2004 MERCEDES-BENZ E500 steering wheel adjustment

21 At a glance
Cockpit
Item
Page
1
Parking brake pedal
45, 51
2
Hood lock release
281
3
Steering wheel adjustment
stalk
37
Heated steering wheel*
248
4
Parking brake release
45
5
Combination switch

Turn signals
47


Windshield wipers
48


High beam
47
6
Door control panel
28
7
Exterior lamp switch
119
Item
Page
8
Headlamp washer button*
170
9
Cruise control lever

Cruise control
218


Distronic*
214
a
Instrument cluster
22,
126
b
Multifunction steering
wheel
24,
130
c
Horn
d
Lever for voice control sys-
tem*, see separate
operating instructions
Item
Page
e
Starter switch
31
f
Front Parktronic* warning
indicator
229
g
Overhead control panel
27
h
Mobile phone/Glasses box
242
j
Glove box lid release, glove
box lock
242
k
Glove box
242
l
Center console
25

28 At a glanceDoor control panel
Door control panel
Item
Page
1
Door handle
97
2
Seat adjustment
35
3
Memory function (for stor-
ing seat, exterior mirror
and steering wheel set-
tings)
116
4
Exterior rear view mirror
adjustment
38
5
Switches for opening/
closing front and rear side
windows, rear window
override switch
197
6
Remote trunk lid release
switch, Trunk lid open-
ing/closing system*
99

34 Getting startedAdjusting
AdjustingSeatsWarning!
G
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and
rear view mirror adjustments, as well as fas-
tening of seat belts, must be done before
the vehicle is put into motion.Warning!
G
Do not adjust the driver’s seat while driving.
Adjusting the seat while driving could cause
the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
back reclined. Sitting in an excessively 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 fatal injuries. The seat back and seat
belts provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in an upright position and belts are
properly positioned on the body.
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt (
page 40).
Never place hands under the seat or near
any moving parts while a seat is being ad-
justed.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* with you, and
lock your vehicle.
The power seats can also be operated with
the driver’s or passenger door open. Do not
leave children unattended in the vehicle, or
with access to an unlocked vehicle. Unsu-
pervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and / or serious personal
injury.
Warning!
G
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 ve-
hicle to deactivate the passenger front air-
bag when it is properly installed. Otherwise
they will be struck by the airbag when it in-
flates in a crash. If this happens, serious or
fatal injury will result.
According to accident statistics, children
are safer when properly restrained in the
rear seating positions than in the front seat-
ing positions. Infants and small children
must ride in back seats and be seated in an
appropriate infant or child restraint system,
which is properly secured with the vehicle's
seat belt and top tether strap, or secured via
lower anchors and top tether strap, fully in
accordance with the child seat manufactur-
er’s instructions.

35 Getting started
Adjusting
Seat adjustment
The seat adjustment switches are located
on the front doors.
1Head restraint height
2Seat height
3Seat cushion tilt
4Seat fore and aft adjustment
5Backrest tilt

Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
to position1 or2 (
page 31)
or

Press the KEYLESS GO* start/stop
button once or twice (
page 33).
or

Open the driver’s or passenger door.Seat fore and aft adjustment

Press the switch forward or backward
in the direction of arrow4.
Adjust a comfortable seating position
that still allows you to reach the
accelerator / brake pedal safely. The
position should be as far to the rear as
possible, consistent with ability to
properly operate controls.
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.
iWhen moving the seat, be sure there
are no items in the footwell or behind
the seats. Otherwise you could damage
the seats.
The memory function (
page 116) lets
you store the setting for the seat posi-
tion together with the setting for the
steering wheel and the exterior rear
view mirrors.

37 Getting started
Adjusting
Steering wheel Steering wheel adjustment
The stalk for steering wheel adjustment is
located on the steering column (lower left).
1Adjusting steering column, in or out
2Adjusting steering column, up or down

Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
to position1 or2.
or

Press the KEYLESS GO* start/stop
button once or twice.
or

Open the driver’s door.Adjusting steering column in or out

Move stalk forward or back in the direc-
tion of arrow1 until a comfortable
steering wheel position is reached with
your arms slightly bent at the elbow.
Adjusting steering column up or down

Move stalk up or down in the direction
of arrow2.
Make sure your legs can move freely
and that all the displays (incl. malfunc-
tion and indicator lamps) on the instru-
ment cluster are clearly visible.
For more information, see “Heated steer-
ing wheel*”(
page 248).
Warning!
G
Do not adjust the steering wheel while driv-
ing. Adjusting the steering wheel while driv-
ing could cause the driver to lose control of
the vehicle.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* with you and
lock your vehicle.
The steering wheel adjustment feature can
also be operated with the driver’s door
open. 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.
iThe memory function (
page 116) lets
you store the setting for the seat posi-
tion together with the setting for the
steering wheel and the exterior rear
view mirrors.

39 Getting started
Adjusting

Make sure the ignition is switched on.
All the lamps in the instrument cluster
come on.

Press button3 for the left mirror or
button1 for the right mirror.

Push adjustment button2 up, down,
left or right according to the setting de-
sired.
For more information, see “Activating exte-
rior rear view mirror parking position”
(
page 169).!If an exterior rear view mirror was forc-
ibly pushed forward (hit from the rear)
or forcibly pushed rearward (hit from
the front), reposition it by applying firm
pressure until it snaps into place. The
mirror housing is now properly posi-
tioned and you can adjust the mirror
normally.iThe memory function (
page 116) lets
you store the setting for the seat posi-
tion together with the setting for the
steering wheel and the exterior rear
view mirrors.
At low ambient temperatures, the mir-
rors will be heated automatically.

108 Controls in detailSeats
SeatsInformation on seat adjustment can be
found in the “Getting started” section
(page 35).
Easy-entry / exit feature*
With the easy-entry / exit feature activat-
ed, the steering wheel tilts upwards and
the driver’s seat moves to the rear.
This allows easier entry into and exit from
the vehicle when the driver’s door is
opened. However, the engine must be
turned off.
When the SmartKey is inserted in the start-
er switch or you have pressed the Key-
less-Go* start/stop button and the
driver’s door is closed, the steering wheel
and the driver’s seat return to their last set
positions.You can activate the following functions:


Steering column:
Only the steering column is adjusted.


Steering column and seat:
The steering column and the seat are
adjusted.
The easy-entry / exit feature can be
switched on or off in the convenience sub-
menu of the control system (
page 150).
Warning!
G
You must ensure that no one can become
trapped or injured by the moving steering
wheel and driver’s seat when the
easy-entry / exit feature is activated, the
driver’s door is being opened and the engine
is turned off or the SmartKey removed from
the starter switch.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Children could open the driver’s door and
unintentionally activate the easy-entry / exit
feature*, which could result in an accident
and / or serious personal injury.
iTo cancel seat / steering wheel move-
ment, do one of the following:

Press seat adjustment switch
(page 28).


Move steering column stalk
(page 37).


Press the memory switch
(page 28).

151 Controls in detail
Control system
After entering the vehicle, the steering
wheel and seat will move into the position
stored in memory when

the driver’s door is closed


you put the SmartKey in the starter
switch or press the KEYLESS-GO
start/stop button*


you press the appropriate stored posi-
tion button on the memory switch
(page 117).

Move the selection marker with
theæ orç button to
the
Convenience
submenu.

Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until you see this message in the dis-
play:
Function Easy-entry feature
.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.

Pressæ orç to change the
easy-entry / exit setting.
The following settings are available for the
easy-entry / exit feature
Warning!
G
You must make sure that no one can be-
come trapped or injured by the moving
steering wheel and the driver’s seat when
the easy-entry / exit feature is in operation
and the driver’s door is being opened or the
SmartKey is removed from the starter
switch.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Children could open the driver’s door and
unintentionally activate the easy-entry / exit
feature, which could result in an accident
and / or personal injury.
iTo cancel seat / steering wheel move-
ment, do one of the following:

Press seat adjustment switch
(page 35).


Move the steering column stalk
(page 37).


Press the memory button
(page 117).
off
The
easy-entry / exit
feature is deactivat-
ed
Steering col.
Only the steering
column is moved.
Steering col. +
seat

Both the steering
column and the
seat are moved.