Contents
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Standards (U.S. vehicles) ............. 320
Tire ply material ........................... 322
Tire and loading terminology ........ 323
Rotating tires ............................... 326
Winter driving .................................... 328 Winter tires .................................. 328
Block heater (Canada only) .......... 329
Snow chains................................. 329
Maintenance...................................... 330 Clearing the maintenance
service indicator........................... 331
Maintenance service term
exceeded ..................................... 331
Calling up the maintenance
service indicator........................... 331
Resetting the maintenance
service indicator........................... 332
Vehicle care ....................................... 333 Cleaning and care of the vehicle .. 333
Practical hints .................................. 339
What to do if … ................................... 340 Lamps in instrument cluster ......... 340
Lamp in center console................. 345
Vehicle status messages in the
multifunction display..................... 347
Where will I find ...? ............................ 373 First aid kit.................................... 373
Vehicle tool kit .............................. 373
Spare wheel .................................. 375
Unlocking/locking in an emergency... 377 Unlocking the vehicle.................... 377
Locking the vehicle ....................... 379
Fuel filler flap ................................ 379
Manually unlocking the gear
selector lever ................................ 380
Opening/closing in an emergency ..... 381 Panorama roof with power
tilt/sliding panel* ......................... 381
Replacing SmartKey batteries ............ 382 SmartKey ...................................... 383
Replacing bulbs .................................. 384 Bulbs ............................................. 384
Replacing bulbs for front lamps .... 386
Replacing bulbs for rear lamps ..... 390 Replacing wiper blades ...................... 393
Removing ...................................... 393
Installing ....................................... 393
Flat tire............................................... 394 Preparing the vehicle .................... 394
Mounting the spare wheel ............ 394
Battery ............................................... 401 Disconnecting the battery ............ 402
Removing the battery ................... 402
Charging and reinstalling battery .. 402
Reconnecting the battery ............. 403
Jump starting...................................... 404
Towing the vehicle.............................. 406 Installing towing eye bolt .............. 409
Fuses.................................................. 410 Aids for changing fuses ................ 410
Main fuse box in passenger
compartment ................................ 411
Fuse box in engine compartment . 411
Fuse box in trunk .......................... 412
25
At a glance
Instrument cluster
Item
Page
1
Speedometer with:v
Electronic Stability
Program (ESP)
warning lamp
83
343
; Brake warning lamp,
USA only
50
56
341
3 Brake warning lamp,
Canada only
50
56
341
B Low beam headlamp
indicator lamp
51
110
2
L Left turn signal
indicator lamp
52
3
Multifunction display with:Trip odometer
121
Main odometer
123
Gear selector lever position
49
162
Item
Page
Program mode
164
Status indicator
(outside temperature/ digital
speedometer)
121
138
Digital clock
123
139
4
K Right turn signal
indicator lamp
52
5
Tachometer with:-Antilock Brake
System (ABS)
indicator lamp
81
340
< Seat belt telltale
66
344
1 Supplemental
restraint system
indicator lamp
60
344
A High beam headlamp
indicator lamp
51
114
Item
Page
ú Engine malfunction
indicator lamp,
USA only
342
±Engine malfunction
indicator lamp,
Canada only
342
6
Fuel gauge with:Fuel reserve warning lamp
344
4Fuel filler cap location
indicator: The fuel
filler cap is on the rear
right-hand side.
7
Coolant temperature gauge
120
8
Reset button for:
Resetting trip odometer
121
Resetting individual
settings
135
Instrument cluster
illumination
119
52 Getting startedDriving
Turn the exterior lamp switch to
positionB.
The low beam headlamp indicator
lamp B in the instrument cluster
comes on (
page 24).
High beam
The combination switch is located on the
left of the steering column.
Combination switch1 High beam
2 High beam flasher
Push the combination switch in
direction of arrow 1.
The high beam headlamp indicator
lamp A in the instrument cluster
comes on (
page 24).
For more information on headlamps, see
“Combination switch” (
page 114).
Turn signals
The combination switch is located on the
left of the steering column.Combination switch1 Turn signals, right
2 Turn signals, left
Press combination switch in direction
of arrow 1 or 2.
The corresponding turn signal indicator
lamp L or K in the instrument
cluster flashes.
The combination switch resets auto-
matically after major steering wheel
movements.iTo signal minor directional changes,
such as changing lanes, press combi-
nation switch only to point of resis-
tance and release. The corresponding
turn signal will flash three times.
63
Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Warning!
G
Accident research shows that the safest
place for children in an automobile is in the
rear seat.
It should be noted that with respect to both
front and rear side impact air bags there is a
possibility for a side impact air bag related
injury if occupants, especially children, are
not properly seated or restrained when next
to a side impact air bag which needs to de-
ploy rapidly in a side impact in order to do its
job.
To help avoid the possibility of injury, please
follow these guidelines:
(1) Occupants, especially children, should
never place their bodies or lean their
heads in the area of the door where the
side impact air bag inflates. This could
result in serious injuries or death should
the side impact air bag be deployed.
(2) Always sit nearly upright, properly use the seat belts and for children 12 years
old and under, use an appropriately
sized infant or toddler restraint or boost-
er seat recommended for the size and
weight of the child.
(3) Always wear seat belts properly.
If you believe that, even with the use of
these guidelines, it would be safer for your
rear seat occupants to have the rear mount-
ed side impact air bags deactivated, then
deactivation can be accomplished upon
your written request to do so at your autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center at an additional
cost.
Please contact your local authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center or call our Customer
Assistance Center at 1-800-FOR-MERCedes
(1-800-367-6372) for details.
iAir bags are designed to deploy only in
certain frontal impacts (front air bags)
and in side impacts (side impact and
head protection window curtain air
bags) which exceed preset thresholds.
Only during these events will they
provide their supplemental protection.
The driver and passengers should
always wear their seat belts. Otherwise
it is not possible for air bags to provide
their supplemental protection.
In case of other types of impacts and
impacts below air bag deployment
thresholds, air bags will not deploy. The
driver and passenger will then be
protected to the extent possible by a
properly fastened seat belt. A properly
fastened seat belt is also needed to
provide the best possible protection in
a rollover.
We caution you not to rely on the pres-
ence of the air bags in order to avoid
wearing your seat belt.
65
Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When you sell your vehicle we strongly
urge you to give notice to the subsequent
owner that it is equipped with an SRS by
alerting them to the applicable section in
the Operator’s Manual.
Front air bags
1 Driver’s air bag
2 Passenger front air bag
Driver and front passenger air bags are
deployed:
in the event of certain frontal impacts
if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold
independently of the side impact air
bags
In addition, improper repair work on the
SRS creates a risk of rendering the SRS
inoperative or causing unintended air
bag deployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the air bag
unit or emergency tensioning device,
our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These instructions are available
from your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Given the considerable deployment
speed, required inflation volume, and
the textile structure of the air bags,
there is the possibility of abrasions or
other more significant injuries resulting
from air bag deployment.
iThe front air bags in this vehicle have
been designed to inflate in two stages.
This allows the air bag to have different
rates of inflation that are based on the
rate of relevant vehicle deceleration as
assessed by the air bag control unit.
On the front passenger side, the front
air bag deployment is additionally influ-
enced by the passenger’s weight cate-
gory as identified by the Occupant
Classification System (OCS)
(page 73).
The lighter the front passenger side
occupant, the higher the vehicle decel-
eration rate required for the second
stage inflation of the air bag.
66 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyThe air bags will not deploy in impacts
which do not exceed the system’s deploy-
ment thresholds. You will then be protect-
ed by the fastened seat belts.
The passenger front air bag will only be
deployed if:
the system, based on OCS weight sen-
sor readings, senses that the front pas-
senger seat is occupied
the 56 indicator lamp in the
center console is not lit (
page 76)
the impact exceeds a preset deploy-
ment threshold Side impact air bags, window curtain
air bags
1 Window curtain air bag
2 Side impact air bags
The side impact air bags and window cur-
tain air bags are deployed:
on the impacted side of the vehicle
in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold
independently of the front air bags
The side impact air bags and window cur-
tain air bags are not deployed in impacts
which do not exceed the system’s deploy-
ment threshold. The front passenger side impact air bag
will only deploy if the system senses that
the front passenger seat is occupied.
Seat belts
When the engine is started, the seat belt
telltale
< illuminates to remind you and
your passengers to fasten your seat belts.
If the driver’s seat belt is not fastened
before the engine is started, the seat belt
telltale < illuminates and a warning
chime sounds for approximately six
seconds when the engine is started.
The use of seat belts and infant and child
restraint systems is required by law in all
50 states, the District of Columbia, the
U.S. territories and all Canadian provinces.
Even where this is not the case, all vehicle
occupants should have their seat belts fas-
tened whenever the vehicle is in motion.
For more information, see “Fastening the
seat belt” (
page 44).
68 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
Damaged seat belts or belts that were highly
stressed in an accident must be replaced
and their anchoring points must also be
checked.
Only use seat belts which have been
approved by Mercedes-Benz.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to unintended activation
of the ETDs or to failure.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this may
severely weaken them. In a crash they may
not be able to provide adequate protection.
Have all work carried out only by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!
G
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY
Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this sec-
tion, as that could result in serious inju-
ries in case of an accident.
Each occupant should wear their seat
belt at all times, because seat belts help
reduce the likelihood of and potential
severity of injuries in accidents, includ-
ing rollovers. The integrated restraint
system includes SRS (driver air bag, pas-
senger front air bag, side impact air
bags, head protection window curtain
air bags for side windows), ETD (seat
belt emergency tensioning device), and
front seat knee bolsters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection offered to properly belted
occupants in certain frontal (front air
bags and ETD) and side (side impact and
window curtain air bags and ETD) im-
pacts which exceed preset deployment
thresholds.
Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoul-
der. In a frontal crash, your body would
move too far forward. That would in-
crease the chance of head and neck
injuries. The belt would also apply too
much force to the ribs or abdomen,
which could severely injure internal
organs such as your liver or spleen.
Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eyeglasses, pens, SmartKeys etc., as
these might cause injuries.
Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo-
men. If the belt is positioned across your
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries
in a crash.
Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat
belt around a person and another per-
son or other objects.
69
Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Emergency tensioning device (ETD),
seat belt force limiter
The seat belts for the front and rear seats
are equipped with emergency tensioning
devices and belt force limiters.
The ETD is designed to activate in the fol-
lowing cases:
in frontal or rear-end impacts exceed-
ing a preset severity level
if the restraint systems are operational
and functioning correctly, see
1
indicator lamp (
page 60) In an impact, emergency tensioning devic-
es remove slack from the belts. Belt force
limiters reduce the force exerted by the
seat belts on occupants during a crash.
Belts should not be worn twisted. In a
crash, you wouldn’t have the full width
of the belt to distribute impact forces.
The twisted belt against your body could
cause injuries.
Pregnant women should also use a
lap-shoulder belt. The lap belt portion
should be positioned as low as possible
on the hips to avoid any possible pres-
sure on the abdomen.
Never place your feet on the instrument
panel, dashboard, or on the seat. Always
keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.
When using a seat belt to secure infant
or toddler restraints or children in boost-
er seats, always follow the child seat
manufacturer's instructions.
!The ETDs for the front seats will only
activate if the front seat belts are fas-
tened (latch plate properly inserted
into buckle).
The ETDs for the rear seats will activate
with or without the respective seat
belts fastened.
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 Center.