ContentsSafety and Security........................... 69
Occupant safety................................... 70
Air bags .......................................... 71
Seat belts ....................................... 77
Active head restraint ...................... 80
Rear head restraints ....................... 81
Children in the vehicle .................... 82
Blocking of rear door
window operation ........................... 93
Panic alarm .......................................... 95
Activating ....................................... 95
Deactivating ................................... 95
Driving safety systems ......................... 96
ABS ................................................ 96
BAS ................................................ 97
ESP
®............................................... 98
EBP............................................... 101
4-ETS ............................................ 102
Anti-theft systems.............................. 103
Immobilizer................................... 103
Anti-theft alarm system ................ 103
Controls in detail ............................. 107
Locking and unlocking ....................... 108
SmartKey ..................................... 108
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* ...... 112
Opening the doors
from the inside ............................. 118
Opening the tailgate ..................... 119
Closing the tailgate ...................... 121
Automatic central locking ............ 126
Locking and unlocking
from the inside ............................. 126
Seats ................................................. 128
Front seat active head restraints . 128
Rear seat head restraints ............. 128
Lumbar support............................ 130
Multicontour seat* ....................... 130
Seat heating* ............................... 131
Seat ventilation* .......................... 132Memory function* ............................. 134
Storing positions into memory ..... 135
Recalling positions from memory. 135
Lighting ............................................. 136
Exterior lamp switch .................... 136
Combination switch ..................... 140
Corner-illuminating
front fog lamps*........................... 140
Hazard warning flasher ................ 142
Interior lighting ............................ 142
Door entry lamps ......................... 144
Cargo compartment lamp ............ 144
Instrument cluster ............................. 145
Adjusting instrument
cluster illumination ...................... 145
Resetting trip odometer ............... 146
Tachometer.................................. 146
Outside temperature indicator ..... 146
43 Getting started
Adjusting
Adjusting
SeatsWarning!
G
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and
rear view mirror adjustments, as well as fas-
tening of seat belts, must be done before
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
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
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.
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt (
page 51).
Never place hands under the seat or near
any moving parts while a seat is being
adjusted.
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 the 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 unattended
i n t h e v e h i c l e , o r w i t h a c c e s s t o a n u n l o c k e d
vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle equip-
ment may cause an accident and/or serious
personal injury.
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 toddler restraint, or
booster seat recommended for the size and
weight of the child. For additional
information, see “Children in the vehicle”
(page 82).
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.
46 Getting startedAdjustingHead restraint fore and aft adjustment
Manually adjust the angle of the head
restraint.
While seated, reach behind you with
both hands and find lower edge of the
head restraint.
Adjust the head restraint to the desired
position by pushing or pulling on the
lower edge of the head restraint cush-
ion.
For more information, see “Seats”
(
page 128).
Steering wheel
Easy-entry/exit feature*
This feature allows for easier entry into and
exit from the vehicle. When entering and
exiting the vehicle, the steering wheel is in
its uppermost position.
The easy-entry/exit feature can be
activated or deactivated in the
Comfort
submenu of the control system
(
page 177).With the easy-entry/exit feature activated,
the steering wheel will return to its last set
position when you:
close the driver’s door with the ignition
switched on
or
insert the SmartKey into the starter
switch or press the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button (
page 41) once
with the driver’s door closed
Warning!
G
You must make sure no one can become
trapped or injured by the moving steering
wheel when the easy-entry/exit feature is
activated.
To stop steering wheel movement, do one of
the following:
Move steering wheel adjustment stalk*
(page 49).
Press one of the memory position
buttons or the memory buttonM*
(page 135).
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Children could open the driver’s door and
unintentionally activate the easy-entry/exit
feature, which could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
48 Getting startedAdjusting1Release handle
To unlock the steering column, pull
release handle1 out to its stop limit.
Move steering wheel to the desired
position.
Push release handle1 back to its
original position to relock the steering
column.
The steering column is locked into po-
sition again.
Make sure the steering column is
securely locked by trying to move the
steering wheel up and down as well as
in and out before driving off.Steering wheel adjustment, electrical*
Make sure that
you can reach the steering wheel with
your arms slightly bent at the elbows
you can move your legs freely
all displays (including malfunction and
indicator lamps) on the instrument
cluster are clearly visible
The steering wheel adjustment stalk is
located on the lower left of the steering
column.
Warning!
G
Do not adjust the steering wheel while driv-
ing. Adjusting the steering wheel while driv-
ing could cause the driver to lose control of
the vehicle.
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 steering
wheel adjustment feature can be operated
when the driver’s door is open. Therefore,
do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and/or serious personal
injury.
i
The memory function* (
page 134) lets
you store the settings for the steering wheel col-
umn together with the settings for seat positions
and the exterior rear view mirrors.
51 Getting started
Driving
Driving
Fastening the seat beltsWarning!
G
Make sure that absolutely no objects are ob-
structing the pedal’s range of movement.
Keep the driver’s footwell clear of all obsta-
cles. If there are any floormats or carpets in
the footwell, make sure that the pedals still
have sufficient clearance.
During sudden driving or braking maneu-
vers, the objects could get caught between
the pedals. You could then no longer brake
or accelerate. This could lead to accidents
and injury.Warning!
G
Always fasten your seat belt before driving
off. Always make sure your passengers are
properly restrained, even those sitting in the
rear and pregnant women.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and po-
sition your seat belt greatly increases your
risk of injuries and their likely severity in an
accident. You and your passengers should
always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your injuries
can be considerably more severe without
your seat belt properly buckled. Without
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury or
death is lessened if you are wearing your
seat belt. The air bags can only provide the
protection they were designed to afford if
the occupants are using their seat belts
(page 77).
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.
Regardless of seating position, children
12 years old and under must be seated and
properly secured in an appropriate infant or
toddler restraint, or booster seat recom-
mended for the size and weight of the child.
For additional information, see “Children in
the vehicle” (
page 82).
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.
53 Getting started
Driving
With a smooth motion, pull the belt out
of seat belt outlet1.
Place the shoulder portion of the belt
across the top of your shoulder and the
lap portion across your hips.
Push latch plate2 into buckle3
(page 52) until it clicks.
If necessary, tighten the lap portion to
a snug fit by pulling shoulder portion
up.
Seat belt height adjustment
1Release button
Press release button1 and move the
seat belt height adjuster upward or
downward.
Proper use of seat belts
Do not twist the belt when fastening.
Adjust seat belt so that the shoulder
portion is located as close as possible
to the middle of the shoulder (it should
not touch the neck). Never pass the
shoulder portion of the belt under your
arm. For this purpose, you can adjust
the height of the belt outlet
(page 53).
Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips (over hip joint) and not
across the abdomen.
Place the seat backrest in a nearly
upright position.
Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time.
Do not fasten a seat belt around a
person and another object at the same
time. When using a seat belt to secure
infant or toddler restraints or children
in booster seats, always follow the
child seat manufacturer’s instructions.
Check your seat belt periodically
during travel to make sure that it is
properly positioned.
Make sure the seat belt is always fitted
snugly. Take special care of this when
wearing loose clothing.
70 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyIn this section you will learn the most im-
portant facts about the restraint systems
of the vehicle.
The restraint systems are
Seat belts (
page 77)
Child restraints (
page 92)
Lower A
nchors and T
ethers for
CH
ildren (LATCH) (
page 91)
Additional protection potential provide
Supplemental R
estraint S
ystem (SRS)
with
Air bags (
page 71)
Air bag control unit (with crash
sensors)
Emergency T
ensioning D
evice
(ETD) for seat belts (
page 80)
Active head restraints (
page 80)Air bag system components with
Front passenger front air bag off
indicator lamp (
page 89)
Front passenger seat with O
ccupant
C
lassification S
ystem (OCS)
(
page 85)
Although independent systems, their pro-
tective functions work in conjunction with
each other.
The SRS system conducts a self-test when
the ignition is switched on and in regular
intervals while the engine is running. This
facilitates early detection of malfunctions.
The 1
indicator lamp in the instrument
cluster (page 26) comes on when the
ignition is switched on and goes out no
later than a few seconds after the engine
was started.The SRS components are in operational
readiness if the
1
indicator lamp is not
lit when the engine is running.
A malfunction in the system has been
detected if the
1
indicator lamp:
fails to go out not later than approxi-
mately 4 seconds after the engine was
started
does not come on at all
comes on after the engine was started
or while driving
i
For information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and restraint
systems for infants and children, see “Children
in the vehicle” (
page 82).
Warning!
G
Modifications to or work improperly con-
ducted on restraint systems (such as seat
belts and anchors, emergency tensioning
devices, seat belt force limiters or air bags)
or their wiring, as well as tampering with in-
terconnected electronic systems, can lead
to the restraint systems no longer function-
ing as intended.
72 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetyWarning!
G
To reduce the risk of injury when the front
air bags inflate, it is very important for the
driver and front passenger to always be in a
properly seated position and to wear their
respective seat belt.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated position
with your back against the seat backrest.
Fasten your seat belt and make sure it is
properly positioned on your body
(page 51).
Since the air bag inflates with considerable
speed and force, a proper seating and hands
on steering wheel position will help to keep
you at a safe distance from the air bag.
Occupants who are unbelted, out of position
or too close to the air bag can be seriously
injured or killed by an air bag as it inflates
with great force in the blink of an eye:
Sit properly belted in a nearly upright
position with your back against the seat
backrest.
Adjust the driver’s seat as far as possi-
ble rearward, still permitting proper op-
eration of vehicle controls. The distance
from the center of the driver’s breast-
bone to the center of the air bag cover
on the steering wheel must be at least
10 inches (25 cm) or more. You should
be able to accomplish this by a combina-
tion of adjustments to the seat and
steering wheel. If you have any prob-
lems, please see an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
Do not lean your head or chest close to
the steering wheel or dashboard.
Keep hands on the outside of steering
wheel rim. Placing hands and arms in-
side the rim can increase the risk and
potential severity of hand/arm injury
when driver’s front air bag inflates.
Adjust the front passenger seat as far as
possible rearward from the dashboard
when the seat is occupied.
Always sit nearly upright, properly use
the seat belts and use an appropriately
sized infant or toddler restraint or boost-
er seat recommended for the size and
weight of the child.
Failure to follow these instructions can
result in severe injuries to you or other
occupants.
If you sell your vehicle, it is important that
you make the buyer aware of this safety
information. Be sure to give the buyer this
Operator’s Manual.
Warning!
G
Accident research shows that the safest
place for children in an automobile is in the
rear seat.