63 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Air bags
Warning!
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In the event that the 1 indicator lamp
comes on during driving or does not come
on at all, the SRS self-check has detected a
malfunction. For your safety, we strongly
recommend that you visit an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center immediately to have
the system checked; otherwise the SRS may
not be activated when needed in an acci-
dent, which could result in serious or fatal
injury, or it might deploy unexpectedly and
unnecessarily which could also result in
injury.
In addition, improper repair work on the SRS
creates a risk of rendering the SRS inopera-
tive or causing unintended air bag deploy-
ment. Work on the SRS must therefore only
be performed by qualified technicians. Con-
tact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!
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Air bags are designed to reduce the poten-
tial of injury and fatality in certain frontal im-
pacts (front air bags), side impacts (side
impact air bags and head protection window
curtain air bags) or rollovers (head protec-
tion window curtain airbags). However, no
system available today can totally eliminate
injuries and fatalities.
The activation of the air bags temporarily re-
leases a small amount of dust from the
air bags. This dust, however, is neither inju-
rious to your health, nor does it indicate a
fire in the vehicle. The dust might cause
some temporary breathing difficulty for peo-
ple with asthma or other breathing trouble.
To avoid this, you may wish to get out of the
vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so. If you
have any breathing difficulty but cannot get
out of the vehicle after the air bag inflates,
then get fresh air by opening a window or
door.
Warning!
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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 your
seat belts.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated position
with your back against the seat backrest.
Fasten your seat belt and make sure it is
properly positioned 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. Oc-
cupants who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the air bag can be seriously in-
jured 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.
65 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
serious injuries or death should the side
air bag be activated.
(2) Always sit nearly upright, properly use
the seat belts and use an appropriately
sized infant or child restraint system for
all children 12 years old or under.
(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 air bags deactivated, then deactiva-
tion can be accomplished upon your written
request to do so at your authorized
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 (front air bags) im-
pacts, side impacts (side impact and
head protection window curtain
air bags) which exceed preset thresh-
olds and in certain rollovers (head pro-
tection window curtain air bags). Only
during these events will they provide
their supplemental protection.
The driver and passengers should al-
ways wear their seat belts. Otherwise it
is not possible for air bags to provide
their supplemental protection.
In case of other types of impacts and
impacts below air bag deployment
thresholds, air bags will not be activat-
ed. The driver and passenger will then
be protected to the extent possible by
a properly fastened seat belt. A proper-
ly fastened seat belt is also needed to
provide the best possible protection in
a rollover.
We caution you not to rely on the pres-
ence of the air bags in order to avoid
wearing your seat belt.
Your vehicle was originally equipped
with air bags that are designed to acti-
vate in certain impacts exceeding a
preset threshold to reduce the poten-
tial and severity of injury. It is important
for your safety and that of your passen-
gers that you replace deployed air bags
and repair any malfunctioning air bags
to make sure the vehicle will continue
to provide supplemental crash protec-
tion for occupants.
68 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyThe side impact air bags are deployed:
in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold
on the impacted side of the vehicle
independently of the front air bags
The side impact air bags are not deployed
in impacts which do not exceed the sys-
tem’s deployment threshold.
The front passenger side impact air bag
will only deploy if the system senses that
the front passenger seat is occupied.
Window curtain air bags
1Window curtain air bagThe side window curtain air bags are de-
ployed:
in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold
on the impacted side of the vehicle
independently of the front air bags
in certain vehicle rollovers
The side window curtain air bags are not
deployed in impacts which do not exceed
the system’s deployment threshold.
The window curtain air bags fill up the area
indicated by the arrows.
Seat belts
When the engine is started, the seat belt
telltale< illuminates to remind you and
your passengers to fasten your seat belts.
If the driver’s seat belt is not fastened be-
fore the engine is started, the seat belt
telltale< illuminates and a warning
chime sounds for approximately 6 seconds
when the engine is started.
Always wear your seat belt. All vehicle oc-
cupants always need to have their seat
belts fastened and wear them properly.
In addition, applicable motor vehicle safety
laws require you to wear seat belts. Even
where this is not the case, we strongly rec-
ommend that all vehicle occupants have
their seat belts fastened and wear them
properly.
For more information, see “Fastening the
seat belts” (
page 45).
70 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
Damaged seat belts or belts that were highly
stressed in an accident must be replaced
and their anchoring points must also be
checked.
Only use seat belts which have been ap-
proved by Mercedes-Benz.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to failure of the seat
belts.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this may
severely weaken them. In a crash, they may
not be able to provide adequate protection.
Have all work carried out only by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!
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USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY
Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this sec-
tion, as that could result in serious inju-
ries in case of an accident.
Each occupant should wear their seat
belt at all times, because seat belts help
reduce the likelihood of and potential
severity of injuries in accidents, includ-
ing rollovers. The integrated restraint
system includes SRS (driver’s air bag,
passenger front air bag, side impact
air bags, head protection window cur-
tain air bags for side windows), ETD
(seat belt emergency tensioning device),
and front seat knee bolsters. The sys-
tem is designed to enhance the protec-
tion offered to properly belted
occupants in certain frontal (front
air bags and ETD) and side (side impact,
window curtain air bags and ETD) im-
pacts which exceed preset deployment
thresholds and in certain rollovers
(window curtain air bags and ETD).
Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoul-
der. In a crash, your body would move
too far forward. That would increase the
chance of head and neck injuries. The
belt would also apply too much force to
the ribs or abdomen, which could se-
verely injure internal organs such as
your liver or spleen.
Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eyeglasses, pens, keys, etc., as these
might cause injuries.
Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo-
m e n . I f t h e b e l t i s p o s i t i o n e d a c r o s s y o u r
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries
in a crash.
Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat
belt around a person and another per-
son or other objects.
78 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
Blocking of rear side windows opera-tion
The override switch is on the driver’s door.
1Override switch
Activating override switch
Slide override switch 1 to the right.
A dot becomes visible. The functions in
the rear are disabled.Deactivating override switch
Slide override switch 1 to the left.
The functions in the rear are enabled
again.
An incorrectly mounted child seat may come
loose during an accident which could result
in serious injury or death to the child.
Damaged or impact damaged child seats or
child seat mounting fittings must be re-
placed.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system.
iOperation of the rear side windows
with the switches located in the driver’s
door is still possible.
Warning!
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Activate the override switch when children
are riding in the back seats of the vehicle.
The children may otherwise injure them-
selves, e.g. by becoming trapped in the side
window opening.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it with you, and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
89 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Seats
Memory function
Lighting
Instrument cluster
Control system
Automatic transmission
Good visibility
Automatic climate control
Power windows
Power tilt/sliding sunroof
Driving systems
Loading
Useful features
100 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingUnlocking and opening the trunk
You can unlock and open the trunk sepa-
rately.
A minimum height clearance of 6.3 ft
(1.90 m) is required to open the trunk lid.
Press and hold button Š until trunk
unlocks and begins to open.Loss of the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
If you lose your SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO or mechanical key you
should do the following:
Have the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
deactivated by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Report the loss of the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO or the mechanical key im-
mediately to your car insurance com-
pany.
Have the mechanical lock replaced if
necessary.
Your authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
will be glad to supply you with a replace-
ment.
Opening the doors from the inside
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.1Locking knob
2Inside door handle
Pull on door handle2.
If door was locked, locking knob1 will
move up.
!The trunk lid swings open upwards au-
tomatically. Always make sure that
there is sufficient overhead clearance.
Vehicles with trunk opening/closing
system*: To stop the opening proce-
dure, press buttonŠ. The trunk lid
stops moving.
iIf you open a door, the windows on that
side of the vehicle will lower slightly.
The windows close again when you
close the door.
179 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Warning!
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The auto-dimming function does not react if
incoming light is not aimed directly at sen-
sors in the interior rear view mirror.
The interior rear view mirror and the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side do not
react, for example, if the rear window sun-
shade is in raised position.
Glare can endanger you and others.
Warning!
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In case of an accident, liquid electrolyte may
escape from 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 be
completely removed only while in the
liquid state 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-
side rear view mirror or glance over your
shoulder before changing lanes.