74 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. Use only 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
operated reversible pre-tensioners in
addition 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
removing 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 front seat
backrests, door trim panels, or door
frame trims, and installation of addition-
al 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.
338 OperationDriving instructionsStanding water
To prevent water from entering the pas-
senger compartment or the engine com-
partment if you must drive through
standing water, keep in mind that
the maximum depth of the water may
not exceed 10 in (25 cm)
you must drive slowly
Passenger compartment
iVehicles with AIRMATIC*: If you have
selected the raised level (
page 272)
before driving through standing water,
the maximum water depth is
12 in (30 cm).
!Do not drive through flooded areas or
water of unknown depth. Before driving
through water, determine its depth.
Never accelerate before driving into
water. The bow wave could force water
into the engine and auxiliary equip-
ment, thus damaging them.
If you must drive through standing wa-
ter, drive slowly to prevent water from
entering the passenger compartment
or the engine compartment. Water in
these areas could cause damage to
electrical components or wiring of the
engine or transmission, or could result
in water being ingested by the engine
through the air intake, causing severe
internal engine damage. Any such dam-
age is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
Always fasten items being carried as secure-
ly as possible.
In an accident, during hard braking or sud-
den maneuvers, loose items will be thrown
around inside the vehicle, and cause injury
to vehicle occupants unless the items are
securely fastened in the vehicle.
The rear cargo compartment is the preferred
place to carry objects. Always use the parti-
tion net when transporting cargo. Partition
net cannot secure hard or heavy objects. Al-
ways fasten items being carried as securely
as possible using the cargo tie-down rings in
the cargo floor area and fastening materials.
