2007 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 body

229 Control systems
COMAND automatic climate control
COMAND automatic climate control
You can operate the automatic climate
control via COMAND or via the buttons on
the front and rear* automatic climate con-
trol panel (
page 424).
The following automatic climate control
functions can be operated via COMAND:The automatic climate control menu is
called up via the climate control settings.
Climate control settings with functions
(submenus)1Temperature, left
2Air distribution, left
3Air volume, left
4Central menu, climate control
5Air volume, right
6Air distribution, right
7Temperature, right
i
The components and operating principles of
COMAND can be found on (
page 79).
Warning!
G
When operating the automatic climate con-
trol, the air that enters the passenger com-
partment through the air vents can be very
hot or very cold (depending on the set tem-
perature). This may cause burns or frostbite
to unprotected skin in the immediate area of
the air vents.
Always keep sufficient distance between un-
protected parts of the body and the air
vents. If necessary, use the air distribution
adjustment (
page 230) to direct the air to
air vents in the vehicle interior that are not
in the immediate area of unprotected skin.
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for heat-
ing and cooling given on the following pages
and pages in the “Controls in detail” part
(page 424) Otherwise the windows could
fog up, impairing visibility and endangering
you and others.
Function
Page
Temperature
230
Air distribution
230
Air volume
230
Switching off cooling (“AC
OFF”)
231
Central climate control (“Mono”)
232
Footwell temperature
232
Air flow from air vents
233
Rear climate control*
234

318 Controls in detailSeatsSeat adjustment
You can adjust the lumbar support, multi-
contour seats for driver and front passen-
ger, as well as drive-dynamic multicontour
seats using COMAND (
page 236).
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.
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt
(page 339).
Never place hands under the seat or near
any moving parts while a seat is being ad-
justed.
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. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment 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 informa-
tion, see “Children in the vehicle”
(page 61).
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.

320 Controls in detailSeatsRear power seat* adjustment
(rear outer seats)Example rear right door1Seat cushion tilt
2Seat backrest tilt
3Folding down and placing upright head
restraint (
page 326)
4Head restraint tilt (
page 326)
5Seat fore and aft adjustment

Switch on the ignition (
page 315).
or

Open the respective door.

Adjust desired seat using seat
switches1,2 and5.Adjusting front passenger seat from
driver’s seat/rear*
Warning!
G
The seat belt only offers its intended protec-
tion when the seat backrest is in a nearly
vertical position and the occupant is sitting
upright. Avoid sitting in positions that pre-
vent the seat belt from being properly posi-
tioned against the body (
page 339). You
should therefore adjust the backrest to a po-
sition as upright as possible.
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. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause 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.

340 Controls in detailFastening the seat belts
1Belt outlet
2Latch plate
3Buckle
4Release button
Pull the seat belt smoothly from the
seat belt outlet 1.

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 until
it clicks.

If necessary, tighten the lap portion to
a snug fit by pulling shoulder portion
up.

To release the seat belt, press release
button4 and guide latch plate back to
belt outlet.
Warning!
G
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
even fatal injuries. The seat backrest and
seat belt provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a nearly upright position and the
belt is properly positioned on the body.Warning!
G
Read and observe the additional warning no-
tices printed in the “Safety and Security”
section (
page 44).

403 Controls in detail
Driving systems
Active Body Control (ABC)*
The ABC system automatically selects the
optimum suspension tuning and ride
height for your vehicle.
The ABC system consists of an active, hy-
draulically controlled suspension and
damping system.
Vehicle level control with ABC*
Your vehicle automatically adjusts its ride
height to:

reduce fuel consumption


increase vehicle stability
The vehicle chassis ride height is raised or
lowered according to the selected level
setting and to the vehicle speed:


With increasing speed, ride height is re-
duced by up to approximately 0.6 in
(15 mm).


With decreasing speed, the ride height
is again raised to the selected vehicle
level.The following vehicle level settings can be
selected when the vehicle is stationary:
Select the “Raised” level setting only when
required by current driving conditions.
Otherwise:


Fuel consumption may increase.


Handling may be impaired.
i
These height adjustments are so small that
you may not notice any change.
LevelNormal
For driving on normal roads.
The indicator lamp is off.
Raised
For driving on rough roads or
with snow chains. The indica-
tor lamp is on.
i
The selected vehicle level setting remains
stored in memory even if the engine is turned off
and restarted.
Warning!
G
To help avoid personal injury, keep hands
and feet away from wheel housing area, and
stay away from under the vehicle when low-
ering the vehicle chassis.

425 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Item
1
Left side air vent, adjustable
2
Left side defroster vent, fixed
3
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for left air vent
4
Left center air vent, adjustable
5
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for left center air vent
6
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for right center air vent
7
Right center air vent, adjustable
8
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for right air vent
9
Right side defroster vent, fixed
a
Right side air vent, adjustable
b
Climate control panel
i
For draft-free ventilation, move the sliders
for the center air vents 4 and 7 to the middle
position.
Warning!
G
When operating the automatic climate con-
trol, the air that enters the passenger com-
partment through the air vents can be very
hot or very cold (depending on the set tem-
perature). This may cause burns or frostbite
to unprotected skin in the immediate area of
the air vents.
Always keep sufficient distance between un-
protected parts of the body and the air
vents. If necessary, use the air distribution
adjustment (
page 230) to direct the air to
air vents in the vehicle interior that are not
in the immediate area of unprotected skin.

441 Controls in detail
Power tilt/sliding sunroof
Power tilt/sliding sunroof
Opening and closing power tilt/sliding sunroofWarning!
G
When closing the tilt/sliding sunroof, make
sure that there is no danger of anyone being
harmed by the closing procedure.
If the tilt/sliding sunroof encounters an ob-
struction that blocks its path in a circum-
stance where you are closing the tilt/sliding
sunroof by moving the tilt/sliding sunroof
switch past the resistance point, or by
pressing and holding button‹on the
SmartKey, by pressing and holding the sen-
sor surface (vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*) on
the outside door handle, the automatic re-
versal function will not operate.
The opening/closing procedure of the
tilt/sliding sunroof can be immediately halt-
ed by releasing the switch or, if the switch
was moved past the resistance point and re-
leased, by moving the switch in any direc-
tion.
The tilt/sliding sunroof is made out of glass.
In the event of an accident, the glass may
shatter. This may result in an opening in the
roof.
In a vehicle rollover, occupants not wearing
their seat belts or not wearing them properly
may be thrown out of the opening. Such an
opening also presents a potential for injury
for occupants wearing their seat belts
properly as entire body parts or portions of
them may protrude from the passenger
compartment.
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. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment can cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.!
To avoid damaging the seals, do not trans-
port any objects with sharp edges which can
stick out of the tilt/sliding sunroof.Do not open the tilt/sliding sunroof if there is
snow or ice on the roof, as this could result in
malfunctions.
The tilt/sliding sunroof can be opened or closed
manually should an electrical malfunction occur
(
page 617).
i
When the tilt/sliding sunroof is open, reso-
nance noises may result in addition to the usual
wind noises. They are caused by minimal pres-
sure changes in the passenger compartment. To
reduce or eliminate these noises, change the po-
sition of the tilt/sliding sunroof or open a side
window slightly.
i
You can also open or close the tilt/sliding
sunroof using the SmartKey, see “Summer open-
ing feature” (
page 355) and “Convenience
closing feature” (page 356). Depending on
current position, the tilt/sliding sunroof may
also open or close when the air recirculation
button, (
page 426) is pressed and held
for 2 seconds.
i
If PRE-SAFE
® has been activated, the
tilt/sliding sunroof closes automatically until
only a small gap remains.

444 Controls in detailPanorama roof with power tilt/sliding panel*Operating rear roller sunblind from rearRear door control panel1Retracting
2Extending
Extending: Press button2 on the
rocker switch until the rear roller sun-
blind has reached the desired position.

Retracting: Press button1 on the
rocker switch until the rear roller sun-
blind has reached the desired position.Opening and closing panorama roof
with power tilt/sliding panelWarning!
G
When opening or closing the tilt/sliding pan-
el, make sure that there is no danger of any-
one being harmed by the opening or closing
procedure.
The opening procedure of the tilt/sliding
panel can be immediately halted by releas-
ing the switch or, if the switch was moved
past the resistance point and released, by
moving the switch in any direction.
The closing procedure of the tilt/sliding
panel can be immediately halted by releas-
ing the switch.
The panorama roof with power tilt/sliding
panel is made out of glass. In the event of an
accident, the glass may shatter. This may re-
sult in an opening in the roof.
In a vehicle rollover, occupants not wearing
their seat belts or not wearing them properly
may be thrown out of the opening.
Such an opening also presents a potential
for injury for occupants wearing their seat
belts properly as entire body parts or por-
tions of them may protrude from the pas-
senger compartment.
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
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of
vehicle equipment can cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.!
To avoid damaging the seals, do not trans-
port any objects with sharp edges which can
stick out of the tilt/sliding panel.
Do not open the tilt/sliding panel if there is snow
or ice on the roof, as this could result in malfunc-
tions.
The tilt/sliding panel can be opened or closed
manually should an electrical malfunction occur
(
page 617).