2008 MERCEDES-BENZ S550 4MATIC warning

80 Safety and Security
Driving safety systems
PRE-SAFE® Brake does not always clearly
interpret complex traffic situations. If a vi-
sual and/or acoustic warning is issued in
an uncritical driving situation, or if the ve-
hicle brakes lightly, you can interrupt the
PRE-SAFE
® Brake maneuver by

pressing down all the way on the accel-
erator or using kickdown

releasing the brake pedalThe PRE-SAFE
® Brake maneuver is termi-
nated immediately when

you avoid the obstacle by evasive
steering

you drive less than 9 mph (15 km/h)

an obstacle can no longer be identified
ahead of you

the system no longer senses the risk of
a collisionAfter a hard collision or damage to the
front of the vehicle from an accident, have
the settings and operation of the radar
sensors checked by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
iPRE-SAFE® Brake will remain passive while
DISTRONIC Plus* is switched on (
page 424).

84 Control systems
COMAND operating safety
Warning!G
Any alteration of electronic components or
software can cause malfunctions.
Radio, satellite radio* (USA only), amplifier,
CD/DVD changer, navigation module, tele-
phone and Voice Control Systems* are in-
terconnected. Therefore, if one of the
components is not operational, or has not
been removed/ replaced properly, the func-
tion of other components could be impaired.
Such conditions might seriously impair the
operating safety of your vehicle.
We recommend to have any service work on
electronic components carried out by an au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!G
In order to avoid distraction which could
lead to an accident, the driver should enter
system settings while the vehicle is at a
standstill, and operate the system only
when permitted by road, weather and traffic
conditions.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/ h), your car covers a
distance of 44 feet (approximately 14 m) ev-
ery second.
COMAND supplies you with information to
help you select your route more easily and
guide you conveniently and safely to your
destination. For safety reasons, we encour-
age the driver to stop the vehicle in a safe
place before answering or placing a call, or
consulting the COMAND screen to read nav-
igational maps, instructions, or downloaded
information.
Warning!G
While the navigation system provides direc-
tional assistance, the driver must remain fo-
cused on safe driving behavior, especially
attention to traffic and street signs, and
should utilize the system’s audio cues while
driving.
The navigation system does not supply any
information on stop signs, yield signs, traffic
regulations or traffic safety rules. Their ob-
servance always remains in the driver’s per-
sonal responsibility. DVD maps do not cover
all areas nor all routes within an area.

100 Control systems
COMAND FM/AM radio
Submenu overview
Warning!G
Please devote your attention first and fore-
most to the traffic situation you are in.
Before your journey, please familiarize your-
self with the radio functions.
Only use the COMAND when road and traffic
conditions permit you to do so. Otherwise
you could be involved in an accident in
which you or others could be injured.
iThe components and operating principles of
COMAND can be found on (
page 85).
Radio
(except Weather Band)Presets
(except Weather Band)Channel
(only Weather Band)FM or AM or WBSound
Station List
(in FM waveband only)AutostoreChannel listSwitch to FM wavebandTreble
Save StationPreset station listSwitch to AM wavebandBass
Frequency EntrySwitch to Weather BandBalance/Fader
Show Station Info
(in FM waveband only)3D Sound

105 Control systems
COMAND satellite radio* (USA only)
COMAND satellite radio* (USA only)
Submenu overview
Warning!G
Please devote your attention first and fore-
most to the traffic situation you are in.
Before your journey, please familiarize your-
self with the radio functions.
Only use the COMAND when road and traffic
conditions permit you to do so. Otherwise
you could be involved in an accident in
which you or others could be injured.
iThe components and operating principles of
COMAND can be found on (
page 85).
Sat Radio Presets Info Category Sound
Channel ListStation presets Show program infoSelect categoryTreble
Save ChannelBass
Channel Entry Balance/Fader
Service3D Sound

112 Control systems
COMAND audio CD/audio DVD/MP3
Safety precautions
Notes about MP3 mode
Permissible media for MP3 files

CD-R and CD-RW

DVD-R and DVD-RW

PCMCIA card (page 117)Permissible file systems

ISO9660/Joliet for CDs

UDF for DVDs

FAT16 or FAT32 for PCMCIA cards with
storage medium
Multisession CDs
For multisession CDs, the first session
type of the CD determines how COMAND
will process the CD.
For example, if the first session type is ac-
cording to the audio CD standard and the
second session type is according to the
data CD standard containing MP3 tracks,
COMAND will treat the CD as a conven-
tional audio CD. This means that it is only
possible to access the audio CD tracks.
Access to the MP3 tracks is not possible.
Similarly, if the first session type is accord-
ing to the data CD standard containing
MP3 tracks and the second session type is
according to the audio CD standard,
COMAND will treat the CD as a data CD.
Warning!G
COMAND is classified as a Class 1 laser
product. You must not open the casing.
There is a risk of exposure to invisible laser
radiation if you open the casing, or if the
casing is faulty or damaged.
COMAND does not contain any parts that
you are able to maintain yourself. For safety
reasons, all maintenance work must be car-
ried out by qualified technicians.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet (approximate-
ly 14 m) every second.
Warning!G
Only carry out the following when the vehi-
cle is stationary:

Inserting a disc

Ejecting a disc
There is a risk of accident by being distract-
ed from road and traffic conditions if you
load a CD/DVD while the vehicle is in mo-
tion.

115 Control systems
COMAND audio CD/audio DVD/MP3
Notes about handling CDs/DVDs

Only hold discs by the edge.

Handle discs carefully to prevent play-
back problems.

Avoid getting scratches, fingerprints
and dust on discs.

Clean discs from time to time with a
commercially-available cleaning cloth.
Do not wipe them with a circular mo-
tion, but only in straight lines from the
center outwards.

Only use a pen designed for such a pur-
pose to label discs.

Place discs back in their boxes after
use.

Protect discs from heat and direct sun-
light.
Inserting CDs and DVDs !Do not affix stickers or labels to the discs.
These could peel away and damage COMAND.
COMAND is designed to hold discs which com-
ply with the IEC 60908 standard. You can there-
fore only use discs with a maximum thickness of
1.3 mm.
If you insert thicker discs, e.g. those that contain
data on both sides (DVD on one side and audio
data on the other), they cannot be ejected and
can damage COMAND.
Do not use discs with an 8-cm diameter, even if
they have an adapter.
Only use round discs with a 12-cm diameter.
Warning!G
Only insert a CD or DVD when the vehicle is
stationary. There is a risk of accident by be-
ing distracted from road and traffic condi-
tions if you load a CD/DVD while the vehicle
is in motion.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet (approximate-
ly 14 m) every second.
iIf the CD/DVD has a printed side, this must
face upwards when the CD/DVD is inserted. If
neither side is printed, the side to be played
should face downwards.

117 Control systems
COMAND audio CD/audio DVD/MP3
Inserting a PCMCIA card
1Slot for PCMCIA card
Insert PCMCIA card into slot 1.
The side with the contact must point
towards the slot.If the PCMCIA card contains a storage
medium with MP3 tracks, COMAND
switches to MP3 mode.
Ejecting CDs and DVDs Ejecting from the DVD changer
1Disc slot
2Magazine tray buttons 1 – 6
3Eject button (all discs)
Ejecting one disc: Press desired mag-
azine tray button 2.
Take disc out of slot 1.
If you do not take the disc out of
slot1, the DVD changer will draw it
back automatically in approximately
15 seconds.
iCOMAND supports commercially available
PCMCIA cards or PCMCIA card adapters with
storage media that may not be designed for the
temperatures which occur in the vehicle. You
should therefore remove the PCMCIA card from
the vehicle when not in use since extreme tem-
peratures could damage these devices.
Warning!G
Only eject a disc when the vehicle is station-
ary. You may otherwise be distracted from
the traffic conditions and could cause an ac-
cident.
iIf you eject one disc while playing another
disc, the DVD changer interrupts playback. Play-
back continues once the disc has been ejected.


124 Control systems
COMAND video DVD (USA only)
Depending on your vehicle’s production
date the COMAND video DVD function may
not be available.Automatic picture fade-out
If a video DVD is playing when the vehicle
is shifted from P into N, D or R the picture
is faded out automatically and the follow-
ing message appears in the display: “In or-
der not to distract driver, picture is faded
out while the vehicle is in motion”.
When the vehicle is shifted back intoP, the
picture comes on again.
Notes about video DVD operation
COMAND can playback commercially
available, prerecorded video DVDs that
bear the following label. You will usually
find the label on the DVD booklet, the inlay,
or the DVD itself.Some DVDs may not comply with the
NTSC or PAL TV playback standards.
Sound, picture and other playback prob-
lems may occur when you play such DVDs.
COMAND can playback video DVDs meet-
ing the following requirements:

Correct regional code

NTSC or PAL TV standard
The appropriate information is usually giv-
en either on the DVD or the DVD box. The
factory setting of COMAND is regional
code 1. The setting can be changed at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center. This
will allow you to playback video DVDs with
other regional codes, as long as they com-
ply with the NTSC or PAL TV standard.
Warning!G
COMAND is classified as a Class 1 laser
product. You must not open the casing.
There is a risk of exposure to invisible laser
radiation if you open the casing, or if the
casing is faulty or damaged.
COMAND does not contain any parts that
you are able to maintain yourself. For safety
reasons, all maintenance work must be car-
ried out by qualified technicians.
iVideo DVDs differ from recordable DVD-R
and DVD-RW discs.
iThere may be playback problems when play-
ing copied DVDs.
There is a large variety of discs, disc-writing soft-
ware and writers available. This variety means
that there is no guarantee that the system will be
able to play discs that you have written/copied
yourself.