2006 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350 light

70 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
Safety guidelines for the seat belt,
emergency tensioning device and
air bag We caution you not to rely on the
presence of the air bags in order to
avoid wearing your seat belt.
It is important to your safety and that of
your passengers that you replace de-
ployed air bags and repair any malfunc-
tioning air bags to make sure the
vehicle will continue to provide supple-
mental crash protection for occupants.Warning!
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 belts in-
stalled or supplied by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.


Air bags and pyrotechnic emergency
tensioning devices (ETDs) are designed
to function on a one-time-only basis. An
air bag or ETD that is deployed must be
replaced. PRE-SAFE* has electrically op-
erated reversible pre-tensioners in addi-
tion to the pyrotechnic ETDs.


Do not pass belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.


Do not make any modification that could
change the effectiveness 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 ade-
quate protection.


No modifications of any kind may be
made to any components or wiring of
the SRS. This includes changing or re-
moving any component or part of the
SRS, the installation of additional trim
material, badges, etc. over the steering
wheel hub, front passenger front air bag
cover, outboard sides of the seat back-
rests, door trim panels, or door frame
trims, and installation of additional
electrical/electronic equipment on or
near SRS components and wiring. Keep
area between air bags and occupants
free from objects (e.g. packages, purs-
es, umbrellas, etc.).


Do not hang items such as coat hangers
from the coat hooks or handles over the
door. These items may turn into projec-
tiles and cause head and other injuries
when curtain air bag is deployed.


Air bag system components will be hot
after an air bag has inflated. Do not
touch.

71 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When you sell your vehicle we strongly
urge you to give notice to the subsequent
owner that it is equipped with an SRS by
alerting them to the applicable section in
the Operator’s Manual.Front air bags
1Driver air bag
2Passenger air bag
Driver and front passenger front air bags
are deployed:


in the event of certain frontal impacts


if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold


independently of the side impact air
bags


Never place your feet on the instrument
panel, dashboard, or on the seat. Always
keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.


In addition, improper repair work on the
SRS creates a risk of rendering the SRS
inoperative or causing unintended air
bag deployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.


For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the air bag
unit or emergency tensioning device,
our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These instructions are available
from your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Light Truck Center.


Given the considerable deployment
speed, required inflation volume, and
the textile structure of the air bags,
there is the possibility of abrasions or
other more significant injuries resulting
from air bag deployment.
Warning!
G
Only use seat covers which have been
tested and approved by Mercedes-Benz for
your vehicle model. Using other seat covers
may interfere with or prevent the
deployment of the front side impact air bags
or the rear side impact air bags*. Contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center for availability.

72 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
The air bags will not deploy in impacts
which do not exceed the system’s deploy-
ment thresholds. You will then be protec-
ted by the fastened seat belts.
The passenger front air bag will only be
deployed if:

the system, based on OCS weight sen-
sor readings, senses that the front
passenger seat is occupied


the 59indicator lamp in the
center console is not lit (
page 85)


the impact exceeds a preset deploy-
ment thresholdSide impact air bags, window curtain
air bags
1Front side impact air bag
2Window curtain air bag
3Rear side impact air bag*
The side impact air bags and window
curtain air bags are deployed:


on the impacted side of the vehicle


in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold


independently of the front air bags
iThe front air bags in this vehicle have
been designed to inflate in two stages.
This allows the air bag to have different
rates of inflation that are based on the
rate of relevant vehicle deceleration as
assessed by the air bag control unit.
On the front passenger-side, the front
air bag deployment is additionally influ-
enced by the passenger’s weight cate-
gory as identified by the Occupant
Classification System (OCS)
(page 81).
The lighter the front passenger-side
occupant, the higher the vehicle decel-
eration rate required for the second
stage inflation of the air bag.

74 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
backrest in an excessively reclined position
as this can be dangerous. You could slide
under the seat belt in a collision. If you slide
under it, the belt would apply force at the ab-
domen or neck. That could cause serious or
even fatal injuries. The seat backrest and
seat belt provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a nearly upright position and the
belt is properly positioned on the body.Warning!
G
Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are seat belts available. Make
sure everyone riding in the vehicle is cor-
rectly restrained with a separate seat belt.
Never use a seat belt for more than one per-
son at a time.
Warning!
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
approved by Mercedes-Benz.
Do not make any modifications to the seat
belts. This can lead to unintended activation
of the ETDs or to failure.
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 Light Truck Center.
Warning!
G
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 air bag, pas-
senger front air bag, side impact air
bags, head protection window curtain
air bags for side windows), ETD (seat
belt emergency tensioning device), and
front seat knee bolsters. The system is
designed to enhance the protection of-
fered to properly belted occupants in
certain frontal (front air bags and ETD)
and side (side impact, window curtain
air bags and ETD) impacts which exceed
preset deployment thresholds and in

76 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
exceeded 15 mph (25 km/h) if either
the driver’s or front passenger’s seat
belt remains unfastened.
If the driver’s or front passenger’s seat
belt remains unfastened after
60 seconds, the seat belt telltale<
stops flashing and the warning chime
stops sounding. The seat belt
telltale< then continues to be illu-
minated for as long as either the driv-
er’s or front passenger’s seat belt are
not fastened.
The seat belt telltale< will only go out
if both the driver’s and the front passen-
ger’s seat belt (with the front passenger
seat occupied) are fastened, or the vehicle
is standing still and a front door is opened.
For more information, see “Practical hints”
(
page 401).Emergency tensioning device (ETD),
seat belt force limiter
The seat belts for the front and rear outer
seats are equipped with emergency ten-
sioning devices and belt force limiters.
The ETD is designed to activate in the
following cases:


in frontal or rear-end impacts
exceeding a preset severity level


in certain vehicle rollovers


if the restraint systems are operational
and functioning correctly, see
1indicator lamp (
page 390)In an impact, emergency tensioning
devices remove slack from the belts in
such a way that the seat belts fit more
snugly against the body. Belt force limiters,
when activated, are employed to help
reduce the peak force exerted by the seat
belts on occupants during a crash.
iThe ETDs for the front seats will only
activate if the front seat belt is fas-
tened (latch plate properly inserted
into buckle).
The ETDs for the rear outer seats will
activate with or without the respective
seat belt fastened.
Warning!
G
A pyrotechnic emergency tensioning device
(ETD) that was activated must be replaced.
When disposing of the pyrotechnic emer-
gency tensioning device, our safety instruc-
tions must be followed. These are available
at your authorized Mercedes-Benz Light
Truck Center.
PRE-SAFE* has electrically operated
reversible pre-tensioners that do not require
replacement after activation.

77 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Preventive occupant safety* (PRE-SAFE)
®
Your vehicle automatically takes preven-
tive measures to better protect the occu-
pants in the following hazardous
situations:

You execute an emergency braking
maneuver and the Brake Assist System
(page 95) is activated.


The PRE-SAFE
® system detects a criti-
cal driving dynamics situation.In such cases, the following systems are
automatically activated:


The front seat belts are pre-tensioned
electrically.
Vehicles with front passenger seat
memory function*:


If the OCS senses that the front pas-
senger seat is occupied and the seat is
in an unfavorable position, it will be
adjusted to a better position.
Vehicles with power tilt/sliding sunroof*:


The tilt/sliding sunroof closes if the
vehicle is in a severe skid or is
spinning.If the seat belts do not release:

Adjust the backrest or seat slightly to
the rear until the seat belt tension is di-
minished.
The locking mechanism releases.
Warning!
G
The PRE-SAFE
® system is intended to re-
duce the effects of an accident on properly
seat-belted vehicle occupants. Despite
having the PRE-SAFE
® system in your vehi-
cle, the possibility of injuries occurring as a
result of an accident cannot be eliminated.
Therefore, you should always drive carefully
and adjust your driving to the prevailing
road, weather, and traffic conditions.
iIf the closing procedure of the tilt/slid-
ing sunroof is blocked, the tilt/sliding
sunroof will stop and open slightly.
iThe PRE-SAFE
® system is activated in
the previously described circumstanc-
es only at speeds exceeding 22 mph
(35 km/h).
When the critical driving dynamic situa-
tion has passed without an accident oc-
curring, the pre-tensioning on the seat
belts is deactivated.
You can then adjust the seat and the
tilt/sliding sunroof to their previous
position.

78 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 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
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
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. To deacti-
vate the special seat belt retractor for the
front passenger seat, the front passenger
seat must be in the most backward posi-
tion. The seat belt can again be used in the
usual manner.
iInformation on child seats with mount-
ing fittings for tether anchorages
(page 87).
For information on LATCH-type child
seat mounts (
page 88).
iThe 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
Vehicle Safety Standards 213 and 225
and Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 213 and 210.2.

81 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Occupant Classification System
The Occupant Classification System (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.
Occupants 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 occu-
pant’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.Furthermore, the occupant weight may ap-
pear to increase or decrease due to
objects hanging on the seat, other passen-
gers pushing on the seat, objects lodged
underneath the seat or stuffed between
seat and middle console or between seat
and door or due to objects applying pres-
sure on the back of the seat. Always make
sure that the seat has clearance in all
directions at all times.
Both driver and the front passenger should
always use the 59indicator
lamp as an indication of whether or not the
front passenger is properly positioned.
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 chil-
dren in a child restraint system may use
vehicle equipment and may cause an acci-
dent 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.
iIf your seat, including your trim cover
and cushion needs to be serviced in
any way, take the vehicle to your autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.
Only seat accessories approved by
Mercedes-Benz may be used.