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 up-
right position and belts are properly posi-
tioned 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, and lock
your vehicle.
The power seats can also be operated with
the driver’s or front passenger door open.
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.
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 the back seats and be seated in
an appropriate infant or child restraint sys-
tem, which is properly secured with the ve-
hicle’s seat belt and top tether strap, or
secured via lower anchors and top tether
strap, fully in accordance with the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions.
35 Getting started
Adjusting
Seat adjustment
The seat adjustment switches are located
in each front door.
1Head restraint height
2Seat backrest tilt
3Seat fore and aft adjustment
4Seat cushion tilt
5Seat height
Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
to position1 or2 (
page 33).
or
Open the driver’s or front passenger
door.
Seat fore and aft adjustment
Press the switch forward or back in the
direction of arrow3.
Adjust to a comfortable seating posi-
tion 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 that
there are no items in the footwell or
behind the seats
the cup holder next to the armrest
is removed (
page 185)
the cup holder in the front passen-
ger footwell is folded closed
(page 185)
Otherwise you could damage the seats
and/or cup holders.
The memory function (
page 101) lets
you store the setting for the seat posi-
tion together with the setting for the
steering wheel and the exterior rear
view mirrors.
65 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Emergency tensioning device (ETD),
seat belt force limiter
The seat belts for the front and rear outer
seats are equipped with emergency ten-
sioning devices and belt force limiters.
The ETD is designed to activate only when
the seat belt is fastened and in the follow-
ing cases:
in frontal or rear-end impacts exceed-
ing a preset severity level
if the restraint systems are operational
and functioning correctly, see
1indicator lamp (
page 56)
In an impact, emergency tensioning devic-
es remove slack from the belts in such a
way that the seat belts fit more snugly
against the body.
Children in the vehicle
If an infant or child is traveling with you in
the vehicle:
Secure the child using an infant or child
restraint appropriate to the age and
size of the child and recommended for
use by Mercedes-Benz.
Make sure the infant or child is proper-
ly secured by a belt at all times while
the vehicle is in motion.
Infant and child restraint seats and infor-
mation on choosing an appropriate re-
straint system can be obtained from any
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
Warning!
G
An emergency tensioning device (ETD) that
was activated must be replaced.
When disposing of the emergency tension-
ing device, our safety instructions must be
followed. These are available at your autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.!Do not place objects heavier than
20 lbs (9 kg) on the front passenger
seat. This could cause the passenger
front airbag to deploy in a crash which
exceeds the system's deployment
threshold.
68 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
BabySmart
TM
airbag deactivation
system
7
indicator lamp
Special BabySmart
TM1
compatible child
seats, designed for use with the
Mercedes-Benz system and available at
any authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center are required for use with the
BabySmart
TM airbag deactivation system.
With the special child seat properly in-
stalled, the passenger front airbag will not
deploy.The 7indicator lamp located in the
center console will be illuminated, except
with the SmartKey removed or in the start-
er switch position0.
Self-test BabySmart
TM
without special
child seat installed
After turning the SmartKey in the starter
switch to position1 or2, the
7indicator lamp located in the center
console comes on for approximately
six seconds and then goes out.
I f t h e i n d i c a t o r l a m p s h o u l d n o t c o m e o n o r
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.
For more information, see “Practical hints”
section (
page 259).
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 until
they reach a height where a lap / shoulder
belt fits properly without a booster.
When the child restraint is not in use, re-
move it from the vehicle or secure it with the
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 serious
personal injury.
1BabySmart
TM is a trademark of Siemens Automo-
tive Corp.
iThe system does not deactivate the
emergency tensioning device.
72 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyDeactivating override switch
Slide override switch1 to the left.
The functions in the rear are enabled
again.
For more information on power windows,
see “Power windows” (
page 164).
Warning!
G
Activate the override switch when children
are riding in the back seats of the vehicle.
The children may otherwise injure them-
selves, e.g. by becoming trapped in the win-
dow opening.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, and lock
the vehicle. Do not leave children unattend-
ed in the vehicle, or with access to an un-
locked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle
equipment can cause an accident and/or
serious personal injury.
177 Controls in detail
Loading
Folding seat backrest forward
Remove the head restraints
(page 96).
Pull release lever1 in direction of ar-
row and fold seat backrest forward un-
til it locks in place.
Folding seat bench forward
Fold seat backrest forward.
Pull release lever2 in direction of ar-
row and fold seat bench forward to-
gether with the seat backrest.Returning seat bench and seat back-
rest to sitting position
Fold up seat bench until it locks in
place.
Pull release lever1 and raise seat
backrest until it locks in place.
Check to ensure the seat is locked by
pushing and pulling on the seat back-
rest.
Warning!
G
Failure to assure that seats and seat back-
rest are locked into place could result in an
increased chance of injury in an accident.
Never place hands under seat or near any
moving parts while a seat is being adjusted.
For safety reasons, the rear seat bench
must only be adjusted when the vehicle is
stationary.
Never ride vehicle with the tailgate open.
Deadly carbon monoxide (CO) gases may
enter vehicle interior resulting in uncon-
sciousness and death.!Before folding the seat backrest for-
ward and the rear seat bench down, be
sure that all containers in the rear cup
holder are removed.
Warning!
G
Failure to assure that seats and seat back-
rests are locked into place could result in an
increased chance of injury in an accident.
249 Operation
Vehicle care
Upholstery
Using aftermarket seat covers or wearing
clothing that have the tendency to give off
coloring (e.g. when wet, etc.) may cause
the upholstery to become permanently dis-
colored. By lining the seats with a proper
intermediate cover, contact-discoloration
will be prevented.
Leather upholstery
Wipe leather upholstery with a damp cloth
and dry thoroughly or clean with
Mercedes-Benz approved Leather Care.
E x e r c i s e p a r t i c u l a r c a r e w h e n c l e a n i n g p e r -
forated leather as its underside should not
become wet.Cloth upholstery
Clean with soft bristle brush, or use a
dry-shampoo cleaner in case of excessive
dirt.
MB Tex upholstery
Pour Mercedes-Benz approved Interior
Care onto soft lint-free cloth and apply
with light pressure.
Plastic and rubber parts
Do not use oil or wax on these parts.Illuminated door sill panels
Use a gentle dishwashing detergent or
mild detergent for delicate fabrics as a
washing solution. Wipe with a cloth moist-
ened in lukewarm solution. Do not use
scouring agents.
Wood trims
Dampen cloth using water and use damp
cloth to clean wood trims in your vehicle.
Do not use solvents like tar remover or
wheel cleaner nor polishes or waxes as
these may be abrasive.