72 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
Safety guidelines for the seat belt,
emergency tensioning device and
air bag
(2) Always sit nearly upright, properly use
the seat belts and for children 12 years
old and under, use an appropriately
sized infant restraint, toddler restraint,
or booster seat recommended for the
size and weight of the child.
(3) Always wear seat belts properly.
If you believe that, even with the use of
these guidelines, it would be safer for your
rear seat occupants to have the rear mount-
ed side impact air bags deactivated, then
deactivation can be accomplished upon
your written request to do so at your autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center at an additional
cost.
Please contact your local authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center or call our Customer
Assistance Center at 1-800-FOR-MERCedes
(1-800-367-6372) for details.
i
Air bags are designed to deploy only in cer-
tain frontal impacts (front air bags), side impacts
(side impact and window curtain air bags) which
exceed preset thresholds and in certain rollovers
(window curtain air bags). Only during these
events will they provide their supplemental pro-
tection.
The driver and passengers should always wear
their seat belts. Otherwise it is not possible for
air bags to provide their supplemental protec-
tion.
In case of other types of impacts and impacts be-
low air bag deployment thresholds, air bags will
not be deployed. The driver and passenger will
then be protected to the extent possible by a
properly fastened seat belt. A properly fastened
seat belt is also needed to provide the best pro-
tection in a rollover.
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 pas-
sengers that you replace deployed air bags and
repair any malfunctioning air bags to make sure
that the vehicle will continue to provide supple-
mental crash protection for occupants.
Warning!
G
Damaged seat belts or seat belts that
were highly stressed in an accident
must be replaced and their anchoring
points must also be checked. Use only
seat belts installed or supplied by an au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Air bags and emergency tensioning de-
vices (ETDs) are designed to function on
a one-time-only basis. An air bag or ETD
that was activated must be replaced.
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 front seat
backrests, door trim panels,
74 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyFront air bags
1Driver front air bag
2Front passenger front 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 bagsThe air bags will not deploy in impacts
which do not exceed the system’s deploy-
ment thresholds. You will then be protect-
ed by the fastened seat belts.The front passenger front air bag will only
be deployed if:
the system senses that the front pas-
senger seat is occupied
the 75 indicator lamp in
the center console is not lit
(page 79)
the impact exceeds a preset deploy-
ment threshold
i
The 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 vehicle deceleration as as-
sessed by the air bag control unit.
USA only:
On the front passenger side, the front air bag de-
ployment is additionally influenced by the pas-
senger’s weight category as identified by the
Occupant Classification System (OCS)
(
page 75).
USA only:
The lighter the front passenger side occupant,
the higher the vehicle deceleration rate required
for the second stage inflation of the air bag.
!
Canada only:
Do not place objects heavier than 20 lb (9 kg) on
the front passenger seat. This could cause the
front or side impact air bag on the front passen-
ger side to deploy in a crash which exceeds the
system’s deployment threshold.
75 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Side impact air bags, window curtain
air bags
1Side impact air bags
2Window curtain air bag
The side impact air bags1 and window
curtain air bags2 are deployed:
on the impacted side of the vehicle
in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold
independently of the front air bagsIn addition, the window curtain air bags 2
are deployed:
in certain vehicle rollovers
The side impact air bags1 and window
curtain air bags2 are not deployed in im-
pacts which do not exceed the system’s
deployment threshold.Occupant Classification System
(USA only)
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 po-
sition that is as upright as possible with
their back against the seat backrest and
feet on the floor to be correctly classified.
If the occupant’s weight is transferred to
another object in the vehicle (e.g. by lean-
ing on armrests), the OCS may not be able
to properly approximate the occupant’s
weight category. i
The system does not deactivate the front
passenger side impact air bag, the window cur-
tain air bag and the emergency tensioning de-
vice.
77 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat occupant is classified as being
heavier than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child seated in a standard
child restraint or as being a small individual
(such as a young teenager or a small adult),
the 75 indicator lamp will illu-
minate for approximately 6 seconds when
the engine is started and then, depending on
occupant weight sensor readings from the
seat, remain illuminated or go out. With the
75 indicator lamp illuminated,
the front passenger front air bag is deacti-
vated. With the 75 indicator
lamp out, the front passenger front air bag is
activated.
When the OCS senses that the front passen-
ger seat occupant is classified as an adult or
someone larger than a small individual, the
75 indicator lamp will illumi-
nate for approximately 6 seconds when the
engine is started and then go out, indicating
that the front passenger front air bag is acti-
vated.
If the 75 indicator lamp is illu-
minated, the front passenger front air bag is
deactivated and will not be deployed.
If the 75 indicator lamp is not
illuminated, 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 front 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 recom-
mended 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 instruc-
tions.
Always sit nearly upright, properly use the
seat belts and for children 12 years old and
under, use an appropriately sized infant re-
straint, toddler restraint, or booster seat
recommended for the size and weight of the
child.
84 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
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 front air
bag, front passenger front air bag, side
impact air bags, window curtain air bags
for side windows), ETD (seat belt emer-
gency tensioning device), and front seat
knee bolsters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection offered to properly belted oc-
cupants in certain frontal (front air bags
and ETD) and side (side impact and win-
dow curtain air bags and ETD) impacts
which exceed preset deployment
thresholds and in certain rollovers (win-
dow 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 shoulder belt would also
apply too much force to the ribs or abdo-
men, which could severely injure inter-
nal organs such as your liver or spleen.
Never wear seat 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-
men. If the lap belt is positioned across
your abdomen, it could cause serious in-
juries in a crash.
Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat
belt around a person and another per-
son or other objects.
Seat belts should not be worn twisted.
In a crash, you wouldn’t have the full
width of the seat belt to distribute im-
pact forces. The twisted seat belt
against your body could cause injuries.
127 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Turn the mechanical key clockwise to
position2 to lock the trunk.
The trunk remains locked even when the
vehicle is centrally unlocked.
Insert the mechanical key in the trunk
lid lock.
Turn the mechanical key counterclock-
wise to neutral position1 to unlock the
trunk.
You can now open the trunk
(page 120).
Automatic central locking
The doors and the trunk automatically lock
when the ignition is switched on and the
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of ap-
proximately 9 mph (15 km / h) or more.
The locking knobs in the doors move down.
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
You can deactivate the automatic locking
mode using the control system
(page 176).
Locking and unlocking from the inside
You can lock or unlock the doors and the
trunk from inside using the central locking
switch. This can be useful, for example, if
you want to lock the vehicle before starting
to drive.
The fuel filler flap cannot be locked or un-
locked with the central locking switch.
i
You can only cancel the separate trunk lock-
ing mode by means of the mechanical key.
i
The doors are designed to unlock automati-
cally after an accident if the force of the impact
exceeds a preset threshold. The vehicle locks au-
tomatically when the ignition is switched on and
the wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of ap-
proximately 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
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. 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.
145 Controls in detail
Lighting
Interior lighting in the front
The controls are located in the overhead
control panel.1Left front reading lamp on/off
2Automatic control on/off
3Rear interior lighting on/off
4Right front reading lamp on/off
5Front interior lighting on/off
6Interior lighting
7Ambient lighting
8Front reading lamps
Deactivating automatic control
Press switch2.
The interior lighting remains switched
off in darkness, even when you:
unlock the vehicle
remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch
open a door
open the trunk
Activating automatic control
Press switch2.
The interior lighting switches on in
darkness, when you:
unlock the vehicle
remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch
open a door
open the trunk
The interior lighting switches off after a
preset time (
page 176).
!
An interior lamp switched on manually does
not go out automatically.
Leaving an interior lamp switch in the ON posi-
tion for extended periods of time with the engine
turned off could result in a discharged battery.
i
The interior lighting is factory-set to auto-
matic mode.
i
If a door remains open, the interior lighting
switches off automatically after approximately
5minutes.
An interior lamp switched on manually does not
go out automatically.
161 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
appears in the
multifunction display.
The following functions are available:Selecting radio station
Turn on COMAND and select radio. Re-
fer to separate COMAND operating in-
structions.
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.Selecting satellite radio station*
(USA only)
The satellite radio is treated as a radio ap-
plication.
Select SAT radio with the correspond-
ing softkey in the radio menu.
1SAT mode and preset number
2Setting for station selection using
memory
3Channel name or number
Press buttonk orj repeatedly
until the desired channel is found.
Function
Page
Selecting radio station
161
Selecting satellite radio station*
161
Operating CD player
162
i
You can only store new stations using the
corresponding feature on the radio, see separate
operating instructions.
You can also operate the radio in the usual man-
ner.