2011 MERCEDES-BENZ E-CLASS SALOON warning light

The vehicle/trailer combination:
R
is heavier
R is restricted in its acceleration and gradi-
ent-climbing capability
R has an increased braking distance
R is affected more by strong crosswinds
R demands more sensitive steering
R has a larger turning circle
As a result, the handling characteristics may
be impaired and you may lose control of the
vehicle. This could lead to an accident with
serious or even fatal injuries.
When towing a trailer, always adjust your
speed to the current road and weather con-
ditions. Do not exceed the maximum permis-
sible speed for your vehicle/trailer combina-
tion. G
WARNING
Never depress the brake pedal continuously
while the vehicle is in motion, e.g. never cause
the brakes to rub by applying constant slight
pedal pressure. This causes the brake system
to overheat, increases the braking distance
and can lead to the brakes failing completely. G
WARNING
On no account should you attempt to draw the
vehicle/trailer combination out by increasing
speed. G
WARNING
If you exceed the maximum noseweight when
using a carrier system on the ball coupling:
R the carrier system may be thrown around.
R the ball coupling and the carrier system
may become detached from the vehicle.
As a result, you may injure others or cause an
accident.
Do not exceed the maximum noseweight.
When driving with a loaded carrier system,
always adjust your driving style to the prevail- ing road, traffic and weather conditions and
drive particularly carefully.
You can use carrier systems, e.g. bicycle
racks or load-bearing implements, on the ball
coupling. The maximum noseweight of
75 kg applies when using carrier systems on
the ball coupling.
General notes i
When towing a trailer, set the tyre pres-
sure on the rear axle of the towing vehicle
for a maximum load; see the tyre pressure
table in the fuel filler flap (Y page 365).
You will find installation dimensions and loads
in the "Technical data" section
(Y page 395).
The maximum noseweight of the trailer draw-
bar on the ball coupling is 84 kg 21
. However,
the actual noseweight must not exceed the
value given on the trailer tow hitch or trailer
identification plates. The lowest weight
applies.
! Use a drawbar noseweight as close as
possible to the maximum permissible nose-
weight. Do not use a noseweight of less
than 50kg, otherwise the trailer may come
loose.
Note that the payload and the rear axle load
are reduced by the actual payload.
Please note that when towing a trailer, PARK-
TRONIC (Y page 200), parking guidance
(Y page 203) and Blind Spot Assist
(Y page 212) are only available with limita-
tions, or not at all.
i On vehicles without level control, the
height of the ball coupling will alter accord-
ing to the load placed on the vehicle. If nec-
essary, use a trailer with a height-adjusta-
ble drawbar.
21 Missing values for the E300 model were not available at the time of going to print. 222
Towing
atrailerDriving an d parking

X
Establish the electrical connection
between the vehicle and the trailer.
X Check tha tthe trailer lighting system is
working. Decoupling
atrailer G
WARNING
As soon as you raise the trailer drawbar, the
unladen vehicle rises slightly. The vehicle then
lowers to driving level.
Make sure tha tnobody is in the vicinity of the
wheel arch or the underbody. You could oth-
erwise trap yourself or others. G
WARNING
The vehicle is lowered as soon as you discon-
nect the trailer cable. Make sure that nobody
is in the vicinity of the wheel arch or the
underbody. You could otherwise trap yourself
or others.
As soon as you decouple the trailer, the unla-
den vehicle rises slightly. Make sure that you
or others are not injured in the process.
! Do not disconnect a trailer with an
engaged overrun brake. Otherwise, your
vehicle could be damaged by the rebound-
ing of the overrun brake.
X Make sure that the transmission is in posi-
tion P.
X Apply the parking brake.
X Secure the trailer against rolling away.
X Remove the trailer cable and decouple the
trailer. Folding in the ball coupling
i Fold the ball coupling back in if you are
not using the trailer tow hitch. G
WARNING
Make sure that no persons or animals are in
the pivoting range of the ball coupling. Other-
wise, they could be injured. X
Place the protective cap on the ball cou-
pling.
The release wheel is located behind the left-
hand side trim panel in the boot/luggage
compartment. Saloon
Estate
X
To open the cover (Saloon): push down
luggage net ;.
X Turn handle :anti-clockwise and fold
down cover =.
X To open the cover (Estate): pull han-
dle :in the direction of the arrow and fold
down cover ;. Towing
atrailer
225Driving an d parking Z

Menus and submenus
Menu overview
The number of menus show ndepends on the optional equipment in the vehicle. Function
:
Trip (Y
page 235)menu ;
Navi menu (navigation instructions) (Y
page 236)=
Audio menu (Y
page 237) ?
Tel menu (telephone) (Y
page 239)A
Assist. menu (assistance) (Y
page 240)B
Serv. (Y
page 242)menu
R calls up display messages ( Ypage 253)
R tyre pressure loss warning (Y page 367) or checks the tyre pressure electron-
ically (Y page 368)
R ASSYST PLUS service interval display (Y page 325)C
Settings menu (Y
page 243) D
AMG menu in AMG vehicles (Y
page 249)The
Audio ,
Navi and
Tel menus differ slightly in vehicles with an audio system and in vehicles
with COMAND APS.T he examples given in this Owner's Manual apply to vehicles equipped
with COMAND APS. 234
Menus and submenusOn-board computer and displays

X
Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press 9or: to select Speed Lim.
Asst. .
X Press a.
The multifunction display shows Speed
Limit Assist.
X Press :.
The curren tselection is displayed.
X To activate or deactivate: pressa.
If Speed Limit Assist is operational and the
message function is activated, the multifunc-
tion display shows the Äsymbol when the
ignition is switched on.
Showing the distance display This function is only available with DIS-
TRONIC PLUS.
X
Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press the 9or: button to select
Distance display .
X Press a.
The DISTRONIC PLUS distance display
(Y page 191) appears in the multifunction
display.
Deactivating/activating ESP ®G
WARNING
If the ä warning lamp in the instrument
cluster flashes, proceed as follows:
R do not deactivate ESP ®
under any circum-
stances.
R only depress the accelerator pedal as far as
necessary when pulling away.
R adapt your driving style to suit the prevail-
ing road and weather conditions.
Otherwise, the vehicle could skid.
ESP ®
cannot reduce the risk of an acciden tif
you drive too fast. ESP ®
cannot override the
laws of physics. Activating/deactivatin
gESP®
on AMG vehi-
cles (Y page 73).
For further information about ESP ®
, see
(Y page 72).
X Start the engine.
X Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press the 9or: button to select
ESP .
X Press the abutton.
X To deactivate: pressaagain.
The å warning lamp in the instrument
cluster comes on. G
WARNING
If the å warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up when the engine is running,
ESP ®
is deactivated or is unavailable due to a
malfunction. The risk that your vehicle may
start to skid then increases in certain situa-
tions.
Always adap tyour driving style to the prevail-
ing road and weather conditions.
X To activate: pressaagain.
The å warning lamp in the instrument
cluster goes out.
Activating/deactivating the PRE-SAFE ®
Brake PRE-SAFE
®
Brake is only available in vehicles
with DISTRONIC PLUS.
X Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press 9or: to select PRE-SAFE Brake .
X Press the abutton.
The current selection is displayed.
X To activate/deactivate: pressa
again.
When PRE-SAFE ®
Brake (Y page 75) is acti-
vated, the multifunction display shows the Menus and submenus
241On-board computer and displays Z

Ä
symbol as long as the HOLD function is
not activated (Y page 194).
Vehicles with Parking Guidance: if PARK-
TRONIC is activated and you are driving at a
speed under 35 km/h, the jParking Guid-
ance symbol is shown instead of the Ä
symbol.
Activating/deactivating ATTENTION
ASSIST X
Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press the 9or: button to select
Attention Asst. .
X Press a.
The current selection is displayed.
X To activate/deactivate: pressa
again.
When ATTENTION ASSIST (Y page 207) is
activated, the Àsymbol appears in the
multifunction display when the ignition is on.
Activating/deactivating Blind Spot
Assist You can use the
Blind Spot Asst. function
to activate or deactivate Blind Spot Assist
(Y page 212) or Active Blind Spot Assist
(Y page 216).
X Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press 9or: to select Blind Spot
Asst. .
X Press a.
If the function is activated, the monitored
areas in the multifunction display light up
red.
X To activate/deactivate: pressa
again.
Activating/deactivating Lane Keeping
Assist You can use the
Lane Keep. Asst. function
to activate/deactivate Lane Keeping Assist (Y
page 214) or Active Lane Keeping Assist
(Y page 218).
X Press =or; on the steering wheel
to select the Assist. menu.
X Press 9or: to select Lane Keep.
Asst. .
X Press a.
If the function is activated, the lane marking
symbol in the multifunction display lights
up red.
X To activate/deactivate: pressa
again.
When Lane Keeping Assist or Active Lane
Keeping Assist is activated, the Ãsymbol
appears in the multifunction display when the
ignition is on. Service menu
In the
Service menu, you have the following
options:
R calling up display messages (Y page 253)
R restarting the tyre pressure loss warning
system (Y page 367) or checking the tyre
pressure electronically (Y page 368)
R calling up a service due date
(Y page 325) 242
Menus and submenusOn-board computer and displays

X
Press the =or; button on the steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Vehicle submenu.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Auto. door lock function.
When the Auto. door locks function is
activated, the vehicle doors are displayed
in red in the multifunction display.
X Press the abutton to save the setting.
Activating/deactivating the acoustic
locking confirmation
If you activate the Acoustic Lock function,
an audible signal sounds depending on the
vehicle's date of manufacture:
R when locking
or
R once when unlocking and three times when
locking
X Press the =or; button on the steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Vehicle submenu.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Acoustic Lock function.
If the Acoustic Lock function is activated,
the & symbol in the multifunction dis-
play lights up red.
X Press the abutton to save the setting.
Activating/deactivating the radar sensor
system
i You must deactivate the radar sensor sys-
tem in certain countries and near radio
telescope facilities. For further informa-
tion, see (Y page 398).
Vehicles with a navigation system: the radar
sensor system is deactivated automatically if
you are close to radio telescope facilities. The following systems are switched off when
the radar sensor system is deactivated:
R
DISTRONIC PLUS (Y page 185)
R BAS PLUS (Y page 70)
R PRE-SAFE ®
Brake (Y page 75)
R Blind Spot Assist (Y page 212)
R Active Blind Spot Assist (Y page 216)
X Press the =or; button on the steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Vehicle submenu.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
X Press the 9or: button to select
Radar sensor (See Owner's Man.): .
You will see the selected setting: on or
off .
X Press the abutton to save the setting.
Heating menu Auxiliary heating departure time
This function is only available on vehicles with
auxiliary heating (Y
page 145).
In the Heating submenu, you can select a
stored departure time or change a departure
time.
The auxiliary heating timer function calcu-
lates the switch-on time according to the out-
side temperature so that the vehicle is pre-
heated by the departure time. When the
departure time is reached, the auxiliary heat-
ing continues to heat for a further five
minutes and then switches off. The auxiliary
heating adopts the THERMATIC or
THERMOTRONIC temperature setting.
You can switch off the auxiliary heating by
using the remote control or the auxiliary heat-
ing button on the centre console. G
WARNING
Exhaust fumes are produced when the auxili-
ary heating is in operation. Inhaling these
exhaust fumes can be poisonous. You should
therefore switch off the auxiliary heating in Menus and submenus
247On-board computer and displays
Z

confined spaces withou
tanextraction sys-
tem, e.g. a garage. G
WARNING
Whe noperating the auxiliary heating parts of
the vehicle can get very hot. Make sure that
the exhaust system does not under any cir-
cumstances come into contact with easily
ignitable material such as dry grass or fuels.
The material could otherwise ignite and set
the vehicle alight. Choose your parking spot
accordingly.
Operating the auxiliary heating is thus pro-
hibited at filling stations or when your vehicle
is being refuelled. You must therefore switch
off the auxiliary heating at filling stations.
! Operating the auxiliary heating/ventila-
tion draws on the vehicle battery. After you
have heated or ventilated the vehicle a
maximum of two times, drive for a longer
distance.
i Switch the auxiliary heating on regularly
once a month for about ten minutes.
Selecting the departure time or deactivat-
ing a selected departure time
X Press the =or; buttononthe steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Heating submenu.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
You will see the selected setting.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
X Press the :or9 button to select
one of the three departure times or Timeroff (no timer active).
X Press the abutton to confirm.
When a departure time is selected, the yel-
low indicator lamp lights up on the auxiliary
heating button. Changing the departure time
X
Press the =or; button on the steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Heating submenu.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
You will see the selected setting.
X Press the abutton to confirm.
X Press the :or9 button to select
Change A ,
B or
C .
X Press the abutton to confirm.
You can now change the departure time.
X Press the =or; button to select the
display to be changed: hours, minutes.
X Press the :or9 button to set the
selected display.
X Press the abutton to store the entry.
The yellow indicator lamp on the auxiliary
heating button lights up.
Convenience Activating/deactivating the EASY-
ENTRY/EXIT feature
You can use the
Easy Entry/Exit: function
to activate or deactivate the EASY ENTRY/
EXIT feature (Y page 115). G
WARNING
The steering wheel moves when the EASY-
ENTRY/EXIT feature is active. There is a risk
of occupants becoming trapped. Before acti-
vating the EASY-ENTRY/EXIT feature, make
sure that nobody can become trapped.
Do not leave children unsupervised in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child
restraint system. The children could open the
driver's door and thereby unintentionally acti-
vate the EASY-ENTRY/EXIT feature and
become trapped.
X Press the =or; button on the steer-
ing wheel to select the Settings menu.
X Press the :or9 button to select the
Convenience submenu.248
Menus and submenusOn-board computer and displays

Safety systems
Display messages Possible causes/consequences and
M Solutions
!÷
currently unavail‐
able See Owner's
Manual G
Risk of accident
ABS, ESP ®
, BAS, PRE-SAFE ®
, the HOLD function, hill start assist
and ESP ®
trailer stabilisation are temporarily not available.
The adaptive brake lights, BAS PLUS and PRE-SAFE ®
Brake may
also have failed.
In addition, the ä,åand! warning lamps light up in
the instrument cluster.
For example, the on-board voltage may be insufficient.
ATTENTION ASSIST is deactivated.
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheels could therefore lock if you
brake hard, for example.
X Drive on carefully.
If the display message disappears, the functions mentioned
above are available again.
If the display message continues to be displayed:
X Drive on carefully.
X Visit a qualified specialist workshop. !÷
inoperative See
Owner's Manual G
Risk of accident
ABS, ESP ®
, BAS, PRE-SAFE ®
, the HOLD function, hill start assist
and ESP ®
trailer stabilisation are not available due to a malfunc-
tion.
The adaptive brake lights, BAS PLUS and PRE-SAFE ®
Brake may
also have failed.
In addition, the J,ä,åand! warning lamps light
up in the instrument cluster.
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheels could therefore lock if you
brake hard, for example.
ATTENTION ASSIST is deactivated.
X Drive on carefully.
X Visit a qualified specialist workshop immediately. 254
Display messagesOn-board computer and displays