587 Operation
Vehicle care
Engine cleaning
Prior to cleaning the engine compartment,
make sure to protect electrical compo-
nents and connectors from contact with
water and cleaning agents.
Corrosion protection, such as
MB Anticorrosion Wax, should be applied
to the engine compartment after every
engine cleaning. Before applying, all
control linkage bushings and joints should
be lubricated. The poly-V-belt and all pul-
leys 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.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
automatic climate control to air recir-
culation mode (
page 474).
If the vehicle is very dirty, prewash it be-
fore running it through the automatic car
wash.
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 prox-
imity, 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-scratching 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.
!Do not clean your vehicle in an automatic
touchless car wash which uses caustic spray.
Otherwise the caustic spray will damage the
paint or ornamental moldings.
!Make sure that the windshield wiper switch
is set to0 (
page 381). 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 dam-
age to the mirrors.
589 Operation
Vehicle care
Headlamps, tail lamps, side markers,
turn signal lenses
Use a mild car wash detergent, such as
Mercedes-Benz approved Car
Shampoo, with plenty of water.Cleaning the DISTRONIC Plus*/
PRE-SAFE
® Brake* system sensors
(USA only)
The sensors are integrated in the front
bumpers and cannot be seen from the out-
side.
1Sensor cover
2Bumper area near sensors
Switch off the ignition (page 344).
Use a mild car wash detergent, such as
Mercedes-Benz approved Car
Shampoo, with plenty of water and a
non-scratching cloth to clean sensor
cover1.
Clean a wide area of the bumpers sur-
rounding the sensor2.
Cleaning the Parktronic* system
sensors
1Parktronic system* sensors in front
bumper
!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.
!To prevent scratches or damage, never
apply strong force and only use a soft,
non-scratching cloth when cleaning the sensor
cover and/or bumper area near sensors. Do not
attempt to wipe dirty sensors and/or bumper
with a dry cloth or sponge.
590 Operation
Vehicle care
Use a mild car wash detergent, such as
Mercedes-Benz approved Car Sham-
poo, with plenty of water and a soft,
non-scratching cloth to clean
sensors1 on the bumpers.Cleaning the Park Assist* system
sensors (USA only)
The sensors are integrated in the front and
rear bumpers and cannot be seen from the
outside.
1Bumper area near sensors
Switch off the ignition (page 344).
Use a mild car wash detergent, such as
Mercedes-Benz approved Car Sham-
poo, with plenty of water and a soft,
non-scratching cloth to clean the
bumper area near sensors.
Cleaning the Dynamic Rear View
Monitor lens*
1Camera lens
!Do not apply strong pressure to the sensor
covers. Applying strong pressure may damage
the sensor covers.
Follow the instructions provided by the power
washer manufacturer on maintaining a distance
between the vehicle and the nozzle of the power
washer.
!To prevent scratches, never apply strong
force and only use a soft, non-scratching cloth
when cleaning the sensors. Do not attempt to
wipe dirty sensors with a dry cloth or sponge.
!To prevent scratches or damage to the sur-
face, never apply strong force and only use a
soft, non-scratching cloth when cleaning the
bumper area near sensors. Do not attempt to
wipe a dirty bumper with a dry cloth or sponge.
614 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Text messages
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Apply brake
to shift
from 'P'You have tried to shift the auto-
matic transmission to D, R or N
without stepping on the brake.Step on brake.
Child seat
in wrong position
See Oper. Manual
(Canada only)The child seat is not positioned
correctly.Fasten the seat in the correct position.
The sensor for the child seat is
malfunctioning.Have the sensor for child seat detection checked at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Cruise control
- - - mph
(USA only)
Cruise control
- - - km/h
(Canada only)You have tried to switch on
cruise control below a speed of
20 mph (30 km/h).Drive faster than 20 mph (30 km/h) and save the speed.
ESP® is switched off.Switch on ESP® (page 75).
The automatic transmission is in
position P, R or N.Shift the automatic transmission toD (page 399).
The system is overheated.Wait until the system cools down.
The vehicle is secured in place
by the electronic parking brake.Release electronic parking brake (page 395).
Cruise control
inoperativeCruise control is malfunction-
ing.Have cruise control checked by an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
615 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
DISTRONIC PLUS
currently unavailable
See Oper. ManualDISTRONIC Plus* is switched off and is
temporarily unavailable.
DISTRONIC Plus* is deactivated if:
the DISTRONIC Plus* cover in the radia-
tor grille is dirty
the radar sensors* do not sense any
other vehicles or objects, i.e. road sign
or similar to this, for a long time
the system is overheated
its function is impaired as a result of
heavy precipitation or fog
the battery voltage is insufficient
Clean the DISTRONIC Plus* cover in the radiator grille
(
page 589).
Restart the vehicle.
Try activating DISTRONIC Plus* again later.
Wait until the system cools down or the battery recovers.
DISTRONIC Plus* will be operational again without you needing to
restart the engine if:
the dirt (e.g. slush) loosens while you are driving
the system detects that the radar sensors* are fully available
again
the message in the multifunction display disappears
DISTRONIC Plus* is switched off because
the radar sensor system* is temporarily in-
operative due to electromagnetic interfer-
ence near television and radio transmitter
stations, toll stations, speed measuring sys-
tems, etc.Wait until the message in the multifunction display disappears.
DISTRONIC PLUS
inoperativeDISTRONIC Plus* is malfunctioning.
BAS Plus* and PRE-SAFE® Brake* are also
not available.
Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as pos-
sible.
622 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Next Service X
due in ... days
due in ... mls (km)Service X must be carried out in ... days or
after ... miles (kilometers) (
page 582).
Have the maintenance service carried out by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Only shift to
position 'P' when
vehicle is stationaryYou have tried to shift the automatic trans-
mission to P using the gear selector lever al-
though the vehicle is still in motion.Stop your vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so.
Shift the automatic transmission to park positionP.
Engage the electronic parking brake (page 395).
Park Assist
currently unavailable
See Oper. ManualPark Assist* is deactivated because the
area around the sensors* in the front or the
rear bumper (
page 590) is dirty.
Clean the front and rear bumper (page 590).
Park Assist* is deactivated because the
battery voltage is insufficient.Have the battery checked by an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Park Assist* is switched off because the ra-
dar sensor system* is temporarily inopera-
tive due to electromagnetic interference
near television and radio transmitter sta-
tions, toll stations, speed measuring sys-
tems, etc.Wait until the message in the multifunction display disappears.
Park Assist
inoperativePark Assist* is unavailable due to a mal-
function.Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as pos-
sible.
623 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
PRE-SAFE
inoperative
See Oper. ManualPRE-SAFE® itself has failed. All other occu-
pant safety systems, such as the air bags,
are still available.Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as pos-
sible.
Radar sensor
deactivated
See Oper. ManualYou attempt to activate DISTRONIC Plus*,
Park Assist* or PRE-SAFE® Brake* even
though you have switched off the radar sen-
sors* on the vehicle.
Check if the radar sensors* may be switched on (page 282).
Switch on the radar sensors* using the instrument cluster
control system.
Check tire pressures
and then restart
Run Flat Indicator
(Canada only)There was a warning message about a loss
in tire inflation pressure and the Run Flat In-
dicator has not been reactivated yet.Check and adjust tire inflation pressure as required
(
page 560).
Then reactivate the Run Flat Indicator (page 566).
Run Flat Indicator
inoperative
(Canada only)The Run Flat Indicator is malfunctioning.Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz dealer as soon as pos-
sible.
Service X
dueService X must be carried out (page 582).Have the maintenance service carried out by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Service X exceeded
by X days
by XXX mls (km)Service X must be carried within the next ...
or before you have driven ... miles (kilome-
ters) (
page 582).
Have the maintenance service carried out by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as possible.
624 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display Possible cause/consequencePossible solution
Shift to P or N
to start engineYou have attempted to start the engine
while the automatic transmission was set to
position R or D.Shift the automatic transmission to P or N (page 399).
Tire pressure
Check tiresThe pressure has fallen significantly in one
or more tires.Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding abrupt steering
and braking maneuvers. Observe the traffic situation around
you.
Check and adjust tire inflation pressure as required
(
page 560).
If necessary, change the wheel (page 686).
Reactivate the Run Flat Indicator after adjusting the tire infla-
tion pressure values (
page 566).
Tire pressure monitor
inoperativeThe Advanced TPMS* or a wheel sensor is
malfunctioning.Have the Advanced TPMS* checked by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!G
Do not drive with a flat tire. A flat tire affects
the ability to steer or brake the vehicle. You
may lose control of the vehicle. Continued
driving with a flat tire will cause excessive
heat build-up and possibly a fire.