58 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
The use of infant or child restraints is
required by law in all 50 states, the District
of Columbia, the U.S. territories, and all
Canadian provinces.
Infants and small children should be seat-
ed in an appropriate infant or child
restraint system properly secured in
accordance with the manufacturer’s
instructions for the child restraint, that
complies with U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards 213 and 225 and
Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
213 and 210.2.A statement by the child restraint manu-
facturer of compliance with these
standards can be found on the instruction
label on the restraint and in the instruction
manual provided with the restraint.
When using any infant restraint, toddler re-
straint, or booster seat be sure to carefully
read and follow all manufacturer’s instruc-
tions for installation and use.
Please read and observe warning labels af-
fixed to the inside of the vehicle and to
infant or child restraints.
Warning!G
Never release the seat belt buckle while the
vehicle is in motion, since the special seat
belt retractor will be deactivated.
iInformation on child seats with anchor fit-
tings for tether anchorages (
page 60).
For information on LATCH-type child seat an-
chors (
page 61).
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
appropriately sized infant restraint, toddler
restraint, or booster seat 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.
Occupants, especially children, should al-
ways sit as upright as possible, properly use
the seat belts and use an appropriately sized
infant restraint, toddler restraint, or booster
seat recommended for the
59 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
size and weight of the child. Children can be
killed or seriously injured by an inflating air
bag. Note the following important informa-
tion when circumstances require 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 OCS senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard
appropriate child restraint on the front
passenger 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.
If you must install a rear-facing child
restraint on the front passenger seat be-
cause circumstances require you to do
so, make sure that the 59
indicator lamp is illuminated, indicating
that the front passenger front air bag is
deactivated. Should the
59indicator lamp not illu-
minate or go out while the restraint is in-
stalled, please check installation.
Periodically check the 59
indicator lamp while driving to make
sure the lamp is illuminated. If the
59indicator lamp goes out
or remains out, do not transport a child
on the front passenger seat until the
system has been repaired.
A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be serious-
ly injured or even killed if the front pas-
senger front air bag inflates.If you have to place a child in a for-
ward-facing child restraint on the front
passenger seat, move the seat as far
back as possible, use the proper child
restraint recommended for the age, size
and weight of the child, and secure child
restraint with the vehicle’s seat belt ac-
cording to the child seat manufacturer’s
instructions. For children larger than the
typical 12-month-old child, the front
passenger front air bag may or may not
be activated (
page 48).
Warning!G
Infants and small children should never
share a seat belt with another occupant.
During an accident, they could be crushed
between the occupant and seat belt.
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle
and/or the child is not properly secured in
the child restraint.
60 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Installation of infant and child restraint
systems
This vehicle is equipped with tether an-
chorages for a top tether strap at each of
the rear seating positions.
1Cover of top anchorage ring
Remove cover1 from anchorage ring.
Store cover1 in a convenient place
(e.g. glove box).
Guide tether strap between head re-
straint and top of seat back.Head restraints must be positioned such
that the top tether strap can pass freely
between the head restraint and top of seat
back.
Make sure the tether strap is not twist-
ed.
2Hook
3Anchorage ring
Securely fasten hook2, which is part
of the tether strap, to anchorage
ring3.
Children too big for a toddler restraint must
ride in seats using regular seat belts. Posi-
tion shoulder belt across chest and shoul-
der, not face or neck. A booster seat may be
necessary to achieve proper seat belt posi-
tioning for children over 41 lbs until they
reach a height where a lap/shoulder belt fits
properly without a booster.
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.
iFor safety reasons, make sure hook2 has
attached to ring3 beyond the safety catch, as
illustrated.
61 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Once the top tether anchorage hook is at-
tached, the child restraint itself can be se-
cured. Tighten the top tether strap
according to the child restraint manufac-
turer’s instructions.
Reinstall cover after removing the
tether strap.
Child seat anchors – LATCH type
This vehicle is equipped with two LATCH
(L
ower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren)
type anchors (at each of the rear seats) for
the installation of a LATCH child seat with
the matching anchor fittings. If you have not installed a child seat, the
LATCH anchors are hidden by an uphol-
stery cover.
1Indicates the position of the anchors
2Anchors
3Upholstery cover
4Installation device
Warning!G
Children too big for a toddler restraint must
ride in seats using regular seat belts. Posi-
tion. Position shoulder belt across chest and
shoulder, not face or neck. A booster seat
may be necessary to achieve proper seat
belt positioning for children over 41 lbs until
they reach a height where a lap/shoulder
belt fits properly without a booster.
Install child seat according to manufactur-
er’s instructions.
T h e c h i l d s e a t m u s t b e f i r m l y a t t a c h e d t o t h e
right and left side anchors.
An incorrectly mounted child seat may come
loose during an accident which could result
in serious injury or death to the child.
Damaged or impact damaged child seats or
child seat mounting fittings must be re-
placed.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system.
339 Controls in detail
Seats
Seats
Seat adjustment
Warning!G
All seat, head restraint adjustments, as well
as fastening of seat belts, must be done be-
fore the vehicle is put into motion.
Warning!G
Do not adjust the driver’s seat while driving.
Adjusting the seat while driving could cause
the driver to lose control of the vehicle.
Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
back in an excessively reclined position as
this can be dangerous. You could slide un-
der 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
fatal injuries. The seat backrest and seat
belts provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a nearly upright position and
belts are properly positioned on the body.
Warning!G
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt
(
page 360).
Observe the following points:
Adjust the backrest until your arms are
slightly angled when holding the steer-
ing wheel.
Adjust the seat to a comfortable seating
position that still allows you to reach the
accelerator/brake pedal safely. The po-
sition should be as far back as possible
with the driver still able to operate the
controls properly.
Adjust the head restraint 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.
Never place hands under the seat or
near any moving parts while a seat is be-
ing adjusted.
Failure to do so could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it with you, and
lock the vehicle.
Even with the SmartKey or SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* removed from the starter
switch or the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
removed from the vehicle, the power seats
can be operated when the respective door is
open. Therefore, do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. A child’s unsupervised ac-
cess to a vehicle could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
340 Controls in detail
Seats
You can adjust the lumbar support
(CL 550) for driver and front passenger, or
operate the drive-dynamic multicontour
front seats* using COMAND (
page 250).Front power seat adjustment
Example driver’s door
1Head restraint height (page 348)
2Seat height
3Seat cushion tilt
4Seat cushion depth
5Seat fore and aft
6Seat backrest tilt
Switch on the ignition (page 336).
or
Open the respective door.
Seat height: Press the switch up or
down in the direction of arrow2.
Seat cushion tilt: Press the switch up
or down in the direction of
arrow3until your upper legs are
lightly supported.
Seat cushion depth: Press the switch
forward or backward in the direction of
arrow4 until your legs are supported
comfortably.
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
appropriately sized infant restraint, toddler
restraint, or booster seat recommended for
the size and weight of the child. For addi-
tional information, see “Children in the vehi-
cle” (
page 57).
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle and
the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint.
iIf PRE-SAFE® has been activated, the front
passenger’s seat will be moved to a more favor-
able seat position.
iThe memory function (page 357) lets you
store the settings for the seat positions together
with the settings for the steering wheel and the
exterior rear view mirrors.
!When moving the seat, make sure there are
no items in the footwell or behind the seats; oth-
erwise, you could damage the seats.
341 Controls in detail
Seats
Seat fore and aft: Press the switch for-
ward or backward in the direction of
arrow5.
Seat backrest tilt: Press the switch
forward or backward in the direction of
arrow6.Adjusting front passenger seat from
driver’s seat
You can adjust the front passenger seat
using the seat switches on the driver’s
side.
1Adjusting front passenger seat
Switch on the ignition (page 336).
Press button1.
i Depending on the seat’s set fore and aft
position, the head restraint height is
automatically pre-set.Warning!G
When adjusting the front passenger seat,
make sure the seat, if occupied, is as far
from the passenger front air bag as possi-
ble.
Otherwise, the passenger could be seriously
or even fatally injured in the event of an ac-
cident or braking maneuver.
Make sure no one is caught or injured while
the seat is being adjusted.
Even with the SmartKey or SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* removed from the starter
switch or the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
removed from the vehicle, the power seats
can be operated when the respective door is
open. Therefore, do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. A child’s unsupervised ac-
cess to a vehicle could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
!Do not move the front passenger seat com-
pletely forward if objects are stored in the parcel
net in the front passenger-side footwell. Items in
the net may be damaged.
357 Controls in detail
Memory function
Memory function
Prior to operating the vehicle, the driver
should check and adjust the seat height,
seat position fore and aft, and seat back-
rest angle if necessary, to ensure adequate
control, reach, and comfort. The head
restraint should also be adjusted for
proper height. See also the section on
air bags (
page 42) for proper seat
positioning.
In addition, adjust the steering wheel to
ensure adequate control, reach, operation
and comfort. Both the interior and exterior
rear view mirrors should be adjusted for
adequate rear vision.
Fasten seat belts. Infants and small
children should be seated in a properly se-
cured restraint system that complies with
U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standards 213 and 225 and
Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
213 and 210.2.With the memory function you can store up
to three different configurations.
The following settings are stored when us-
ing the buttons on the driver’s door:
Driver’s seat, head restraint height and
backrest position
Lumbar support (CL 550)
Drive-dynamic multicontour seat*:
activation/deactivation
Steering wheel position
Exterior rear view mirrors positionThe following settings are stored when us-
ing the buttons on the passenger door:
Front passenger seat, head restraint
high and backrest position
Lumbar support (CL 550)
Drive-dynamic multicontour seat*:
activation/deactivation
Warning!G
Do not activate the memory function while
driving. Activating the memory function
while driving could cause the driver to lose
control of the vehicle.