2012 MERCEDES-BENZ C-CLASS SALOON Owners Manual

R
for car washes with a con veyo r sy stem:
- neutral iis engaged.
- Ifyo uwo uld like tolea vetheve hicle while
it is being washed, make sure theke y is
located in theve hicle. The park position
j isotherwise automatically engaged.
% If, af terth e car wash, youre mo vethewax
from the windscreen and wiper rubbers, this
will pr event smearing and reduce wiper
noise. Information on using a high-p
ressure cleaner &
WARNING Risk of an accident when
using high-pressure cleane rswith round-
spray nozzles
The wate r jet can cause extern ally invisible
damage.
Components damaged in this wa y may unex‐
pec tedly fail. #
Do not use a high-pressure cleaner with
round-spr aynozzles. #
Have damaged tyres or chassis parts
re placed immediatel y. To
avo id damage to yourvehicle, obser vethefo l‐
lowing when using a high-pressure cleaner:
R The key is at a minimum distance of 3 m
aw ay from theve hicle. Otherwise the boot lid
could open unintentionall y.
R Maintain a dis tance of at least 30 cm tothe
ve hicle.
R Vehicles with decora tivefoil: parts of your
ve hicle are co vered with a decorative foil.
Maintain a dis tance of at least 70 cm
between thefo il-c ove red parts of theve hicle
and the nozzle of the high-pressure cleaner.
Mo vethe high-pressure cleaner nozzle
around whilst cleaning. The waterte mp era‐
ture of the high-pressure cleaner must not
exc eed 60°C.
R Obser vethe information on the cor rect dis‐
tan ce in the equipment manufacturer's oper‐
ating instructions.
R Do not direct the nozzle of the high-pressure
cleaner directly at sensitive parts, e.g. tyres, ga
ps, elect rical components, batteries, light
sou rces and ventilation slits. Wa
shing theve hicle byhand *
NO
TEEngine damage duetowa ter
ing ress #
Take care not topoint thewate r jet
directly towa rdsth e air inlet grille below
th e bonn et. obser
vethe legal requ irements, e.g. in a number
of countries, washing byhand is only permitted
in specially designated wash ba ys. #
Use a mild cleaning agent, e.g. car shampoo. #
Washtheve hicle with luk ewarmwate r using
a soft car sponge. When doing so, do not
ex pose theve hicle todirect sunlight. #
Carefully hose theve hicle off with water and
dry using a chamois.
% Obse rveth e no tes on the care of car parts
(/ page 384). 382
Maintenance and care
Internal use only

Note
s on paint work/matt finish paintwork
care Obse
rveth e no tes on cleaning and care toavo id
damaging the paintwor k.
Pa int
R Insect remains: soak with insect remo ver and
ri nse off the treated areas af terw ards.
R Bird droppings: soak with water and rinse off
af te rw ards.
R Tree resin, oils, fuels and greases: remo veby
ru bbing gently wi tha clo thsoaked in petro‐
leum ether or lighter fluid.
R Coolant and brake fluid: remo vewith a damp
clo thand clean water.
R Tarst ains: use tar remo ver.
R Wax: use silicone remo ver.
R Do not attach sticke rs,fi lms or similar mate‐
ri als.
R Remo vedirt immediately, where possible.
Matt finish
R Only use care products appr ovedfor
Mercedes-Benz. R
Do not polish theve hicle and light-alloy
wheels.
R Only use car washes that cor respond tothe
latest engineering standards.
R Do not use car wash programmes with a final
hot wax treatment.
R Do not use paint cleane rs, buf fing or polish‐
ing products, gloss preser vers, e.g. wax.
R Alw ays ha vepaintwork repairs car ried out at
a qu alified specialist workshop. Note
s on cleaning decorative foils Obser
vethe no tes on matt finish care in the
ch ap ter "No tes on paintwork/matt finish paint‐
wo rkcare" (/ page 383). They also apply to
matt decorative foils.
Obser vethe no tes on cleaning decorative foils to
av oid vehicle damage.
Cleaning
R For cleaning, use plenty of water and a mild
cleaning agent without additives or abrasive
subs tances, e.g. a car sha mpoo appr ovedfor
Mercedes-Benz. R
Remo vedirt immediatel y,where possible,
whilst avoiding rubbing too hard. There is
ot herwise a risk of damaging the decorative
fo il ir reparabl y.
R Ifth ere is dirt on thefinish or if the decora‐
tive foil is dull: use thePa int Cleaner recom‐
mended and appr oved for Mercedes-Benz.
R Insect remains: soak with insect remo ver and
ri nse off the treated areas af terw ards.
R Bird droppings: soak with water and rinse off
af te rw ards.
R Topreve ntwate rst ains, dry a foil-wrapped
ve hicle with a soft, absorbent clo thafter
eve rycar wash.
Av oiding dama getothe decorative foil
R The service life and colouring of decorative
foils are impaired by:
- sunlight
- temp erature, e.g. hot air blo wer
- weather conditions
- stone chippings and dirt
- chemical cleaning agents Maintenance and care
383
Internal use only

-
oily products
R Do not use polish on matt decorative foil.
Po lishing will ha vethe ef fect of shining the
fo il-wrapped sur face.
R Do not treat matt or stru ctured deco rative
fo ils with wax.Pe rm anent stains may occur.
Sc ratches, cor rosive deposits, areas af fected by
cor rosion and damage caused byincor rect care
cannot al ways be comple tely re paired. In such
cases, visit a qualified specialist workshop.
Yo u can obtain more information on care and
cleaning products from the manufacturer.
In the case of foil-wrapped sur faces, optical dif‐
fe re nces may occur between the sur faces that
we renot pr otected bya decorative foil af ter
re moving a decorative foil.
% Have wo rkor repairs todecorative foils car‐
ri ed out at a qualified specialist workshop,
e.g. in a Mercedes-Benz Service Centre. Note
s on care of car parts &
WARNING Risk of entrapment if the
windscreen wipers are swit ched on while
th e windscreen is being cleaned
If th e windscreen wipers are set in motion
while you are cleaning the windscreen or
wiper blades, you can be trapped bythe
wiper arm. #
Alw ays switch off the windscreen wip‐
ers and the ignition before cleaning the
windscreen or wiper blades. &
WARNING Risk of burn s fromtheta il‐
pipe and tailpipe trims
The exhaust tailpipe and tailpipe trims can
become very hot. If you come into contact
with these parts of theve hicle, you could
burn yourself. #
Alw ays be particular lycareful around
th eta ilpipe and theta ilpipe trims and
supervise children especially closely in
th is area. #
Allow vehicle parts tocool down before
to uching them. To
avo id damage totheve hicle, obser vethe
no tes on cleaning and care of thefo llowing vehi‐
cle parts:
Wheels and rims
R Use wate r and acid-free alloy wheel cleaners.
R Do not use acidic alloy wheel cleaners to
re mo vebrake dust. This could damage wheel
bolts and brake components.
R Toavo id cor rosion of the brake disks and
brakepads, drive theve hicle for a few
minutes af ter cleaning before parking it. The
brake disks and brakepads warm up and dry
out.
Wi ndo ws
R Clean the windo wsinside and outside with a
damp clo thand with a cleaning agent recom‐
mended for Mercedes-Benz.
R Do not use dry clo ths or abrasive or sol vent-
based cleaning agents toclean the inside of
windo ws. 384
Maintenance and care
Internal use only

Wi
per blades
R Movethe wiper arms into there placement
position (/ page139).
R With th e wiper arms folded out, clean the
wiper blades with a damp clo th.
R Do not clean the wiper blades too of ten.
Ex terior lighting
R Clean the lenses with a wet sponge and mild
cleaning agent, e.g. car sha mpoo.
R Only use cleaning agents or cleaning clo ths
th at are suitable for plast ic lenses.
Sensors
R Clean the sensors in the front and rear
bumpers with a soft clo thand car shampoo
(/ page 186).
R When using a high -pressure cleaner,maintain
a minimum dis tance of 30 cm.
Re versing camera and 360° Camera
R Open the camera co ver with the multimedia
sy stem (/ page 227).
R Use clean water and a soft clo thtoclean the
came ralens. R
Do not use a high-pressure cleaner.
Ta ilpipes
R Clean with a cleaning agent recommended
fo r Mercedes-Benz, especially inthe winter
and af terwa shing theve hicle.
R Do not use acidic cleaning agents.
Tr ailer hitch
R Obse rveth e no tes on care in the trailer hitch
manufacturer's operating instructions.
R Do not clean the ball neck with a high-pres‐
sure cleaner or solvent.
R Remo vetraces of rust on the ball, forex am‐
ple, with a wire brush.
R Remo vedirt with a lint-free clo th.
R After cleaning, lightly oil or grease the ball
head.
% Before using trailers with anti- torsional cou‐
pling, obser vethe manufacturer's operating
instructions. Note
s on care of the interior &
WARNING Risk of injury from plastic
parts breaking off af terth e use of sol‐
ve nt-based care products
Ca reand cleaning products con taining sol‐
ve nts can cause su rfaces in the cockpit to
become porous. When the airbags are
deplo yed, plastic parts may break away. #
Do not use any care or cleaning prod‐
ucts containing sol vents toclean the
cockpit. &
WARNING Risk of injury or death from
bleached seat belts
Bleaching or dyeing seat belts can se verely
we aken them.
This can, forex ample, cause seat belts to
te ar or fail in an accident. #
Never blea chor dye seat belts. To
avo id damage totheve hicle, obser vethefo l‐
lowing no tes on cleaning and care: Maintenance and care
385
Internal use only

Seat belts
R Clean with luk ewarmand soapy water.
R Do not use chemical cleaning agents.
R Do not dry byheating them toove r 80°C or
ex posing them todirect sunlight.
Display
R Switch off the display and let it cool down.
R Clean the sur face carefully with a microfibre
clo thand a suitable display care product
(TF T-LC D).
R Do not use any other agents.
Plastic trim R Clean with a damp microfibre clo th.
R For heavy soiling: use a cleaner recommen‐
ded for Mercedes-Benz.
R Do not attach sticke rs,fi lms or similar mate‐
ri als.
R Do not allow cosmetics, insect repellent or
sun cream tocome in contact wi th the plas‐
tic trim.
Re alwo od and trim elements
R Clean with a mic rofibre clo th. R
Blackpiano-lac quer look: clean with a damp
clo thand soapy water.
R For heavy soiling: use a cleaner recommen‐
ded for Mercedes-Benz.
R Do not use sol vent-based cleaning agents,
polishes or waxes.
Ro of lining
R Clean with a brush or dry shampoo.
Carpet
R Use a carpet and textile cleaning agent rec‐
ommended for Mercedes-Benz.
St eering wheel made of genuine leather or
DINAMICA
* NO
TEDama gecaused bywrong cleaners #
Do not use solvent-based cleaning
agents such as tarre mo ver or wheel
cleaner; neither should you use pol‐
ishes or waxes. Otherwise you may
damage thefinish. R
Clean wi tha damp clo thand 1% soapy water
solution and then wipe with a dry clo th.R
For heavy soiling: use a cleaner recommen‐
ded for Mercedes-Benz.
R Leather care: use a leath er care agentthat
has been recommended for Mercedes-Benz.
R Do not allow the leather tobecome too
damp.
R Do not use a microfibre clo th.
% Leather is a natural product. It has natural
surface propert ies, such as dif fere nces in
st ru cture, mar kscaused bygrow thand
injury or subtle colour dif fere nces.
Genuine leather seat co vers
R Clean with a damp clo thand then wipe with a
dry clo th.
R Leather care: use a leath er care agentthat
has been recommended for Mercedes-Benz.
R Do not allow th e leathertobecome too
damp.
R Do not use a microfibre clo th.
DINAMICA seat co vers
R Clean with a damp clo th.
R Do not use a mic rofibre clo th. 386
Maintenance and care
Internal use only

Imitation leather seat co
vers
R Clean with a damp clo thand 1% soapy water.
R Do not use a mic rofibre clo th.
Fa bric seat co vers
R Clean with a damp mic rofibre clo thand 1%
soapy water and allow todry. Maintenance and care
387
Internal use only

Emer
gency Re
moving the saf etyve st The saf
etyve sts are located in thestow age com‐
partments in the driver's and front passenger
door. #
Toremo ve:pull out the saf etyve st bag by
th e loop. #
Open the saf etyve st bag and pull out the
saf etyve st.
% There are also saf etyve st compa rtments in
th ere ar door stowage compartments in
which saf etyve sts can be stored. 1
Maximum number of washes
2 Maximum wash temp erature
3 Do not bleach
4 Do not iron
5 Do not tumble dry
6 Do not dry clean
7 Class 2 saf etyve st
The requ irements defined bythe legal standard
are on ly fulfilled if the saf etyve st isthe cor rect
size and is fully closed.
Re place the saf etyve st inthefo llowing cases:
R there flective strips are damaged or dirty R
the maximum permissible number of washes
is exceeded
R thefluorescence has faded Wa
rning triangle Re
moving the warning triangle 388
Breakdown assis tance
Internal use only

#
Push bo thsides of warning triangle holder
1 inthe direction of the ar row and open it. #
Remo ve wa rning triangle 2.
Setting up thewa rning triangle #
Fold side reflectors 1upwards toform a tri‐
angle and attach at theto p using upper
press-stud 2. #
Fold legs 3down and out tothe side. Fi
rs t-aid kit (soft-sided) overview Fir
st-aid kit (so ftsided) 1is in the boot in the
left-hand or right-hand stowage net, depending
on the model. Re
moving the fire extinguisher &
WARNING Risk of accident due toan
incor rectly secu redfire extinguisher in
th e driver's foot we ll
A fire extinguisher may impede pedal tr avel
or block a depressed pedal.
This jeopardises the operating and road
saf ety of theve hicle.
The fire extinguisher can be flung around and
injure the driver or other vehicle occupants. #
Alw aysst ore and secure thefire extin‐
guisher in the brac ket. #
Do not remo vethefire extinguisher
while driving. Breakdown assi
stance 389
Internal use only