2012 MERCEDES-BENZ GL SUV Owners Manual

down, luggage can be thrown over the back-
rest int
othe passenger compar tment ,e.g.
during heavy braking, sudden changes of
direction or in the event of an accide nt.Y ou
coul dcause an acciden torcause injury to
yourself and others.
! Releas eand fold the sea tcushion
upwards befor efolding th erear bench seat
forward. Otherwise, th ebackrests may be
damaged.
When the backrest is folded forwards, the
front seats cannot be moved to their rear-
most position. Otherwise, the front seats
and the rea rbench seat could be damaged.
The left-hand and right-hand backrests in the
2n dr ow of seats can be folde dforwards sep-
arately to increase the luggage compartment
capacity.
On vehicles with a3rd row of seats ,you must
fold down the 3r drow of seats beforehand
(Y page 105) to obtain maximum luggage
compartment enlargement.
Folding th erear benc hseat forwards !
The backrest is heavy. Therefore, exer-
cise care when folding it down. Make sure
that the head restraints are pushed all the
way in so that the backrests and seat cush-
ions are not damaged. i
If the driver's or fron t-passenger seat is
set for alarger person, it may not be pos-
sible to fold the rear bench seat forwards.
In this case, move the front seats as far
forward as possible. X
Move the head restraints to the lowest
position (Y page 103).
X Pull release loop :of seat cushion ;.
X Fold seat cushion ;upwards. X
Pull release handle =in the direction of
the arrow.
The backrest is released.
X Fold the backrest forwards until it reaches
the luggage compartment position. X
Guide seat belts ;under respective
clips :.
Foldin gthe rear benc hseat back G
WARNING
Mak esure that the seat backrest and th eseat
cushion are correctly engaged in position. 342
Stowage areasStowi
ng andfeatures

X
Fold se at back rest;back until it engages.
Make sure not to trap the seat belt while
doing so.
X Swing seat cushion :back.
X Pull up and adjus tthe head rest raints if
necessary (Y page 103). Securing
aload
Lashing eyelets General notes
G
WARNING
Distribut ethe load on thelashing eyelets
evenly.
Otherwise, vehicle occupant scould be
injure dbyo bjectsbein gthrown ar oundify ou:
R bra kesharply
R change directio nsuddenly
R are involved in an accident
Please observ ethe loading guidelines.
Observ ethe following notes on securing
loads:
R secur ethe load using the la shingeyelets.
R do not use elasti cstraps or nets to secure
al oad, as these ar eonly intended as an
anti-slip protection for light loads.
R do not route lashing materials across sharp
edges or corners.
R Pad sharp edges for protection. Luggage compartment
There are four lashing eyelets
:in the lug-
gag ecompartmen t.
Bag hook G
WARNING
Only hang ligh tloads on the bag holders. Do
not use them to transpor theavy ,sharp-edged
or fragile objects. When brakin gsharply,
changing direction quickly or in the even tof
an accident, the bag hooks will not secure the
items sufficiently. This could result in injury to
yoursel forothers.
! Theb aghoo kcan bear amaximum load
of 3k g. Do not us eittosecureaload. Ther
eisab ag hook in the luggage compart-
men tont he right-hand side.
X Press bag hook marking :.
X Tur nbag hook :until it engages. Stowage areas
343Stowing and features Z

Luggage compartment cover
Important safety notes G
WARNING
The luggage compartmen tcover is not a
restraint system .Secur ethe load unde rthe
luggag ecompart ment cover by suitable
means. Make sure that the luggage compart-
ment cover is engaged securely. If luggage is
not sufficiently secured, it can be thrown over
the backres tinto the passenger compart-
ment, for instance during heavy braking, sud-
den change sofdirection or in the event of an
accident .You coul dcause an accident or
cause injury to yourself and others.
! When loading the vehicle, make sure that
you do not stack the load in the luggage
compartment higher than the lower edge of
the side windows .Donot plac eheavy
object sontop of the luggage compartment
cover.
The luggage compartment cover ma ybe
installed behind the 2nd or 3r drow of seats.
Extending and ret racting the luggage
compartment cover X
To extend: pull the luggage compartment
cover back by grab handle :and clip it
into retainers ;on the left and right.
X To retract: unhook the luggage compart-
ment cover from left-hand and right-hand
retainers ;.
X Guide luggage compartment cover for-
wards by grab handle :until it is com-
pletely rolled up. Coat hooks on the tailgate
G
WARNING
The tailgate may close if too great aload is
placed on the coat hooks.
This coul dcause you or others to be trapped
and injured.
If you use the coat hooks ,only hang light
clothing on them. Make sure that nobody can
become trapped. :
Coat hook Stowage well underneat
hthe lug gage
compartment floor G
WARNING
Never driv ewith the luggage compartment
floor open.
Otherwise, you and other vehicle occupants
could be injured by objects being thrown
around the vehicle in the event of sharp brak-
ing, asudden change in direction or an acci-
dent. 344
Stowage areasSto
wing and features

The TIREFI
Tkit, tyre- change tool kit, etc. are
located in the stowage compartment.
X To open: holding the ribbing, press han-
dle :downwards ;.
Handle :folds upwards.
X Swing the luggag ecompartmen tfloor
upwards using handle :until it rests
against the luggage compar tment cover. X
Fold out hook =on the underside of the
luggage compartment floor in the direction
of the arrow. X
Attach hook =to the luggage compart-
ment's uppe rseal ?.
X To close: detachhook =from the luggage
compar tment's uppe rseal ?.
X Fasten hook =to the bracket on the
underside of the luggage compartment
floor.
X Fold the luggage compartmen tfloor down.
X Press the luggage compar tment floor
down ;until it engages. 1
Luggag ecompartmen tfloor unlocked
2 Luggage compar tment floor locked
The luggage compartment floor can be locked
and unlocke dusing the emergenc ykey ele-
men t. Roof carrier
Important safety notes G
WARNING
An incorrectly secured roof carrier, ski rack or
load could become detached from the vehi-
cle. These object smight then be thrown
around, and could injur eyou or other sor
caus eana ccident .Follow the roof carrier/ski
rac km anufacturer' sinstallation instructions
and special instructions for use.
The roof load raise sthe vehicle' scentre of
gravity, thereby affecting vehicle handling.
You must always observ ethe maximum roof
load of 10 0kg. Always adapt your driving style
to the prevailin groad, traffic and weather Stowage areas
345Stowing and features
Z

cond
itions and drive with partic ularcareift he
roof is laden.
! Mercedes-Benz recommends that you
only us eroof carrier sthat hav ebeen tested
and approved for Mercedes-Ben zvehicles.
This helps to prevent damage to the vehi-
cle.
Position the load on the roof carrier in such
aw ay that the vehicle will not sustain dam-
age even when it is in motion.
Depending on the vehicle equipment,
ensure that when the roof carrier is fitted
you can:
R raise the sliding sunroof fully
R open the panorama sliding sunroof fully
R open the tailgate fully
Attaching the roof carrier X
Secure the roof carrier to roof rails :.In
doing so, observe the manufacturer's
installation instructions. Features
Cup holders
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Keep the cup holder closed while the vehicle
is in motion. Otherwise, vehicle occupants
could be injured by object sbeing thrown
around if you: R
brak esharply
R change direction suddenly
R arei nvolved in an accident
Only use the cup holders for containers of a
suitable size and which have lids .The drinks
coul dotherwis espill.
Cup holders should not be used for hot drinks.
You may otherwise scald yourself. G
WARNING
Do not transport any heavy, sharp-edged or
fragile bottles in the stowage compartments.
In the event of an accident, the stowage com-
partment scannot secure the bottles ade-
quately .You and/or other vehicle occupan ts
co uld be injured.
The stowag ecompart ments in the doors pro-
vide space for bottles with acapacity of up to
1.0 l.
The bottles are not secured or prevented from
tipping over. Therefore, do not place any open
drink containers in the stowage compart-
ments.
Cup holder in the front centre console :
Cup holders
; Cover
X To open: slide cover ;to its foremost
position.
X To close: pull cover ;back as far as it will
go. 346
FeaturesStowing and features

You can remove the rubber mat of the cup
holder to clean it. Clean it with clean
,luke-
warm water only.
Temperature-controlled cup holder in
th ef ront-compartment centr econsole G
WARNING
When you use the warmin gfunction ,the metal
insert of thecup holder is heated. Therefore,
do not touch the cup holder inser t.Otherwise,
you migh tburny oursel f. :
Cuph olders
; Residual heat indicator lamp
= Button
Th et emperature-c ontrolle dcup holde rcan
be used to keep cold drinks cold and hot
drinks hot.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
X To switch on th ecooling function: press
and hold button =until th eblue indicator
lamp on th ebutton lights up.
X To switch on th eheating function: press
and hold button =until the red indicator
lamp on the button lights up.
X To switch off th efunc tion: press and hold
button =until the indicator lamp on the
button goes out.
When the heatin gfunction is used, residual
heat indicator lamp ;lights up fro macer-
tain temperature. This mean sthat the metal
insert of the cup holder is hot. Cu
ph older in th erears eat armrest !
Do not sit on or support your body weight
on the rear seat arm rest when it is folded
down ,asy ou coul dotherwise damage it. X
Fold down the rear seat armrest.
Cup holder :is located in the rear seat
armrest.
Cup holder in th ethird row of seats :
Cup holders
The cup holders are located on the right-hand
and left-han dside panels. Sun visors
Overview G
WAR
NING
Keep the vanity mirrors in the sun visors cov-
ered whil edriving.Y ou coul dotherwise be
dazzled, which may impair your view of traffic
conditions and as aresult could cause an
accident. Features
347Stowing and features Z

:
Mirror light
; Bracket
= Retainin gclip, e.g. for acar park ticket
? Vanity mirror
A Mirror cover
Vanity mirror in the sun visor Mirror light
:only functions if the sun visor
is clipped into retainer ;and mirror cover
A has been folded up.
Glare from the side X
Fold down sun visor :.
X Pull sun visor :out of retainer =.
X Swing sun visor :to the side.
X Slide sun visor :horizontally as required.
X Fold down additional sun visor ;to the
windscreen. Sunblinds on the rear side windows
! Always guide the roller sunblind by hand.
Do not let it snap back suddenly as this
would damage the automatic roller mech-
anism.
! Do not drive the vehicle with the roller
sunblind hooke dinand the sid ewindows
opened simultaneously. The roller sunblind
can jump out of the retainers and spring
back suddenly when drivin gathigh speeds,
e.g. when drivin gonthe motorway. This
could damage the inertia reel .Therefore,
either close the side window or retract the
roller sunblind before driving at high
speeds. X
To extend: pull the roller sunblind out by
tab :and hook it ont oretainers ;at the
back of the window. 348
FeaturesStowing and features

The roller sunblind can be hooked back into
plac eshould it pop out from the top of the
guide rail.
X Tilt pull-out profile :as illustrated.
X Sli pg uide bush ;into open area of guide
rail =.
X Straighten pull-out profile :again. Ashtray
Front ashtray !
The holder under the ashtray is not heat
resistant. Before placing lit cigarettes in the
ashtray, make sure that the ashtray is prop-
erly engaged. Othe rwise, the holder could
be damaged. X
To open: slide cover :to its foremost
position.
X Fold cover =of the insert upwards.
X To remove the insert: push insert=to
the left ?.
Insert =slides out slightly to the right. X
Lif tinsert =up; and out.
X To refit the insert: place insert=into the
holder and pres sitdown on the right until
it engages.
X To close: pull cover :back as far as it will
go.
Rea r-compartment ashtray !
Close the ashtray when it is not in use and
before you fold the rear seats forward. You
can otherwise damage the ashtray. X
To open: briefly press cover ;at the top.
The ashtray opens.
X To remove the insert: push intorecess
= from the right.
Ashtray insert :slides out slightly to the
right.
X Lif tinsert :up and out.
X To refit the insert: place insert:into the
holder and pres sdown on the right until it
engages.
Vehicles withou taRear Seat Entertainment
System have an ashtray in the centre console
in the rear compartment. Cigarett
elighter G
WAR
NING
Only hol dthe hot cigarette lighte rbyits knob.
Othe rwise, you might burn yourself. Features
349Stowing and features
Z