2004 MERCEDES-BENZ S430 height

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 cushion depth
5Seat fore and aft adjustment
6Seat backrest tilt

Switch on ignition.
or

Open the respective door.
Seat fore and aft adjustment

Press the switch forward or backward
in the direction of arrow5.
Adjust seat to 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.Seat cushion tilt

Press the switch up or down in the di-
rection of arrow3until your upper
legs are lightly supported.
Seat cushion depth

Press the switch forward or backward
in the direction of arrow4 until your
legs are supported comfortably.
Seat backrest tilt

Press the switch forward or backward
in the direction of arrow6 until your
arms are slightly angled when holding
the steering wheel.
Seat height

Press the switch up or down in the di-
rection of arrow2.
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, make sure
there are no items in the footwell or be-
hind the seats. Otherwise you could
damage the seats.
The memory function (
page 121) lets
you store the setting for the seat posi-
tion together with the settings for the
steering wheel and the exterior rear
view mirrors.

36 Getting startedAdjustingHead restraint height
Press the switch up or down in the di-
rection of arrow1.Head restraint tilt
Manually adjust the angle of the head re-
straint.

Push or pull on the lower edge of the
head restraint cushion.
For more information, see “Seats”
(
page 108).
Warning!
G
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust head restraint so that the center of
the head restraint supports the back of the
head at eye level. This will reduce the poten-
tial for injury to the head and neck in the
event of an accident or similar situation.
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat
head restraints. Head restraints are intend-
ed to help reduce injuries during an acci-
dent.
iThe feature below is deactivated at the
factory. If you wish to have it activated,
contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center:
The front passenger seat head restraint
automatically lowers after a few sec-
onds when the front passenger seat is
not occupied. This improves the
driver's outward view as well as the for-
ward view from the rear passenger
compartment.
When the front passenger seat is occu-
pied again, the front passenger seat
head restraint returns to the last set
position within a few seconds.
If the front passenger seat was moved
fore or aft while not being occupied,
the front passenger seat head restraint
returns to a position that corresponds
best with the seat’s axial position when
the seat is occupied again.

70 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
A statement by the child restraint man-
ufacturer of compliance with this stan-
dard can be found on the instruction
label on the restraint and in the instruc-
tion manual provided with the restraint.
When using any infant or child restraint
system, be sure to carefully read and
follow all manufacturer’s instructions
for installation and use.
Please read and observe warning labels
affixed to inside of vehicle and to infant
or child restraints.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.
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.
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.
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.
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 cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.

74 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
Override switch for rear passenger compartment
You can disable select functions in the rear
passenger compartment for added safety
(for instance when you have children riding
in the rear passenger compartment).
You can disable the following functions in
the rear passenger compartment:

rear door window operation
(page 195)


adjustment of front passenger seat
from the rear* (
page 119)


cigarette lighter in rear (
page 240)
Warning!
G
Vehicles with adjustable rear seats/bench*:
Never adjust the rear seat position after in-
stalling the child restraint. Adjusting the rear
seat position after installing the child re-
straint could damage the child restraint
and/or introduce undesirable slack into the
webbing and loosen or misposition the child
restraint, lessening the effectiveness of the
child restraint and thus increasing the
chance or severity of injury in an accident.iThe child seat must be firmly attached
in the right and left side anchor fittings.
Make sure the seat belt for the center
seat can operate freely with a child
seat installed.
Non-LATCH type child seats may also
be used and can be installed using the
vehicle’s seat belt system. Install child
seat according to the manufacturer’s
instructions.
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.
Install child seat according to manufactur-
er’s instructions.
The child seat must be firmly attached in
right and left side anchor fittings2.
An incorrectly mounted child seat may come
loose during an accident which could result
in serious injury or death to your child.
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.

90 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingRestoring to factory setting
Press and hold buttonsŒ and‹
simultaneously for about six seconds
until battery check lamp5 flashes
twice.
Unlocking and opening the trunk lid
You can unlock and open the trunk lid sep-
arately.
A minimum height clearance of 6 ft.
(1.85 m) is required to open the trunk lid.

Press and hold button Š until trunk
unlocks and begins to open.The trunk can also be opened from its in-
side in an emergency, see “Trunk lid emer-
gency release” (
page 104).
!If you can no longer lock or unlock the
vehicle with the SmartKey, then the
batteries in the SmartKey are dis-
charged, the SmartKey is malfunction-
ing or the vehicle battery is drained.

Check the batteries in the
SmartKey and replace them if nec-
essary (
page 349).


Use the mechanical key to unlock
the doors (
page 348) and the
trunk lid (
page 349) as required.


Have the vehicle battery and the
battery connections checked.


Use the mechanical key to lock the
doors (
page 348) and the trunk
lid (
page 349) as required.
If the SmartKey is malfunctioning, con-
tact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter.
!The trunk lid swings open upwards au-
tomatically. Always make sure that
there is sufficient overhead clearance.
Vehicles with trunk lid opening/closing
system: To stop the opening proce-
dure, press buttonŠ. The trunk lid
stops moving.
iIf the trunk lid does not open, it is still
locked separately (if applicable)
(page 105).
If the vehicle was previously centrally
locked, the trunk lid will lock automati-
cally when closed. The turn signals will
flash three times to confirm locking.

97 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Opening the trunk lid from the outside
A minimum height clearance of 6 ft.
(1.85 m) is required to open the trunk lid.
The trunk lid lock button is located in the
rear license plate recess.
1Trunk lid lock button
Press the outer left-hand side of trunk
lid button1.
The trunk lid opens.The trunk can also be opened using the
SmartKey (
page 90) or from its inside in
an emergency, see “Trunk lid emergency
release” (
page 104).
Opening the trunk lid from the inside
You can open the trunk from the inside if
the vehicle is stationary.
A minimum height clearance of 6 ft.
(1.85 m) is required to open the trunk lid.
The switch is located on the driver’s door.
1Indicator lamp
2Remote trunk lid release switch
Pull remote trunk lid switch2 until
trunk begins to open.
The trunk lid opens. The indicator
lamp1 comes on and remains lit until
the trunk is closed.
!The trunk lid swings open upwards au-
tomatically. Always make sure that
there is sufficient overhead clearance.
Vehicles with trunk lid opening/closing
system*: To stop the opening proce-
dure, press buttonŠ. The trunk lid
stops moving.iIf the trunk lid does not open, it is still
locked separately (if applicable)
(page 349).
Vehicles without KEYLESS-GO*: The
vehicle must be unlocked (
page 88).
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*: If the ve-
hicle was previously centrally locked,
the trunk lid will lock automatically af-
ter closing it (
page 98). The turn sig-
nals will flash three times to confirm
locking.

99 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Trunk lid opening/closing system*
You can open or close the trunk lid from
the inside if the vehicle is stationary.
Opening from the inside
A minimum height clearance of 6 ft.
(1.85 m) is required to open the trunk lid.
The switch for opening and closing the
trunk is located on the driver’s door.
1Indicator lamp
2Remote trunk lid switch

Pull remote trunk lid switch2 until
trunk begins to open.
The trunk lid opens. The indicator
lamp1 comes and remains lit until
the trunk is closed.
Warning!
G
Only drive with the trunk closed as, among
other dangers such as visibility blockage,
exhaust fumes may enter the vehicle interi-
or.iDo not place the SmartKey in the open
trunk. You may lock yourself out.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*: To pre-
vent a possible inadvertent lockout, the
trunk lid will open automatically if a
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is recog-
nized inside the vehicle or in the trunk.
!The trunk lid swings open upwards au-
tomatically. Always make sure that
there is sufficient overhead clearance.
To stop the opening procedure, press
or pull the remote trunk lid switch.iIf the trunk lid does not open, it is still
locked separately (if applicable)
(page 349).
If the vehicle was previously centrally
locked, the trunk lid will lock automati-
cally when closed (
page 98). The
turn signals will flash three times to
confirm locking.

100 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingThe trunk can also be opened using the
SmartKey (
page 90) or from its inside in
an emergency, see “Trunk lid emergency
release” (
page 104).
Limiting opening height of trunk lid
The trunk lid opening height can be limited
when transporting goods on a roof rack
(e.g. presence of an MB sport luggage con-
tainer*). When activated, the trunk lid
opens to approximately the height of the
roof edge.
You can activate the limiting opening
height of trunk lid using the control system
(
page 159).Closing from the inside

Press remote trunk lid switch2
(page 99) until the indicator lamp1
goes out and trunk lid is closed.
To interrupt the closing procedure:

Release remote trunk lid switch2.
If the trunk lid comes into contact with an
object while closing (e.g. luggage that has
been piled too high) in the upper motion
sequence, the closing procedure is
stopped and the trunk reopens slightly.Warning!
G
Maintain sight of trunk area while operating
door mounted switch. Monitor the closing
procedure carefully to ensure that no one is
in danger of being injured.
To interrupt the closing procedure, release
the door mounted remote trunk lid switch.
Even with the SmartKey removed from the
starter switch or the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* removed from the vehicle,
the remote trunk lid switch can be operated.
Therefore, 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.