2006 MERCEDES-BENZ CLK COUPE child restraint

74 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyChildren in the vehicle
If an infant or child is traveling with you in
the vehicle:

Secure the child using an infant or child
restraint appropriate to the age and
size of the child.


Make sure that the infant or child is
properly secured at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
Infant and child restraint seats and
information on choosing an appropriate
restraint system can be obtained from any
Mercedes-Benz Center.Infant and child restraint systems
We recommend all infants and children be
properly restrained at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
All lap-shoulder belts except the driver’s
seat belt have special seat belt retractors
for secure fastening of child restraints.
To fasten a child restraint, follow child
restraint instructions for mounting. Then
pull the shoulder belt out completely and
let it retract. During seat belt retraction, a
ratcheting sound can be heard to indicate
that the special seat belt retractor is acti-
vated. The belt is now locked. Push down
on child restraint to take up any slack.
To deactivate, release seat belt buckle and
let seat belt retract completely. The seat
belt can again be used in the usual
manner.Warning!
G
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child
restraint system. The children could

injure themselves on parts of the vehicle


be seriously or fatally injured through
excessive exposure to extreme heat or
cold
Do not expose the child restraint system to
direct sunlight. The child restraint system’s
metal parts, for example, could become very
hot, and the child could be burned on these
parts.
If children open a door, they could

injure other persons


get out of the car and injure themselves
or be injured by oncoming traffic
Do not carry heavy or hard objects in the
passenger compartment or trunk unless
they are firmly secured in place. For more in-
formation, see “Loading” (
page 262), and
see “Useful features” (
page 269) in the
“Controls in detail” chapter.
Unsecured or improperly positioned cargo
increases a child’s risk of injury in the event
of


strong braking maneuvers


sudden changes of direction


an accident

75 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Warning!
G
Never release the seat belt buckle while the
vehicle is in motion, since the special seat
belt retractor will be deactivated.iInformation on child seats with anchor
fittings for tether anchorages
(page 82).
For information on LATCH-type child
seat anchors (
page 83).
!The use of infant or child restraints is
required by law in all 50 states, the
District of Columbia, the U.S. territo-
ries, and all Canadian provinces.
Infants and small children should be
seated in an appropriate infant or child
restraint system, properly secured by a
lap / shoulder belt or, if so equipped, a
top tether anchorage point and a child
restraint lower anchorage system that
complies with U.S. Federal Motor Vehi-
cle Safety Standards 213 and 225 and
Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards 213 and 210.2.
!A statement by the child restraint man-
ufacturer of compliance with this stan-
dard can be found on the instruction
label on the restraint and in the instruc-
tion manual provided with the restraint.
When using any infant, or toddler re-
straint, or booster seat, be sure to care-
fully read and follow all manufacturer’s
instructions for installation and use.
Please read and observe warning labels
affixed to the inside of the vehicle and
to infant or child restraints.

76 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
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.
Occupants, especially children, should nev-
er place their bodies or lean their heads in
the area of the door or the rear side trim
panel where the front side impact air bag
and/or the rear side impact air bag* in-
flates. This could result in serious injuries or
death should the air bag be triggered. Al-
ways sit nearly upright, properly use the
seat belts and use an appropriately sized in-
fant or toddler restraint or booster seat rec-
ommended for the size and weight of the
child.
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 OCS senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard
appropriate child restraint on the front
passenger 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
restraint on the front passenger seat
because circumstances require you to
do so, make sure that the
56indicator lamp is illuminated,
indicating that the front passenger front
air bag is deactivated. Should the
56 indicator lamp not illuminate
or go out while the restraint is installed,
please check installation. Periodically
check the 56 indicator lamp
while driving to make sure the
56indicator lamp is illuminated.
If the 56 indicator lamp goes out
or remains out,

77 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Occupant Classification System
The O
ccupant C
lassification S
ystem (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.
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.


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
activated (
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.
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 over 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
accident 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.

78 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyOccupants 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
occupant'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 56 indicator lamp
as an indication of whether or not the front
passenger is properly positioned.
iIf your seat, including your trim cover
and cushion needs to be serviced in
any way, take the vehicle to an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Only seat accessories approved by
Mercedes-Benz may be used.
Warning!
G
If the 56 indicator 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
56 indicator lamp goes out.
More information about air bag display
messages (
page 376).
In 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
restraint 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
restraint, the 56 indicator lamp will
illuminate 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
56 indicator lamp will illuminate
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 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
engine is started and then, depending on
occupant 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 56 indicator lamp out, the
front passenger front air bag is activated.

79 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
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 56 indicator lamp is
illuminated, the front passenger front air
bag is deactivated and will not be deployed.
If the 56 indicator lamp is not
illuminated, 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 front side impact
air bags and/or rear side impact air
bags*.
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).
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
instructions.
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.


80 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety

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
restraint on the front passenger seat
because circumstances require you to
do so, make sure that the
56indicator lamp is illuminated,
indicating that the front passenger front
air bag is deactivated. Should the
56 indicator lamp not illuminate
or go out while the restraint is installed,
please check installation. Periodically
check the 56 indicator lamp
while driving to make sure the
56 indicator lamp is illuminated.
If the 56 indicator lamp goes out
or remains out, do not transport a child
on the front passenger seat until the
system 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
activated (
page 78).
iDeployment of the driver front air bag
does not mean that the front passenger
front air bag also should have de-
ployed.
The Occupant Classification System
(page 77) may have determined:


that the seat was empty or
occupied 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 cri-
teria 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
standard child restraint – instances
where the system may suppress


82 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyMore information can be found in the
“Practical hints” section (
page 368).Installation of infant and child restraint
systems
This vehicle is equipped with tether
anchorages for a top tether strap at each
of the rear seating positions.
1Anchorage ring
2Hook

Open the trunk and release the rear
seat backrest (
page 266).

Fold rear seat backrest slightly for-
ward.

Guide top tether strap between head
restraint and top of seat back.
Head restraint must be installed and
positioned such that the top tether
strap can pass freely between the head
restraint and the top of seat back.
Make sure the tether strap is not
twisted.
1Anchorage ring
2Hook

Fold up anchorage ring1.

Securely fasten hook2, which is part
of the tether strap, to anchorage
ring1.
Warning!
G
If the 56 indicator 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.