2008 MERCEDES-BENZ ML350 Ac rest

35 At a glance
Storage compartments
ItemPage
1Parcel net in front passen-
ger footwell283
2Glove box/CD changer*279
3Door pocket
4Parcel net on front passen-
ger seat backrest283
5Door pocket
6Vehicle tool kit, spare wheel448
7Door pocket
8Parcel net on driver’s seat
backrest283
9Door pocket
aHolder for gas cards202
ItemPage
bStorage compartment (de-
pending on equipment con-
figuration for your model)281
cDepending on vehicle con-
figuration:
Storage compartment
Ashtray
281
285
dCup holders284
eStorage/telephone* com-
partment with coin holder281
fRear storage compartments282
gCup holder in rear armrest284

43 Getting started
Adjusting
Adjusting
Seats
Warning!G
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and
rear view mirror adjustments, as well as fas-
tening of seat belts, must be done before
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
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
fatal injuries. The seat backrest and seat
belts provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a position that is as upright as
possible and belts are properly positioned
on the body.
Warning!G
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt (
page 51).
Observe the following points:

Adjust the backrest until your arms are
slightly angled when holding the steer-
ing wheel

Adjust the seat to a comfortable seating
position that still allows you to reach the
accelerator/brake pedal safely. The po-
sition should be as far back as possible
with the driver still able to operate the
controls properly.

Adjust the head restraint so that it is as
close to the head as possible and the
center of the head restraint supports the
back of the head at eye level.

Never place hands under the seat or
near any moving parts while a seat is be-
ing adjusted.
Failure to do so could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
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 the 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.
Therefore, do not leave children unattended
in the vehicle, or with access to an unlocked
vehicle. A child’s unsupervised access to a
vehicle could result in an accident and/or
serious personal injury.

44 Getting started
Adjusting
Seat adjustment
The seat adjustment switch is located on
the entry side of each front seat base.
1 Head restraint height (vehicles with
memory function)*
2Seat cushion tilt
3Seat height
4Backrest tilt
5Seat fore and aft adjustment
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
appropriately sized infant restraint, toddler
restraint, or booster seat recommended for
the size and weight of the child. For addi-
tional information, see “Children in the vehi-
cle” (
page 89).
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle
and/or the child is not properly secured in
the child restraint.
!When moving the seats, make sure there are
no items in the footwell or behind the seats;
otherwise you could damage the seats.
!When the rear seats are folded forward, e.g.
for cargo compartment expansion (
page 269),
the front seats may not be moved to the rear-
most position. Otherwise you could damage the
front and rear seats.
!When adjusting the seat backrest tilt and
head restraint height, make sure the sun visor is
folded up (
page 201). If the head restraint is in
the uppermost position, it could hit and damage
the sun visor.
iVehicles without memory function*:
The seats can be adjusted within 5 minutes after
either front door has been opened. The counter
resets each time

you open or close a front door

you insert the SmartKey into the starter
switch

you remove the SmartKey from the starter
switch

you switch the ignition on or off

45 Getting started
Adjusting
Seat fore and aft adjustment
Press the switch forward or backward
in direction of arrow5.
Seat height
Press the switch up or down in
direction of arrow3.
Seat cushion tilt
Press the switch up or down in
direction of arrow2 until your upper
legs are lightly supported.
Seat backrest tilt
Press the switch forward or backward
in direction of arrow4.Head restraint height
Vehicles with memory function*:
Press switch1 (page 44) up or
down in direction of arrow.
Vehicles without memory function*:
1Head restraint
2Release button
iThe memory function* (page 133) lets
you store the settings for the seat positions
together with the settings for the steering wheel
and the exterior rear view mirrors.
Warning!G
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat
head restraints. Head restraints are intend-
ed to help reduce injuries during an
accident.
With a rear seat occupied, make sure to
move the respective head restraint up from
the lowest non-use position and have the
occupant adjust the head restraint properly.
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned and engaged head restraints.
Adjust the head restraint so that it is as
close to the head as possible and the center
of the head restraint supports the back of
the head at eye level. This will reduce the po-
tential for injury to the head and neck in the
event of an accident or similar situation.
!Do not attempt to remove front seat head
restraints. They can only be removed by qualified
technicians. We recommend that you have this
work carried out by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.

46 Getting started
Adjusting
Raising:
Manually adjust the height of head
restraint1 by pulling it upward.
If head restraint1 is fully retracted,
push release button2 in direction of
arrow and pull head restraint1 up-
ward.
Lowering:
To lower head restraint1, push
release button2 in direction of arrow
and press down on head restraint1.Head restraint fore and aft adjustment
Manually adjust the angle of the head
restraint.
While seated, reach behind you with
both hands and find lower edge of the
head restraint.
Adjust the head restraint to the desired
position by pushing or pulling on the
lower edge of the head restraint cush-
ion.
For more information, see “Seats”
(
page 127).
Steering wheel
Easy-entry/exit feature*
This feature allows for easier entry into and
exit from the vehicle. When entering and
exiting the vehicle, the steering wheel is in
its uppermost position.
The easy-entry/exit feature can be
activated or deactivated in the
Comfort
submenu of the control system
(
page 176).
Warning!G
You must make sure no one can become
trapped or injured by the moving steering
wheel when the easy-entry/exit feature is
activated.
To stop steering wheel movement, do one of
the following:

Move steering wheel adjustment stalk*
(
page 49).

51 Getting started
Driving
Driving
Fastening the seat belts
Warning!G
Make sure that absolutely no objects are ob-
structing the pedal’s range of movement.
Keep the driver’s footwell clear of all obsta-
cles. If there are any floormats or carpets in
the footwell, make sure that the pedals still
have sufficient clearance.
During sudden driving or braking maneu-
vers, the objects could get caught between
the pedals. You could then no longer brake
or accelerate. This could lead to accidents
and injury.
Warning!G
Always fasten your seat belt before driving
off. Always make sure your passengers are
properly restrained.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and po-
sition your seat belt greatly increases your
risk of injuries and their likely severity in an
accident. You and your passengers should
always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your injuries
can be considerably more severe without
your seat belt properly buckled. Without
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury or
death is lessened if you are wearing your
seat belt. The air bags can only provide the
protection they were designed to afford if
the occupants are using their seat belts
(
page 84).
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.
Regardless of seating position, children
12 years old and under must be seated and
properly secured in an appropriately sized
infant restraint, toddler restraint, or booster
seat recommended for the size and weight
of the child. For additional information, see
“Children in the vehicle” (
page 89).
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle
and/or the child is not properly secured in
the child restraint.

52 Getting started
Driving
1Seat belt outlet
2Latch plate
3Buckle
4Release button
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 position that is as upright as
possible and the belt is properly positioned
on the body.
Warning!G
Never let more people ride in the vehicle
than there are seat belts available. Make
sure everyone riding in the vehicle is cor-
rectly restrained with a separate seat belt.
Never use a seat belt for more than one per-
son at a time.
Warning!G
Read and observe the additional warning no-
tices printed in the “Safety and Security”
section (
page 76) and (page 84).

53 Getting started
Driving
With a smooth motion, pull the belt out
of seat belt outlet1.
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
(
page 52) until it clicks.
If necessary, tighten the lap portion to
a snug fit by pulling shoulder portion
up.
Seat belt height adjustment
1Release button
Press release button1 and move the
seat belt height adjuster upward or
downward.
Proper use of seat belts

Do not twist the belt when fastening.

Adjust seat belt so that the shoulder
portion is located as close as possible
to the middle of the shoulder (it should
not touch the neck). Never pass the
shoulder portion of the belt under your
arm. For this purpose, you can adjust
the height of the belt outlet
(
page 53).

Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips (over hip joint) and not
across the abdomen.

Place the seat backrest in a position
that is as upright as possible.

Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time.

Do not fasten a seat belt around a
person and another object at the same
time. When using a seat belt to secure
infant or toddler restraints or children
in booster seats, always follow the
child seat manufacturer’s instructions.

Check your seat belt periodically
during travel to make sure that it is
properly positioned.

Make sure the seat belt is always fitted
snugly. Take special care of this when
wearing loose clothing.