Page 112 of 474

110 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingIllumination of the emergency release but-
ton:
The button flashes for 30 minutes after 
opening the trunk.
The button flashes for 60 minutes after 
closing the trunk.
Automatic central locking
The doors and the trunk lid lock automati-
cally when the vehicle is set into motion.
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are 
safe to do so.
You can deactivate the automatic locking 
using the control system (
page 156).
iThe emergency release button unlocks 
the trunk while the vehicle is standing 
still or in motion.iThe emergency release button does 
not open the trunk lid if the vehicle bat-
tery is discharged or disconnected.
iIf the emergency release button is 
pressed and the vehicle was centrally 
locked, the exterior lamps will flash and 
the alarm will sound as the trunk lid 
opens.
To cancel the alarm, do one of the fol-
lowing:
With the SmartKey
Insert the SmartKey in the starter 
switch.
Press buttonŒ or‹ on the 
SmartKey.
With KEYLESS-GO*
Grasp the outside door handle.
Press the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop 
button.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an 
accident if the force of the impact ex-
ceeds a preset threshold.
The vehicle locks automatically when 
the ignition is switched on and the 
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of 
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or 
more. You could therefore lock yourself 
out when the vehicle 
is pushed
is on a test stand
 
     
        
        Page 131 of 474

129 Controls in detail
Lighting
Switching on the hazard warning 
flasher
Press hazard warning flasher 
switch1.
All turn signals are flashing.
Switching off the hazard warning 
flasher
Press hazard warning flasher switch1 
again.
Interior lighting
1Left reading lamp
2Right reading lamp
3Interior lighting on/off
4Slide switch for interior lighting controlAutomatic control 
Activating
Slide switch4 to the left.
Interior lamps are switched on in dark-
ness when you 
unlock the vehicle
open a door
remove the SmartKey from the 
starter switch
open the trunk
In addition, the entry/exit lamps in the 
door trays will come on when you open 
a door.
The interior lamps are switched off af-
ter a preset time (
page 155).
iWith the hazard warning flasher acti-
vated and the combination switch set 
for either left or right turn, only the re-
spective turn signals will operate when 
the ignition is switched on.iIf the hazard warning flasher was 
switched on automatically because of 
an airbag that has deployed, press haz-
ard warning flasher switch 1 once to 
switch it off.
iIf the door remains open, the interior 
lamps switch off automatically after ap-
proximately five minutes. 
     
        
        Page 133 of 474

131 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Instrument cluster
For a full view illustration of the instrument 
cluster, see “Instrument cluster” 
(page 24).
The instrument cluster is activated when 
you
open a door
switch on the ignition
press the reset button (
page 24)
switch on the exterior lamps
Opening a door will activate the instrument 
cluster only for about 30 seconds.
You can change the instrument cluster set-
tings in the Instrument cluster submenu of 
the control system (
page 148).
Instrument cluster illumination
Use the reset button to adjust the illumina-
tion brightness for the instrument cluster 
and the switches on the center console.
To brighten illumination
Turn the reset button in the instrument 
cluster (
page 24) clockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will 
brighten.
To dim illumination
Turn the reset button in the instrument 
cluster (
page 24) counterclockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will 
dim.
Coolant temperature gauge
iThe instrument cluster illumination is 
dimmed or brightened to suit ambient 
light conditions.
Warning
G
Driving when your engine is badly over-
heated can cause some fluids which 
may have leaked into the engine com-
partment to catch fire. You could be se-
riously burned.
Steam from an overheated engine can 
cause serious burns an can occur just by 
opening the hood. Stay away from the 
engine if you see or hear steam coming 
from it.
Turn off the engine, get out of the vehicle 
and do not stand near the vehicle until the 
engine has cooled down. 
     
        
        Page 134 of 474

132 Controls in detailInstrument clusterDuring severe operating conditions, e.g. 
stop-and-go traffic, the coolant tempera-
ture may rise close to 248°F (120°C).
The engine should not be operated with 
the coolant temperature above 248°F 
(120°C). Doing so may cause serious en-
gine damage which is not covered by the 
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Trip odometer
Make sure you are viewing the trip 
odometer display (
page 134).
If it is not displayed, press the j or 
k button on the multifunction 
steering wheel repeatedly until the trip 
odometer appears.
Press and hold reset button4 
(page 24) until the trip odometer is 
reset.
Tachometer
The red marking on the tachometer de-
notes excessive engine speed.
To help protect the engine, the fuel supply 
is interrupted if the engine is operated 
within the red marking.
!Excessive coolant temperature triggers 
the coolant temperature warning lamp 
(page 352) and a warning in the 
multifunction display (
page 328).
!Avoid driving at excessive engine 
speeds, as it may result in serious en-
gine damage that is not covered by the 
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty. 
     
        
        Page 140 of 474
138 Controls in detailControl systemMenus, submenus and functions
Menu 1
Menu 2
Menu 3
Menu 4
Menu 5
Menu 6
Menu 7
Menu 8
Standard dis-
play
AUDIO 
NAV
Distronic* 
Vehicle status 
message memory
Settings 
Trip computer
Telephone 
(page 139)
(page 139)
(page 142)
(page 142)
(page 143)
(page 144)
(page 159)
(page 161)
Commands/submenusDigital speedom-
eter
Selecting 
radio station
Activating 
route 
guidance
Calling up 
settings
Calling up vehicle 
malfunction, warn-
ing and system sta-
tus messages 
stored in memory
Resetting to 
factory set-
tings
Fuel consump-
tion statistics 
after start
Loading 
phone book
Calling up main-
tenance service 
indicator
Selecting 
satellite radio 
station*
(USA only)
Instrument 
cluster sub-
menu 
Fuel consump-
tion statistics 
since the last 
reset
Searching for 
name in 
phone book
Time 
submenu
Checking tire in-
flation pressure*
Operating CD 
player
Lighting sub-
menu
Calling up 
range
Checking engine 
oil level
Vehicle sub-
menuConvenience 
submenu 
     
        
        Page 144 of 474

142 Controls in detailControl systemNAV menu
The 
NAV
 menu contains the functions need-
ed to operate your navigation system. 
Press button è or ÿ repeatedly 
until you see the message 
NAV
 in the 
left multifunction display.
The message shown in the multifunction 
display depends on the status of the navi-
gation system:
When the navigation system is off, the 
message 
NAV off
 appears in the multi-
function display. 
When the navigation system is on, the 
message 
HEADING
 appears in the left 
multifunction display and the destina-
tion in the right multifunction display.
Please refer to the COMAND manual for in-
structions on how to activate the route 
guidance system.
Distronic* menu
Use the Distronic menu to display the cur-
rent settings for your Distronic system. 
What information is shown in the left mul-
tifunction display depends on whether the 
Distronic system is active or inactive.
Please refer to the “Driving systems” sec-
tion of this manual (
page 208) for in-
structions on how to activate Distronic.
Press button è or ÿ repeatedly 
until you see one of the following two 
pictures in the display.Distronic deactivated
When Distronic is deactivated you will see 
the standard display in the left multifunc-
tion display.
1Vehicle ahead, if detected
2Actual distance to vehicle ahead
3Preset distance threshold to vehicle 
ahead
4Your vehicle
5Symbol for activated distance warning 
function 
     
        
        Page 146 of 474

144 Controls in detailControl system
Press button k or j.
The stored messages will now be dis-
played in the order in which they have 
occurred. For malfunction and warning 
messages, see “Vehicle status messag-
es in the multifunction display” 
(page 335).
Should the vehicle’s system record any 
conditions while driving, the number of 
messages will reappear in the multifunc-
tion display
when the SmartKey in the starter 
switch is turned to position0 or re-
moved from the starter switch
or
when you turn off the engine by press-
ing the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop but-
ton on the gear selector lever once and open the driver’s door (this puts the 
starter switch in position 0, same as 
with the SmartKey removed from the 
starter switch)
Settings menu
In the 
Settings
 menu there are two func-
tions:
The function 
Reset
, with which you can 
reset all the settings to those set at the 
factory.
A collection of submenus with which 
you can make individual settings for 
your vehicle.
Press button è or ÿ repeatedly 
until the 
Settings...
 menu appears in 
the left display.
iAfter you have scrolled through all re-
corded status messages, the first re-
corded message appears again.
iThe vehicle status message memory 
will be cleared when you then turn the 
SmartKey in the starter switch to posi-
tion 1 or 2, or when you press the 
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button once 
or twice without depressing the brake 
pedal. You will then only see high prior-
ity messages in the multifunction dis-
play (
page 335). 
     
        
        Page 147 of 474

145 Controls in detail
Control system
The following settings and submenus are 
available:Resetting all settings
You can reset all the functions of all sub-
menus to the factory settings.
Press the reset button in the instru-
ment cluster for approximately three 
seconds.
In the right display you will see the re-
quest to press the reset button again to 
confirm.
Press the reset button again.
The functions of all the submenus will 
reset to factory settings.Submenus in the Settings menu
Press button k or j.
In the right display you see the collec-
tion of submenus. 
Press button ç.
The selection marker moves to the next 
submenu. 
The submenus are arranged by hierarchy. 
Scroll down with the ç button, scroll up 
with the æ button.
Move within the submenus with the k 
or j button to the individual functions.
The settings themselves are made with 
button æ or ç.
Function
Page
Resetting all settings
145
Submenus in the Settings menu
145
Resetting the functions of a sub-
menu
146
Instrument cluster submenu
148
Time submenuLighting submenu
152
Vehicle submenu
156
Convenience submenu
157
iThe settings you have changed will not 
be reset unless you confirm the action 
by pressing the reset button a second 
time.