2008 MERCEDES-BENZ R350 belt

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.... 13
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 ................ 30
Center console ..................................... 31
Upper part ...................................... 31
Lower part ...................................... 32
Overhead control panel ........................ 33
Storage compartments ......................... 34
Door control panel................................ 36Getting started................................... 37
Unlocking ............................................. 38
Unlocking with the SmartKey ......... 38
Unlocking with KEYLESS-GO*......... 39
Starter switch positions .................. 39
Adjusting .............................................. 43
Seats .............................................. 43
Steering wheel ................................ 46
Mirrors ............................................ 48
Driving .................................................. 50
Fastening the seat belts ................. 50
Starting the engine ......................... 53
Parking brake ................................. 56
Driving off ....................................... 56
Switching on headlamps ................. 58
Turn signals .................................... 59
Windshield wipers ........................... 59
Rear window wiper/washer ............ 61
Problems while driving.................... 62
Parking and locking .............................. 64
Parking brake ................................. 65
Switching off headlamps................. 65
Turning off the engine..................... 66
Releasing seat belts........................ 67
Locking ........................................... 67

Contents
Safety and Security.......................... 69
Occupant safety................................... 70
Air bags .......................................... 72
Occupant Classification System ..... 77
Seat belts ....................................... 82
Active head restraints .................... 86
Rear head restraints ....................... 87
Children in the vehicle .................... 87
Blocking of rear door window
operation ........................................ 97
Panic alarm .......................................... 98
Activating ....................................... 98
Deactivating ................................... 98
Driving safety systems ......................... 99
ABS ................................................ 99
BAS .............................................. 101
ESP
®............................................. 101
EBP............................................... 105
Anti-theft systems.............................. 106
Immobilizer................................... 106
Anti-theft alarm system ................ 106
Controls in detail............................. 109
Locking and unlocking ....................... 110
SmartKey ..................................... 110
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* ...... 113
Checking the batteries in the
SmartKey or SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* .............................. 118
Loss of the SmartKey or
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* ...... 118
Opening the doors from the inside 118
Tailgate/Power tailgate*.............. 119
Automatic central locking ............ 126
Locking and unlocking from
the inside ..................................... 126
Seats ................................................. 128
Easy-entry/exit feature ................ 128
Lumbar support............................ 132
Multicontour seat* ....................... 132
Front seat active head restraints . 133
Rear seats .................................... 133
Seat heating* ............................... 139
Seat ventilation* (Canada only) ... 140Memory function* ............................. 141
Storing positions into memory ..... 142
Recalling positions from memory. 142
Lighting ............................................. 143
Exterior lamp switch .................... 143
Combination switch ..................... 147
Corner-illuminating front
fog lamps* ................................... 148
Hazard warning flasher ................ 150
Interior lighting ............................ 150
Door entry lamps ......................... 153
Cargo compartment lamp ............ 153
Instrument cluster ............................. 154
Adjusting instrument cluster
illumination .................................. 154
Resetting trip odometer ............... 155
Tachometer.................................. 155
Outside temperature indicator ..... 155

Contents
Replacing wiper blades ...................... 489
Front wiper blades ....................... 489
Rear wiper blade .......................... 490
Flat tire .............................................. 492
Preparing the vehicle.................... 492
Mounting the spare wheel ............ 493
Bleeding the fuel system
(diesel engine only) ............................ 502
Battery ............................................... 503
Disconnecting, removing,
reinstalling and reconnecting
the battery.................................... 505
Charging the battery .................... 510
Jump starting ..................................... 511
Towing the vehicle ............................. 513
Installing towing eye bolt.............. 515
Stranded vehicle .......................... 517
Fuses ................................................. 518
Fuse box in engine compartment . 519
Fuse box in cargo compartment ... 519
Fuse box in passenger
compartment................................ 520
Emergency engine shut-down ...... 520
Technical data................................. 521
Parts service ...................................... 522
Warranty coverage............................. 523
Loss of Service and Warranty
Information Booklet ..................... 523
Identification labels ........................... 524
Layout of poly-V-belt drive ................. 526
R 320 CDI 4MATIC ....................... 526
R 350, R 350 4MATIC,
R 550 4MATIC .............................. 526
Engine................................................ 527
Rims and tires.................................... 529
Same size tires ............................. 530
Spare wheel ................................. 532
Electrical system ............................... 533
Main Dimensions ............................... 534
Weights.............................................. 535Fuels, coolants, lubricants, etc. ......... 536
Capacities .................................... 536
Engine oils ................................... 538
Engine oil additives ...................... 538
Air conditioning refrigerant .......... 538
Brake fluid.................................... 539
Premium unleaded gasoline
(gasoline engine).......................... 539
Fuel requirements ........................ 540
Gasoline additives
(gasoline engine).......................... 540
Coolants ...................................... 541
Windshield washer system and
headlamp cleaning system*......... 544
Index................................................. 545

29 At a glance
Instrument cluster
ItemPage
8Multifunction display with:

Trip odometer155

Main odometer157
9Tachometer with:
420
1Supplemental
Restraint System
(SRS) indicator lamp70,
424
?Engine malfunction in-
dicator lamp,
USA only417
±Engine malfunction in-
dicator lamp,
Canada only417
ItemPage
AHigh beam headlamp
indicator lamp147
qPreglow indicator
lamp153
aFuel gauge with:
Fuel tank reserve warning
lamp424
4Fuel filler flap indica-
tor: The fuel filler flap
is located on the rear
right-hand side352
1Vehicles with diesel engine only.
ItemPage
bMultifunction display with:

Outside temperature
indicator or digital
speedometer (depending
on selected setting in the
control system)157,
175

Transmission position
indicator194

Gear range indicator199

Program mode indicator200

Distance warning function
indicator* (Canada only)275

Rear window wiper
indicator61

Set speed for

Cruise control

Distronic*
(Canada only)
259
268

43 Getting started
Adjusting
Adjusting
Seats
Warning!G
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and
rear view mirror adjustments, as well as
fastening 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
back 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
abdomen 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.
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt (
page 50).
Observe the following points:

Adjust the seat backrest until your arms
are slightly angled when holding the
steering wheel.

Adjust the seat to a comfortable seating
position that still allows you to reach the
accelerator/brake pedal safely.
The position should be as far to the rear
as possible, consistent with ability to
properly operate controls.

Adjust 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
being 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.

50 Getting started
Driving
Fastening the seat belts
Warning!G
Make sure that absolutely no objects are
obstructing 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 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, even those sitting in the
rear and pregnant women.
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 82).
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 appropriate infant or
toddler restraint, or booster seat recom-
mended for the size and weight of the child.
For additional information, see “Children in
the vehicle” (
page 87).
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle and
the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint.

51 Getting started
Driving
1Seat belt outlet
2Latch plate
3Buckle
4Release button
With a smooth motion, pull the seat
belt out of seat belt outlet1.
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
abdomen 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 seat belt is properly posi-
tioned 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
correctly restrained with a separate seat
belt. Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time.
Warning!G
Read and observe the additional warning no-
tices printed in the “Safety and Security”
section (
page 74) and (page 82).


52 Getting started
Driving
Place the shoulder portion of the seat
belt across the top of your shoulder
and the lap portion across your hips.
Push latch plate2 into buckle3
(
page 51) until it clicks.
If necessary, tighten the lap portion of
the seat belt 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 seat belt when fasten-
ing.

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 seat belt under
your arm. For this purpose, you can
adjust the height of the seat belt outlet
(
page 52).

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 per-
son 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.
Warning!G
Do not pass seat belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.
Do not allow the seat belt to get caught in
the door or in the seat adjustment mecha-
nism. This could damage the seat belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to
seat belts. This could impair the effective-
ness of the belts.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this may
severely weaken them. In a crash, they may
not be able to provide adequate protection.
Damaged seat belts or seat belts that were
highly stressed in an accident must be
replaced. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.