Opening and closing
36
Tilt alarm sensor
The tilt of the vehicle is monitored. The alarm
system reacts, e.g., in case of an attempted
wheel theft or towing.
Interior motion sensor
In order for the interior motion sensor to func-
tion properly, the windows and glass sunroof
*
must be completely closed.
Avoiding unintentional alarms
The tilt alarm sensor and interior motion sensor
may be switched off at the same time. This pre-
vents unintentional alarms, e.g., in the following
situations:
>In two-level garages
>When transporting on car-carrying trains,
by sea or on a trailer
>When animals are to remain in the vehicle
Switching off tilt alarm sensor and
interior motion sensor
Press the button on the remote control
again as soon as the vehicle is locked.
The indicator lamp lights up briefly and then
flashes continuously. The tilt alarm sensor and
the interior motion sensor are switched off until
the next time the vehicle is unlocked and subse-
quently locked again.
Comfort Access*
Comfort Access allows you to access your vehi-
cle without having to hold the remote control in
your hand. It is sufficient to carry the remote
control with you, e.g., in your jacket pocket. The
vehicle automatically detects the associated
remote control in the immediate vicinity or in
the interior.
Comfort Access supports the following func-
tions:
>Unlocking/locking vehicle
>Comfort closing
>Opening luggage compartment lid/tailgate
separately>Sports Wagon: opening rear window sepa-
rately
>Starting engine
Functional requirement
>The vehicle or the luggage compartment
lid/tailgate can only be locked if the vehicle
detects that the remote control you are car-
rying is outside the vehicle.
>The next unlocking and locking cycle is not
possible until after approx. 2 seconds.
>The engine can only be started if the vehicle
detects that the remote control is located in
the vehicle.
Comparison with ordinary remote
control
You can control the functions mentioned previ-
ously with the Comfort Access or by pressing
the buttons on the remote control. Therefore,
please familiarize yourself with the information
on opening and closing beginning on page26
beforehand.
The special features when using Comfort
Access are described in the following.
Should a short delay occur when opening
or closing the windows or the glass sun-
roof, the system is checking whether a remote
control is located in the vehicle. Please repeat
opening or closing if necessary.<
Unlocking
Grasp a door handle fully, refer to arrow1, but
do not touch the surfaces, arrow2 or 3 when
doing so. This corresponds to pressing the
button.
Controls
43Reference
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Mobility
Adjusting
Sitting safely
The ideal sitting position can make a vital con-
tribution to relaxed, fatigue-free driving. In the
interaction with the safety belts, the head
restraints and the airbags, the sitting position
plays an important role in an accident. To
ensure that the safety systems operate with
optimal efficiency, we strongly urge you to
observe the instructions contained in the fol-
lowing section.
For additional information on transporting chil-
dren safely, refer to page53.
Airbags
Always maintain an adequate distance
between yourself and the airbags. Always
hold the steering wheel by its rim with hands at
the 9 o'clock and 3 o'clock positions, to mini-
mize the risk of injuries to your hands and arms
in the event of airbag deployment.
No one and nothing should come between the
airbags and the seat occupant.
Do not use the cover of the front airbag on the
front passenger side as a storage area. Make
sure that the front passenger is sitting correctly
and does not rest feet or legs on the instrument
panel, otherwise leg injuries can occur if the
front airbags are triggered.
Make sure that occupants do not rest their head
on the side or head airbags, otherwise injuries
can occur if the airbags are triggered.<
Even if you adhere to all the instructions, inju-
ries resulting from contact with airbags cannot
be fully excluded, depending on the circum-
stances. The ignition and inflation noise may
provoke a mild hearing loss in extremely sensi-
tive individuals. This effect is usually only tem-
porary.
For airbag locations and additional information
on airbags, refer to page93.
Head restraints
A correctly adjusted head restraint reduces the
risk of spinal injury in the event of an accident.
Adjust the head restraint so that its center
is approx. at ear level. Otherwise there is
increased danger of injury in the event of an
accident.<
Head restraints, refer to page46.
Safety belts
Before every drive, make sure that safety belts
are being worn at all of the occupied seats. Air-
bags complement the safety belt as an addi-
tional safety device, but they do not represent a
substitute.
Your vehicle is provided with five seats, which
are all equipped with a safety belt.
Never allow more than one person to
wear a single safety belt. Never allow
infants or small children to ride in a passenger's
lap. Make sure that the belt lies low around the
hips in the lap area and does not press on the
abdomen. The safety belt must not lie across
the neck, rub against sharp edges, be routed
over solid or breakable objects or be pinched.
Wear the safety belt without twisting, snugly
across the lap and shoulders, as close to the
body as possible. Otherwise the belt can slip
over the hips in the lap area in a frontal impact
and injure the abdomen. Avoid wearing clothing
that prevents the belt from fitting properly and
pull the belt in the upper body area periodically
to readjust the tension, in order to avoid a
reduction in the restraint of the safety belt.
Sports Wagon: if the center safety belt in the
rear is used, the larger backrest half must be
locked, refer to page117, otherwise the middle
safety belt has no restraining action.<
Safety belts, refer to page48.
Controls
45Reference
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Driving tips
Communications
Navigation
Entertainment
Mobility
Lumbar support*
You can also adjust the contour of the backrest
to obtain additional support in the lumbar
region.
The upper hips and spinal column receive sup-
plementary support to help you maintain a
relaxed, upright sitting position.
>Increase or decrease curvature: press front
or rear section of switch.
>Shift curvature up or down: press upper or
lowers section of switch.
Adjusting active backrest width*
First set a comfortable backrest width, see
above. Based on the backrest width set, the lat-
eral support is automatically adapted to the cur-
rent driving situation.
The adaptation of the backrest width and the
speed of the adjustment vary depending on the
program. You can select from among three pro-
grams from comfort to sport.
Button with three LEDs
Press button once per program:
>"Comfort": one LED
>"Normal": two LEDs
>"Sport": three LEDsTo deactivate: Press button longer.
Button with one LED
Press the button repeatedly until the desired
program is shown on the Control Display. The
LED in the button lights up.
To deactivate: Press button longer.
Easy entry/exit*
To facilitate entry and exit, the backrest width
temporarily opens all the way.
Seat, mirror and steering
wheel memory*
You can store and request two different posi-
tions for the driver's seat and passenger seat
*,
exterior rearview mirrors, and steering wheel.
Adjusting
46 The adjustment of the lumbar support is not
stored in the memory.
Storing
1.Switch on radio readiness or ignition, refer
to page57.
2.Set the desired seat, exterior mirror and
steering wheel positions.
3.Press the button:
The LED in the button lights up.
4.Press the desired memory button 1 or 2:
The LED goes out.
Requesting
Do not request a position from the mem-
ory while the vehicle is moving. There is a
risk of accident from unexpected movement of
the seat or steering wheel.<
Comfort mode
1.Open the driver's door after unlocking or
switch on radio readiness.
2.Briefly press the desired memory button1
or2.
The system cancels the adjustment procedure
when you briefly press one of the seat adjust-
ment switches or one of the memory buttons.
Safety feature
1.Close the driver's door and switch the igni-
tion on or off.
2.Press the desired memory button1 or2
and keep it pressed until the adjustment
process has been completed.
If the button was pressed inadvertently:
press the button again; the LED goes out.
Requesting with remote control
The last positions of the driver's seat, the exte-
rior rearview mirrors, and steering wheel are
stored for the remote control currently in use.
You can choose when the position is requested:
>Request when unlocking vehicle
>Request when opening driver's doorWhen using this feature, always make
sure that the footwell behind the driver's
seat is empty and unobstructed. Failure to do
so could cause injury to persons or damage to
objects behind the seat as a result of a rearward
movement of the seat.<
The system cancels the adjustment procedure
when you briefly press one of the seat adjust-
ment switches or one of the memory buttons.
Selecting automatic call-up
iDrive, for operating principle refer to page16.
1."Settings"
2."Door locks"
3."Last seat position auto."
The function for automatically calling up
the last seat position is switched on and is
stored for the remote control currently in use.
Switching off automatic call-up
Deactivate "Last seat position auto.".
Head restraints
A correctly adjusted head restraint reduces the
risk of spinal injury in the event of an accident.
Adjust the head restraint so that its center
is approximately at ear level. Otherwise
there is increased danger of injury in the event
of an accident. Only remove the head restraints
if no one will be sitting on the seat in question.
Reinstall the head restraints before transport-
ing passengers, as otherwise the head restraint
cannot provide its protective function.<
Controls
51Reference
At a glance
Driving tips
Communications
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Entertainment
Mobility
1Adjusting
2Switching to the other mirror or to the auto-
matic curb monitor
3Folding mirrors in and out
*
Storing the mirror positions, refer to Seat, mir-
ror and steering wheel memory on page45.
Adjusting manually
You can also adjust the mirrors manually by
pressing against the outer edges of their mirror
glass.
Folding mirrors in and out*
Pressing button3 allows you to fold mirrors
in and out up to a speed of approx. 20 mph/
30 km/h. This is advantageous, for example, in
car washes, narrow streets or for bringing mir-
r o rs t h a t h a v e b e e n m a n u a l ly f o l d e d in b a c k i n t o
the correct position. Mirrors that were folded in
are folded out automatically at a speed of
approx. 25 mph/40 km/h.
Before going through a car wash, fold the
mirrors in manually, or with button 3, oth-
erwise they could be damaged, depending on
the width of the car wash system.<
Automatic heating
Below a certain outdoor temperature, both
exterior mirrors are heated whenever the
engine is running or the ignition is switched on.
Tilting down passenger-side exterior
mirror – automatic curb monitor*
Activating
1.Slide switch into the driver's side mirror
position, arrow 1.
2.Shift into reverse or move selector lever into
position R.
The mirror glass tilts downward somewhat
on the passenger's side. This allows the
driver to see the area immediately adjacent
to the vehicle – such as a curb – when park-
ing, etc.
Deactivating
Slide switch into the passenger side mirror
position, arrow 2.
Interior rearview mirror
To reduce the dazzle effect of following vehi-
cles at night, turn the knob.
Adjusting
52
Interior and exterior mirrors,
automatic dimming feature*
This feature is controlled by two photocells in
the inside rearview mirror, one on the front and
one on the back.
For trouble-free operation, keep the photocells
clean and do not cover the area between the
interior rearview mirror and the windshield. Do
not attach stickers of any kind to the windshield
in front of the mirror, either.
Steering wheel
Adjusting
Do not adjust the steering wheel while the
vehicle is moving. There is a risk of acci-
dent as the result of unexpected movement.<
The steering wheel can be adjusted in four
directions.
Storing steering wheel positions, refer to Seat,
mirror and steering wheel memory on page45.
Easy entry/exit*
To facilitate entry and exit, the steering wheel
temporarily moves into the uppermost position.
Steering wheel heating*
Press the button.
When the steering wheel heater is operating,
the LED in the button lights up.
Controls
59Reference
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Mobility
4.Switch off the engine.
Transmission position P will be engaged:
>after approx. 30 seconds
>if you remove the remote control from the
ignition lock
Parking brake
The parking brake is primarily intended to pre-
vent the vehicle from rolling while parked; it
brakes the rear wheels.
Indicator lamp
The indicator lamp lights up, and a sig-
nal also sounds when starting off. The
parking brake is applied.
Indicator lamp for Canadian models.
Applying
The lever locks in position automatically.
Releasing
Pull slightly upwards, press the button and
lower the lever.
If exceptional circumstances should
make it necessary to apply the parking
brake while the vehicle is in motion, do not pull it
too firmly. In doing so, continuously press the
button of the parking brake lever. Otherwise,
too firm an application of the parking brake can
lock up the rear wheels and cause the rear of the
car to swerve.<
To prevent corrosion and one-sided brak-
ing action, occasionally apply the parking
brake lightly when the vehicle is slowly coming to a stop if the traffic conditions are suitable.
The brake lamps do not light up when the park-
ing brake is applied.<
Manual transmission
While shifting in the 5th/6th gear lane,
press the gearshift lever toward the right,
otherwise accidental shifting into the 3rd or 4th
gear could result in engine damage.<
Reverse gear
Select only when the vehicle is stationary.
When pressing the gearshift lever to the left,
overcome some resistance.
Automatic transmission with
Steptronic*
In addition to fully automatic operation, you can
also manually shift with the Steptronic, refer to
page61.
Transmission positions
P R N D M/S + –
Driving
60
Displays in instrument cluster
P R N D DS S1* to S6* M1 to M6
The transmission position is indicated, and in
the manual mode, the gear currently engaged.
Engaging transmission position
>Do not leave the transmission position P
until the engine is running: interlock.
>With the vehicle stationary, depress the
brake pedal before shifting out of P or N;
otherwise the shift command will not be
executed: shiftlock.
To prevent the vehicle from creeping
after you select a driving position,
maintain pressure on the brake pedal until
you are ready to start.<
Engaging N, D, R
Briefly press the selector lever in the desired
direction, beyond a resistance point if neces-
sary. Press button1 simultaneously out of P or
into R.
The engaged transmission position is also dis-
played on the selector lever.
The selector lever immediately returns to the
center position when released.
Engaging P
Press buttonP.
R Reverse
Select only when the vehicle is stationary.
P Park
Select only when the vehicle is stationary. The
rear wheels are locked.
P i s e n g a g e d a s s o o n a s y o u s w i t c h o f f t h e
engine unless N is engaged and with
Comfort Access, the remote control is inserted
in the ignition lock, refer to Before driving into a
car wash, page58.<
N Neutral
Can, for example, be engaged in automatic car
washes. The vehicle can roll.
N remains engaged even after the engine
is switched off whenever you leave the
remote control in the ignition lock. This function
is useful, for example, in automatic car washes,
refer to page58.<
D Drive, automatic position
Position for normal vehicle operation. All for-
ward gears are available.
Kick down
Kick down enables you to achieve maximum
performance.
Press the accelerator pedal beyond the
increased resistance at full throttle.