2006 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350 reset

83 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
If the 59indicator lamp is illumi-
nated, the front passenger front air bag is
deactivated and will not be deployed.
If the 59indicator lamp is not illu-
minated, 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 side impact air
bags.
If the front passenger 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
recommended 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 im-
portant information when circumstances re-
quire 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.


A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be serious-
ly 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-fac-
ing 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.


125 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Automatic central locking
The doors and the tailgate 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 in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
Warning!
G
Monitor the closing procedure carefully to
make sure no one is in danger of being in-
jured. To prevent possible personal injury,
always keep hands and fingers away from
the cargo compartment opening when clos-
ing the tailgate. Be especially careful when
small children are around. To stop the clos-
ing procedure, do one of the following:

press KEYLESS-GO locking/closing
switch
1


press the tailgate closing switch


press the Šbutton on the SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO*


press or pull the remote tailgate switch
(on the driver’s door)
Even with the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
removed from the vehicle, the tailgate
closing switch can be operated. Therefore,
do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and/or serious personal
injury.Warning!
G
Only drive with the tailgate closed as,
among other dangers such as blocked
visibility, exhaust fumes may enter the vehi-
cle interior.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact ex-
ceeds a preset threshold.
The vehicle automatically locks when
the ignition is switched on and the
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or
more. You could therefore lock yourself
out when the vehicle

is pushed or towed


is on a test stand


during a wheel change

144 Controls in detailLightingSwitching 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
were 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 cornering
fog lamp can be switched off by returning
the combination switch to its original posi-
tion.Driving rearward
Switching on corner-illuminating front
fog lamps

Shift the automatic transmission in
positionR.
The inverse front fog lamp comes on
automatically depending on the
steering direction and steering angle.
Switching off corner-illuminating front
fog lamps

Shift the automatic transmission out of
positionR.
The respective front fog lamp goes out.
Hazard warning flasher
The hazard warning flasher can be
switched on at all times, even with the
SmartKey removed from the starter switch
or with the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
removed from the vehicle.
The hazard warning flasher switches on
automatically when an air bag deploys.
The hazard warning flasher switch is
located on the upper part of the center
console.
1Hazard warning flasher switch

148 Controls in detailInstrument clusterFor an illustration of the instrument
cluster, see the “At a glance” section
(page 24).
1To dim illumination
2Reset button
3To brighten illumination
The instrument cluster is activated when
you:


open a door


switch on the ignition (
page 34)


press the reset button2 (
page 24)


switch on the exterior lamps
(page 54)You can change the instrument cluster set-
tings in the instrument cluster submenu of
the control system (
page 164).
Instrument cluster illumination
Use buttons1 or3 to adjust the
illumination brightness for the instrument
cluster.To brighten illumination

Press and hold button3 in the instru-
ment cluster until the desired illumina-
tion is reached.
The instrument cluster illumination will
brighten.
To dim illumination

Press and hold button1 in the instru-
ment cluster until the desired illumina-
tion is reached.
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.

149 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Trip odometer
Make sure you are viewing the trip odome-
ter display (
page 150).

If it is not displayed, press buttonè
orÿ on the multifunction steering
wheel (
page 151) until the trip odom-
eter appears.

Press and hold the reset button on the
instrument cluster (
page 148) until
the trip odometer is reset.
Tachometer
The red marking on the tachometer
(page 24) denotes excessive engine
speed.To help protect the engine, the fuel supply
is interrupted if the engine is operated
within the red marking.
Outside temperature indicator
The outside temperature is displayed in
the multifunction display (
page 150).The temperature sensor is located in the
front bumper area. Due to its location, the
sensor can be affected by road or engine
heat during idling or slow driving. This
means that the accuracy of the displayed
temperature can only be verified by com-
parison to a thermometer placed next to
the sensor, not by comparison to external
displays (e.g. bank signs etc.).
When moving the vehicle into colder ambi-
ent temperatures (e.g. when leaving your
garage), you will notice a delay before the
lower temperature is displayed.
A delay also occurs when ambient temper-
atures rise. This prevents inaccurate tem-
perature indications caused by heat
radiated from the engine during idling or
slow driving.
!Avoid driving at excessive engine
speeds, as it may result in serious en-
gine damage that is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
The outside temperature indicator is not de-
s i g n e d t o s e r v e a s a n i c e - w a r n i n g d e v i c e a n d
is therefore unsuitable for that purpose.
Indicated temperatures just above the freez-
ing point do not guarantee that the road sur-
face is free of ice. The road may still be icy,
especially in wooded areas or on bridges.

154 Controls in detailControl systemMenus, submenus and functions
Menu1
Menu2
Menu3
Menu4
Menu5
Menu6
Standard display
AUDIO
NAV*
Off-road
Vehicle status
message memory
Settings
(page 156)
(page 157)
(page 158)
(page 159)
(page 159)
(page 161)
Commands/submenusTrip odometer and
Main odometer
Select radio station
Show route guid-
ance instructions,
current direction
traveled
Compass
Call up vehicle mal-
function, warning
and system status
messages stored in
memory
Reset to factory set-
tings
Check tire inflation
pressure
Select satellite radio*
station
Vehicle level*
Instrument cluster
submenu
Check coolant temper-
ature
Operate CD player
Time/Date sub-
menu
Digital speedometer/
outside temperature
Lighting submenu
Call up maintenance
service indicator
Vehicle submenu
Check engine oil level*
Convenience sub-
menu

155 Controls in detail
Control system
Menu7
Menu8
Menu9
Vehicle configuration
Trip computer
Telephone*
(page 175)
(page 177)
(page 178)
Commands/submenusParktronic*
Fuel consumption statis-
tics after start
Load phone book
DSR (Downhill Speed Reg-
ulation) programmed
default speed
Fuel consumption statis-
tics since the last reset
Search for name in phone
book
Tow-away alarm
Call up range
iThe headings used in the menus table
are designed to facilitate navigation
within the system and are not neces-
sarily identical to those shown in the
control system displays.
The first function displayed in each
menu will automatically show you
which part of the system you are in.

157 Controls in detail
Control system
AUDIO menu
The functions in the
AUDIO
menu operate
the audio equipment which you currently
have turned on.
If no audio equipment is currently turned
on, the message
AUDIO OFF
is shown in the
display.
The following functions are available:Select radio station

Turn on the Modular COMAND System
and select radio. Refer to separate
Modular COMAND System operating
instructions.

Press buttonè orÿ repeatedly
until you see the currently tuned sta-
tion in the multifunction display.
1Waveband setting
2Station frequency

Press buttonk orj repeatedly
until the desired station is found.Select satellite radio station* (USA
only)
The satellite radio is treated as a radio ap-
plication.

Select satellite radio with the corre-
sponding key on the Modular COMAND
System.
1SAT mode and preset number
2Channel name or number
Function
Page
Select radio station
157
Select satellite radio station*
(USA only)
157
Operate CD player
158
iYou can only store new stations using
the corresponding feature on the radio,
see separate Modular COMAND
System operating instructions.
You can also operate the radio in the
usual manner.