2006 MERCEDES-BENZ C230 air

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.

113 Controls in detailSeats
Multicontour seats* (Canada only)
This driver’s multicontour seat has a mov-
able seat cushion and inflatable air cush-
ions built into the backrest to provide
additional lumbar and side support.
The seat cushion movement, backrest
cushion height and curvature can be
continuously varied with switches on the
side of the seat after switching on ignition.
1Seat cushion depth
2Backrest bottom
3Backrest center
4Backrest side bolster adjustment

Switch on the ignition (
page 33).
Seat cushion depth

Adjust the seat cushion depth to the
length of your upper leg using
switch1.
Backrest contour

Adjust the contour of the backrest to
the desired position using switches2
and3.
Backrest side bolsters

Adjust the backrest side bolsters so
that they provide good lateral support
using switch4.
Seat heating*
The switches for the front seats are
located in the center console.
1Seat heating switch
2Indicator lamps

115 Controls in detail
Memory function*
Memory function*
Prior to operating the vehicle, the driver
should check and adjust the seat height,
seat position fore and aft, and seat back-
rest angle if necessary, to ensure adequate
control, reach and comfort. The head re-
straint should also be adjusted for proper
height. See also the section on air bags
(page 63) for proper seat positioning.
In addition, adjust the steering wheel to
ensure adequate control, reach, operation
and comfort. Both the interior and exterior
rear view mirrors should be adjusted for
adequate rear vision.
Fasten seat belts. Infants and small chil-
dren should be seated in a properly se-
cured restraint system that complies with
U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards 213 and 225 and Canadian Mo-
tor Vehicle Safety Standards 213
and 210.2.With the memory function you can store up
to three different settings.
The following settings are stored for the
driver’s seat when using the buttons on the
driver’s door:


Driver’s seat, backrest and head
restraint position


Steering wheel position


Exterior rear view mirrorsThe following settings are stored for the
front passenger seat when using the but-
tons (if so equipped depending on vehicle
equipment configuration) on the passen-
ger door:


Front passenger seat, backrest and
head restraint positionWarning!
G
Do not activate the memory function while
driving. Activating the memory function
while driving could cause the driver to lose
control of the vehicle.

124 Controls in detailLightingSwitching off corner-illuminating front
fog lamps
The combination switch for the turn signal
resets automatically after major steering
wheel movements. This will switch off the
corner-illuminating front fog lamps if they
were activated by switching on the left or
right turn signal.
If the turn signal should stay on after mak-
ing the turn, the turn signal and cornering
fog lamp can be switched off by returning
the combination switch to its original posi-
tion.Driving rearward
Switching on corner-illuminating front
fog lamps

Place the gear selector lever (manual
transmission: gearshift lever) in
positionR.
The inverse front fog lamp comes on
automatically depending on the
steering direction and steering angle.
Switching off corner-illuminating front
fog lamps

Place the gear selector lever (manual
transmission: gearshift lever) out of
positionR.
The respective front fog lamp goes out.
Hazard warning flasher
The hazard warning flasher can be
switched on at all times, even with the
SmartKey removed from the starter
switch.
The hazard warning flasher switches on
automatically when an air bag deploys.
The hazard warning flasher switch is
located on the upper part of the center
console.
1Hazard warning flasher switch

175 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Rear window defroster
The rear window defroster uses a large
amount of power. To keep the battery
drain to a minimum, switch off the
defroster as soon as the rear window is
clear.
The defroster is automatically deactivated
after approximately 6 to 17 minutes of op-
eration depending on the outside tempera-
ture.Activating

Press buttonF or 1 in the
climate control panel (
page 177) or
automatic climate control panel*
(
page 187).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
Deactivating

Press buttonF or 1 again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
Warning!
G
Any accumulation of snow and ice should be
removed from the rear window before
driving. Visibility could otherwise be
impaired, endangering you and others.
!If the rear window defroster switches
off too soon and the indicator lamp
starts flashing, this means that too
many electrical consumers are
operating simultaneously and there is
insufficient voltage in the battery. The
system responds automatically by
deactivating the rear window defroster.
As soon as the battery has sufficient
voltage, the rear window defroster
automatically turns itself back on.

177 Controls in detail
Climate control
Climate control panel (USA only)
Climate control panel (Canada only)
Item
1
Left side defroster vent, fixed
2
Left side air vent, adjustable
3
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for left side air vent
4
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for left center air vent
5
Left center air vent, adjustable
6
Right center air vent, adjustable
7
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for right center air vent
8
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for right side air vent
9
Right side air vent, adjustable
a
Right side defroster vent, fixed
b
Climate control paneliFor draft-free ventilation, move the
sliders for the air vents2, 5, 6,
and9 to the middle position.
Item
1
Air volume control
2
Left side temperature control
3
Right side temperature control
4
Air distribution control
5
Rear window defroster
6
AC cooling on/off
7
Air distribution and air volume
(automatic mode)
8
Air recirculation
9
Front defroster