compartment can be heat-
ed or cooled.
The compartment can get very warm
due to its confined space. When storing
heat sensitive objects in the compart-
ment, close the air vent (
page 184)
while heating the passenger compart-
ment.
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.

187 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Rear passenger compartment climate control*
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.
The automatic climate control system is
adjustable individually for the rear passen-
ger compartment.
The control panel is located in the rear cen-
ter console.
Nearly all dust particles, pollutants and
odors are filtered out before outside air en-
ters the passenger compartment through
the air distribution system.
Rear automatic climate control panel
iWhen the rear seats are not occupied
(rear seat belts unbuckled) the rear cli-
mate control system adopts the set-
tings of the front climate control
system.
Item
1
Left center air vent
2
Display
3
Right center air vent
4
Air distribution
5
Temperature control, right
6
Air volume (automatic, manual)
7
Temperature control, left
8
Rear climate control system
ON/OFF
Residual engine heat utilization
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.