Rregardless of whether the front passenger
seat is occupied
R in certain vehicle rollovers, if the system
determines that air bag deployment can
offer additional protection to that provided
by the seat belt
Window curtain air bags : are not deployed
in impacts which do not exceed the system’s
deployment threshold.
Window curtain air bags : deploy in the area
indicated by the arrows.
Occupant Classification System
The Occupant Classification System (OCS) is
standard equipment in USA.
The OCS activates or deactivates the front
passenger front air bag automatically. The
respective status is based on the classified
occupant weight category determined by
weight sensor readings from the front
passenger seat.
The system does not deactivate
R the front passenger side impact air bag
R the window curtain air bag
R the Emergency Tensioning Devices (ETDs)
To be classified correctly, the front passenger
must sit
R with the seat belt properly fastened
R in a position that is as upright as possible
with the back against the seat backrest
R with the feet on the floor
If the occupant’s weight is transferred to
another object in the vehicle (e.g. by leaning
on armrests), the OCS may not be able to
properly approximate the occupant’s weight
category.
Furthermore, the occupant weight may
appear to increase or decrease due to the
following:
R objects hanging on the seat
R objects lodged underneath the seat
R objects stuffed between the seat and
middle console
R objects stuffed between the seat and door
R other passengers pushing on the seat
R objects applying pressure to the back of
the seat
Always make sure the seat has clearance
in all directions at all times.
If your seat, including the trim cover and
cushion, needs to be serviced in any way, take
the vehicle to an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Only seat accessories approved by
Mercedes-Benz may be used.
Both the driver and the front passenger
should always use the 42
indicator lamp as an indication of whether or
not the front passenger is properly
positioned.GWarning!
If the 42 indicator lamp
illuminates when an adult or someone larger
than a small individual is in the front
passenger seat, have the front passenger
reposition himself or herself in the seat until
the 42 indicator lamp goes out,
or check whether objects are caught under or
around the seat.
In the event of a collision, the air bag control
unit will not allow front passenger front air bag
deployment when the OCS has classified the
front passenger seat occupant as weighting
as much as or less than a typical 12-month-
old child in a standard child restraint or if the
front passenger seat is classified as being
empty.
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of the child, and secure child restraint with
the vehicle’s seat belt according to the child
seat manufacturer’s instructions.
GWarning!
When using a BabySmart™ compatible child
seat on the front passenger seat, the front
passenger front air bag will not deploy only if
the 42 indicator lamp remains
illuminated.
Please be sure to check the 42
indicator lamp every time you use a
BabySmart™ compatible child seat on the
front passenger seat. Should the
42 indicator lamp go out while
the restraint is installed, please check
installation. If the 42 indicator
lamp remains out, do not use the
BabySmart™ restraint to transport a child on
the front passenger seat until the system has
been repaired.
Special BabySmart™ compatible child seats,
designed for use with the Mercedes-Benz
system, are required for use with the
BabySmart™ air bag deactivation system.
Please contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center for information on availability. With
the special child seat installed properly, the
front passenger front air bag will not deploy.
The 42 indicator lamp : will be
illuminated, except with the SmartKey
removed from the starter switch or with the
starter switch in position 0.
The system does not deactivate
Rthe side impact air bag
Rthe window curtain air bag
Rthe Emergency Tensioning Device (ETD)
Self-test BabySmart™ without special
child seat installed
After turning the SmartKey in the starter
switch to position 1 or 2 or pressing the
KEYLESS-GO start/stop button once or
twice, the 42 indicator lamp
comes on for approximately 6 seconds and
then goes out.
If the 42 indicator lamp should
not come on or is continuously lit, the system
is not functioning. You must see an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center before
seating any child on the front passenger seat.
More information can be found in the
“Practical hints” section (Y page 305).
GWarning!
Do not place powered-on laptops, mobile
phones, electronic tags such as those used in
ski passes and like electronic devices on the
front passenger seat. Signals from such
devices may interfere with the BabySmart™
air bag deactivation system. Such signal
interference may cause the 42
indicator lamp not to come on during self-test.
The SRS indicator lamp + and/or the
42 indicator lamp could be
continuously lit, indicating that the system is
not functioning. The front passenger front air
bag could deploy inadvertently or fail to
deploy in an accident.
GWarning!
The BabySmart™ air bag deactivation system
will ONLY work with a special child seat
designed to operate with it. It will not work
with child seats which are not BabySmart™
compatible.
Never place anything between seat cushion
and child seat (e.g. pillow), since it reduces
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way than as described in this section, as
that could result in serious injuries in case
of an accident.
R Each occupant should wear their seat belt
at all times, because seat belts help reduce
the likelihood of and potential severity of
injuries in accidents, including rollovers.
The integrated restraint system includes
SRS (driver front air bag, front passenger
front air bag, side impact air bags, window
curtain air bags for door windows),
Emergency Tensioning Devices (ETDs),
seat belt force limiters, and front seat knee
bolsters.
The system is designed to enhance the
protection offered to properly belted
occupants in certain frontal (front air bags
and ETDs) and side (side impact air bags,
window curtain air bags, and ETDs) impacts
which exceed preset deployment
thresholds and in certain rollovers (window
curtain air bags and ETDs).
R Never wear the shoulder belt under your
arm, against your neck or off your shoulder.
In a frontal crash, your body would move
too far forward. That would increase the
chance of head and neck injuries. The seat
belt would also apply too much force to the
ribs or abdomen, which could severely
injure internal organs such as your liver or
spleen.
Adjust the seat belt so that the shoulder
section 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.
R Position the lap belt as low as possible on
your hips and not across the abdomen. If
the lap belt is positioned across your
abdomen, it could cause serious injuries in
a crash.
R Never wear seat belts over rigid or
breakable objects in or on your clothing,such as eyeglasses, pens, keys etc., as
these might cause injuries.
R Make sure the seat belt is always fitted
snugly. Take special care of this when
wearing loose clothing.
R Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time. Do not fasten a seat belt
around a person and another person or
other objects at the same time.
R Seat belts should not be worn twisted. In a
crash, you would not have the full width of
the seat belt to distribute impact forces.
The twisted seat belt against your body
could cause injuries.
R Pregnant women should also always use a
lap/shoulder belt. The lap belt portion
should be positioned as low as possible on
the hips to avoid any possible pressure on
the abdomen.
R Place the seat backrest in a position that is
as upright as possible.
R Check your seat belt during travel to make
sure it is properly positioned.
R Never place your feet on the instrument
panel, dashboard, or on the seat. Always
keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.
R When using a seat belt to secure infant
restraints, toddler restraints, or children in
booster seats, always follow the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions.GWarning!
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 mechanism.
This could damage the seat belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to seat
belts. This could impair the effectiveness of
the seat belts.
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The PRE-SAFE®
system takes preventive
measures to better protect the occupants
from the possibility of personal injuries in the
following hazardous situations:
R emergency braking maneuvers with the
Brake Assist System (BAS) ( Y page 63)
activated
R critical dynamic driving situations, e.g.
when the vehicle has been caused to
understeer or oversteer because it has
exceeded its physical limitations or in case
of evasive steering maneuvers at speeds
above approximately 85 mph (140 km/h)
PRE-SAFE ®
takes the following measures
when it is activated:
R The front seat belts are pre-tensioned
automatically.
R Vehicles with front passenger seat memory
function: If the passenger seat is in an
unfavorable position, the seat will be
adjusted to a position that seeks to better
protect the occupant.
R If the vehicle is in a critical dynamic driving
situation, the door windows close, except
for a minimal gap that remains open.
R Vehicles with power tilt/sliding sunroof: If
the vehicle is in a critical dynamic driving
situation, the tilt/sliding sunroof also
closes, except for a minimal gap that
remains open.
If the closing procedure of any of these
elements is blocked, it will stop and open
slightly.
Once the hazardous situation no longer exists
and an accident has been avoided, the seat
belt pre-tensioning is deactivated. All of the
PRE-SAFE ®
settings can be re-adjusted
following the critical driving event.
If the seat belts do not release:XAdjust the seat backrest or seat slightly to
the rear until the seat belt tension is
reduced.
The locking mechanism releases.! When moving the seats, make sure there
are no items in the footwell or behind the
seats. Otherwise, you could damage the
seats and/or the items.
For information on the seat belt adjustment
function as an integrated comfort feature of
PRE-SAFE ®
, see ( Y page 51).
NECK-PRO active front head
restraints
The NECK-PRO active front head restraints
are intended to offer the driver and front
passenger increased protection from
whiplash-type injuries. In the event of a rear-
end collision, the NECK-PRO active front head
restraints on the front seats are designed to
move forward in the direction of travel. They
thus provide the head with increased support
earlier on in the collision sequence. The
NECK-PRO active front head restraints will
move forward whether the seats are occupied
or not.
GWarning!
Do not attach any objects (e.g. hangers) to the
head restraint posts. Otherwise, the NECK-
PRO active front head restraints may not be
able to function properly or offer the intended
degree of protection they were designed for
in the event of a rear-end collision.
GWarning!
Only use seat or head restraint covers which
have been tested and approved by Mercedes-
Benz for your vehicle model.
Using other seat or head restraint covers may
interfere with or prevent the activation of the
NECK-PRO active front head restraints and/
or the deployment of the front side impact air
bags.
Contact an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
for availability.
When the NECK-PRO active front head
restraints have been triggered in an accident,
the NECK-PRO active front head restraints
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XInstall a LATCH-type child seat according
to the manufacturer’s instructions.
A rigid connection between the child seat
and the body of the vehicle is established.
XMake sure that the seat belt for the rear
center seat can operate freely with a child
seat installed.
Child safety
Child safety locks
GObserve Safety notes, see page 55.GWarning!
Children could open a rear door from the
inside. This may cause serious personal injury
or an accident. Therefore, secure the rear
doors with the child safety locks whenever
children are riding in the back seats of the
vehicle.
The child safety locks on the rear doors
enable you to secure each rear door
individually. You cannot open a secured rear
door from the inside. You can open the rear
door from the outside when the vehicle is
unlocked.
XSecuring: Press the lever down in direction
of arrow ;.
XCheck to make sure the child safety locks
are working properly.
XReleasing: Press the lever up in direction
of arrow :.
Override switch
GObserve Safety notes, see page 55.
With the override switch you can disable the
rear door window switches in the rear door
panels. This can be useful, for instance, when
you have children riding in the rear passenger
compartment.
GWarning!
Activate the override switch when children
are riding in the back seats of the vehicle. The
children may otherwise injure themselves,
e.g. by becoming trapped in the rear door
window opening.
XActivating: Press override switch :.
The switch engages in recessed position.
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The rear door windows can no longer be
operated using the respective switch
located in the rear doors.
You can still operate the rear door windows
using the switches located on the door
control panel of the driver’s door.
XDeactivating: Press override switch :
again.
The switch disengages from its recessed
position back to its original position.
The rear door windows can be operated
again using the respective switch located
in the rear doors.
For more information on power windows, see
the “Controls in detail” section
(Y page 100).
Panic alarm
Example illustration: SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
XActivating: Press and hold !
button : for at least 1 second.
An audible alarm and flashing exterior
lamps will operate briefly.
XDeactivating: Press ! button : again.
or
XInsert the SmartKey into the starter switch.
or
XPress the KEYLESS-GO start/stop button.
The SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO must be
inside the vehicle.
iUSA only:
This device complies with Part 15 of the
FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause harmful
interference, and
2. this device must accept any
interference received, including
interference that may cause undesired
operation.
Any unauthorized modification to this
device could void the user’s authority to
operate the equipment.
iCanada only:
This device complies with RSS-210 of
Industry Canada. Operation is subject to
the following two conditions:
1.This device may not cause interference,
and
2. this device must accept any
interference received, including
interference that may cause undesired
operation of the device.
Any unauthorized modification to this
device could void the user’s authority to
operate the equipment.
Driving safety systems
Introduction
This section contains information about the
following driving safety systems:
RABS (Antilock Brake System)
RBAS (Brake Assist System)
REBP (Electronic Brake Proportioning)
RESP® (Electronic Stability Program)
iIn winter operation, the maximum
effectiveness of most of the driving
systems described in this section is only
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Vehicle equipment ..............................70
Locking and unlocking .......................70
Starter switch positions .....................79
Seats ....................................................81
Multifunction steering wheel .............86
Mirrors .................................................89
Memory function .................................92
Lighting ................................................92
Wipers ..................................................98
Power windows .................................100
Driving and parking ..........................103
Automatic transmission ...................109
Transfer case ....................................117
Instrument cluster ............................117
Control system ..................................119
Driving systems ................................141
Overview of climate control sys-
tem functions and air vents .............165
Climate control .................................167
3-zone automatic climate control ...173
Rear window defroster .....................183
Power tilt/sliding sunroof ...............184
Loading and storing ..........................186
Useful features .................................194
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iAt low ambient temperatures, the exterior
rear view mirrors will be heated
automatically.
Auto-dimming rear view mirrors
The exterior rear view mirror on the driver’s
side and the interior rear view mirror will
respond automatically to glare when the
ignition is switched on and incoming light
from headlamps falls on the sensor in the
interior rear view mirror.
The rear view mirrors will not react if the
automatic transmission is set to reverse gear
R or the interior lighting is switched on.
GWarning!
The auto-dimming function does not react if
incoming light is not aimed directly at sensors
in the interior rear view mirror.
The interior rear view mirror and the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side do not
react, for example, when transporting cargo
which covers the rear window.
Light hitting the mirror(s) at certain angles
(incident light) could blind you. As a result,
you may not be able to observe traffic
conditions and could cause an accident.
Exterior rear view mirror parking
position
For more convenient parking, you can set the
passenger-side exterior rear view mirror so
that you can see the rear wheel and the road
curb.
Setting and storing the parking position
XSwitch on the ignition.XPress button =, to select the passenger-
side exterior rear view mirror.
XShift the automatic transmission into
reverse gear R.
The passenger-side exterior rear view
mirror moves to the preset parking
position.
XAdjust the passenger-side exterior rear
view mirror with adjustment button ; so
that you see the rear wheel and the road
curb.
The exterior rear view mirror parking
position is stored.
Calling up the parking position
XSwitch on the ignition.XPress button =, to select the passenger-
side exterior rear view mirror.
XShift the automatic transmission into
reverse gear R.
The passenger-side exterior rear view
mirror moves to the stored parking
position.
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