228 Controls in detailUseful featuresCigarette lighter
1Cigarette lighter
Make sure the ignition is switched on.
All the lamps in the instrument cluster
should come on.
Push in cigarette lighter1.
The lighter will pop out automatically
when hot.
Heated steering wheel*
The steering wheel heating warms up the
leather area of the steering wheel.
The stalk with the heated steering wheel
switch is on the lower left-hand side of the
steering wheel.
1Switching on
2Indicator lamp
3Switching off
Warning!
G
Never touch the heating element or sides of
the lighter; they are extremely hot. Hold the
knob only.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* with you and
lock your vehicle. Do not leave children un-
attended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause an accident
and / or serious personal injury.iThe lighter socket can be used to ac-
commodate electrical accessories up
to a maximum 85 W.
229 Controls in detail
Useful features
Switching on
Switch on ignition.
All the lamps in the instrument cluster
should come on.
Turn switch at the tip of stalk in direc-
tion of arrow1.
The steering wheel is heated. Indicator
lamp2 comes on.
Switching off
Turn switch at the tip of stalk in direc-
tion of arrow3.
The steering wheel heating is turned
off. Indicator lamp2 goes out.
Telephone*
Radio transmitters, such as a portable tele-
phone or a citizens band unit, should only
be used inside the vehicle if they are con-
nected to an antenna that is installed on
the outside of the vehicle.
The external antenna must be approved by
Mercedes-Benz. Please contact an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center for informa-
tion on the installation of an approved
external antenna. Refer to the radio trans-
mitter operation instructions regarding use
of an external antenna.
iThe steering wheel heating does not
turn off automatically.
Warning!
G
Never operate radio transmitters equipped
with a built-in or attached antenna (i.e. with-
out being connected to an external antenna)
from inside the vehicle while the engine is
running. Doing so could lead to a malfunc-
tion of the vehicle’s electronic system, pos-
sibly resulting in an accident and / or serious
personal injury.
Warning!
G
Please do not forget that your primary re-
sponsibility is to drive the vehicle. A driver’s
attention to the road must always be
his / her primary focus when driving. For
your safety and the safety of others, we rec-
ommend that you pull over to a safe location
and stop before placing or taking a tele-
phone call.
If you choose to use the telephone
1 while
driving, please use the hands-free device
and only use the telephone when road,
weather and traffic conditions permit. Some
jurisdictions prohibit the driver from using a
cellular telephone while driving a vehicle.
Only operate the COMAND (Cockpit Man-
agement and Data System)
1 if road, weather
and traffic conditions permit.
1Observe all legal requirements.
230 Controls in detailUseful featuresYou can take and make telephone calls us-
ing thes andt buttons on the
steering wheel. To carry out other tele-
phone functions, use the control system
(page 129).
See separate operating manual for instruc-
tions on how to use the telephone.
Tele Aid The Tele Aid system
(T
elematic A
larm I
dentification on D
e-
mand)
The Tele Aid system consists of three types
of response:
automatic and manual emergency
roadside assistance and
information
The Tele Aid system is operational provid-
ing that the vehicle’s battery is charged,
properly connected, not damaged and cel-
lular and GPS coverage is available.
The speaker volume of a Tele Aid call can
be adjusted when using the volume control
on the multifunction steering wheel. To
raise, press buttonæ and to lower,
press buttonç.
To activate, press the SOS button, the
Roadside Assistance button• or
the Information button¡, depend-
ing on the type of response required.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km / h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet (approximate-
ly 14 m) every second.
!The initial activation of the Tele Aid sys-
tem may only be performed by com-
pleting the subscriber agreement and
placing an acquaintance call using the
SOS button. Failure to complete either
of these steps will result in a system
that is not activated. If the system is
not activated, the indicator lamp in the
SOS button stays on after turning the
SmartKey in starter switch to
position2, or pressing the
KEYLESS-GO* start / stop button twice
to position2. The message
TELE AID –
NOT ACTIVATED
will be shown in the
multifunction display for approximately
ten seconds.
If you have any questions regarding ac-
tivation, please call the Response Cen-
ter at 1-800-756-9018 (in the USA) or
1-888-923-8367 (in Canada).
235 Controls in detail
Useful features
Information button¡
The Information button¡ is located be-
low the center armrest cover.
Press and hold the button (for longer
than two seconds).
A call to the Customer Assistance Cen-
ter will be initiated. The button will
flash while the call is in progress. The
message
INFO – CONNECTING CALL
will
appear in the multifunction display.
When the connection is established, the
message
INFO – CALL CONNECTED
appears
in the multifunction display. The Tele Aid
system will transmit data generating the
vehicle identification number, model, color
and location (subject to availability of cel-
lular and GPS signals).A voice connection between the Customer
Assistance Center representative and the
occupants of the vehicle will be estab-
lished. When a voice connection is estab-
lished the audio system muted and the
message
TELE AID – INFO CALL ACTIVE
appears in the multifunction display.
Information regarding the operation of
your vehicle, the nearest auuthorized
Mercedes-Benz Center or Mercedes-Benz
USA products and services is available to
you.
For more details concerning the Tele Aid
system, please visit www.mbusa.com and
use your ID and password (sent to you sep-
arately) to learn more (USA only). See system self-check (
page 231)
when the indicator lamp does not come
on in red or stays on longer than ap-
proximately ten seconds.
If the indicator lamp in the Roadside
Assistance button• is illuminated
continuously and no voice connection
to the Response Center was estab-
lished, then the Tele Aid system could
not initiate a Roadside Assistance call
(e.g. the relevant cellular phone net-
work is not available). The message
ROADSIDE ASSISTANCE – CALL FAILED
appears in the multifunction display.
Roadside Assistance calls can be ter-
minated using the tbutton on the
multifunction steering wheel.
236 Controls in detailUseful features
Upgrade Signals
The Tele Aid system processes calls using
the following priority:
Automatic emergency – First priority
Manual emergency – Second priority
Roadside Assistance – Third priority
Information – Fourth priority
Should a higher priority call be initiated
while you are connected, an upgrade (al-
ternating) tone will be heard, and the ap-
propriate indicator lamp will flash. If
certain information such as vehicle identi-
fication number or customer information is
not available, the operator may need to re-
transmit.
During this time you will hear a beep and
voice contact will be interrupted. Voice
contact will resume once the retransmis-
sion is completed. Once a call is conclud-
ed, a beep will be heard and the respective
indicator lamp will stop flashing. The
COMAND system operation will resume.
iThe indicator lamp in the Information
button¡ remains illuminated in red
for approximately ten seconds during
the system self-check after turning the
ignition on (together with the SOS but-
ton and the Roadside Assistance
button•).
See System self-check (
page 231)
when the indicator lamp does not come
on in red or stays on longer than ap-
proximately ten seconds.
If the indicator lamp in the Information
button¡ is illuminated continuous-
ly and there was no voice connection to
the Response Center established, then
the Tele Aid system could not initiate
an Information call (e.g. the relevant
cellular phone network is not avail-
able). The message
INFO –
CALL FAILED
appears in the multifunc-
tion display.
Information calls can be terminated us-
ing the tbutton on the multifunc-
tion steering wheel.!If the indicator lamps do not start flash-
ing after pressing one of the buttons or
remain illuminated (in red) at any time,
the Tele Aid system has detected a
fault or the service is not currently ac-
tive, and may not initiate a call. Visit an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center and
have the system checked or contact
the Response Center at
1-800-756-9018 (in the USA) or
1-888-923-8367 (in Canada) as soon
as possible.
237 Controls in detail
Useful features
Remote door unlock
In case you have locked your vehicle unin-
tentionally (e.g. SmartKey inside vehicle),
and the reserve SmartKey is not handy:
Contact the Mercedes-Benz Response
Center at 1-800-756-9018 (in the USA)
or 1-888-923-8367 (in Canada).
You will be asked to provide your pass-
word which you provided when you
completed the subscriber agreement.
Then return to your vehicle and press
the trunk lock for a minimum of
20 seconds until the SOS button is
flashing.
The message
EMERGENCY CALL –
CALL CONNECTED appears in the multi-
function display.
As an alternative, you may unlock the vehi-
cle via Internet using the ID and password
sent to you shortly after the completion of
your Acquaintance Call.
!If the indicator lamp continues to flash
or the system does not reset, contact
the Response Center at
1-800-756-9018 (in the USA) or
1-888-923-8367 (in Canada), or
Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance
at 1-800-FOR-MERCedes
(1-800-367-6372) in the USA or Cus-
tomer Service at 1-800-387-0100 in
Canada.iThe indicator lamp in the respective
button flashes until the call is conclud-
ed. Calls can only be terminated by a
Response Center or Customer Assis-
tance Center representative except
Roadside Assistance and Information
calls, which can also be terminated by
pressing buttonton the multifunc-
tion steering wheel.
iWhen a Tele Aid call has been initiated,
the COMAND system audio is muted
and the selected mode (radio, tape or
CD) pauses. The optional cellular
phone (if installed) switches off. If you
must use this phone, the vehicle must
be parked. Disconnect the coiled cord
and place the call. The COMAND navi-
gation system (if engaged) will contin-
ue to run. The display in the instrument
cluster is available for use, and spoken
commands are only available by press-
ing the RPT button on the COMAND
unit. A pop-up window will appear in
the COMAND display to indicate that a
Tele Aid call is in progress.
245 Operation
The first 1000 miles (1500 km)
Driving instructions
At the gas station
Engine compartment
Tires and wheels
Winter driving
Maintenance
Vehicle care
249 Operation
Driving instructions
After hard braking, it is advisable to drive
on for some time, rather than immediately
parking, so that the air stream can cool
down the brakes faster.
Driving off
Apply the brakes to test them briefly after
driving off. Perform this procedure only
when the road is clear of other traffic.
Warm up the engine smoothly. Do not
place full load on the engine until the oper-
ating temperature has been reached.
When starting off on a slippery surface, do
not allow a drive wheel to spin for an ex-
tended period with the ESP switched off.
Doing so may cause serious damage to the
drive train which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Parking
Warning!
G
If other than recommended brake pads are
installed, or other than recommended brake
fluid is used, the braking properties of the
vehicle can be degraded to an extent that
safe braking is substantially impaired. This
could result in an accident.!When driving down long and steep
grades, relieve the load on the brakes
by shifting into a lower gear to use the
engine’s braking power. This helps pre-
vent overheating of the brakes and re-
duces brake pad wear.
!Simultaneously depressing the acceler-
ator pedal and applying the brake re-
duces engine performance and causes
premature brake and drivetrain wear.
Warning!
G
Do not park this vehicle in areas where com-
bustible materials such as grass, hay or
leaves can come into contact with the hot
exhaust system, as these materials could be
ignited and cause a vehicle fire.
To reduce the risk of personal injury as a re-
sult of inadvertent vehicle movement,
before turning off the engine and leaving the
vehicle always:
Keep right foot on brake pedal.
Firmly depress parking brake pedal.
Move the gear selector lever to
positionP.
Slowly release brake pedal.
When parked on an incline, turn front
wheel towards the road curb.