73 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Active head restraints
The active head restraints are intended to
offer the driver and front passenger in-
creased protection from head and neck in-
jury. In the event of a rear-end collision,
the active head restraints on the driver’s
and front passenger’s seats are designed
to move forward in the direction of travel,
providing the head with increased support
earlier on in the collision sequence. The ac-
tive head restraints move forward whether
the seat is occupied or not.You cannot remove the active head re-
straint on the driver’s and passenger’s
seats.
For removal of the active head restraints
we recommend that you contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
For information on head restraint adjust-
ment, see “Seats” (
page 37).
For information on resetting the activated
active head restraints, see “Resetting acti-
vated head restraints” (page 434).
Warning!
G
Only use seat or head restraint covers which
have been tested and approved by
Mercedes-Benz for your vehicle model.
Using other seat or head restraint covers
may interfere with or prevent the activation
of the active head restraints. Contact your
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center for
availability.
Warning!
G
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust head restraint so that the center of
the head restraint supports the back of the
head at eye level. This will reduce the poten-
tial for injury to the head and neck in the
event of an accident or similar situation.
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat
head restraints. Head restraints are intend-
ed to help reduce injuries during an
accident.
79 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
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 six 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.
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 six 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 head-thorax 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).
117 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Close the trunk (
page 110).
Pull the mechanical key out of the
SmartKey (
page 419).
Insert the mechanical key in the trunk
lid lock.
Turn the mechanical key clockwise to
position2 and remove the mechani-
cal key in that position to lock the
trunk.
The trunk remains locked even when the
vehicle is centrally unlocked.
Insert the mechanical key in the trunk
lid lock.
Turn the mechanical key counterclock-
wise to neutral position1 and remove
the mechanical key in that position to
unlock the trunk.
You can now open the trunk
(page 108).
Automatic central locking
The doors and the trunk automatically lock
when the ignition is switched on and the
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or more.
You can open a locked door from the
inside. Open door only when conditions
are safe to do so.
You can deactivate the automatic locking
mode using the control system, see “Set-
ting automatic locking” (
page 159).
iYou can only cancel the separate trunk
locking mode by means of the
mechanical key.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact
exceeds a preset threshold.
To prevent the vehicle door locks from
locking, deactivate the automatic
central locking when the vehicle
is pushed or towed
is on a test stand
132 Controls in detailLightingCorner-illuminating front fog lamps* (CLK with Bi-Xenon* headlamps)
The corner-illuminating front fog lamps im-
prove illumination of the road into which
you are turning.
The corner-illuminating front fog lamps will
operate with the engine running and with
the exterior lamp switch in
positionB (
page 127)
or
the exterior lamp switch in
positionU (
page 127)
or
the daytime running lamp mode
activated (
page 129)Driving forward
Switching on corner-illuminating front
fog lamps
Depending on whether you are turning
left or right, switch on the left or right
turn signal (
page 53).
The respective front fog lamp comes on
and illuminates the road onto which
you are turning.Switching 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
where 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 corner-illu-
minating front fog lamps can be switched
off by returning the combination switch to
its original position.
iCorner-illuminating front fog lamps will
only come on in low ambient lighting
conditions.
The corner-illuminating front fog lamps
function is not available at a vehicle
speed above 25 mph (40 km/h).
iThe corner-illuminating front fog lamps
will come on automatically depending
on the steering angle, even if you did
not switch on either turn signal.
If the corner-illuminating front fog
lamps came on automatically, they will
also go out automatically depending on
the steering angle.
134 Controls in detailLightingInterior lighting
The controls are located in the overhead
control panel.
1Left front reading lamp
2Rocker switch for automatic control
system
3Right front reading lampActivating automatic control
Press the rocker switch2 to the cen-
ter position.
Interior lamps are switched on in dark-
ness when you:
unlock the vehicle
open a door
remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch
The interior lamps are switched off after a
preset time, see “Setting interior lighting
delayed shut-off” (
page 159).Deactivating automatic control
Press the = symbol on rocker
switch2.
The interior lighting remains switched
off in darkness, even when you:
unlock the vehicle
open a door
remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch
iIf the door remains open, the interior
lamps switch off automatically after
approximately five minutes when the
SmartKey is removed or in starter
switch position 0.
An interior lamp switched on manually
does not go out automatically.
iThe trunk lamp switches on if the trunk
is opened.
If you leave the trunk open for an ex-
tended period of time, the trunk lamp
will switch off automatically after ap-
proximately ten minutes.
136 Controls in detailInstrument clusterFor a full view illustration of the instrument
cluster, see “Instrument cluster”
(page 24).
1Reset button
The instrument cluster is activated when
you
open a door
switch on the ignition (
page 36)
press reset button1
switch on the exterior lamps
You can change the instrument cluster
settings in the Instrument cluster submenu
of the control system (
page 151).
Instrument cluster illumination
Use the reset button1 to adjust the
illumination brightness for the instrument
cluster.To brighten illumination
Turn reset button1 clockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
brighten.
To dim illumination
Turn reset button1 counterclock-
wise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
dim.
iThe instrument cluster illumination is
dimmed or brightened automatically to
suit ambient light conditions.
The instrument cluster illumination will
also be adjusted automatically when
you switch on the vehicle’s exterior
lamps.
137 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Coolant temperature indicator
The coolant temperature indicator is on
the right side in the instrument cluster
(page 24).
During severe operating conditions, e.g.
stop-and-go traffic, the coolant tempera-
ture may rise close to 120°C.
The engine should not be operated with
the coolant temperature above 120°C.
Doing so may cause serious engine
damage which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Trip odometer
Make sure you are viewing the stan-
dard display in the multifunction dis-
play (
page 144).
If it is not displayed, press buttonè
orÿ on the multifunction steering
wheel repeatedly until the standard dis-
play appears (
page 140).
Press and hold the reset button on the
instrument cluster (
page 136) until
the trip odometer is reset.
Warning!
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Driving when your engine is badly over-
heated can cause some fluids which
may have leaked into the engine com-
partment to catch fire. You could be se-
riously burned.
Steam from an overheated engine can
cause serious burns and can occur just
by opening the hood. Stay away from
the engine if you see or hear steam com-
ing from it.
Turn off the engine, get out of the vehicle
and do not stand near the vehicle until the
engine has cooled down.
iExcessive coolant temperature triggers
a warning in the multifunction display
(page 398) and the red coolant warn-
ing lamp in the instrument cluster
comes on (
page 377).
143 Controls in detail
Control system
Menus, submenus and functions
Menu1
Menu2
Menu3
Menu4
Menu5
Menu6
Menu7
Commands/submenusStandard display
AUDIO
NAV*
Vehicle status
message memory
1
1The vehicle status message memory menu is only displayed if there is a message stored.
Settings
Trip computer
Telephone*
(page 144)
(page 145)
(page 146)
(page 146)
(page 148)
(page 161)
(page 163)
Run Flat Indicator*
Select radio
station
Show route
guidance in-
structions, cur-
rent direction
traveled
Calling up vehicle
malfunction, warning
and system status
messages stored in
memory
Reset to factory
settings
Fuel consumption
statistics after
start
Load phone
book
Digital speedometer
Select satellite
radio station*
(USA only)
Instrument clus-
ter submenu
Fuel consumption
statistics since
the last reset
Search for
name in
phone book
Call up maintenance
service display
Operate CD
player
Time/Date sub-
menu
Call up range
Check engine oil lev-
el (except CLK 350)
Lighting
submenuVehicle submenuConvenience
submenu