348 Operation
Driving instructions
Power assistanceBrakes
Warning!G
With the engine not running, there is no
power assistance for the brake and steering
systems. In this case, it is important to keep
in mind that a considerably higher degree of
effort is necessary to brake and steer the ve-
hicle.
Warning!G
After driving in heavy rain for some time
without applying the brakes or through wa-
ter deep enough to wet brake components,
the first braking action may be somewhat
reduced and increased pedal pressure may
be necessary to obtain expected braking
effect. Maintain a safe distance from
vehicles in front.
Resting your foot on the brake pedal will
cause excessive and premature wear of the
brake pads.
It can also result in the brakes overheating,
thereby significantly reducing their effec-
tiveness. It may not be possible to stop the
vehicle in sufficient time to avoid an
accident.
!Operational or performance test must only
be conducted on a two-axle dynamometer. If
such tests are necessary, contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center. You could
otherwise seriously damage the brake system or
the transfer case which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
!Because the ESP® operates automatically,
the engine and ignition must be shut off
(SmartKey in starter switch position0 or1 or
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button in
position0or1) when testing the brakes on a
brake test dynamometer and such testing should
be no longer than 10 seconds.
Active braking action through ESP
® may other-
wise seriously damage the brake system which is
not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.
351 Operation
Driving instructions
Driving off
Apply the brakes to test them briefly after
driving off. Perform this procedure only
when the road is clear of other traffic.
Warm up the engine smoothly. Do not
place full load on the engine until the oper-
ating temperature has been reached.Parking
!When driving off on a slippery surface, do
not allow a drive wheel to spin for an extended
period with the ESP
® switched off. Doing so may
cause serious damage to the drivetrain which is
not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.
!Simultaneously depressing the accelerator
pedal and applying the brake reduces engine
performance and causes premature brake and
drivetrain wear.
Warning!G
Do not park this vehicle in areas where com-
bustible materials such as grass, hay or
leaves can come into contact with the hot
exhaust system, as these materials could be
ignited and cause a vehicle fire.
To reduce the risk of personal injury or dam-
age to the vehicle drivetrain as a result of
vehicle movement, before turning off the en-
gine and leaving the vehicle always:
Keep right foot on brake pedal.
Firmly depress parking brake pedal.
Shift the automatic transmission to
positionP.
Slowly release brake pedal.
When parked on an incline, turn front
wheel towards the road curb.
Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
to position0 and remove the SmartKey
from the starter switch, or press the
start/stop button (vehicles with
KEYLESS-GO*).
Take the SmartKey or the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* and lock vehicle when
leaving.
360 Operation
At the gas station
Refueling
The fuel filler flap is located on the
right-hand side of the vehicle towards the
rear. Locking/unlocking the vehicle with
the SmartKey or the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* automatically
locks/unlocks the fuel filler flap.
Turn off the engine
by turning the SmartKey to
position0 (
page 39). Remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch.
by pressing the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button (
page 41).
Open the driver’s door (with the
driver’s door open, starter switch is
now in position 0, same as
SmartKey removed from starter
switch).
Briefly push on fuel filler flap at the
position indicated the arrow.
The fuel filler flap opens slightly.
Warning!G
Gasoline and diesel fuels are highly flamma-
ble and poisonous. They burn violently and
can cause serious injury.
Never allow sparks, flame or smoking mate-
rials near gasoline or diesel fuel!
Turn off the engine before refueling.
Whenever you are around gasoline or diesel
fuel, avoid inhaling fumes and skin or cloth-
ing contact, extinguish all smoking materi-
als.
Direct skin contact with gasoline or diesel
fuels and the inhalation of gasoline or diesel
fuel vapors can damage your health.
Warning!G
Do not fill diesel tanks with gasoline. Do not
mix diesel fuel with gasoline. Otherwise the
fuel system and engine could be damaged.
In addition, the vehicle could catch fire.
!Damage resulting from mixing gasoline with
diesel fuel is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.
!Diesel engine: When filling the diesel fuel
tank using fuel containers, place a filling filter, a
suede cloth or a clean flannel cloth as a filter.
Otherwise, particles from the fuel container
could clog the fuel lines and/or the diesel injec-
tion system.
413 Operation
Vehicle care
Ornamental moldings
For regular cleaning and care of ornamen-
tal moldings, use a use damp cloth.Headlamps, brake lamps, tail lamps,
side markers, turn signal lenses
Use a mild car wash detergent, such
as Mercedes-Benz approved Car
Shampoo, with plenty of water.
!If you want the gear position to remain inN
(for example when the vehicle is pulled through
a car wash):
do not remove the SmartKey from the starter
switch
or, when using KEYLESS-GO*
do not turn off the engine using the
KEYLESS-GO start/stop button* and open
the driver’s door
Otherwise, the transmission will shift toP and
lock the wheels, preventing the vehicle from
being pulled through a car wash.
!Make sure that the windshield wiper switch
is set to0 (
page 61). Otherwise, the rain
sensor could activate and cause the wipers to
move unintentionally. This may lead to vehicle
damage.
Due to the width of the vehicle, fold in exterior
rear view mirrors prior to running the vehicle
through an automatic car wash to prevent
damage to the mirrors.
iAfter running the vehicle through an auto-
matic car wash, wipe any wax off of the wind-
shield (
page 415). This will prevent smears
and reduce wiping noise which can be caused by
residual wax on the windshield.
When leaving the car wash, make sure that the
mirrors are folded out. Otherwise they may
vibrate.
!Do not use chrome cleaner on ornamental
moldings. Although ornamental moldings may
have chrome appearance, they could be made of
anodized aluminum that will be damaged when
cleaned with chrome cleaner. Instead, use damp
cloth to clean those ornamental moldings.
Very dirty ornamental moldings of which you are
sure are chrome-plated, use a chrome cleaner.
If in doubt whether an ornamental molding is
chrome-plated, contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
!Only use window cleaning solutions that are
suitable for plastic lamp lenses. Window clean-
ing solutions which are not suitable may damage
the plastic lamp lenses of the headlamps. There-
fore, do not use abrasives, solvents or cleaners
that contain solvents.
Never apply strong force and only use a soft,
non-scratching cloth when cleaning the lenses.
Do not attempt to wipe dirty lenses with a dry
cloth or sponge.
Otherwise you may scratch or damage the lens
surface.
415 Operation
Vehicle care
Cleaning the Rear View Camera lens*
1Camera lens
Only use clean water and a soft,
non-scratching cloth to clean camera
lens1.
Be careful not to apply wax to camera
lens1 when waxing the vehicle. If neces-
sary, remove the wax using the
Mercedes-Benz approved Car Shampoo
with plenty of water.Cleaning the windows and the wiper
blades
Fold wiper arms forward until they snap
into place.
Clean the wiper blade inserts with a
clean cloth and detergent solution.
Use a soft, clean cloth and a mild
window cleaning solution on all outside
and inside glass surfaces.
An automotive glass cleaner is recom-
mended.
!Do not clean the camera and the area
around the camera:
with a high-pressure cleaner
with a dry cloth and high pressure
with aggressive cleaning agents
You could otherwise damage the camera.
Warning!G
For safety reasons, switch off wipers and re-
move SmartKey from starter switch
(vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*: Make sure the
vehicle’s on-board electronics have
status0) before cleaning the windshield
and/or the wiper blades. Otherwise, the
wiper motor could suddenly turn on and
cause injury.
!Do not pull on the wiper blade inserts. They
could tear.
!Fold the windshield wiper arms back onto
the windshield before turning the SmartKey in
the starter switch or pressing the KEYLESS-GO
start/stop button (vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*).
Hold on to the wiper when folding the wiper arm
back. If released, the force of the impact from
the tensioning spring could crack the windshield.
!To clean the window interior, do not use a
dry cloth, abrasives, solvents or cleaners con-
taining solvents. Do not touch the inside of the
front, rear or side windows with hard objects
such as an ice scraper or ring. Doing so may
damage the windows.
443 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
PShift to PYou have started the engine or
switched on the ignition with
KEYLESS-GO* and opened the
driver’s door with the automatic
transmission not set to positionP.Set the automatic transmission to
positionP.
or
Close the driver’s door
Shift to P or N
to start engineYou have attempted to start the
engine with the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button while the auto-
matic transmission was set to
positionR orD.Set the automatic transmission to
positionP orN.
Make sure the brake pedal is depressed
when attempting to start the engine with
the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button.
Only shift to
Park when vehicle
is stationaryYou have tried to shift the transmis-
sion into position P using the gear
selector lever although the vehicle is
still in motion.Stop the vehicle.
478 Practical hints
Unlocking / locking in an emergency
Unlocking the vehicle
If you cannot unlock the vehicle with the
SmartKey or KEYLESS-GO*, open the
driver’s door using the mechanical key.Removing the mechanical key
1Mechanical key locking tab
2Mechanical key
Move locking tab1 in direction of
arrow.
Slide mechanical key2 out of the
housing.Unlocking the driver’s door
1Unlocking
2Mechanical key
Insert mechanical key 2 into the
driver’s door lock until it stops.
Turn mechanical key 2 counterclock-
wise to position1 and hold it there.
Pull the door handle until the locking
knob moves up.
The driver’s door is unlocked.
Pull the door handle once more to open
the driver’s door.
iUnlocking the driver’s door with the
mechanical key will trigger the anti-theft
alarm system.
To cancel the alarm:
Press buttonŒ or‹on the
SmartKey.
Insert the SmartKey in the starter switch.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:
Grasp an outside door handle.
The SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO must be
within 3 ft (1 m) of the vehicle.
Press the KEYLESS-GO start / stop button
(
page 41).
The SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO must be
inside the vehicle.
481 Practical hints
Opening / closing in an emergency
Opening / closing in an emergency
Power tilt/sliding sunroof*
You can open or close the tilt/sliding
sunroof manually should an electrical
malfunction occur.
The tilt/sliding sunroof drive is located
behind a cover on the overhead control
panel.
1Cover
Remove the SmartKey from the starter
switch.Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:
Turn off the engine by pressing the
KEYLESS-GO start/stop button
(
page 67).
Open the driver’s door (this puts
the starter switch to position0,
same as with the SmartKey
removed from starter switch).
The driver’s door can then be
closed again.
Press on cover1 at the position
indicated by the arrow.
Take off cover 1.
2Crank
Take crank 2 out of the Operator’s
Manual pouch.
Insert crank2 into hole.
Turn crank2 clockwise to
slide sunroof closed
raise sunroof at the rear
Turn crank2 counterclockwise to
slide sunroof open
lower sunroof at the rear
iTurn crank2 slowly and smoothly.
The tilt/sliding sunroof must be synchronized if
it has been operated manually (
page 260).
iThe panorama roof with power tilt/sliding
panel* cannot be operated as described.
Contact Roadside Assistance or an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.