2012 MERCEDES-BENZ GL SUV ignition

To avoi
dthe risk of burns, only touc hthose
component sdescribed in the Owner's Manual
and observ ethe relevant safety notes. G
WARNING
The radiator fa nbetween the radiator and the
engine can star tautomatically, even if the key
has been removed from the ignition lock. For
this reason, you must not reach into the fan
rotation area. You could otherwis ebeinjured.
Vehicles with apetrol engine: The elec-
tronic ignition system uses high voltage. For
this reason ,you must never touc hignition
system component s(ignition coil, ignition
cables, spark plug connectors or test socket)
while:
R the engine is running
R the engine is being started
R the ignition is switched on and the engine
is being cranked by hand
You could otherwise suffer an electric shock
and be seriously or even fatally injured.
Vehicles with adiesel engine: The elec-
tronic injection control uses high voltage. For
this reason ,you must never touc hinjection
system components while:
R the engi neis running
R the engin eisbeing started
R the ignition is switched on
You could otherwise suffer an electric shock
and be seriously or even fatally injured. G
WAR
NING
The winds creen wipers and wiper linkage
could be set in motion.
When the bonnet is open, you or others could
be injured by the wiper linkage.
Make sure that the windscreen wipers are
switched off .Remov ethe key or make sure
that no ignition position has been selected
with KEYLESS-GO. All indi cator lamps must be
off in the instrumen tpanel.
! Make sure that the windscreen wipers are
not folded away from the windscreen. Oth- er
wise ,you could damage the windscreen
wipers or the bonnet. X
Make sure tha tthe windscreen wiper sare
switche doff.
X Pull release lever :on th ebonnet.
The bonnet is released. X
Reac hinto the gap ,pull bonnet catch han-
dle ;up and lift the bonnet.
If you lift the bonnet by approximately
40 cm, the bonnet is opened and held open
automatically by the gas-filled strut.
Closing the bonnet G
WARNING
Make sure that nobody can become trapped
as you close the bonnet. Eng
inecompartment
361Maintenance and care Z

H
Environmenta
lnote
When toppin guptheoil, tak ecaren ot to spill
any .Ifo il enters th esoil or waterways, it is
harmful to th eenvironment.
! Only use engine oil sand oil filters that
have bee napproved for vehicles with a
servic esystem. You can obtain alist of the
engine oils and oil filters tested and
approved in accordance with the
Mercedes-Ben zSpecification sfor Service
Product satany Mercedes-Ben zService
Centre.
Damage to th eengine or exhaust sys temis
caused by the following:
R using engine oil sand oil filters that have
not bee nspecifically approved for the
servic esystem
R changing the engine oil and oil filter after
missing the change interval required by
the servic esystem
R using engine oil additives
! Do not add too muc hoil. Toppin gupwith
to om uche ngine oil can resul tindamage
to the engine or to the catalytic converter.
Hav eexcess engine oil siphoned off. Example: engine oil filler cap
X
Turn cap :anti-clockwis eand remove it.
X Top up the engine oil.
If the oil level is at or below the MIN mark
on the oil dipstick ,add 1. 0litreo fengine
oil. X
Replace cap :on the filler nec kand turn
clockwise.
Make sure that the cap locks securely into
place.
X Check the oil level agai nwith the oil dip-
stic k(Ypage 36 2).
For furthe rinformation on engine oil ,see
(Y page 42 8). Other service products
Checking th ecoolant level G
WARNING
The coolin gsystem is pressurised. Therefore,
only unscrew the cap onc ethe engine has
coole ddown. The coolan ttemperatur edis-
play must be less than 70 †. Otherwise, you
could be scalded if hot coolant escapes. X
Park the vehicle on alevel surface.
Only chec kthe coolant level if the vehicle
is on alevel surface and the engine has
cooled down.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock (Y page 159).
On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, press the
Start/Stop button twic e(Ypage 159).
X Check the coolant temperatur egauge in
the multifunction displ ay.
Th ec oolant temperatur emust be below
70 †.
X Turn the key to position 0(Y page 159 )in
the ignition lock. Eng
inecompartment
363Maintenance and care Z

G
WARNING
Th ev ehicle is braked when the HOL Dfunction
or DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Therefore,
deactivate the HOLD function and DISTRONIC
PLUS before the vehicl eiswashed in an auto-
matic car wash.
! Make sure that:
R the side windows and sliding sunroof are
closed completely.
R the blower for the ventilation/heating is
switched off (OFF button is depressed).
R the windscreen wiper switch is at posi-
tion 0.
The vehicl ecould otherwise be dam aged.
! In car washes with atowing mechanism,
make sure that the automatic transmission
is in transmission position N,otherwise the
vehicl ecould be dam aged.
R Vehicles with akey:
do not remove the key from the igniti on
lock. Do not open the driver's door or
front-passenge rdoor when the engin eis
switched off .Otherwise, the automatic
transmission selects park position P
automatically and locks the wheels. You
can prevent this by shiftin gthe auto-
matic transmission to Nbeforehand.
R Vehicles with KEYL ESS-GO:
do not ope nthe driver's door or front-
passenger door when the engin eis
switched off .Otherwise, the automatic
transmission selects park position P
automatically and locks the wheels.
Observe the following to make sure that the
automatic transmission stays in position N:
X Make sure the vehicle is statio naryand the
ignition is switched off.
X Turn the key to position 2(Y page 159 )in
the ignitio nlock.
Use the key instead of the Start/S topb ut-
ton on vehicles with KEYLESS-GO.
X Depress and hold the brake pedal. X
Shift the automatic transmissio ntoposi-
tion N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parkin gbrake.
X Switch off th eignition and leav ethe key in
the ignition lock.
You can wash the vehicle in an automatic car
wash from the ver ystart.
Wash off excess dirt before cleaning the vehi-
cle in an automatic car wash.
After using an automatic car wash ,wipe off
wax from the windscreen and the wiper
blades. This will prevent smears and reduce
wiping noises caused by residue on the wind-
screen.
Washing by hand In some countries, washing by hand is only
allowe
datspecially equipped washing bays.
Observe the legal requirement sfor each indi-
vidual coun try.
X Do not use hot water and do not wash the
vehicle in direct sunlight.
X Use asoft sponge to clean.
X Use amild cleaning agent, such as acar
shampoo approved by Mercedes-Benz.
X Thoroughly hos edown the vehicle with a
gentl ejet of water.
X Do not point the water jet directly towards
the air inlets.
X Use plenty of water and rinse out the
sponge frequently.
X Rinse the vehicle with clean water and dry
thoroughly with achamois.
X Do not let the cleanin gagent dry on the
paintwork.
When using the vehicle in winter, remove all
traces of roa dsalt deposits carefully and as
soon as possible. Care
367Maintenance and care Z

i
The vehicle should preferably be washed
by hand using asoft sponge, car shampoo
and plent yofwater.
i Use only insect remover and car shampoo
from the range of recommended and
approved Mercedes -Benz care products. Cleaning vehicle parts
Cleaning the wheels !
Do not use acidic wheel cleaning products
to remove brake dust. Thi scould damage
wheel bolts and brake components.
! Do not par kupthe vehicle for an extended
period straight after cleanin git, particularly
after having cleaned the wheels with wheel
cleaner. Wheel cleaners could cause
increased corrosion of the brake discs and
brake pads/linings .For this reason, you
should drive for afew minutes after clean-
ing. Brakin gheats the brak ediscs and the
brake pads/linings, thus drying them. The
vehicle can then be parked up.
Cleaning the windows G
WARNING
Switc hoff the windscree nwipers and remove
the key from the ignition lock before cleaning
the windscreen or the wiper blades. On vehi-
cles with KEYL ESS-GO, pres sthe Start/S top
button repeatedly until all indicator lamps in
the instrumen tcluster have gone off. The
windscreen wipers could otherwise move and
injur eyou.
! Do not use dry cloths, abrasive products,
solven tsor cleanin gagents con taining sol-
vent stoc lean the inside of the windows.
Do not touch the insides of the windows
with hard objects, e.g. an ice scraper or
ring. There is otherwise arisk of damaging
the windows.
! Clean the water drainage channels of the
windscreen and the rear window at regular intervals. Deposits such as leaves, petals
and pollen may under certain circumstan-
ces prevent water from drainin
gaway. This
can lead to corrosion damage and damage
to electronic components.
X Clean the inside and outside of the win-
dows with adamp cloth and acleaning
agent that is recommended and approved
by Mercedes-Benz.
Cleanin gthe wiper blades G
WARNING
Switch off the windscree nwipers and remove
the key from the ignition lock before cleaning
the windscreen or the wiper blades. On vehi-
cles with KEYLESS-GO, press the Star t/Stop
butto nrepeatedly unti lall indicator lamps in
the instrumen tcluster have gone off. The
windscreen wipers could otherwise move and
injur eyou.
! Do not pull on the wiper blade. Otherwise,
the wiper blade could be damaged.
! Do not clean wiper blades too often and
do not rub them too hard. Otherwise, the
graphit ecoatin gcould be damaged. This
coul dcause wiper noise.
! Hold the wiper arm securely when folding
back. The windscreen could be damaged if
the wiper arm hits against it suddenly.
X Fold the wiper arms away from the wind-
screen.
X Clea nthe wiper blades carefully usin ga
damp cloth.
X Fold the windscreen wipers back again
befor eswitching on the ignition.
Cleanin gthe exterio rlighting !
Only use cleaning agents or cleaning
cloths that are suitable for plastic lenses.
Unsuitable cleaning agents or cleaning
cloths could scratc hordamage the plastic
lenses of the exterior lighting. Care
369Maintenance and care Z

X
Clean the plastic lenses of the exterior
lighting using awet sponge and amild
cleanin gagent, e.g. Mercedes-Ben zcar
shampoo or cleanin gcloths.
Mirror turn signal !
Only use cleanin gagents or cleaning
cloth sthat ar esuitable for plastic lenses.
Unsuitable cleanin gagents or cleaning
cloth scoul dscratch or damag ethe plastic
lenses of th emirror tur nsignals.
X Clean the plastic lenses of the mir rort urn
signals in the exterior mirror housin gusing
aw et sponge and mild cleaning agent ,e.g.
Mercedes -Ben zc ar shampoo or cleaning
cloths.
Cleaning th esensors !
If you clean th esensor swithah igh-pres-
sure cleaner, mak esure that you keep a
distanc eofatl east 30 cm between the
vehicle and th ehigh-pressure cleane rnoz-
zle. Information about the correc tdistance
is available from the equipment manufac-
turer. X
Clean sensors :of the drivin gsystems
with water, car shampo oand asoft cloth. Cleaning th
ereversing camera !
Do not clean the camer alens and the area
around the reversin gcamera with ahigh-
pressure cleaner. X
Use clear water and asoft clot htoclean
camera lens :.
Cleaning the 360° camera !
Do not clean the camera lens and the area
around the 360 °camera with ahigh-pres-
sure cleaner.360 X
Make sure that the vehicle is stationary and
that the key is in position 2in the ignition
lock.
X To open the cover of the 360° camer a:
with COMAND Online activated, press the
W button.
X Select System by turning
cVdthe
COMAND controller and press Wto con-
firm.
X Select 360° camera and press
Wto con-
firm. 370
CareMaintenanc
eand care

C
Warning triangle
D Wheel bolts
E Towing eye
X Lif tthe luggage compar tment floor up
(Y page 344). Flat ty
re Prep
aring the vehicle
Your vehicle may be equipped with:
R MOExtended tyres (tyres with run -flat char-
acteristics) (Y page 378)
R aT IREFIT kit (Y page 379)
R an emergency spare whee l(only for cer tain
countries) (Y page 414)
Information on changing/fitting awheel
(Y page 404).
Vehicle preparation is not necessar yonvehi-
cles with MOExtended tyres.
X Stop the vehicle as far away as possible
from traffic, on solid, non-slipper yand level
ground.
X Switch on the hazard warning lamps.
X Engag ethe electric parkin gbrake man-
ually.
X Bring th efront wheels into the straight-
ahead position.
X Move the DIRECT SELECT leve rtoP.
X Vehicle swith the ON&OFFROAD pack-
age: makesure that highway level is selec-
ted (Y page 207).
X Switch off the engine.
X Vehicles without KEYLESS-GO: remove
the key from the ignition lock.
X Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO: open the
driver' sdoor.
The on-boar delectronic shave status 0,
which is the same as the key having been
removed.
X Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO: remove the
Start/Stop button from the ignition lock
(Y page 159). X
All occupants must leave the vehicle. Make
sure that they are not endangered as they
do so.
X Make sure that no one is near the danger
area while awheel is being changed. Any-
one who is not directly assisting in the
wheel change should, for example, stand
behind the barrier.
X Get out of the vehicle. Pay attention to traf-
fic condition swhen doing so.
X Close the driver's door.
X Plac ethe warnin gtriangl easuitable dis-
tance away (Y page 376). Observe legal
requirements.
X Unload heavy luggage.
i Only operate the tyre inflation compres-
sor using a12Vs ocket,even if the ignition
is turned off (Y page 350).
An emergenc ycut-off ensures that the on-
board voltage does not drop too low. If the
on-board voltage is too low, the power to
the sockets is automatically cut. This
ensures that there is sufficient power to
start the engine. MOExtended tyres (tyres with run-flat
characteristics)
G
WARNING
When driving in emergenc ymode, the driving
characteristic sdeteriorate, e.g. when cor ner-
ing, accelerating quickly and when braking.
There is arisk of accident.
Do not exceed the stated maximum speed.
Avoid abrupt steering and drivin gmanoeu-
vres, and driving over obstacles (kerbs, pot-
holes ,off-road) .This applies in particular to a
laden vehicle.
Sto pdriving in emergency mod eif:
R you hear banging noises.
R the vehicl estart stos hake.
R you see smok eand smell rubber. 378
Flat tyreBreakdown assistance

Do not us
earapid charging device to start the vehicle. If your vehicle' sbattery is discharg ed,
the engine can be jump-starte dfroma nothe rvehicle or fr omasecon dbattery using jump
leads. Observe the following points:
R the battery is not acce ssiblein allvehicles .Ifthe other vehicle' sbattery is not accessible,
jump-start the vehicle using asecond batter yorajump-star ting device.
R vehicles with apetrol engine: only jump-star tthe vehicle when the engin eand exhaust
system are cold.
R do not start the engine if the battery is frozen. Let the battery thaw first.
R jump-starting may only be performed from batteries with anominal voltage of 12 V.
R only use jum pleads that have asufficient cross-section and insulated terminal clamps.
R if the battery is fully discharged, leave the battery that is being used to jump-start connected
for afew minutes befor eattempting to start. Thi scharges the empty battery alittle.
R make sure that the two vehicles do not touch.
Make sure that:
R the jump leads are not damaged.
R non-insulated parts of the terminal clamps do not come into contact with other metal parts
while the jump leads are connected to the battery.
R the jump leads cannot come into contact with parts such as the V-belt pulle yorthe fan.
These parts mov ewhen the engin eisstarted and whil eitisr unning.
X Secure the vehicle by applying the electric parking brake.
X Shift the transmission to position P.
X Turn the key to position 0in the ignition lock and remove it (Y page 159). On vehicles with
KEYLESS-GO, make sure the ignition is switched off (Y page 159). All indicator lamps in the
instrumen tcluster must be off.
X Switch off all electrical consumer s(e.g. radio, blower, etc.).
X Open the bonnet (Y page 360).Position number
Bidentifies the charged batter yofthe other vehicle or an equivalent jump-
startin gdevice. Jump-starting
387Breakdown assistance Z

!
Observe the following points when towing
wit hat ow rope:
R secur ethe tow rope on the sam eside on
both vehicles.
R the tow rope must not be longer than is
legally permitted. It should be marked in
the middle, e.g. with awhite cloth
(30 x30c m) so that other roa dusers are
aware that avehicle is being towed.
R the tow rope may only be attached to the
towing eyes.
R observ ethe brake lamps of the towing
vehicle while driving. Always maintain a
distanc esothat the tow rope does not
sag.
R do not use steel cables or chains to tow
your vehicle. The vehicle could be dam-
aged.
! Do not use the towing eye for recovery,
this could damage the vehicle. If in doubt,
recover the vehicle with acrane.
! When towing, pu llaway slowly and
smoothly .Ifthe tractive power is too high,
the vehicles could be damaged.
! To tow vehicles with KEYL ESS-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. When towing, th edifferential locks
must not be switched on. The transmission
may otherwise be damaged.
! You may tow the vehicle for amaximum
of 50km .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.
! If you tow or tow-start another vehicle, its
weight must not exceed the maximum per- missible gross vehicle weight of your vehi-
cle.
Information on your vehicle' sgros svehicle
weight rating can be foun donthe vehicle
identification plat e(Ypage 422).
Observe the legal requirement sfor the rele-
vant countries when towing.
It is bette rtoh ave the vehicle transported
than to have it towed.
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 release the electric parking brake
R cannot shift the automatic transmission to
position N
i Deactivate the automatic locking feature
(Y page 283). You could otherwis ebe
locked out when pushing or towing the
vehicle.
Deactivate tow-away protection
(Y page 71) before the vehicle is towed. Towing and tow-starting
389Breakdown assistance Z