2011 MERCEDES-BENZ M-CLASS SUV trailer

Problem Possible causes/consequences and
M Solutions
!
The yellow AB
Swarning
lamp is lit while the
engine is running. G
Risk of accident
ABS is temporarily unavailable. Therefore, BAS ,BAS PLUS, ESP ®
,
EBD (electronic brake force distribution), PRE-SAFE ®
,
PRE-SAFE ®
Brake, the HOLD function, hil lstart assist, the adaptive
brake lights and ESP ®
trailer stabilisation, for example, are also
deactivated.
Self-diagnosi sisnot yet complete or the on-boar dvoltage ma ybe
insufficient ,for example.
The brake system con tinues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above .The wheels could therefor elock if you
brake hard ,for example.
ATTENTION ASSIS Tisdeactivated.
X Careful lydriv eonas uitable stretch of road, making slight steer-
ing movements, at aspeed above 20 km/h.
The functions mentioned above are available again when the
warning lamp goes out.
If the warning lamp is still on:
X Observe the additional display messages in the multifunction
display.
X Drive on carefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. !
The yello
wABS warning
lamp is lit while the
engine is running .A
warning tone also
sounds. G
Risk of accident
EBD is faulty. Therefore, ABS ,BAS, BAS PLUS, ESP ®
,P RE -SAFE ®
,
PRE-SAFE ®
Brake, the HOLD functi on,hills tart assist, the adaptive
brake lights and ESP ®
trai lers tabilisation, for example, are not
availabl eeither.
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above .The wheels could therefor elock if you
brake hard ,for example.
ATTENTION ASSIS Tisdeactivated.
X Observ ethe additiona ldisplay messages in the multifunction
display.
X Driv eonc arefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. Warnin
gand indicator lam psin the instrument cluster
287On-boardcomputera nd disp lays Z

Problem Possible causes/consequences and
M Solutions
J֌!
The red brake warning
lamp, the yellow ESP
®
and ESP ®
OFF warning
lamps and the yellow
AB Sw arning lamp are
lit while the engine is
running. G
Risk of accident
ABS and ESP ®
are malfunctioning. Therefore, BAS ,BAS PLUS,
EBD ,PRE-SAFE ®
,P RE-SAFE ®
Brake, the HOLD function, hill start
assist, the adaptive brake lights and ESP ®
trailer stabilisation, for
example, are not available either.
The brake syste mcontinue stofunction normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheel scould therefor elock if you
brake hard ,for example.
ATTENTION ASSIS Tisdeactivated.
X Observ ethe additiona ldisplay messages in the multifunction
display.
X Driv eonc arefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. ÷
The yello
wESP®
warn-
ing lamp flashes while
the vehicle is in motion. G
Risk of accident
ESP ®
or traction control has intervened because there is arisk of
skidding or at least one wheel has started to spin.
Cruise control or DISTRONIC PLU Sisd eactivated.
X Only depress the accelerator pedal as far as necessar ywhen
pulling away.
X Ac celerate more gently during the journey.
X Adapt your drivin gstyle to suit the road and weather conditio ns.
X Do not deactivate ESP ®
.
Exceptions: (Y page 63). å
The yello
wESP®
OFF
warning lamp is lit while
the engine is running. G
Risk of accident
ESP ®
and ESP ®
traile rstabilisatio nare deactivated. ESP ®
will not
stabilis ethe vehicle if it starts to skid or if awheel starts to spin.
X Reactivate ESP ®
.
For exceptions, see: (Y page 63).
X Adap tyour drivin gstyle to suit the road and weather conditio ns.
If ESP ®
cannot be activated:
X Have ESP ®
checked at aqualified specialist workshop. 288
Warnin
gand indicator lam psin the instru ment clusterOn-board computer and displays

Problem Possible causes/consequences and
M Solutions
֌
The yellow ESP
®
and
ESP ®
OFF warning
lamps ar elit while the
engine is running. G
Risk of accident
ESP ®
,B AS ,BAS PLUS, PRE-SAFE ®
,P RE-SAFE ®
Brake, the HOLD
function, hill start assist, the adaptive brake lights and ESP ®
trailer
stabilisatio nare not availabl edue to amalfunction .ESP ®
will not
stabilise the vehicl eifitstarts to skid or if awheel starts to spin.
The brake system con tinues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above.
ATTENTION ASSIST is deactivated.
X Observe the additional displa ymessages in the multifunction
display.
X Drive on carefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. ֌
The yellow ESP
®
and
ESP ®
OFF warning
lamps are lit while the
engine is running. G
Risk of accident
ESP ®
,B AS ,PRE-SAFE ®
,t he HOL Dfunction, hill start assis tand
ESP ®
trailer stabilisation are temporarily not available.
The adaptive brake lights ,BAS PLUS and PRE-SAFE ®
Brake may
also have failed.
ESP ®
will not stabilis ethe vehicle if it starts to skid or if awheel
starts to spin.
Self-diagnosis is not yet complete.
The brake system con tinues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above .The wheels could therefor elock if you
brake hard ,for example.
ATTENTIO NASSIST is deactivated.
X Carefully drive on asuitable stretc hofroad, makin gslight steer-
ing movements, at aspeed above 20 km/h.
The functions mentioned above are available again when the
warning lamp goes out.
If the warning lamp is still on:
X Observe the additional display messages in the multifunction
display.
X Drive on carefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. Warnin
gand indicator lam psin the instru ment cluster
289On-boardcomput er anddisplays Z

X
Use clear wate rand asoft clot htoclean
camera lens :.
! Do not clean the camera lens and the area
around the reversing camera with ahigh-
pressure cleaner.
Cleaning the trailer tow hitch The ball coupling must be cleaned if it
becomes dirty or corroded.
X Remove rust on the ball of the ball coupling,
e.g. with awire brush.
X Remove dirt with aclean, lint-free cloth or
ab rush.
! Do not clean th eball coupling with ahigh-
pressure cleaner .Donot use solvents. X
Afterc leaning, lightly oil or grease ball cou-
pling :.
X Check that the vehicle' strailer to whitch is
working properly.
! Observe the note on care provided by the
trailer manufacturer.
i You can also have the maintenance work
on the ball coupling and the trailer tow hitch
carried out by aqualified special istw ork-
shop. H
Environmenta
lnote
Dispose of oily and greasy cloths in an envi-
ronmentally-responsible manner. Interior care
Cleaning the display X
Before cleaning the display, make sure that
it is switched off and has cooled down.
X Clea nthe display surface usin gacommer-
cially-available microfibr ecloth and TFT/
LCD displa ycleaner.
X Dry the displa ysurface using adry micro-
fibre cloth.
! For cleaning, do not us eany of the fol-
lowing:
R alcohol-base dthinner or petrol
R abrasiv ecleaning agents
R commercially-available household clean-
ing agents
These may damage the displa ysurface. Do
not put pressure on the displa ysurface
when cleaning. This could lead to irrepara-
ble damage to the display.
Cleanin gNight View Assist Plus !
Never clean the camera lens. When clean-
ing the field of vision of the driving systems,
mak esure that you do not spray glass
cleaner on the camera lens. If the camera
lens is dirty, visit aqualified specialist work-
shop. X
Fold down the camera cover by recess :.328
CareMaintenance and care

R
the engine is not running.
R there is abrake syst emmalfunction.
R there isam alfunction in the power supply
or the vehicle' selectrical system.
The power assistance for the steering and the
brake forc ebooster do not work when the
engin eisnot running. You will need more
force to steer and brake, you may have to
depress the brake pedal with maximu mforce.
Before towin gaway ,make sure that the steer-
ing can be moved and is not locked.
If you tow or tow-star tanothe rvehicle, its
weight must not exceed the maximu mper-
missible gross vehicle weight of your vehicle. G
WARNING
The vehicle is braked when the HOL Dfunction
or DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Therefore,
deactivate HOLD and DISTRONIC PLUS if the
vehicle is to be towed.
It is better to have the vehicle transported
than to have it towed.
! You may tow the vehicle for amaximum
of 50 km. Atowing speed of 50 km/h must
not be exceeded.
For towin gdistances over 50 km, the entire
vehicle must be lifted up and transported.
! Make sure that the electric parkin gbrake
is released. If th eelectric parkin gbrake is
faulty, visit aqualified specialist workshop.
! Only secure the tow rope or towing bar to
the towing eyes. The vehicle may otherwise
be damaged.
! Do not use the towing eye for recovery,
as this could damage the vehicle. If in
doubt, recover the vehicle with acrane.
! When towing, pull awa yslowly and
smoothly. If the trac tivepower is too high,
the vehicles could be damaged.
! To tow vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, use
the key instead of the Star t/Stop button.
Th ea utomatic transmission may otherwise switch to position
Pwhen you open the
driver' sorfront-passenger door which
could damag ethe transmission.
! Vehicles with differential locks: make
sur ethe differential lock sare in automatic
mode. Th edifferential locks must not be
switched on by hand when towing the vehi-
cle. The transmission may otherwise be
damaged.
If the vehicle has suffered transmission dam-
age, have it transported on atransporter or
trailer.
Th ea utomatic transmission must be in posi-
tion Nwhen the vehicle is being towed.
The battery must be connected and charged.
Otherwise, you:
R cannot turn the key in the ignition lock to
position 2
R cannot shift the automatic transmission to
position N
i Before the vehicle is towed, switch off the
automatic locking feature (Y page 249).
You could otherwis ebelockedout when
pushing or towing the vehicle.
Deactivate tow-away protection
(Y page 69) before the vehicle is towed. Fitting/removing the towing eye
Fitting the towing eye Vehicles with
atrailer to whitch: if you intend
to use the vehicle for towing, fold out the ball
coupling and connect the towbar to it
(Y page 228).
X Remove the towing eye from the vehicle
tool kit (Y page 333).
The mountings for the removable towing eyes
are located in the bumpers. They are at the
front and at the rear ,under the covers. 350
Towing and tow-startingBreakdow
nassistance

X
To ope nthe cove ratthe front: press the
mark on cover :inw ards in the direction
of the arrow.
X To open the cover at the rear: insert a
flat ,blunt object into the cutout and lever
cover ;out of the bumper.
X Take cover :or; off the opening.
X Screw the towing eye in clockwise to the
stop and tighten it.
Removin gthe tow inge ye X
Loose nthe towing eye and unscrew it.
X Attach cover :or; to the bumper and
press until it engages.
X Plac ethe towing eye in the vehicle tool kit. Towing th
evehicle with both axles on
the ground
It is importan tthat you observe the safety
instructions when towing away your vehicle
(Y page 349). G
WARNING
The power assistanc efor the steering and the
brake force booster do not work when the
engin eisnot running. You will then need much mor
eeffort to brak eand stee rthe vehi-
cle. Adap tyour style of driving accordingly.
The automatic transmission automatically
shifts to position Pwhen you open the driver's
or front-passenger door or when you remove
the key from the ignition lock. In order to
ensur ethat the automatic transmission stays
in position Nwhen towing the vehicle, you
must observe the followin gpoints:
X Make sure that the vehicle is stationar yand
that the key in the ignition lock is in position
0.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, use the key
instead of the Start/Stop button
(Y pag e139).
X Depres sand hol dthe brake pedal.
X Shif tthe automatic transmission to posi-
tion N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parkin gbrake.
X Switch on th ehazard warning lamps
(Y page 109).
X Leave the key in position 2in the ignition
lock.
i When towing with the hazard warning
lamps switched on, use the combination
switch as usua ltosignal achange of direc-
tion .Int his case ,only the turn signals for
the desired direction flash .When the com-
bination switc hisreset, the hazar dwarning
lamps start flashing again. Transporting the vehicle
The towing eyes or trailer tow hitch can be
used to pull the vehicle onto atrailer or trans-
porter if yo uwish to transport it.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
X Shift the automatic transmission to posi-
tion N. Towing and tow-starting
351Breakdownassis tance Z

As soon as th
evehicle is loaded:
X Preven tthe vehicle from rolling away by
applying the electric parkin gbrake.
X Shift th eautomatic transmission to posi-
tion P.
X Turn the key in the ignition lock to position
0 and remove the key from the ignition
lock.
X Secure the vehicle.
! Only lash the vehicle down by the wheels
or wheel rims, not by parts of the vehicle
such as axle or steering components. Oth-
erwise, the vehicle could be damaged. Notes for 4MATIC vehicles
! Vehicles with 4MATIC must not be towed
with the front or rear axle raised; otherwise,
the transmission may be damaged.
If the vehicle has transmission damage or
damage to the front or rear axle, have it trans-
ported on atransporter or trailer.
In the even tofdamage to the ele ctrical
system
If the battery is defective, the automatic
transmission will be locked in position P.To
shif tthe automatic transmission to position
N,y ou must provide power to the vehicle's
electrical system in the same way as when
jump-startin g(Ypage 348).
Hav ethe vehicle transported on atransporter
or trailer. Recovering
avehicle that ha sbecome
stuck
! When recovering atrapped vehicle ,donot
je rk the vehicle or pull it at an angle. If the
tractive powe rist oo high, th evehicles
could be damaged.
If th edrive wheels ge ttrapped on loose or
muddy ground, recover th evehicle with the
utmost care, especially so if the vehicle is
laden. Never attempt to recover
avehicle with a
trailer atta ched.
Pull out the vehicle backwards, if possible,
using the tracks it made when it became
stuck. Tow-starting (emergency engine
starting)
! Vehicles with automatic transmission
must not be tow-star ted. The tra nsmission
ma yotherwise be damaged. Electrical fuses
Important safet
ynotes G
WARNING
Only use fuses that have been approved for
Mercedes-Benz vehicles and which have the
correct fuse ratin gfor the system scon-
cer ned. Do not attempt to repair or bridge
faulty fuses. Usin gfuses which have not been
approved or attempting to repair or bridge
faulty fuses could cause the fuse to be over-
loaded and result in afire. Have the cause
traced and rectified at aqualified specialist
workshop.
The fuses in your vehicle serve to close down
faulty circuits. If afuse blows, all the compo-
nen tson the ci rcuit and their functions stop
operating.
Blown fuses must be replaced with fuses of
the same rating, which you can recognise by
the colour and fuse rating. The fuse ratings
are listed in the fuse allocation chart.
If the newly inser tedf use also blows ,have the
cause traced and rectified at aqualified spe-
cialist workshop, e.g. aMercedes-Benz
Servic eCentre.
! Only use fuses that have been approved
for Mercedes-Ben zvehicles and which
have the cor rect fuse rating for the system
concerned. For the fuse boxes in the engine
compartment and unde rthe rea rbench 352
Electrical fusesBreak
down assistance

On vehicle
swith the AIRMATIC package, you
must drive at raised vehicle level if snow
chains have been fitted (Y page 188).
Do not exceed the maximum permissible
speed of 50 km/h.
i You may wish to deactivate
ESP ®
(Y page 63) when pulling away with
snow chains fitted. This way you can allow
the wheels to spin in acontrolled manner,
achievin ganincrease ddriving force (cut-
tin ga ction). Tyre pressure
Tyre pressure specifications
You wil lfind atable of tyre pressures for var-
ious operating conditions on the inside of
your vehicle's fuel filler flap.
Operation with emergency spare wheel:
the applicable value for the emergency spare
wheel is stated on the spare wheel and in the
technical data section.
Operation with atrailer: the applicable
value for the rear tyres is the maximum tyre
pressure value stated on the table insid ethe
fuel filler flap.
The tabl einsid ethe fuel filler fla pmay state
tyre pressures for different load conditions.
Thes eare define dinthe tabl easdifferent
number sofpassengers and amounts of lug-
gage. The actual number of seats may vary –
for more information, please refer to the vehi-
cle's registration documents.
If no other data is stated, the tyre pressures
specified on the fuel filler flap appl yfor all
tyres approved for this vehicle. If
at yre size precede satyre pressure, the tyre
pressure information following is only valid
for that tyre size. G
WARNING
Tyre pressure that is eithe rtoo high or too low
has anegativ eeffect on the vehicle's driving
safety ,which coul dlead you to cause an acci-
dent. Therefore, you should regularly check
the pressur eofall the tyres, particularly prior
to long trips, and correct the pressure as nec-
essary.
To test tyre pressure, use asuitabl epressure
gaug e. Th eouter appearance of atyre does
not permit any reliabl econclusion about the
tyr ep ressure. On vehicles fitted wit hthe elec-
tronic tyr epressure monitor, th etyre pres-
sure can be checked using the on-board com-
puter. G
WARNING
Do not fit anything else to the tyre valve other
than the standard valve cap. In particular, ret-
rofitted tyre pressure monitors which are
screwed on to the valve may overload it and
cause it to fail. Due to their design, the valve
is kept open continuousl y, whichmay lead to
air loss. Tyr
epressure
359Wheels and tyres Z