2006 MERCEDES-BENZ C280 ESP

35 Getting started
Adjusting
Adjusting
Seats
The seats can be adjusted either manually
or electrically, depending on the vehicle’s
equipment.
For more information, see “Seats”
(page 109).Warning!
G
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and
rear view mirror adjustments, as well as fas-
tening of seat belts, must be done before
the vehicle is put into motion.
Warning!
G
Do not adjust the driver’s seat while driving.
Adjusting the seat while driving could cause
the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
back in an excessively reclined position as
this can be dangerous. You could slide un-
der the seat belt in a collision. If you slide
under it, the belt would apply force at the ab-
domen or neck. That could cause serious or
fatal injuries. The seat back and seat belts
provide the best restraint when the wearer
is in a nearly upright position and belts are
properly positioned on the body. Your seat
must be adjusted so that you can correctly
fasten your seat belt (
page 45).
Never place hands under the seat or near
any moving parts while a seat is being
adjusted.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take it
with you, and lock the vehicle.
Even with the SmartKey removed from the
starter switch, the power seats* can be
operated when the respective door is open.
Therefore, do not leave children unattended
in the vehicle, or with access to an unlocked
vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle equip-
ment may cause an accident and/or serious
personal injury.

38 Getting startedAdjustingHead restraint tilt
Manually adjust the angle of the head
restraint.
Push or pull on the lower edge of the
head restraint cushion.
For more information, see “Seats”
(
page 109).Power seat* adjustment
The seat adjustment switches are located
on the respective front door.
1Head restraint height
2Seat height
3Seat cushion tilt
4Seat fore and aft adjustment
5Seat backrest tilt

Switch on the ignition (
page 33).
or

Open the respective door.Seat fore and aft adjustment

Press switch forward or backward in
direction of arrow4.
Adjust seat to a comfortable seating
position that still allows you to reach
the accelerator/brake pedal safely.
The position should be as far rearward
as possible, consistent with ability to
properly operate controls.iThe memory function* (
page 115)
lets you store the settings for the pow-
er seat*, the steering wheel adjust-
ment (electrical*) and the exterior rear
view mirrors.

43 Getting started
Adjusting
Mirrors
Adjust the interior and exterior rear view
mirrors before driving so that you have a
good view of the road and traffic condi-
tions.Interior rear view mirror

Manually adjust the interior rear view
mirror.
For more information, see “Rear view mir-
rors” (
page 170).
Exterior rear view mirrors
Warning!
G
Let the system complete the adjustment
procedure before setting the vehicle in mo-
tion. All steering wheel adjustments must be
completed before setting the vehicle in mo-
tion. Driving off with the steering wheel still
adjusting could cause the driver to lose con-
trol of the vehicle.
Warning!
G
In case of an accident, liquid electrolyte may
escape the mirror housing if the mirror glass
breaks.
Electrolyte has an irritating effect. Do not al-
low the liquid to come into contact with
eyes, skin, clothing, or respiratory system.
In case it does, immediately flush affected
area with water, and seek medical help if
necessary.!Electrolyte drops coming into contact
with the vehicle paint finish can only be
completely removed while in their
liquid state and by applying plenty of
water.
Warning!
G
Exercise care when using the passen-
ger-side exterior rear view mirror. The mirror
surface is convex (outwardly curved surface
for a wider field of view). Objects in mirror
are closer than they appear. Check your in-
terior rear view mirror or glance over your
shoulder before changing lanes.

53 Getting started
Driving
Turn signals
The combination switch is located on the
left of the steering column.Combination switch1Turn signals, right
2Turn signals, left

Press combination switch in direction
of arrow1 or2.
The corresponding turn signal indicator
lampL orK in the instrument
cluster flashes (
page 24).
The combination switch resets auto-
matically after major directional
changes.
Windshield wipers
The combination switch is located on the
left of the steering column.Combination switch1Single wipe
Wiping with windshield washer fluid
2Switching on windshield wipers 
Switch on the ignition (
page 33).
iTo signal minor directional changes,
press combination switch only to point
of resistance and release. The corre-
sponding turn signals will flash three
times.

60 Getting startedParking and lockingLocking

Exit the vehicle and close all doors.

Press the lock button‹ on the
SmartKey (
page 32).
With the hood, trunk and all doors
closed, all turn signal lamps flash three
times. The locking knobs in the doors
move down.
The anti-theft alarm system* is armed.
For more information, see “Locking and
unlocking” (
page 98).
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure there is no
possibility of someone getting caught in a
door during closing.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take it
with you, and lock the vehicle. Do not leave
children unattended in the vehicle, or with
access to an unlocked vehicle. Unsuper-
vised use of vehicle equipment may cause
an accident and/or serious personal injury.iWith the SmartKey removed and the
driver’s door open, a warning sounds if
the vehicle’s exterior lamps are not
switched off.
The message
Switch off lights
ap-
pears in the multifunction display.

64 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
To reduce the risk of injury when the front
air bags inflate, it is very important for the
driver and front passenger to always be in a
properly seated position and to wear their
respective seat belts.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated position
with your back against the backrest. Fasten
your seat belt and ensure it is properly posi-
tioned on your body.
Since the air bag inflates with considerable
speed and force, a proper seating and hands
on steering wheel position will help to keep
you at a safe distance from the air bag.
Occupants who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the air bag can be seriously
injured or killed by an air bag as it inflates
with great force in the blink of an eye:

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


Adjust the driver seat as far as possible
rearward, still permitting proper opera-
tion of vehicle controls. The distance
from the center of the driver’s breast-
bone to the center of the air bag cover
on the steering wheel must be at least
10 in (25 cm) or more. You should be
able to accomplish this by a combina-
tion of adjustments to the seat and
steering wheel. If you have any prob-
lems, please see your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.


Do not lean your head or chest close to
the steering wheel or dashboard.


Keep hands on the outside of steering
wheel rim. Placing hands and arms in-
side the rim can increase the risk and
potential severity of hand/arm injury
when driver front air bag inflates.


Adjust the front passenger seat as far as
possible rearward from the dashboard
when the seat is occupied.


Occupants, especially children, should
never place their bodies or lean their
heads in the area of the door or the rear
side trim panel where the front side im-
pact air bag and/or rear side impact
air bag* inflates. This could result in se-
rious injuries or death should the air bag
be triggered. Always sit nearly upright,
properly use the seat belts and use an
appropriately sized infant or toddler re-
straint or booster seat recommended
for the size and weight of the child.
Failure to follow these instructions can re-
sult in severe injuries to you or other
occupants.
If you sell your vehicle, it is important that
you make the buyer aware of this safety in-
formation. Be sure to give the buyer this
Operator’s Manual.

65 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 side impact air bag and/or rear side
impact air bag* there is a possibility for a
side impact air bag related injury if occu-
pants, especially children, are not properly
seated or restrained when next to a side im-
pact air bag which needs to deploy 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
front side impact air bag and/or rear
side impact air bag* inflates. This could
result in serious injuries or death should
the front side impact air bag and/or rear
side impact air bag* be activated.
(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 activate only
in certain frontal impacts (front
air bags), or side impacts (front side
impact air bags, rear side impact
air bags* and head protection window
curtain air bags) which exceed preset
thresholds.
Only during these types of impacts, if of
sufficient severity to meet the deploy-
ment thresholds, 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 cases of other frontal impacts, an-
gled impacts, roll-overs, other side im-
pacts, rear collisions, or other
accidents, the air bags will not be acti-
vated. The driver and the passenger will
then be protected by the fastened seat
belts.

72 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyEmergency tensioning device (ETD),
seat belt force limiter
The seat belts for the front and rear outer
seats are equipped with emergency
tensioning devices and belt force limiters.
The ETD is designed to activate in the
following cases:

in frontal or rear-end impacts
exceeding a preset severity level.


if the restraint systems are operational
and functioning correctly, see
1indicator lamp (
page 62).In an impact, emergency tensioning
devices remove slack from the belts in
such a way that the seat belts fit more
snugly against the body. Belt force limiters
reduce the force exerted by the seat belts
on occupants during a crash.
iThe ETDs for the front seats will only
activate if the respective front seat belt
is fastened (latch plate properly
inserted into buckle).
The ETDs for the rear outer seats will
activate with or without the respective
seat belt fastened.
Warning!
G
An emergency tensioning device (ETD) that
was activated must be replaced.
When scrapping the emergency tensioning
device, our safety instructions must be
followed. These are available at your
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.