2006 MERCEDES-BENZ CLS500 seat adjustment

48 Getting startedDriving
With a smooth motion, pull the belt
from belt outlet1.

Place the shoulder portion of the belt
across the top of your shoulder and the
lap portion across your hips.

Push latch plate2 into buckle4 until
it clicks.

If necessary, tighten the lap portion to
a snug fit by pulling shoulder portion
up.Belt outlet height adjustment
1Release button

Press release button1 and move the
seat belt height adjuster upward or
downward.
Proper use of seat belts


Do not twist the belt when fastening.


Adjust seat belt so that the shoulder
portion is located as close as possible
to the middle of the shoulder (it should
not touch the neck). Never pass the
shoulder portion of the belt under your
arm.


Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips (over hip joint) and not
across the abdomen.


Place the seat backrest in a nearly
upright position.


Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time.


Do not fasten a seat belt around a per-
son and another object at the same
time. When using a seat belt to secure
infant or toddler restraints or children
in booster seats, always follow the
child seat manufacturer’s instructions.


Check your seat belt periodically dur-
ing travel to make sure that it is proper-
ly positioned.


Make sure that the seat belt is always
fitted snugly. Take special care of this
when wearing loose clothing.

49 Getting started
Driving
Starting the engine Automatic transmission
Gearshift pattern for automatic
transmissionPPark position with gear selector lever
lock
RReverse gear
NNeutral
DDrive position
For more information, see the “Controls in
detail” section (
page 181).
Warning!
G
Do not pass belts over sharp edges. They
could tear.
Do not allow the belt to get caught in the
door or in the seat adjustment mechanism.
This could damage the belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to
seat belts. This could impair the effective-
ness of the 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.
Damaged seat belts or belts that were highly
stressed in an accident must be replaced.
Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Warning!
G
Inhalation of exhaust gas is hazardous to
your health. All exhaust gas contains carbon
monoxide (CO), and inhaling it can cause un-
consciousness and possible death.
Do not run the engine in confined areas
(such as a garage) which are not properly
ventilated. If you think that exhaust gas
fumes are entering the vehicle while driving,
have the cause determined and corrected
immediately. If you must drive under these
conditions, drive only with at least one win-
dow fully open.

66 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety

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 with your head or chest
close to the steering wheel or dash-
board.


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 lean their heads in the area of the
door where the side air bag inflates.
This could result in serious injuries or
death should the air bag be triggered.
Always sit nearly upright, properly use
the seat belts and appropriate size
infant or child restraint system.


Children 12 years old and under must
never ride in the front seat, except in a
Mercedes-Benz authorized
BabySmart
TM compatible child seat,
which operates with the BabySmart
TM
system installed in the vehicle to deacti-
vate the passenger front air bag when it
is properly installed. Otherwise they will
be struck by the air bag when it inflates
in a crash. If this happens, serious or
fatal injury will result.
Failure to follow these instructions can
result in severe injuries to you or other occu-
pants.
If you sell your vehicle you are responsible
to make the buyer aware of these points. Be
sure to give the buyer this Operator’s Manu-
al.
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 and rear side impact air bags there is a
possibility for a side impact air bag related
injury if occupants, especially children, are
not properly seated or restrained when next
to a side impact 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
side impact air bag inflates. This could
result in serious injuries or death should
the side impact air bag be deployed.


124 Controls in detailSeatsFor more information on seat adjustment,
see the “Getting started” section
(page 40).
Front seat active head restraintYou cannot remove the active head re-
straints on the driver’s and passenger’s
seats.
For removal of the active head restraints
we recommend that you contact an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.
For information on head restraint adjust-
ment, see “Seats” (
page 39).
For information on active head restraints,
see “Active head restraints” (
page 74).
Rear seat head restraints
Folding head restraints back
The rear seat head restraints can be folded
backward for increased visibility.
1Head restraint release switch
Warning!
G
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust head restraints so that it is as close
to the head as possible and the center of the
head restraint supports the back of the head
at eye level. This will reduce the potential 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 acci-
dent.
iThe rear seat head restraints cannot be
adjusted.

125 Controls in detailSeats

Switch on the ignition (
page 36).

Press the symbol-side on rocker
switch1 to release the head re-
straints.
The head restraints will fold backward.Placing head restraints upright

Pull the head restraint forward until it
locks into position.
Lumbar support
The curvature of the driver's seat can be
adjusted to help enhance lower back sup-
port and seating comfort.
1Adjustment lever
Move adjustment lever1 in the direc-
tion of arrows until you have reached a
comfortable seating position.
Warning!
G
For safety reasons, always drive with the
rear head restraints in the upright position
when the rear seats are occupied.
Keep the area around head restraints clear
of articles (e.g. clothing) to not obstruct the
folding operation of the head restraints.
!Make sure the head restraints engage
when placing them upright. Otherwise
their protective function cannot be as-
sured.

126 Controls in detailSeatsMulticontour seat*
The multicontour seat has a movable seat
cushion and inflatable air cushions built
into the backrest to provide additional lum-
bar and side support.
The seat cushion movement, backrest
cushion height and curvature can be con-
tinuously varied with switches on the right
side of the seat after turning the SmartKey
in the starter switch to position2 or press-
ing the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button
twice.1Seat cushion depth
2Backrest bottom
3Backrest center
4Backrest side bolster adjustment

Switch on the ignition (
page 36).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 æ or
ç.

Move the backrest support to the bot-
tom by using button2 or to the center
by using button3.
Backrest side bolsters

Adjust the side bolsters so that they
provide good lateral support using
switch4.

170 Controls in detailControl system
Press buttonæ orç to switch
function
on or
off
.
Dynamic seat* submenu
Access the
Dynamic seat
submenu via the
Settings
menu. Use the
Dynamic seat

submenu to change the settings for the
dynamic seats. The following functions are
available:Adjusting the dynamic seat
The function dynamic seat adjustment lets
you determine the way the seat adjusts
while driving.

Move the selection marker with the
æ or çbutton to the Dynamic seat
submenu.

Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until you see
Dyn. multi-cont. seat,
driver
for the driver seat or
Dyn. multi-cont. seat, fr. pass.

for the passenger seat in the
multifunction display.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.

Press buttonæ orç to switch
function to
Weak
or
Powerful
.The following settings are available:
Function
Page
Adjust driver seat
170
Adjust passenger seat
170
Weak
(Comfort) Less lateral sup-
port and slow air pressure
build-up in the air cham-
bers of the backrest side
bolsters
Powerful
(Sporty) Strong lateral sup-
port and fast air pressure
build-up in the air cham-
bers of the backrest side
bolsters


485 Index
Front seats
Heating* 128
FSS (Canada vehicles) 339
FSS (Flexible Service System) 474
Fuel 291
Fuel reserve warning lamp 358
Premium unleaded gasoline 291
Fuel consumption statistics
After start 171
Since last reset 171
Fuel filler flap 290
Locking 290
Opening 290
Unlocking 290
Fuel requirements 466
Fuel tank
Filler flap 290
Fuels, coolants, lubricants etc. 461
Fuse box in trunk 442
Fuses 441
Fuse chart 441
Fuse extractor 441
Replacing 441
Spare fuses 441G
Garage door opener* 270
Gasoline see Fuel 291
GAWR 332
Gear range 474
Automatic transmission 181
Limiting 181
Shifting into optimal 183
Gear selector lever
Cleaning 349
Position 178
Global
Locking 101
Locking with KEYLESS-GO* 107
Unlocking 100
Unlocking with KEYLESS-GO* 107
Global Positioning System (GPS) 474
Glove box 251
Good visibility 191
GPS 474
Gross Axle Weight Rating see GAWR
Gross Vehicle Weight Rating see GVWR
Gross Vehicle Weight see GVW
GVW 332
GVWR 333H
Hands-free microphone 29
Hard plastic trim items, cleaning 349
Hazard warning flasher 140
Head restraint
Active head restraint 74, 124
Head restraints
resetting activated 407
Headlamps
Automatic headlamp mode 135
Bi-Xenon* 472
Cleaning lenses 346
Cleaning system* 191
Deactivating 59
Headliner, cleaning 350
Heated seats* 128
Height adjustment
Head restraints 41
Steering wheel 41
Vehicle level 239
High beam flasher 53, 138
High beam headlamps
Replacing bulbs 415
Switching on 53, 138
High mounted brake lamp 412