
Controls
41Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Adjustments
Sitting safely
The ideal sitting position can make a vital con-
tribution to relaxed, fatigue-free driving. In con-
junction with the safety belts, the head
restraints and the airbags, the seated position
has a major influence on your safety in the event
of an accident. To ensure that the safety sys-
tems operate with optimal efficiency, we
strongly urge you to observe the instructions
contained in the following section.
For additional information on transporting chil-
dren safely, refer to page50.
Airbags
Always maintain an adequate distance
between yourself and the airbags. Always
grip the steering wheel on the rim, with your
hands in the 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock positions,
to minimize the risk of injury to the hands or
arms in the event of the airbag being triggered
off.
No one and nothing is to come between the air-
bags and the seat occupant.
Do not use the cover of the front airbag on the
front passenger side as a storage area. Make
sure that the front passenger is sitting correctly,
e.g. not resting feet or legs on the instrument
panel, otherwise leg injuries can occur if the
front airbag is triggered.
Make sure that passengers do not lean their
heads against the side or head airbags, other-
wise serious injuries could result if the side air-
bags suddenly deployed.<
Even if you follow all the instructions, injuries
resulting from contact with airbags cannot be
fully excluded, depending on the circum-
stances. The ignition and inflation noise may
provoke a mild hearing loss in extremely sensi-
tive individuals. This effect is usually only tem-
porary.
For airbag locations and additional information
on airbags, refer to page88.
Head restraint
A correctly adjusted head restraint reduces the
risk of neck injury in the event of an accident.
Adjust the head restraint in such a way
that its center is at approx. ear level. Oth-
erwise, there is an increased risk of injury in the
event of an accident.<
Head restraints, refer to page43.
Safety belt
Before every drive, make sure that all occupants
wear their safety belts. Airbags complement the
safety belt as an additional safety device, but
they do not represent a substitute.
Never allow more than one person to
wear a single safety belt. Never allow
infants or small children to ride in a passenger's
lap.
Expectant mothers should also wear the safety
belt, making sure that the strap in the pelvic
area is well down on the hips and does not press
against the abdominal region of the body.
Do not route the belt across your neck, or run it
across sharp edges. Be sure that the belt does
not become caught or jammed. The safety belt
should not be twisted and must be positioned
firmly over the pelvis and shoulder, as close to
the body as possible. It should not pass over
hard or fragile objects, otherwise the belt in the
pelvic area could slide over the hips in the event
of a head-on collision and injure the lower abdo-
men. Avoid wearing bulky clothing and regularly
pull the belt in the upper-body area taut, other-
wise its restraining effect could be impaired.<
Safety belts, refer to page46.
Seats
Note before adjusting
Never attempt to adjust your seat while
the vehicle is moving. The seat could
respond with unexpected movement, and the

Controls
45Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Settings for the seat back width and lumbar
support are not stored in memory.
Storing
1.Switch on radio readiness or the ignition,
refer to page53.
2.Adjust the seat and exterior mirrors to the
desired positions.
3.Press the button.
The LED in the button lights up.
4.Press the desired memory key 1 or 2.
The LED goes out.
The driver's seat and exterior mirror posi-
tions are stored for the remote control cur-
rently in use.
Automatic call-up
You can select at what occasion the stored
positions of the driver's seat and exterior mir-
rors are to be called up.
>Call-up when the vehicle is unlocked
>Call-up when the driver's door is opened.
When this Personal Profile function is
used, first ensure that the footwell behind
the driver's seat is free of obstacles. Failure to
do so could cause injury to persons or damage
to objects as a result of a rearward movement of
the seat.<
The adjusting procedure is immediately halted
when you press a seat adjustment switch or one
of the MEMORY buttons.
Selecting automatic call-up
iDrive concept, refer to page16.
1.Open the start menu.
2.Press the controller to open the menu.3.Select "Vehicle settings" and press the
controller.
4.Select "Door locks" and press the control-
ler.
5.Select "Central locking" and press the con-
troller.
6.Select "Last seat pos." and press the con-
troller.
7.Select "After unlocking" or "After door
opened".
8.Press the controller.
Switching off automatic call-up
Select "Deactivated" and press the controller.
Manual call-up
Do not call up memory while you are driv-
ing, otherwise unexpected seat move-
ment could result in an accident.<
Convenience mode
1.Unlock and open the driver's door or switch
on radio readiness, refer to page53.
2.Briefly press the desired memory button1
or 2.

Adjustments
48
Steering wheel
Adjustments
Do not adjust the steering wheel position
while the car is in motion, or an accident
may result from any unexpected movement.<
1.Fold the lever down.
2.Move the steering wheel to the preferred
height and angle to suit your seated posi-
tion.
3.Swing the lever back up.
Do not use force to swing the lever
back up, otherwise the mechanism
will be damaged.<
Electric steering wheel lock
The steering wheel locks or unlocks automati-
cally when the remote control is removed or
inserted, refer to page53.
Programmable buttons on the steering
wheel
You can program the buttons to suit your per-
sonal preferences:
These settings are stored for the remote con-
trol currently in use.
iDrive concept, refer to page16.
1.Press the button.
This opens the start menu.
2.Press the controller to open the menu.
3.Select "Vehicle settings" and press the
controller.
4.If necessary, move the highlight marker to
the uppermost field. Turn the controller until "Steering wheel buttons" is selected
and press the controller.
A list showing various functions is dis-
played:
>"Navigation voice instructions"
Voice messages from the navigation
system
>"Air recirculation on / off"
Permanent shut-off of outside air, refer
to Automatic recirculated-air control
AUC on page96
>"Mute on / off"
To mute the audio sources
>"Monitor on / off"
To switch Control Display on/off
>"Telephone list"
To show/hide phone book or last dis-
played list of stored phone numbers
>"Next entertainment source"
To change the audio source
5.Select the desired function and press the
controller.
6.Select a button, if appropriate, and press
the controller.
You can operate the selected function using the
corresponding button.

Controls
51Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Child seat security
All rear safety belts and the front passenger's
safety belt can be prevented from being pulled
out in order to fasten child-restraint systems.
To lock the safety belt
1.Secure the child-restraint system with the
belt.
2.Pull the belt strap all the way out.
3.Allow the belt strap to retract and pull it taut
against the child-restraint system.
The safety belt is locked.
To unlock the safety belt
1.Open the belt buckle
2.Remove the child-restraint system.
3.Allow the safety belt strap to retract all the
way.
Child-restraint system with tether
strap
There are three additional anchors for child-
restraint systems with tether straps, see
arrows.
Placement of the tether strap
Fold the anchors upward before using them.
1.Push the head restraint upward.
2.Guide the tether strap through the mount-
ing for the head restraint.
3.Push the head restraint into its lowermost
position.
LATCH child-restraint fixing system
LATCH: Lower Anchor and Tethers for CHil-
dren.
When installing a LATCH child seat, com-
ply with the system manufacturer's oper-
ating and safety instructions.<

Transporting children safely
52
Rear seats
The anchor points for the LATCH child-
restraint fixing system are located behind the
indicated protective caps. Flip up the corre-
sponding caps.
On journeys
Child-safety locks for rear doors
Slide down the safety lever on the rear doors:
The door can now be opened from the outside
only.
Safety switch for power windows
Press the safety switch for the power windows,
refer to page38, if children are traveling on the
rear seat.

Controls
53Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Driving
Ignition lock
Insert the remote control all the way into the
ignition lock.
>Radio readiness switches on.
Individual electrical consumers can operate.
>The electric steering wheel lock disen-
gages audibly.
Insert the remote control into the ignition
lock before you move the vehicle, other-
wise the electric steering wheel lock will not dis-
engage and you will not be able to steer the
car.<
Removing the remote control from the
ignition lock
Press the remote control in briefly; it is ejected
part of the way.
At the same time:
>The ignition switches off if it was on before-
hand.
>The electric steering wheel lock engages
audibly.
Automatic transmission
You cannot take out the remote control unless
the selector lever is in the P position: interlock.
Start/stop button
Each time the start/stop button is pressed,
radio readiness or the ignition is switched on or
off.
Briefly pressing the start/stop button
while the brake or clutch is depressed
starts the engine.<
Radio readiness
Individual electrical consumers can operate.
The time and the outside temperature are dis-
played in the instrument cluster.
Radio readiness is switched off automatically:
>Immediately when the remote control is
removed from the ignition lock
>In cars with convenient access
*, by touch-
ing the surface above the door lock, refer to
Locking on page36
Ignition on
Most of the indicator and warning lamps in the
indicator area1 of the instrument cluster, refer
to page13, light up and remain on for different
lengths of time.
Radio readiness and ignition off
All indicator and warning lamps in the instru-
ment cluster go out.

Controls
55Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Handbrake
The handbrake is primarily intended to prevent
the vehicle from rolling while parked; it brakes
the rear wheels.
Indicator lamp
The indicator lamp is lit, and when you
drive off an acoustic signal sounds in
addition. The handbrake is still applied.
Indicator lamp for Canadian models.
Applying
The lever locks in position automatically.
Releasing
Pull slightly upwards, press the button and
lower the lever.
In exceptional cases, if the handbrake has
to be used to slow or stop the car, do not
pull the lever up too hard. In doing so, continu-
ously press the button of the handbrake lever.
Otherwise, too violent an application of the
handbrake can overbrake the rear axle and
cause the rear of the car to swerve.<
To prevent corrosion and one-sided brak-
ing action, occasionally apply the hand-
brake lightly when the vehicle is slowly coming
to a stop if the traffic conditions are suitable.
The brake lamps do not light up when the hand-
brake is applied.<
Manual transmission
When shifting into 5th or 6th gear, press
the gearshift lever to the right. Otherwise
the engine could be damaged if you inadvert-
ently shift into 3rd or 4th gear.<
Reverse gear
Select only when the vehicle is stationary.
When the gearshift lever is pressed to the left, a
slight resistance has to be overcome.
Automatic transmission with
Steptronic*
In addition to fully automatic operation, you can
also manually shift with the Steptronic, refer to
page56.
Vehicle parking
To prevent the vehicle from rolling,
always select position P and apply the
handbrake before leaving the vehicle with the
engine running.<
Disengaging the remote control
In order to remove the remote control from the
ignition lock, you must first move the selector
lever to position P and switch off the engine:
interlock.
Selector lever positions
P R N D M/S + –

Driving
56
Displays in the instrument cluster
P R N D DS M1 to M6
The selector lever position is displayed, or the
current gear in the manual mode.
Changing selector lever positions
>With the ignition switched on or the engine
running, the selector lever can be moved
out of position P: interlock.
>Before moving the lever away from P or N
with the vehicle stationary, first depress the
brake; otherwise the selector lever will
refuse to move: shiftlock.
To prevent the vehicle from creeping
after you select a driving position,
depress the brake until you are ready to
start.<
A lock prevents you from inadvertently engag-
ing selector lever positions R and P. To cancel
the lock, press the button on the front of the
selector lever, refer to arrow.
P Park
Select only when the vehicle is stationary. The
rear wheels are locked.
R Reverse
Select only when the vehicle is stationary.
N Neutral, idle
You can select this in a car wash, for example.
The vehicle can roll.
D Drive, automatic position
Position for normal vehicle operation. All for-
ward gears are selected automatically.
Under normal operating conditions, fuel con-
sumption is lowest when you are driving in posi-
tion D.
Kick-down
Kick-down enables you to achieve maximum
performance.
Press the accelerator pedal beyond the full-
throttle resistance point.
Manual operation and Sport program
M/S
Move selector lever from position D toward the
left into the M/S shifting slot:
The sport program is activated and DS appears
in the instrument cluster. This position is rec-
ommended for a performance-oriented driving
style.
When you press the selector lever forwards or
backwards, the manual mode is activated and
Steptronic changes gear. The instrument clus-
ter shows M1 through M6.
Upshifts and downshifts are executed only
when they will result in a plausible combination
of engine and vehicle speed; thus, for example,
a downshift that would cause the engine to
overrev will not be executed by the system. The