2008 MERCEDES-BENZ CLS63AMG instrument panel

Contents
Introduction.......................................... 9
Product information ................................ 9
Operator’s Manual ............................... 10
Service and warranty information .. 10
Important notice for California
retail buyers and lessees of
Mercedes-Benz automobiles .......... 11
Maintenance .................................. 12
Roadside Assistance ...................... 12
Change of address or ownership.... 12
Operating your vehicle outside
the USA or Canada......................... 13
Where to find it .................................... 14
Symbols ............................................... 15
Operating safety .................................. 16
Proper use of the vehicle ............... 16
Problems with your vehicle .................. 17
Reporting safety defects...................... 18
Reporting safety defects ................ 18
Vehicle data recording ......................... 19
Information regarding electronic
recording devices ........................... 19At a glance.......................................... 21
Exterior view ......................................... 22
Cockpit ................................................. 24
Instrument cluster ................................ 26
Multifunction steering wheel ................ 28
Center console ..................................... 29
Upper part ...................................... 29
Lower part ...................................... 30
Overhead control panel ........................ 31
Storage compartments ......................... 32
Door control panel................................ 34Getting started................................... 35
Unlocking ............................................. 36
Unlocking with the SmartKey ......... 36
Unlocking with KEYLESS-GO*......... 37
Starter switch positions .................. 38
Adjusting .............................................. 41
Seats .............................................. 41
Steering wheel ................................ 44
Mirrors ............................................ 47
Driving .................................................. 48
Fastening the seat belts ................. 48
Starting the engine ......................... 51
Parking brake ................................. 53
Driving off ....................................... 53
Switching on headlamps ................. 55
Turn signals .................................... 55
Windshield wipers ........................... 56
Problems while driving.................... 58
Parking and locking .............................. 59
Parking brake ................................. 59
Switching off headlamps................. 60
Turning off engine ........................... 60
Releasing seat belts........................ 61
Locking ........................................... 61

21 At a glance
Exterior view
Cockpit
Instrument cluster
Multifunction steering wheel
Center console
Overhead control panel
Storage compartments
Door control panel

25 At a glance
Cockpit
ItemPage
1Combination switch

Turn signals55

Windshield wipers56

High beam55
2Steering wheel gearshift
control* 177
3Cruise control lever

Cruise control213

Distronic*217
4Multifunction steering
wheel28,
140
5Instrument cluster26,
136
6Horn
ItemPage
7Lever for Voice Control Sys-
tem*, see separate
operating instructions
8Front Parktronic* warning
indicator234
9Overhead control panel31
aGlove box lid release, glove
box lock243
bGlove box243
cCenter console29
dStarter switch38
eSteering wheel adjustment
stalk 45
Heated steering wheel
(Canada only)251
ItemPage
fParking brake pedal53, 59
gHood lock release 286
hParking brake release 53
jExterior lamp switch55,126
kDoor control panel34

69 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’s air bag
2Passenger air bag
3Knee bag
Driver and passenger air bags are de-
ployed:

in the event of certain frontal impacts

if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold

independently of the side impact
air bags

Do not hang items such as coat hangers
from the coat hooks or handles over the
door. These items may turn into projec-
tiles and cause head and other injuries
when the window curtain air bag is de-
ployed.

Never place your feet on the instrument
panel, dashboard, or on the seat. Always
keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.

Air bag system components will be hot
after an air bag has inflated. Do not
touch.

In addition, improper repair work on the
SRS creates a risk of rendering the SRS
inoperative or causing unintended air
bag deployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by qualified
technicians. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.

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 any 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 test-
ed and approved by Mercedes-Benz for your
vehicle model. Using other seat covers may
interfere with or prevent the deployment of
the side impact air bags. Contact your au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center for availabil-
ity.

70 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
The air bags will not deploy in impacts
which do not exceed the system’s deploy-
ment thresholds. You will then be protect-
ed by the fastened seat belts.The front passenger air bag will only be
deployed if:

the front passenger seat is occupied

the 75indicator lamp in
the center console is not lit
(
page 75)

the impact exceeds a preset deploy-
ment threshold
Knee bag
The knee bag is located on the driver-side
lower instrument panel. It is designed to
operate together with the driver air bag in
certain frontal impacts exceeding a preset
threshold. The knee bag operates best in
conjunction with a properly positioned and
fastened seat belt.Side impact air bags, window curtain
air bags
1Front side impact air bags
2Window curtain air bag
3Rear side impact air bags
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 vehicle deceleration as as-
sessed 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 71).
The lighter the front passenger side occupant,
the higher the vehicle deceleration rate required
for the second stage inflation of the air bag.

78 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Warning!G
USE SEAT BELTS PROPERLY

Seat belts can only work when used
properly. Never wear seat belts in any
other way than as described in this sec-
tion, as that could result in serious inju-
ries in case of an accident.

Each occupant should wear their seat
belt at all times, because seat belts help
reduce the likelihood of and potential
severity of injuries in accidents, includ-
ing rollovers. The integrated restraint
system includes SRS (driver’s front air
bag, driver-side knee bag, front
passenger front air bag, side impact
air bags, window curtain air bags for
side windows), ETD (seat belt Emergen-
cy Tensioning Device), and front seat
knee bolsters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection offered to properly belted oc-
cupants in certain frontal (front air bags,
driver-side knee bag and ETD) and
side (side impact and window curtain air
bags and ETD) impacts which exceed
preset deployment thresholds and in
certain rollovers (window curtain air
bags and ETD).

Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoul-
der. In a frontal crash, your body would
move too far forward. That would in-
crease the chance of head and neck in-
juries. The seat belt would also apply too
much force to the ribs or abdomen,
which could severely injure internal or-
gans such as your liver or spleen.

Never wear seat belts over rigid or
breakable objects in or on your clothing,
such as eyeglasses, pens, SmartKeys
etc., as these might cause injuries.

Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips and not across the abdo-
men. If the seat belt is positioned across
your abdomen, it could cause serious in-
juries in a crash.

Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat
belt around a person and another per-
son or other objects.

Seat belts should not be worn twisted.
In a crash, you wouldn’t have the full
width of the seat belt to distribute im-
pact forces. The twisted seat belt
against your body could cause injuries.

Pregnant women should also always use
a lap-shoulder seat belt. The lap belt
portion should be positioned as low as
possible on the hips to avoid any possi-
ble pressure on the abdomen.

Never place your feet on the instrument
panel, dashboard, or on the seat. Always
keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.

When using a seat belt to secure infant
or toddler restraints or children in boost-
er seats, always follow the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions.

126 Controls in detail
Lighting
For information on how to switch on the
headlamps and use the turn signals, see
“Switching on headlamps” (
page 55)
and see “Turn signals” (
page 55).
Exterior lamp switch
Exterior lamp switch
iIf you drive in countries where vehicles drive
on the other side of the road than the country
where the vehicle is registered, you must have
the headlamps modified for symmetrical low
beams. Relevant information can be obtained at
any authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
iVehicles equipped with active Bi-Xenon*
headlamps: The active Bi-Xenon headlamps
monitor your steering angle and driving speed,
then automatically shift their beams to either
side to better follow the curvature of the road
ahead, increasing usable illumination over con-
ventional headlamps.
1‚Standing lamps, left (turn left two
stops)
2ˆStanding lamps, right (turn left
one stop)
3MOff
Daytime running lamp mode
(
page 128)
4UAutomatic headlamp mode
Daytime running lamp mode
(
page 128)
5CParking lamps (also tail lamps, li-
cense plate lamps, side marker
lamps, instrument panel lamps)
6BLow beam headlamps or high
beam headlamps
7‡Front fog lamps
8†Rear fog lamp
iIf you hear a warning signal you have forgot-
ten to switch off the low beam headlamps or the
parking lamps before opening the driver’s door.
In addition the message
Switch Off Lights
appears in the multifunction display.
Switch off the low beam headlamps or the park-
ing lamps.
If the message
Switch Off Lights or
Remove Key
appears in the multifunction dis-
play remove the SmartKey from the starter
switch or switch off the automatic headlamp
mode.
!Failure to switch off the exterior lamps when
leaving the vehicle may result in a discharged
battery.

459 Index
Center console
Lower part 30
PASS AIR BAG OFF indicator
lamp 356
Upper part 29
Central locking
Automatic 116
Locking/unlocking from inside 116
Switching on/off (control
system) 163
Central locking switch 116
Certification label 300
Checking tire pressure electronically with
the Advanced Tire Pressure Monitoring
System* (Advanced TPMS*), (Canada
only) 309
Checking tire pressure electronically with
the Tire Pressure Monitoring System
(TPMS), (USA only) 306
Children in the vehicle 82
Air bags 67
Infant and child restraint systems 82
LATCH-type child seat anchors 86
Override switch for rear passenger
compartment 87
Cigarette lighter 249Climate control system
Air conditioning refrigerant 450
Air conditioning, Cooling 201
Air distribution 195
Air recirculation mode 198
Air volume 196
Automatic mode 194
Control panel, Rear 202
Deactivating system 194
Front defroster 197
Maximum cooling MAX COOL 198
Rear climate control 202
Residual engine heat (REST) 201
Clock 27, 157
Setting time 157
Cockpit 24
Cold tire inflation pressure 324
Collapsible tire
Inflating 416
Collapsible wheel chock 397
COMAND see separate operating instruc-
tions
Combination filter with pollutant-sensitive
air-recirculation mode 200
Combination switch 55, 130Control system 139
Functions 143
Multifunction display 139
Multifunction steering wheel 140
Resetting to factory default 153
Control system menus 142, 143
AUDIO 148
Distronic* 151
NAV* 150
Settings 152
Standard display 145
TEL* 166
Trip computer 164
Vehicle status message memory 151
Control system submenus
Convenience 163
Instrument cluster 155
Lighting 159
Time/Date 157
Vehicle 162
Convenience submenu 163
Activating easy-entry/exit
feature* 163