2008 MERCEDES-BENZ ML320 keyless

390 Operation
Vehicle care
Your vehicle has been treated at the facto-
ry with a wax-base rustproofing in the body
cavities which will last for the lifetime of
the vehicle. Post-production treatment is
neither necessary nor recommended by
Mercedes-Benz because of the possibility
of incompatibility between materials used
in the production process and others ap-
plied later.
We have selected car-care products and
compiled recommendations which are
specially matched to our vehicles and
which always reflect the latest technology.
You can obtain Mercedes-Benz approved
car-care products at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
Scratches, corrosive deposits, corrosion or
damage due to negligent or incorrect care
cannot always be removed or repaired with
the car-care products recommended here.
In such cases it is best to seek aid at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.The following topics deal with the cleaning
and care of your vehicle and give important
“how-to” information as well as references
to Mercedes-Benz approved car-care
products.
Power washerTar stains
Quickly remove tar stains before they dry
and become more difficult to remove. A tar
remover is recommended.
Paintwork, painted body components
Mercedes-Benz approved Paint Care
should be applied when water drops on the
paint surface do not “bead up”. This should
normally be done every 3 to 5 months,
depending on the climate and washing
detergent used.
Mercedes-Benz approved Paint Cleaner
should be applied if the paint surface
shows signs of dirt embedding (i.e. loss of
gloss).
!Follow the instructions provided by the
power washer manufacturer on maintaining a
distance between the vehicle and the nozzle of
the power washer.
Never use a round nozzle to power-wash tires.
The intense jet of water can result in damage to
the tire.
Always replace a damaged tire.
Always keep the jet of water moving across the
surface. Do not aim directly at electrical parts,
electrical connectors, seals, or other rubber
parts.
iVehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:
If a door handle is hit by a strong jet of water, and
a SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* is in close
proximity, i.e. within approximately 3 ft (approxi-
mately 1 m), the vehicle could be inadvertently
locked or unlocked.
!Affixing stickers, adhesive tape or similar
materials to painted body components may
damage the paintwork.

391 Operation
Vehicle care
Do not apply any of these products or wax
if your vehicle is parked in the sun or if the
hood is still hot.
Use the appropriate MB-Touch-Up
Stick for quick and provisional repairs
of minor paint damage (i.e. chips from
stones, vehicle doors, etc.).
Engine cleaning
Prior to cleaning the engine compartment
make sure to protect electrical compo-
nents and connectors from the intrusion of
water and cleaning agents.
Corrosion protection, such as
MB Anticorrosion Wax, should be applied
to the engine compartment after every en-
gine cleaning. Before applying, all control
linkage bushings and joints should be lu-
bricated. The poly-V-belt and all pulleys
should be protected from any wax.Vehicle washing
In the winter, thoroughly remove all traces
of road salt as soon as possible.
When washing the vehicle underbody, do
not forget to clean the inner sides of the
wheels.
Hand-wash
Do not use hot water or wash your vehicle
in direct sunlight.
Only use a mild car wash detergent,
such as Mercedes-Benz approved Car
Shampoo.
Thoroughly spray the vehicle with a dif-
fused jet of water.
Direct only a very weak spray towards
the ventilation intake.
Use plenty of water and rinse the
sponge and chamois frequently.
Rinse with clean water and thoroughly
dry with a chamois.
Do not allow cleaning agents to dry on
the finish.iVehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:
If a door handle is hit by a strong jet of water, and
a SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* is in close
proximity, i.e. within approximately 3 ft (approxi-
mately 1 m), the vehicle could be inadvertently
locked or unlocked.
!Do not use scouring agents on these parts.
Never apply strong force and only use a soft,
non-sratching cloth when cleaning the vehicle.
Do not attempt to wipe the surface with a dry
cloth or sponge.
Otherwise you may scratch or damage the paint.

392 Operation
Vehicle care
Automatic car wash
You can have your car washed in an auto-
matic car wash from the start. Automatic
car washes without brushes are prefera-
ble.
To protect the filter system, switch the
climate control system (
page 206) or
the automatic climate control system*
(
page 220) to air recirculation mode.
If the vehicle is very dirty, prewash it
before running it through the automatic
car wash.When taking the vehicle through an auto-
matic conveyor type car wash, observe the
following instructions.Vehicles with SmartKey:
With the vehicle at a standstill and the
ignition switched on shift the automatic
transmission to neutral positionN.
If engaged, release the parking brake
(
page 57).
Switch off the ignition and leave the
SmartKey in the starter switch.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:
With the vehicle at a standstill, depress
the brake pedal and keep it pressed.
With the ignition switched on shift the
automatic transmission to park
positionP.
Release the brake pedal.
Remove the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop
button from the starter switch
(
page 41).
Insert the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* into the starter switch.
Switch on the ignition.
Depress the brake pedal.
!Do not clean your vehicle in an automatic
touchless car wash which use caustic spray.
Otherwise the caustic spray will damage the
paint or ornamental moldings.
!Make sure that the windshield wiper switch
is set to0 (
page 61). Otherwise, e.g. 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.
Warning!G
When leaving the SmartKey or SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO* in the starter switch, do
not leave children unattended in the vehicle.
It is possible for children to switch on the
ignition which could result in unsupervised
use of vehicle equipment.
A child’s unsupervised access to a vehicle
could result in an accident and/or serious
personal injury.

393 Operation
Vehicle care
Shift the automatic transmission to
neutral positionN.
Release the brake pedal.
If engaged, release the parking brake
(
page 57).
Switch off the ignition and leave the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* in the
starter switch.Ornamental moldings
For regular cleaning and care of ornamen-
tal moldings, use a damp cloth.Headlamps, brake lamps, tail lamps,
side markers, turn signal lenses
Use a mild car wash detergent, such as
Mercedes-Benz approved Car Sham-
poo, with plenty of water.
iAfter running the vehicle through an auto-
matic car wash, wipe any wax off of the wind-
shield (
page 395). 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 a
damp cloth to clean those ornamental moldings.
For very dirty ornamental moldings of which you
are sure are chrome-plated, use a chrome clean-
er. 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.

395 Operation
Vehicle care
Cleaning the windows and the wiper
blades
Fold the wiper arms forward until they
engage.
Clean the wiper blade inserts with a
clean cloth and detergent solution.
Use a soft, clean cloth and a mild win-
dow 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
status
0) 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 and the power
tilt/sliding sunroof or rear panorama roof with
hard objects such as an ice scraper or ring.
Doing so may damage the windows.

420 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
PShift to P or N
to start engine.You 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 P
when vehicle
is at a standstill.You have tried to shift the automatic
transmission into positionP using
the gear selector lever although the
vehicle is still in motion.Stop the vehicle.
Apply the parking brake (page 65).
SRSRestraint Sys. Malfunction
Service RequiredThe system is malfunctioning.Drive with added caution to the nearest
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.
Warning!G
In the event a malfunction of the SRS is indi-
cated as outlined above, the SRS may not be
operational. For your safety, we strongly
recommend that you contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center immedi-
ately to have the system checked; otherwise
the SRS may not be activated when needed
in an accident, which could result in serious
or fatal injury, or it might deploy unexpect-
edly and unnecessarily which could also re-
sult in injury.

435 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display symbolDisplay messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
c You are driving with one or more
doors open.Stop the vehicle in a safe location or as
soon as it is safe to do so.
Close the door(s).
] Clean
Fuel FilterContact an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Light Truck Center.
AGas Cap OpenA loss of pressure has been
detected in the fuel system. The
fuel cap may not be closed
properly or the fuel system may
be leaky.Check the fuel cap (page 337).
If it is not closed properly:
Close the fuel cap.
If it is closed properly:
Have the fuel system checked by an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.
aYou are driving with the hood or
the tailgate open.Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt as
soon as it is safe to do so in a safe
location.
Close the hood (page 341) or the
tailgate (
page 119).
You are trying to lock the vehicle
with the KEYLESS-GO* function
with a door or the tailgate open.Close all doors and/or the tailgate
(
page 119).

436 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display symbolDisplay messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
FKey
Not DetectedThe SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* is not detected
while the engine is running
because

the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* is not in the
vehicle

there is strong
radio-frequency interference
Stop the vehicle in a safe location or as
soon as it is safe to do so.
Apply the parking brake (page 65).
Search for the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO*.
Otherwise the vehicle cannot be centrally
locked nor can the engine be started
again after the engine is stopped.
The SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* is momentarily
not detected.Change the position of the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* in the vehicle.
Operate the vehicle with the SmartKey in
the starter switch if necessary.
Key
Not DetectedThe SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* is not detected
while the ignition is switched on
(
page 40) and a door is
opened or closed and the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* is
not in the vehicle.
Search for the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO*.
Otherwise the vehicle cannot be locked
nor can the engine be started.
Change the position of the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* in the vehicle.