2006 MERCEDES-BENZ C230 weight

76 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety

Your vehicle is equipped with air bag
technology designed to turn off the front
passenger front air bag in your vehicle
when the OCS senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard appropri-
ate child restraint on the front passen-
ger seat.


A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be
seriously injured or even killed if the
front passenger front air bag inflates in
a collision which could occur under
some circumstances, even with the air
bag technology installed in your vehicle.
The only means to completely eliminate
this risk is to never place a child in a
rear-facing child restraint in the front
seat. We therefore strongly recommend
that you always place a child in a
rear-facing child restraint in the back
seat.


If you must install a rear-facing child re-
straint on the front passenger seat be-
cause circumstances require you to do
so, make sure that the 56 indi-
cator lamp is illuminated, indicating that
the front passenger air bag is deactivat-
ed. Should the 56 indicator
lamp not illuminate or go out while the
restraint is installed, please check in-
stallation. Periodically check the
56indicator lamp while driving
to make sure the 56indicator
lamp is illuminated. If the
56indicator lamp goes out or
remains out, do not transport a child on
the front passenger seat until the sys-
tem has been repaired. A child in a
rear-facing child restraint on the front
passenger seat will be seriously injured
or even killed if the front passenger front
air bag inflates.


If you have to place a child in a
forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger seat, move the seat as
far back as possible, use the proper
child restraint recommended for the
age, size and weight of the child, and
secure child restraint with the vehicle’s
seat belt according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions. For
children larger than the typical
12-month-old child, the front passenger
front air bag may or may not be activat-
ed (
page 78).
Warning!
G
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.
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle
and/or the child is not properly secured in
the child restraint.


77 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Occupant Classification System
The Occupant Classification System (OCS)
automatically turns the front passenger
front air bag on or off based on the classi-
fied occupant weight category determined
by weight sensor readings from the front
passenger seat.
Occupants must sit properly belted in a
nearly upright position with their back
against the seat backrest and feet on the
floor to be correctly classified. If the occu-
pant’s weight is transferred to another
object in the vehicle (e.g. by leaning on
armrests), the OCS may not be able to
properly approximate the occupant’s
weight category.Both driver and the front passenger should
always use the 56indicator lamp
as an indication of whether or not the front
passenger is properly positioned.
Children too big for a toddler restraint must
ride in seats using regular seat belts. Posi-
tion shoulder belt across chest and shoul-
der, not face or neck. A booster seat may be
necessary to achieve proper belt positioning
for children from 18.6 kg (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,
remove 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 accident.
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system. Unsupervised
children in a child restraint system may use
vehicle equipment and may cause an acci-
dent and/or serious personal injury.
iThe system does not deactivate the
front passenger side impact air bag,
the window curtain air bag and the
emergency tensioning device.
iIf your seat, including your trim cover
and cushion needs to be serviced in
any way, take the vehicle to your
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Only seat accessories approved by
Mercedes-Benz may be used. Warning!
G
If the 56indicator lamp illuminates
when an adult or someone larger than a
small individual is in the front passenger
seat, have the front passenger re-position
himself or herself in the seat until the
56indicator lamp goes out.
More information about air bag display mes-
sages (
page 357).


78 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyIn the event of a collision, the air bag control
unit will not allow front passenger front air
bag deployment when the OCS classified
the front passenger seat occupant as being
up to or less than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child in a standard child re-
straint or if the front passenger seat is
sensed as being empty.
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat occupant is classified as being up
to or less than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child in a standard child re-
straint, the 56indicator lamp will il-
luminate when the engine is started and
remain illuminated, indicating that the front
passenger front air bag is deactivated.
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat is classified as being empty, the
56indicator lamp will illuminate
when the engine is started and remain illu-
minated, indicating that the front passenger
front air bag is deactivated.
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat occupant is classified as being
heavier than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child seated in a standard
child restraint or as being a small individual
(such as a young teenager or a small adult),
the 56 indicator lamp will illuminate
for approximately 6 seconds when the en-
gine is started and then, depending on occu-
pant weight sensor readings from the seat,
remain illuminated or go out. With the
56 indicator lamp illuminated, the
front passenger front air bag is deactivated.
With the 56indicator lamp out, the
front passenger front air bag is activated.
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat occupant is classified as an adult or
someone larger than a small individual, the
56 indicator lamp will illuminate for
approximately 6 seconds when the engine is
started and then go out, indicating that the
front passenger front air bag is activated.
If the 56indicator lamp is
illuminated, the front passenger front air
bag is deactivated and will not be deployed.
If the 56indicator lamp is not illumi-
nated, the front passenger front air bag is
activated and will be deployed:

in the event of certain frontal impacts


if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold


independently of the side impact
air bags (front side impact air bag
and/or rear side impact air bag *).
If the front passenger front air bag is
deployed, the rate of inflation will be
influenced by:


the rate of relevant vehicle deceleration
as assessed by the air bag control unit


front passenger’s weight category as
identified by the Occupant Classification
System (OCS).


79 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Warning!
G
According to accident statistics, children
are safer when properly restrained in the
rear seating positions than in the front seat-
ing position. Thus, we strongly recommend
that children be placed in the rear seats
whenever possible. Regardless of seating
position, children 12 years old and under
must be seated and properly secured in an
appropriate infant or child restraint recom-
mended for the size and weight of the child.
The infant or child restraint must be properly
secured with the vehicle’s seat belt, the seat
belt and top tether strap, or lower anchors
and top tether strap, fully in accordance
with the child seat manufacturer's instruc-
tions.
Children can be killed or seriously injured by
an inflating air bag. Note the following
important information when circumstances
require you to place a child in the front
passenger seat:

Your vehicle is equipped with air bag
technology designed to turn off the front
passenger front air bag in your vehicle
when the system senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard appropri-
ate child restraint on the front passen-
ger seat.


A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be serious-
ly injured or even killed if the front pas-
senger front air bag inflates in a collision
which could occur under some circum-
stances, even with the air bag technolo-
gy installed in your vehicle. The only
means to completely eliminate this risk
is to never place a child in a rear-facing
child restraint in the front seat. We
therefore strongly recommend that you
always place a child in a rear-facing
child restraint in the back seat.


If you must install a rear-facing child re-
straint on the front passenger seat be-
cause circumstances require you to do
so, make sure that the 56 indi-
cator lamp is illuminated, indicating that
the front passenger front air bag is deac-
tivated. Should the 56 indicator
lamp not illuminate or go out while the
restraint is installed, please check in-
stallation. Periodically check the
56 indicator lamp while driving
to make sure the 56indicator
lamp is illuminated. If the 56 in-
dicator lamp goes out or remains out, do
not transport a child on the front pas-
senger seat until the system has been
repaired. A child in a rear-facing child re-
straint on the front passenger seat will
be seriously injured or even killed if the
front passenger front air bag inflates.


80 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
The 56indicator lamp is located in
the center console.
1Front passenger front air bag off
indicator lamp
The 56indicator lamp1 will be
illuminated, except with the SmartKey
removed or in starter switch position0.


If you have to place a child in a
forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger seat, move the seat as
far back as possible, use the proper
child restraint recommended for the
age, size and weight of the child, and
secure child restraint with the vehicle’s
seat belt according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions. For
children larger than the typical
12-month-old child, the front passenger
front air bag may or may not be activat-
ed (
page 78).
iDeployment of the driver front air bag
does not mean that the front passenger
front air bag also should have
deployed.
iThe Occupant Classification System
(page 77) may have determined:


that the seat was empty or occu-
pied by the weight up to or less than
that of a typical 12-month-old child
seated in a standard child restraint
- both instances where the system
suppresses deployment of the front
passenger front air bag even
though the impact met the criteria
and was of sufficient severity to
deploy the driver front air bag.


that the seat was occupied by a
small individual (such as a young
teenager or a small adult) or a child
weighing more than the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child in a stan-
dard child restraint - instances
where the system may suppress
deployment of the front passenger
front air bag even though the im-
pact met the criteria and was of suf-
ficient severity to deploy the driver
front air bag.
Warning!
G
If the 1indicator lamp and the
56indicator lamp are lit at the same
time, there is a malfunction in the Occupant
Classification System. The front passenger
front air bag will be deactivated in this case.


81 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Self-test Occupant Classification
System
After turning the SmartKey in the starter
switch to position1 or2, the
56indicator lamp1 located in
the center console illuminates. If an adult
occupant is properly sitting on the front
passenger seat and the system senses the
occupant as being an adult, the
56indicator lamp will illuminate
and go out after approximately 6 seconds.
If the seat is not occupied and the system
senses the front passenger seat as being
empty, the 56indicator lamp will
illuminate and not go out. For more information, see “Lamp in center
console” (
page 357).
In order to ensure proper operation of the air
bag system and OCS:

Have the system checked as soon as
possible by qualified technicians.
Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.


Sit properly belted in a nearly upright
position with your back against the seat
backrest.


Do not lean on the armrests or lift your-
self from the seat by using the handle
over the door as this may cause the OCS
to be unable to correctly approximate
the occupant weight category.


Only have the seat repaired or replaced
by an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter.


Read and observe all warnings in this
chapter.
Warning!
G
If the 56indicator lamp should not
illuminate, the system is not functioning.
You must see an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center before seating any child on the front
passenger seat.
Warning!
G
Never place anything between seat cushion
and child seat (e.g. pillow), since it reduces
the effectiveness of the Occupant Classifi-
cation System. The bottom of the child seat
must make full contact with the passenger
seat cushion. An incorrectly mounted child
seat could cause injuries to the child in case
of an accident, instead of increasing protec-
tion for the child.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for
installation of child seats.

255 Controls in detail
Loading
If the backrest is not locked into position,
a red indicator3 will be visible.
Check for secure locking by pushing
and pulling on the backrest.
Loading instructions
The total load weight including vehicle
occupants and luggage/cargo should not
exceed the load limit or vehicle capacity
weight indicated on the corresponding
placard located on the driver’s door
B-pillar.
The handling characteristics of a fully load-
ed vehicle depend greatly on the load dis-
tribution. It is therefore recommended to
load the vehicle according to the illustra-
tions shown, with the heaviest items being
placed towards the front of the vehicle.
Warning!
G
If a red indicator is visible with the backrest
up, then the backrest is not properly locked
into position.
Always lock backrest in its upright position
when rear seat bench is occupied, cargo is
being carried in the trunk, or the extended
cargo compartment is not in use. Check for
secure locking by pushing and pulling on the
backrest.
In an accident, during hard braking or sud-
den maneuvers, loose items will be thrown
around inside the vehicle, and cause injury
to vehicle occupants unless the items are
securely fastened in the vehicle.
To help avoid personal injury during a
collision or sudden maneuver, exercise care
when transporting cargo.iTo prevent unauthorized persons from
access to the trunk, always lock
backrest in its upright position.

258 Controls in detailUseful featuresArmrest storage compartments
1Handle
2Button, passenger side
3Button, driver’s side
Opening storage compartment
Pull handle1 and lift armrest.
Closing storage compartment

Press armrest down until it engages
into place.Opening telephone compartment

Press button3 on driver’s side or
button2 on passenger side and lift
armrest.
Closing telephone compartment

Press armrest down until it engages
into place.
Armrest in the rear passenger
compartment

Pull the top of the armrest out and fold
it down.Parcel net in front passenger footwell
(all models, except C 280 4MATIC and
C 350 4MATIC)
A small convenience parcel net is located
in the front passenger footwell. It is for
small and light items, such as road maps,
mail, etc.
Warning!
G
The parcel net is intended for storing
light-weight items only.
Heavy objects, objects with sharp edges or
fragile objects may not be transported in the
parcel net. In an accident, during hard brak-
ing, or sudden maneuvers, they could be
thrown around inside the vehicle and cause
injury to vehicle occupants.
The parcel net cannot protect transported
goods in the event of an accident.