2008 MERCEDES-BENZ C350S airbag

39 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When you sell your vehicle we strongly
urge you to give notice to the subsequent
owner that it is equipped with an SRS by
alerting them to the applicable section in
the Operator’s Manual.
Front air bags
1Driver air bag
2Front passenger front air bag
The front air bags are designed to provide
increased protection for the driver and
front passenger against the risk of injuries
to the head and thorax.
Driver and front passenger front air bag are
deployed:
in the event of certain frontal impacts

if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold

if the system determines that airbag
deployment can offer additional pro-
tection to that provided by the seat belt

depending on whether the seat belt is
in use

independently of the front side impact
air bags, rear side impact air bags*
and/or the window curtain air bags.

For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the air bag
unit or emergency tensioning device,
our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These instructions are available
from your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.

Given the considerable deployment
speed, required inflation volume, and
the textile structure of the air bags,
there is the possibility of abrasions or
other, potentially more serious injuries
resulting from air bag deployment.
Warning!G
Only use seat covers which have been
tested and approved by Mercedes-Benz for
your vehicle model. Using other seat covers
may interfere with or prevent the
deployment of the front side impact air bags
or the rear side impact air bags. Contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center for avail-
ability.
iThe 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 relevant vehicle decelera-
tion as assessed by the air bag control unit.
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 41).
The lighter the front passenger-side occupant,
the higher the vehicle deceleration rate required
for the second stage inflation of the air bag.

40 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
The front air bags will not deploy in im-
pacts which do not exceed the system’s
deployment thresholds. You will then be
protected by the fastened seat belts.
The front airbags are not deployed in the
event of a rollover unless the vehicle's rate
of longitudinal deceleration or acceleration
exceeds the preset deployment threshold
for the front air bags.
The front passenger front air bag2
(
page 39) will only be deployed if:

the system, based on OCS weight sen-
sor readings, senses that the front
passenger seat is occupied

the 5/indicator lamp in the
center console is not lit (
page 45)

the impact exceeds a preset deploy-
ment thresholdFront side impact air bags and rear side
impact air bags*
1Front side impact air bag
2Rear side impact air bag*
When deployed, the front side impact air
bags1 and/or the rear side impact air
bags*2 are designed to provide in-
creased protection for the thorax (but not
the head, neck and arms) of the occupants
on the side of the vehicle on which the im-
pact occurs.The front side impact air bags1 and the
rear side impact air bags*2 are
deployed:

on the impacted side of the vehicle

in impacts exceeding a preset deploy-
ment threshold

independently of the front air bags
The front passenger front side impact air
bag1 will not deploy if the OCS senses
that the front passenger seat is empty and
the front passenger seat belt is not fas-
tened (latch plate is not inserted into the
buckle). With an empty front passenger
seat and the seat belt fastened (latch plate
properly inserted into buckle) the front
passenger side impact air bag1 will
deploy regardless of the empty seat.
The front side impact air bags1 and the
rear side impact air bags*2 are not de-
ployed in impacts which do not exceed the
system’s deployment threshold.

393 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Front Passenger
Airbag Disabled
See Operator’s Manu-
alFront passenger front air bag is
deactivated while driving even
though an adult or someone
larger than a small individual is
occupying the front passenger
seat. Forces acting on the seat
may make the system sense a
decrease in weight.Stop the vehicle in a safe location as soon as possible and check the front
passenger seat for the following:
Switch off the ignition (page 82).
Have the front passenger vacate the seat and exit the vehicle.
Keep the seat unoccupied, close the front passenger door and switch
on the ignition (
page 82).
Monitor the
5/indicator lamp right of the instrument cluster
(
page 45) and the multifunction display in the instrument cluster
(
page 151) for the following:
(Continued on next page)

394 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Front Passenger
Airbag Disabled
See Operator’s Manu-
alWith the seat unoccupied and the ignition switched on (page 82),

the 5/indicator lamp right of the instrument cluster should il-
luminate and remain illuminated, indicating that the OCS (
page 41)
has deactivated the air bag.

the message Front Passenger Airbag Enabled See Operator’s Man-
ual
or the message Front Passenger Airbag Disabled See Opera-
tor’s Manual
should not appear in the multifunction display at any time
the seat is unoccupied. Wait at least 60 seconds for the system to com-
plete the necessary check cycles and to make sure neither message ap-
pears in the multifunction display.
If above conditions are met, you can occupy the front passenger seat again.
Depending on the front passenger classification sensed by the OCS
(
page 41), the5/indicator lamp will remain illuminated or go
out.
If above conditions are not met, the system is not working properly. Have
the system checked as soon as possible at an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Warning!G
If the 5/indicator lamp remains
illuminated with an adult occupant on the
front passenger seat even after performing
the above corrective steps, do not have any
passenger use the front passenger seat until
the system has been repaired.

395 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Front Passenger
Airbag Enabled
See Operator’s Manu-
alFront passenger front air bag is
activated while driving even
though a child, small individual,
or object below the system’s
weight threshold is on the front
passenger seat, or the front pas-
senger seat is empty. Objects
on the seat or forces acting on
the seat may make the system
sense supplemental weight.Stop the vehicle in a safe location as soon as possible and check the front
passenger seat for the following:
Switch off the ignition (page 82).
Remove child and child restraint from front passenger seat and properly
secure the child in rear seat employing the child restraint if necessary.
Make sure no objects which apply forces to the seat are present (e.g.
objects such as books, briefcases etc. lodged behind or around the
seat, head restraints pushing against roof, etc.). The system may recog-
nize such forces as supplemental weight and sense that an occupant on
the front passenger seat is of a greater weight than actually present.
Keep the seat unoccupied, close the front passenger door and switch
on the ignition (
page 82).
Monitor the
5/indicator lamp right of the instrument cluster
(
page 45) and the multifunction display in the instrument cluster
(
page 151) for the following:
(Continued on next page)

396 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Front Passenger
Airbag Enabled
See Operator’s Manu-
alWith the seat unoccupied and the ignition switched on (page 82),

the 5/indicator lamp right of the instrument cluster should il-
luminate and remain illuminated, indicating that the OCS (
page 41)
has deactivated the air bag.

the message Front Passenger Airbag Enabled See Operator’s Man-
ual
or the message Front Passenger Airbag Disabled See Opera-
tor’s Manual
should not appear in the multifunction display at any time
the seat is unoccupied. Wait at least 60 seconds for the system to com-
plete the necessary check cycles and to make sure neither message ap-
pears in the multifunction display.
If above conditions are met, you can occupy the front passenger seat again.
Depending on the front passenger classification sensed by the OCS
(
page 41), the 5/indicator lamp will remain illuminated or go
out.
If above conditions are not met, the system is not working properly. Have
the system checked as soon as possible at an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Warning!G
If the 5/indicator lamp remains
illuminated with an adult occupant on the
front passenger seat even after performing
the above corrective steps, do not have any
passenger use the front passenger seat until
the system has been repaired.

417 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
=Rear Center SRS
Malfunction
Service RequiredComponents of the center rear passenger’s
supplemental restraint system may not
work properly.Drive with added caution to the nearest au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Rear Right SRS
Malfunction
Service RequiredComponents of the right rear passenger’s
supplemental restraint system may not
work properly.Drive with added caution to the nearest au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Left Side Curtain
Airbag Malfunction
Service RequiredThe left side window curtain air bag may not
work properly.Drive with added caution to the nearest au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Right Side Curtain
Airbag Malfunction
Service RequiredThe right side window curtain air bag may
not work properly.Drive with added caution to the nearest au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!G
In the event that a malfunction of the SRS is
indicated as outlined above, the SRS may
not be operational. For your safety, we
strongly recommend that you contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
immediately to have the system checked;
otherwise the SRS may not be deployed
when needed in an accident, which could re-
sult in serious or fatal injury, or it might de-
ploy unexpectedly and unnecessarily which
could result in an accident and/or injury to
you or to others.