56 Getting started
Driving
Windshield wipers
The combination switch is located on the
left of the steering column.
Combination switch
1Single wipe
Wiping with washer fluid
2Switching on windshield wipers
Switch on the ignition (page 38).Switching on windshield wipers
Turn the combination switch to the de-
sired position depending on the inten-
sity of the rain.
MWindshield wipers off
USlow intermittent wiping
Rain sensor operation with low
sensitivity.
VFast intermittent wiping
Rain sensor operation with high
sensitivity.
uSlow continuous wiping
tFast continuous wiping
iTo signal minor directional changes such as
changing lanes, press combination switch only
to point of resistance and release. The corre-
sponding turn signals will flash three times.!Do not operate the wipers when the wind-
shield is dry. Dust that accumulates on a wind-
shield might scratch the glass and/or damage
the wiper blades when wiping occurs on a dry
windshield. If it is necessary to operate the wip-
ers in dry weather conditions, always operate
the wipers with washer fluid (
page 57).
!If anything blocks the windshield wipers
(leaves, snow, etc.), switch them off immediate-
ly.
For safety reasons, stop the vehicle in a safe
location
turn off the engine by turning the
SmartKey to position0 and withdraw
SmartKey from starter switch
or
turn off the engine by pressing the
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button and
open the driver’s door (with the driver’s
door open, starter switch is in
position0, same as with SmartKey re-
moved from starter switch)
before attempting to remove any blockage.
Remove blockage.
Turn the windshield wipers on again.
!If windshield wipers fail to function at all in
combination switch positionU or V,
set the combination switch to the next high-
est wiper speed
have the windshield wipers checked at the
nearest authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
57 Getting started
Driving
Intermittent wiping
Only switch on intermittent wiping under
wet weather conditions or in the presence
of precipitation.Intermittent wiping interval is dependent
on wetness of windshield.
Turn the combination switch to
positionU or V.
After the initial wipe, pauses between
wipes are automatically controlled by the
rain sensor.Single wipe
Press the combination switch briefly in
direction of arrow1 (
page 56) to
the resistance point.
The windshield wipers wipe one time
without washer fluid.
Wiping with washer fluid
Push the combination switch in direc-
tion of arrow1 (
page 56) past the
resistance point.
The windshield wipers operate with
washer fluid.
For information on filling up the washer
reservoir, see “Washer system and
headlamp cleaning system*”
(
page 292).
!Do not leave windshield wipers in
intermittent setting when the vehicle is taken to
an automatic car wash or during windshield
cleaning. Windshield wipers will operate in the
presence of water sprayed on the windshield,
and windshield wipers may be damaged as a re-
sult.
!If you have set intermittent wiping, dirt on
the surface of the rain sensor or optical effects
may cause the windshield wipers to wipe in an
undesired fashion. This could then damage the
windshield wiper blades or scratch the windows.
You should therefore switch off the windshield
wipers when weather conditions are dry.
iIntermittent wiping is interrupted when the
vehicle is at a standstill and a front door is
opened. This protects persons getting into or out
of the vehicle from being sprayed.
Intermittent wiping will be continued when
all doors are closed
and
the gear selector lever is in positionD orR
or
the wiper setting is changed using the com-
bination switch
iTo prevent smears on the windshield or
noisy/chattering wiper blades, wipe with washer
fluid every now and then even when it is raining.
68 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Safety guidelines for the seat belt,
Emergency Tensioning Device and
air bagiAir bags are designed to activate only in cer-
tain frontal impacts (front air bags, driver-side
knee bag), 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 pro-
vide their supplemental protection.
The driver and passenger should always wear
their seat belts. Otherwise it is not possible for
the air bags to provide their supplemental pro-
tection.
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
Devices (ETDs) contain Perchlorate ma-
terial, which may require special han-
dling and regard for the environment.
Check with your local government’s dis-
posal guidelines. California residents,
see http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/Hazard-
ousWaste/Perchlorate/index.cfm.
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, or door
frame trims, and installation of addition-
al electrical/electronic equipment on or
near SRS components and wiring. Keep
area between air bags and occupants
free from objects (e.g. packages, purs-
es, umbrellas, etc.).
Do not pass seat belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.
Do not make any modification that could
change the effectiveness of the seat
belts.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this
may severely weaken them. In a crash
they may not be able to provide ade-
quate protection.
82 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Children in the vehicle
If an infant or child is traveling with you in
the vehicle:
Secure the child using an infant or child
restraint appropriate to the age and
size of the child.
Make sure that the infant or child is
properly secured at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
Infant and child restraint seats and
information on choosing an appropriate
restraint system can be obtained from any
Mercedes-Benz Center.Infant and child restraint systems
We recommend all infants and children be
properly restrained at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
All lap-shoulder belts except the driver’s
seat belt have special seat belt retractors
for secure fastening of child restraints.
To fasten a child restraint, follow child
restraint instructions for mounting. Then
pull the shoulder belt out completely and
let it retract. During seat belt retraction, a
ratcheting sound can be heard to indicate
that the special seat belt retractor is acti-
vated. The seat belt is now locked. Push
down on child restraint to take up any
slack.
To deactivate, release seat belt buckle and
let seat belt retract completely. The seat
belt can again be used in the usual
manner.
Warning!G
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child
restraint system. The children could
injure themselves on parts of the vehicle
be seriously or fatally injured through
exposure to extreme heat or cold
Do not expose the child restraint system to
direct sunlight. The child restraint system’s
metal parts, for example, could become very
hot, and the child could be burned on these
parts.
If children open a door, they could
injure other persons
get out of the car and injure themselves
or be injured by following traffic
Do not carry heavy or hard objects in the
passenger or cargo compartment unless
they are firmly secured in place. For more in-
formation, see “Loading” (
page 238) and
“Useful features” (
page 243).
Unsecured or improperly positioned cargo
increases a child’s risk of injury in the event
of
strong braking maneuvers
sudden changes of direction
an accident
153 Controls in detail
Control system
Press buttonè orÿ repeatedly
until the
Settings menu is seen in the
multifunction display.
Resetting all settings
You can reset all the functions of all sub-
menus to the factory settings.
Press the reset button (page 136) for
approximately 3 seconds.
In the multifunction display you will see
the request to press the reset button
again to confirm.
Press the reset button again.
The functions of all the submenus will
reset to factory settings.Submenus in the Settings menu
Press buttonj.
In the multifunction display the collec-
tion of the submenus appears.
Press buttonç.
The selection marker moves to the next
submenu.The submenus are arranged by hierarchy.
Scroll down with the çbutton, scroll up
with the æbutton.
With the selection marker on the desired
submenu, use the j button to access
the individual functions within that sub-
menu. Once within the submenu, you can
use the buttonjto move to the next
function or the buttonk to move to the
previous function within that submenu.
The settings themselves are made with
buttonæ orç.
iThe settings you have changed will not be re-
set unless you confirm the action by pressing the
reset button a second time. After approximately
5 seconds, the
Settings menu reappears in
the multifunction display.
For safety reasons, the
Headlamp Mode func-
tion in the
Lighting submenu is not reset
while driving.
154 Controls in detail
Control system
The table below shows what settings can
be changed within the various menus. Detailed instructions on making individual
settings can be found on the following pag-
es.
Instrument clusterTime/DateLightingVehicleConvenience
(page 155)(page 157)(page 159)(page 162)(page 163)
Selecting speedometer
display modeSynchronizing the timeSetting daytime running
lamp mode (USA only)Setting automatic
lockingActivating
easy-entry/exit feature
Selecting languageSetting time (hours)Setting locator lightingAudio search function
Selecting display (speed
display or outside tem-
perature) for status lineSetting time (minutes)Setting ambient lighting
Selecting display (speed
display or outside tem-
perature) for basic dis-
playSetting date (month)Setting night security illu-
mination
Setting date (day)Setting interior lighting
delayed shut-off
Setting date (year)
157 Controls in detail
Control system
Time/Date submenu
Access the
Time/Date submenu via the
Settings menu. Use the Time/Date sub-
menu to change the time and date display
settings. The following functions are avail-
able:Synchronizing the time
This function can only be seen on vehicles
with COMAND and navigation module*.
Move the selection marker with the
æ or çbutton to the
Time/Date
submenu.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Time Synchroniz.
With Head Unit
appears in the multi-
function display.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.
Press buttonæ orç to select
the desired setting.Setting time (hours)
This function can only be seen when time
synchronization is switched off.
Move the selection marker with the
æ or çbutton to the
Time/Date
submenu.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Time-Hours Press R
To Confirm
appears in the
multifunction display.
The selection marker is on the hour set-
ting.
Press buttonæ orç to set the
hour.
Confirm by pressing reset button
(
page 136).
FunctionPage
Synchronizing the time157
Setting time (hours)157
Setting time (minutes)158
Setting date (month)158
Setting date (day)158
Setting date (year)159
iInformation on setting the time, refer to sep-
arate COMAND instructions.
159 Controls in detail
Control system
Setting date (year)
Move the selection marker with the
æ or çbutton to the
Time/Date
submenu.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Set Date Year ap-
pears in the multifunction display.
The selection marker is on the year
setting.
Press buttonæ orç to set the
year.Lighting submenu
Access the
Lighting submenu via the
Settings menu. Use the Lighting sub-
menu to change the lamp and lighting set-
tings on your vehicle. The following
functions are available:Setting daytime running lamp mode
(USA only)
Move the selection marker with
buttonæ orç to the
Lighting
submenu.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Headlamp Mode ap-
pears in the multifunction display.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.
Press buttonæ orç to select
manual operation (
Manual) or daytime
running lamp mode (
Constant).
FunctionPage
Setting daytime running lamp
mode (USA only)159
Setting locator lighting160
Setting ambient lighting161
Setting night security illumina-
tion161
Setting interior lighting delayed
shut-off162
iThis function is not available in countries
where the daytime running lamp mode is manda-
tory and therefore in a constant mode.