2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class Instrument

X
Insert Start/S topbutton :into ignition
lock ;. i
When
youinsert Start/S topbutton :
into ignition lock;,thesystem requiresa
detection timeofapp roximately two
seconds beforeyoucan useStart/S top
button :. Start/St
opbutton
= USA only
? Cana daonly
X Positio n0: ifStart/S topbutton :has not
yet been pressed ,this corresponds tothe
SmartKey beingremoved fromtheignition.
X Positio n1: press Start/S topbutton :
once.
You cannow activate thewindshi eld
wip ers, forexampl e. i
If
you press Start/S topbutton :twice
when inthis positio n,the powe rsupply is
deac tivat ed again .
X Pos ition 2(ign ition ):pre ssStart /S top
but ton: twice. i
If
you pressStart /S topbut ton: once
when inthis posi tion and thedriv er'sdoor
is open ,th epower supplyis deac tivat ed
again .
As soo nasthe ignition isswitched on,allthe
indicator lampsinthe instrument clusterlight
up. Ifan indicator lampdoesnotgoout after
the engine isstarted orifit lights upwhile the
vehicle isin motion, see(Ypage 271). Star
ting theengin e
Importa ntsafety notes G
WARNING Inhalation
ofexhaust gasishazardous toyour
health. Allexhaust gascont ains carbon
monoxide (CO),andinhaling itcan cause
unconsciousness andpossible death.
Do not run theengine inconfined areas(such
as agarage) whicharenot properly ventilated.
If you think thatexhaust gasfumes are
entering thevehicle whiledriving, havethe
cause determined andcorrect ed
immediately .Ify ou must driveunder these
condit ions,drive onlywith atleast one
window fullyopen atall times. i
Vehicles
withagasoline engine:the
catalytic converter preheats forupto30
seconds afteracold start.Durin gth is time,
th een gin esoun dmay bediff ere nt.
Aut oma tic trans mission X
Sh ift thetrans mis sion toposi tion P.
The trans mis sion position disp layinthe
mult ifunction disp laysho wsP
(Y page 145). i
You
canalso start theen gin ewhen the
tr ans mis sion isin posi tion N.
St artin gpr ocedu rewith theSm artKey X
To star tag asolineeng ine:turn the
SmartKey toposi tion 3in the ignition lock
(Y pag e139) andrelease itas soon asthe
engine isrunning.
X To start adiesel engine: turnthe
Smar tKey toposit ion2in the ignit ionlock
(Y page 139).
The % preglow indicatorlamp inthe
inst rumen tcluster lightsup.
X When the% preglo windic atorlamp
goes out,turnthe SmartK eytoposition 3
(Y page 139)andrelease itas soon asthe
engine isrunning. 140
DrivingDriving and parking

X
Press andhold handle :.
The electr icparking brakecontinues to
brake andprevent thevehicle fromrolling
backwards.
The redF (USAonly)or! (Canada
only) indicator lampinthe instrument
cluster remains lit.
X Depress theaccelerator pedal.
X As soon asthe vehicle/t railercombinat ion
is held bythe driving forceofthe engine,
release lever:.
The electr icparking brakeisreleased.
The redF (USAonly)or! (Canada
only) indicator lampinthe instrument
cluster goesout.
Hill star tassist Hill
start assist helpsyouwhen pulling away
forwards orinreverse onanuphill gradient.
It holds thevehicle forashort timeafter you
have removed yourfootfrom thebrake pedal.
This gives youenough timetomove yourfoot
from thebrake pedaltothe accelerat orpedal
and depress itbefore thevehicle beginsto
roll. G
WARN
ING Never
leavethevehicle whenitis held byhill
start assist. Afterapproximately onesecon d,
hill start assist willnolonger brakeyour
vehicle anditcould rollaway. X
Take yourfootoffthe brake pedal. i
Onc
eyou have taken yourfootoffthe
brake pedal, thevehicle isheld foraround
one secon d.
X Pull away .
Hill start assist willnotfunc tion if:
R you arepulling awayonalevel roadora
downhill gradient.
R the tran smission isin position N.
R the electr icparking brakeisapplied.
R ES P®
is malfunct ioning. 142
DrivingDriving and parking

Gasoli
ne
Fuel grade !
You shou ldonly refuel withpremiu m-
grade unleadedgaso line, asthis avoids
dama gingthecataly ticconverter.
Flexibl efuel vehicle s,identifi ablefrom the
lab elinside thefuel filler flap ,can be
refuel edwith E85. Forfurther information
on flexib lefuel ,see "Fue l".
If engine running problemsareapparent,
have thecause checked immediatelyand
repa ired. Excess unburned fuelcan
otherwi seenter thecataly ticconverter,
lea ding tooverhea tingandpossi bly
causi ngafire.
! Use afilter when refuelingfrom afuel can.
Otherwi se,the fuel lines and/or injection
system couldbeblocked byparticl esfrom
the fuel can. i
Only
refuel withpremiu m-grade unleaded
gaso linewith aspecifi edminimu moctane
numb erof91 (avera gevalue of96 RON/
86 MON) .
You willus ua lly find informa tion abou tthe
fuel grade onthe pump. Ifyou cannot find
the label onthe pump, askthestaff for
assistance.
You canfind more information under"Fuel"
(Y page 385), orby cont acting an
authorized Mercedes-Ben zService Center
or visitin ghtt p://ww w.mbu sa.com (USA
only). Diesel
Fuel grade !
Only refuel withULTRA- LOWSULFUR
DIE SELFUE L(ULSD ,15 ppm SULF UR
MAXI MUM). Usingotherdiesel fuelscould
result inincr eased wearanddamage tothe
engin eand/or exhaust system.
Never refuelwithmarine dieselorheating
oil. Do
not mix these fuelswithdiesel fuelsand
do not use anyspecial additives, asthis
may result indamage.
! Use afilter when adding fuelfrom afuel
can. Other wise, thefuel lines and/or the
fuel inject ion system couldbeblocked by
particles fromthefuel can. i
Usually,
youwillfind infor mation about
the fuel grade onthe pump. Ifyou cann ot
find thelabel onthe gasoline pump,askthe
gas stationstaff .
You canfind more information under“Fuel”
(Y page 385),or by con tact ingan
authoriz edMercedes- BenzService Center
or visitin ghtt p://ww w.mbu sa.com (USA
only).
Low outsid etem pera tures !
Donot use gasoline torefuel vehicles with
a diesel engine.Never mixdiesel with
gasoline orkeros ene,asthis may result in
damage tothe engin eor fuel system.
Diesel fuelwith improved coldflowpropert ies
is available duringthewinter months.Furt her
infor mation onfuel propert iescan be
obtained fromoilcompan ies,e.g. atgas
stat ions. Refueling
Fuel filler flap The
fuel filler flapisunlock edorlocked
automatic allywhen youopen orclose the
vehicle withtheSmart Keyorusing KEYLE SS-
GO.
The position ofthe fuel filler capisdisplayed
in the instrument cluster8.T hearrow
next tothe filling pump indicates theside of
the vehicle. 150
RefuelingDriving and parking

:
Toopen thefuel filler flap
; Toinsert thefuel filler cap
= Fuel type
? Tire pressure table
Opening X
Switc hoff the engine.
X Remove theSmart Keyfrom theignition
lock.
KEYLE SS-GO: open thedriver’s door.This
switches theignition toposition 0,which
correspon dstohaving removed the
Smart Key.Thedriver’s doorcanbeclosed
again.
X Press thefuel filler flapinthe direction of
arrow :.
The fuel filler flapswings up.
X Turn thefuel filler capcount er-clockwise
and remove it.
X Insert thefuel filler capinto theholder
bracket onthe inside offiller flap;.
X Completely insertthepump nozzleinto the
filler neck andrefuel.
X Only fillthe tank untilthepump nozzle
switches off.
! Overfilling thefuel tank could damage the
fuel system. Closing X
Replace thefuel filler capand turn it
clock wise. Thefuel filler capaudibl y
engages.
X Close thefuel filler flap. i
If
you drive withthefuel filler capopen,
reserve fuelwarning lamp8 flashes. In
addition, the; Check Engine warning
lamp maylight up.Am essage appears in
the multifunc tiondisplay (Ypage 257).
For furth erinfor mation onwarning and
indicat orlamps inthe instrument cluster,
see (Ypage 276). Refueling
151Driving and parking Z

X
App lythe electri cpark ing brak e.
X Sh ift thetrans mis sion toposi tionP.
Using theSm artKey X
Turn theSm artKey toposi tion0 inthe
ign ition lockand remove it.
The imm obiliz erisact ivat ed. i
If
you turnoff theen gin ewit hth e
Sm artKey and then rem ove itfrom the
ign ition lockor open afron tdoor ,th e
auto matictrans mis sion shiftsto P
auto maticall y.
Using KEYLESS- GO X
Pre sstheSt art /S topbut ton( Ypage 139).
The engin estops andallthe indicat or
lamps inthe instrument clustergoout. i
If
you usetheStart/ Stop butt ontoswitc h
off the engin e,the automatic transmission
shift sto Nautomatic ally.Ifyou then open
one ofthe fron tdoors, theautomatic
trans mission shiftstoP. i
In
an emergenc y,the engine canbe
turned offwhile thevehicle isin motion by
pressing andholding theStart /Stopbutton
for three seconds. Elec
tric par king brake
General information i
The
electric parking brakeperforms a
funct iontest atregular intervalswhile the
engine isswitched off.The sounds thatcan
be heard whilethisisoccurrin gare normal. G
WARNIN
G When
leaving thevehicle, alwaysremove the
Smart Keyfrom thestart erswitch, takeitwith
you, andlock thevehicle. Donot leave
children unattendedinthe vehicle, orwith
access toan unlocked vehicle.Children could
release theparking brakeand/or shiftthe
automatic transmission outofpark position P,
either ofwhich couldresult inan accident
and/or serious personal injury. Applying/releasing
manually X
To app ly:press handle :.
The redF (USAonly)or! (Canada
only) indicator lampinthe instr ument
cluster lightsup. i
The
electric parking brakecanalso be
applied whentheSmart Keyisremoved.
X To release: pullhandle :.
The redF (USAonly)or! (Canada
only) indicator lampinthe instr ument
cluster goesout. i
The
electric parking brakecannotbe
released unlesstheSmart Keyisin position
1 in the ignition lockorthe ignition has
been switched onusing theStart /Stop
button .
To ensure thatyoudon't rollbackwards when
pulling awayonanuphill slope, engage the
electric parking brake(Ypage 141).
Applying automat ically Your
vehicle's electricparking brakeis
automatically appliedifDIS TRONIC PLUSor
the HOLD functionbring thevehicle toa
standst ill,orare engaged tokeep thevehicle
station ary.Inaddition, atleast oneofthe
following conditionsmust befulfilled: 156
Par
kingDriving and parking

R
the engineissw itch edoff.
R the driver 'sdo or isop en and theseat belt
is not faste ned .
R the vehicleis sta tionar yfor alength y
pe riod .
Th ered F (USA only)or ! (Cana da
onl y)ind icator lamp inthe instrument cluste r
li gh ts up .
Rel easing auto matic ally Yo
ur veh icle'sel ectr icpa rki ng bra keis
au toma tically rel easedifallof the followi ng
cond itions aremet:
R the engineisrunning .
R the transmi ssion isin po sitio nD or R.
R the seat beltha sbe en faste ned .
R yo ude pre ssthe accelera tor pedal.
If the transmi ssion isin po sitio nR, the trunk
li d mu stbe closed.
If yo ur seat beltis not faste ned ,the followi ng
cond itions mustbe fulfille d to automa tically
rel ease the electr icpa rki ng bra ke:
R the driver 'sdo or isclo sed.
R yo uha ve shifted outo ftransmis sion
posi tion Por you have previouslydrive n
faster than2mph (3km/h) .
Emerge ncybraking The
vehicl ecan alsobe braked duringan
emerge ncyusing the electric parking brake.
X Whil edrivi ng,pus hhandl e: ofthe electric
parking brake(Ypag e156). i
The
vehicl eis braked aslong asyou keep
the handl eof the electric parking brake
presse d.The longer theelectric parking
brake handleis depre ssed, thegrea terthe
braking force. During
braking:
R awa rning tonesound s.
R the Release
parkingbrake messa
ge
app ears.
R the red F (USAonly)or ! (Canada
only )indica torlamp inthe instrument
cluster flashes.
When thevehicl ehas been braked toa
standstil l,the electric parking brakeis
engag ed. Parking
thevehi cleforalong period
If you leave theveh icle park edfor longer than
four week s,thebatt erymay bedamage dby
exh aust ivedisc harg e.
X Conn ectatrick lechar ger. i
You
canobtain inform ationabout trick le
char gers from aqualifie dspec ialist
work shop,e.g .ana uth orizedMer cedes-
Ben zCen ter.
If you leave theveh iclep ark edfor longer than
six week s,theveh icle may sufferdamag eas
a res ult oflack ofuse.
X Visi taqu alified specialist workshopand
seek advice. Driving
tips General
driving tips
Impor tantsafet ynotes G
WARN
ING Always
remembe rthat you must concentrat e
primarily ondriving thevehicle. Thedriver's
conc entrat ionmust alwaysbe directed
primarily atroad traffic. Foryour ownsafety
and that ofothers, werecommen dthat you
stop thevehicle atasafe place andin
accordance withthetraffic conditions before
making oraccepting aphone call.
Comply withalllegal requirements ifyou use
the telephone whiledriving. Usethehands-
free system andonly usethetelephone when Driving
tips
157Driving and parking
Z

G
WARNING An
intermittent warningsound sand the
dista ncewarning lamp · inthe instrument
cluster isillumina tedifthe DISTRONIC PLUS
system calculates thatthedista ncetothe
vehicl eahe adand yourvehicle's current
speed indicat ethat theDISTRONIC PLUSwill
not becapable ofslowing thevehicle
sufficien tlytomaint ainthe preset following
distanc e,which createsadanger ofa
collision.
Immediately brakethevehicle toincr ease
your distanc eto the precedin gvehicle. The
warning soundisinten dedasafinal caution
in which youshould intercede withyour own
braking inputstoavoid apoten tially
dangerous situation.Donot wait forthe
operation ofthe warning signaltointerc ede
with your ownbraking. Thiswillresult in
potent iallydangerous emergencybraking
which willnotalway sresult inan impact being
avoided.
Tailgating increasestherisk ofan accident . G
WARNING DIS
TRONIC PLUSbrakes yourvehicle witha
maximum deceleration of13 ft/s2
(4 m/s 2
).
This isequivalent toapproximately 40%of
your vehicle's maximum possible
deceleration.
You need tobrake yourself toprevent a
collision. DISTRONIC PLUSbrakes thevehicle
to restore thesetdistance fromthevehicle
ahead orthe setspeed. G
WARNING If
you donot receive visualoracoustic
warning signalsduringacritic altraffic
situation, DISTRONIC PLUShaseither not
recogn izedthecollision risk,hasbeen
deactivated orismalfunct ioning.
Remember, whetherornot DISTRONIC PLUS
is operating, itis ultimately alwaysthe drivers
responsibility toapply thebrakes inorder to
cont rolthe vehicle andavoid acollision. G
WARNING The
vehicle canbebraked whenDISTRONIC
PLUS isactivated. Forthis reason, deactivate
DIS TRONIC PLUSifthe vehicle isto be set in
motion byother means (e.g.inacar wash or
by towing).
If you want DISTRONIC PLUStoassist you,
the radar sensor system mustbeactivated
(Y page 236)andoperational.
General notes DIS
TRONIC PLUSregulates thespeed and
automatically helpsyoumaintain the
distance tothe vehicle detectedinfront .It
brakes automatically inorder toavoid
exceeding thesetspeed.
On long andsteep downhill gradients,
especially ifthe vehicle isladen ortowing a
trailer, youmust select shiftrange 1,2or 3
in good time. Bydoing so,you willmake use
of the braking effectofthe engine, which
relieves theload onthe brake system and
prevent sthe brakes fromoverheating and
wearing tooquickly.
If aslower-moving vehicleisdetect edinfront ,
DIS TRONIC PLUScauses yourvehicle to
brake andmaintain thepreset distance tothe
vehicle infront .
If there isno vehicle drivinginfront ofyou,
DIS TRONIC PLUSfunctionslikecruise
cont rolataspeed rangebetween 20mph
(Canada :30 km/ h)and 120 mph
(Canada :200 km/h).If avehicle isdriving in
front ofyou, itfunct ionsataspeed range
between 0mph (0km/ h)and 120 mph
(Canada :200 km/h).
Do not use DISTRONIC PLUSwhiledriving on
roads withsteep gradients.
As DIS TRONIC PLUStransmitsradar waves,
it can resemble theradar detect orsofthe
responsible authorities.Youcanrefer tothe
applicabl esection inthe Operator's Manualif
there areany questions concerning this. i
USA
only: Driving
systems
171Driving and parking Z

Disp
laymessa ges Poss
iblecauses/c onseq uences and M Solu
tions ÷
Ino
perative See Ope
rator'sMan ual G
Ri
sk ofacci dent ES
P®
,BA S,PRE -SAF E®
,th eHO LD function ,hill start assi stand
ES P®
trailer stabiliz ation are unav ailable duetoamalf unction .
BA SPLU Sand PRE-SAF E®
Br ake may alsohavefail ed.
In addit ion,th e÷ andå warning lamp sligh tupin the
inst rument cluster.
ATTE NTION ASSIS Tis deactiv ated.
The brake system continues tofunc tion norm ally,butwithout the
func tionslisted above.
X Driv eon carefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. T!
÷
Inoper
ative See Operat
or'sManual G
Risk
ofaccident EB
D(elect ronic brake forcedistr ibution), ABS,ES P®
,BA S,PRE-
SA FE®
,the HOLD function,hill start assist andESP®
trailer
stabilizat ionare unavailable duetoamalfunc tion.
BA SPLUS andPRE-S AFE®
Brak emay alsohave failed.
In addition, the÷, åand! warning lampslightupin
the instrument clusterandawarning tonesounds.
ATTE NTION ASSIS Tis deactiv ated.
The brake system continues tofunc tion norm ally,butwithout the
func tionslisted above. Thewheels couldtherefore lockifyou
brake hard,forexample.
X Driv eon carefully.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshopimmediately. #
Check
Brake Pad Wear The
brake pads/linin gshave reached theirwear limit.
X Visit aqualified specialist workshop. F(USA
only)!
(Canada
only) Please
Release Parkin
gBrake The
redF (USAonly)/ !(Canada only)indicat orlamp
flashes andawarning tonesounds. Acondition forautomatic
release ofthe electric parking brakeisnot fulfilled (Ypage 156).
You aredriving withtheelectric parking brakeapplied .
X Release theelectric parking brakemanually . The
redF (USAonly)/ !(Canada only)indicator lamp
flashes andawarning tonesounds.
You aremaking anemergenc ystop using theelectric parking
brake (Ypage 156). Display
messages
241On-board computer and displays Z