2006 MERCEDES-BENZ ML500 instrument panel

Contents
Introduction.......................................... 9
Product information ................................ 9
Operator’s Manual ............................... 10
Service and warranty information .. 10
Important notice for California
retail buyers and lessees of
Mercedes-Benz automobiles .......... 11
Maintenance .................................. 12
Roadside Assistance ...................... 12
Change of address or ownership.... 13
Operating your vehicle
outside the USA or Canada ............ 13
Where to find it .................................... 15
Symbols ............................................... 16
Operating safety .................................. 17
Proper use of the vehicle ............... 17
Problems with your vehicle .................. 18
Reporting safety defects...................... 19
Reporting safety defects ................ 19
Vehicle data recording......................... 20
Information regarding electronic
recording devices........................... 20
At a glance.......................................... 21
Cockpit ................................................. 22
Instrument cluster ................................ 24
Multifunction steering wheel ................ 26
Center console ..................................... 27
Upper part ...................................... 27
Lower part ...................................... 28
Overhead control panel ........................ 29
Door control panel................................ 30
Getting started................................... 31
Unlocking ............................................. 32
Unlocking with the SmartKey ......... 32
Unlocking with KEYLESS-GO*......... 33
Starter switch positions .................. 34
Adjusting .............................................. 38
Seats .............................................. 38
Steering wheel ................................ 41
Mirrors ............................................ 43
Driving .................................................. 46
Fastening the seat belts ................. 46
Starting the engine ......................... 49
Parking brake ................................. 52
Driving ............................................ 52
Switching on headlamps ................. 54
Turn signals .................................... 54
Windshield wipers ........................... 55
Rear window wiper/washer ............ 57
Problems while driving.................... 58
Parking and locking .............................. 60
Parking brake ................................. 61
Switching off headlamps................. 62
Turning off engine ........................... 62

21 At a glance
Cockpit
Instrument cluster
Multifunction steering wheel
Center console
Overhead control panel
Door control panel

23 At a glance
Cockpit
Item
Page
1
Cruise control lever
238
2
Instrument cluster
24
3
Multifunction steering
wheel
26
4
Horn
5
Steering wheel gearshift
buttons
189
6
Gear selector lever for
automatic transmission
49
7
Front Parktronic* warning
indicators
256
8
Overhead control panel
29
9
Glove box lid release,
glove box lock
270
Item
Page
a
Glove box
270
b
Power outlet
278
c
Center console
27
d
Starter switch
34
e
Steering wheel adjustment,
manual
41
f
Hood lock release
326
g
Parking brake release
52
h
Parking brake pedal
52
j
Door control panel
30
Item
Page
k
Headlamp washer switch*
194
l
Exterior lamp switch
54
138
m
Steering wheel adjustment,
electrical*
42
n
Combination switch

Turn signals


Windshield wipers


High beam
142
54
55
54

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.

75 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Enhanced seat belt reminder system
When the engine is started, the seat belt
telltale< illuminates for a maximum of
six seconds and a warning chime sounds
to remind you and your passengers to
fasten your seat belts.
If after these six seconds, the driver’s or
the front passenger’s seat belt (with the
front passenger seat occupied) are not fas-
tened with all doors closed,

and the vehicle speed does not exceed
15 mph (25 km/h), the seat belt
telltale< remains illuminated for as
long as either the driver’s or front
passenger’s seat belt is not fastened.


and the vehicle speed exceeds
15 mph (25 km/h), the seat belt
telltale< starts flashing and a
warning chime sounds with increasing
intensity until both the driver’s and
front passenger’s seat belt are fas-
tened, or for a maximum of 60 seconds
from the time the vehicle speed
certain rollovers (window curtain air
bags and ETD).


Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoul-
der. In a frontal crash, your body would
move too far forward. That would in-
crease the chance of head and neck in-
juries. The belt would also apply too
much force to the ribs or abdomen,
which could severely injure internal or-
gans such as your liver or spleen.


Never wear belts over rigid or breakable
objects in or on your clothing, such as
eyeglasses, pens, SmartKeys, etc., as
these might cause injuries.


Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo-
m e n . I f t h e b e l t i s p o s i t i o n e d a c r o s s y o u r
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries
in a crash.


Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at time. Do not fasten a seat belt
around a person and another person or
other objects.


Belts should not be worn twisted. In a
crash, you wouldn’t have the full width
of the belt to distribute impact forces.
The twisted belt against your body could
cause injuries.


Pregnant women should also use a
lap-shoulder belt. The lap belt portion
should be positioned as low as possible
on the hips to avoid any possible pres-
sure on the abdomen.


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.


When using a seat belt to secure infant
or toddler restraints or children in
booster seats, always follow the child
seat manufacturer's instructions.

138 Controls in detailLightingFor information on how to switch on the
headlamps and use the turn signals, see
“Switching on headlamps” (
page 54)
and “Turn signals” (
page 54).
Exterior lamp switch
The exterior lamp switch is located on the
dashboard to the left of the steering wheel.MOff
Daytime running lamp mode
(
page 140)
UAutomatic headlamp mode
Daytime running lamp mode
(page 139)
CParking lamps (also tail lamps,
license plate lamps, side marker
lamps, instrument panel lamps)
BLow beam headlamps (or high
beam headlamps when the
combination switch is pushed
forward) and parking lamps
ˆStanding lamps, right (turn left one
stop)
‚Standing lamps, left (turn left two
stops)
‡Indicator lamp for front fog lamps
†Indicator lamp for rear fog lamp
iIf you drive in countries where vehicles
drive on the other side of the road than
the country in which the vehicle is reg-
istered, you must have the headlamps
modified for symmetrical low beams.
Relevant information can be obtained
at your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Light Truck Center.iVehicles equipped with active
Bi-Xenon* headlamps:
The active Bi-Xenon headlamps
monitor your steering angle and driving
speed, then automatically shift their
beams to either side to better follow
the curvature of the road ahead,
increasing usable illumination over
conventional headlamps.

281 Controls in detail
Useful features
The Tele Aid system
(Tele
matic A
larm I
dentification on
D
emand)
The Tele Aid system consists of three
types of response:

automatic and manual emergency


roadside assistance


information
The Tele Aid system is operational provid-
ing that the vehicle’s battery is charged,
properly connected, not damaged and cel-
lular and GPS coverage is available.
The speaker volume of a Tele Aid call can
be adjusted when using the volume control
on the Modular COMAND System or on the
multifunction steering wheel. To raise, turn
the rotary volume control on Modular
COMAND System clockwise or press
buttonæ on the multifunction steering
wheel. To lower, turn the rotary volume
control on Modular COMAND System con-trol counterclockwise or press
buttonç on the multifunction steering
wheel.

To activate, press the SOS button, the
Roadside Assistance button• or
the Information button¡, depend-
ing on the type of response required.iThe SOS button is located in the over-
head control panel.
The Roadside Assistance button•
and the Information button¡ are
located below the center armrest
cover.!The Tele Aid system utilizes the cellular
network for communication and the
GPS (G
lobal P
ositioning S
ystem) satel-
lites for vehicle location. If either of
these signals are unavailable, the
Tele Aid system may not function and if
this occurs, assistance must be sum-
moned by other means.
iWhen a Tele Aid call has been initiated,
the Modular COMAND System audio is
muted and the selected mode (radio,
CD etc.) pauses. The optional cellular
phone (if installed) inserted in cradle
switches off. If you must use this
phone, we recommend that you use it
only with the vehicle at a standstill in a
safe location. Remove the phone from
the cradle and place the call. The navi-
gation* system (if engaged) will contin-
ue to run. The display in the instrument
cluster is available for use, and spoken
commands are only available by press-
ing the RPT button on the Modular
COMAND System. A pop-up window
will appear in the Modular COMAND
System display to indicate that a Tele
Aid call is in progress. After the TeleAid
call has ended, the optional cellular
phone inserted in the cradle switches
on again. A PIN entry might be neces-
sary.