2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class Outside temperature

Winter
driving
Gene ralnote s G
WARNING If
the vehicl ebecome strappe din snow,
ensure thatsnow iskept away from the
exhau stpip eand from aroundthe vehicl eas
long asthe engine isrunning. Otherwise,
poi sonou scarbo nmonoxide (CO)mayenter
the vehicle, resulting inloss ofconsc iousness
and even death.
To assure sufficient freshairvent ilation, open
a window slightlyonthe side ofthe vehicle
not facing thewind.
At the onset ofwinter, haveyourvehicle
winterproof edataquali fiedspecialist
workshop, e.g.atan authorized Mercedes-
Benz Center. i
Vehicles
withadiesel engine: donot
cover theradiator, e.g.with aprotec tive
cover. Themeasuring functionofthe
Onboard Diagnosis Systemmayotherwise
provide inaccurate values.Someofthese
values arerequired bylaw and must
therefor ealwa ysbe accurate.
Driving withsumm ertires Observe
thenotesinthe "Winter operation"
section (Ypage 352).
Slippery roadsurfa ces G
WARNING The
outside temperature indicatorisnot
designed toserve asan ice-warnin gdevice
and istherefor eunsuitable forthat purpose.
Indicated temperatures justabove the
freezin gpoint donot guarantee thattheroad
surface isfree ofice. The road maystillbeicy,
especially inwooded areasoron bridges. G
WARNING On
slippery roadsurfaces, neverdownshift in
order toobtain braking action.Thiscould result
indrive wheel slipand reduced vehicle
cont rol.Your vehicle's ABSwillnotprevent
this type ofloss ofcont rol.
Drive particularly carefullyonslippery road
surfaces. Avoidsudden acceleration, steering
and braking maneuvers. Donot use thecruise
cont rolorDIS TRONIC PLUS.
If the vehicle threaten sto skid orcann otbe
stopped whenmoving atlow speed:
X Shift thetrans mission toposition N. i
For
more informat ionondriving with
snow chains, see(Ypage 353). G
WARNING Make
surethatyoudonot endanger other
road users whenyouapply thebrakes. Off-r
oaddriving
Import antsafety notes G
WARNING Grains
ofsand, particles ofdirt and other
abrasive materials canenter thebrake
system. Thiscanlead toexcessive wearand
unpredictable brakingefficienc y.
Aft erthe brakes havebeen exposed todirty
condit ions,havethem check edand cleaned
at aquali fiedspecialist workshop, e.g.an
authorized Mercedes-B enzCenter.
Otherwise, thereisarisk that braking power
may beinsufficient inthe event ofan
emergenc y,or that thebraking effectmaybe
unpredictable. G
WARNING Do
not load items onthe basic carrier bars.It
may cause instability duringsomemaneuvers
which couldresult inan accident .
Drive slowly inunkn ownterrain. Thiswill
make iteasier torecogn izeunexpect ed
obstacles andavoid damage tothe vehicle.
To help avoid thevehicle rollingover,never
turn itaround onsteep inclines. Ifthe vehicle 162
Driving
tipsDriving and parking

X
Start theengi ne.
Spo rtstuni ng
The firmer suspe nsio ntunin ginS port mode
ensures evenbettercon tact with theroad.
Select thismode whenemploying asport y
drivin gstyle, e.g.onwinding countryroads.
X Press button:.
Indic atorlamp ;lights up.Sport s
suspension tuningis select ed.The vehicle
is lowered by0.6 in(15 mm).
Comfor ttuning
In Comfort mode,thedrivin gcharac teristics
of your vehicle aremore comfortable. Select
this mode ifyou favor amore comfor table
driving style,butalso when driving faston
straight roads,e.g.freeways.
X Press button :.
Indicat orlamp =lights up.Comfort tuning
is selected. Thevehicle israised by
0.6 in(15 mm).
Active CurveSystem The
Active Curve System usesactive
stabilizers tooptimize bothdriving comfort
and vehicle agility.Dependin gon the ADS
mode selected (Ypage 180), theActiveCurve
System alsochanges thesetting.
If you select ADScomfor tmode:
R rolling movemen tisreduced inthe event of
changing surfaceundulations
R the rollangle whencornering isreduced
R the driving styleisagile If
you select ADSsport mode:
R the rollangle isreduced significantly
R the driving styleiseven more agile
Leve lcontrol Importa
ntsafety notes
Level controladap tsthe vehicle level
automaticall yto the current operating and
driving situation. Thisresults inreduced fuel
consumption andimproved handling.
If you select ADScomfort mode
(Y page 180), thevehicle islowered tohigh-
speed levelasthe speed increases. Asthe
vehicle decelerates, thevehicle israised back
up tohighwa ylevel.
If you select ADSsport mode (Ypage 180),
the vehicle skipshighwa ylevel andlowers
directly tohigh-speed leveldepending onthe
basic setting (Ypage 182).
Make changes tothe vehicle levelwhile the
vehicle isin motion. Thisenables thevehicle
to adjust tothe new level asquickly as
possible .
The vehicle levelmaychange visiblyifyou
park thevehicle andtheoutside temperature
changes. Ifthe temperature drops,the
vehicle levelislower; withanincrease in
temperature, thevehicle levelrises.
If you unlock thevehicle oropen adoor, the
vehicle beginstocompensate forload
discrepancies whilestillparked. However, for
significant levelchanges, suchasafter the
vehicle hasbeen stationary foralong period,
the engine mustbeon. For safety reasons,
the vehicle isonly lowered whenthedoors are
closed. Lowering isinterrupted ifadoor is
opened, anditcont inues oncethedoor has
been closed. G
WARNING Make
surenoone isnear thewheel housing
or under thevehicle whenyoulower the
vehicle whileitis standing still.Limbs could
become wedgedintoorunder thevehicle. Driving
systems
181Driving and parking
Z

Useful
information
i This
Operat or'sManual describesall
models andallstan dard andoption al
equipment ofyour vehicle available atthe
time ofpublication ofthe Operat or's
Manual. Country-specificdiffer encesare
possible. Pleasenotethat your vehicle may
not beequipped withallfeature s
descr ibed. Thisalso applies tosafet y-
related systemsand func tions. i
Please
readtheinfor mation onqualified
specialist workshops(Ypage 25). Impor
tant safet ynotes You
willfind anillustrat ionofthe instrumen t
clust erinthe "Ataglance" section
(Y page 29). G
WARN
ING A
driver' satt ent ion tothe road andtraffic
con dition smust always behis/her primary
focus whendriving.
For your safetyand thesafet yof other s,
select ingfeature sthr ough themultifun ction
steer ingwheel should onlybedone bythe
driver whentrafficand road condition spermit
it to be done safely.
Bear inmind thatataspeed ofjust 30mph
(approxim ately50km/ h),your vehic leis
cove ringadistan ceof44 feet (approxim ately
14 m)every second. G
WARN
ING No
messages willbedisplayed ifeither the
inst rumen tclust eror the multif unction
display isinoper ative.
As aresult, youwillnotbeable tosee
info rmat ionabout yourdrivin gcon dition s,
such as
R speed
R outside temperatur e
R warnin g/indicato rlamps R
malf unction/ warn ingmes sages
R failur eof any systems
Dr ivin gch arac terist ics may beimpair ed.
If you must continue todriv e,do sowith added
caut ion.Contac tana uth oriz edMer cedes-
Ben zCent eras soon aspossible. G
WARN
ING Malfunct
ionand warning messages areonly
indicat edfor cert ainsystems andare
inten tionally notvery detailed. The
malfunct ionand warning messages are
simply areminder withrespect tothe
operation ofcert ainsystems. Theydonot
replace theowner's and/ordriver's
respons ibilitytomaint ainthe vehicle's
operatin gsafety. Haveallrequired
maint enanc eand safety checksperform edon
the vehicle. Bringthe vehicle toan authorized
Mercedes- BenzCenter toaddress the
malfunct ionand warning messages. Displays
andopera tion Coolant
temperaturedispla y G
WARN
ING Drivin
gwhen yourengine isoverheat edcan
cause somefluidswhich mayhave leaked into
the engine compart menttocatc hfire. You
could beseriously burned.
St eam from anoverheat edengine cancause
serious burnswhich canoccur justbyopening
the engine hood.Stay away fromtheengine
if you seeorhear steam comingfrom it.
St op the vehicle inasafe location awayfrom
other traffic.Turn offthe engine, getout ofthe
vehicle anddonot stand nearthevehicle until
the engine hascooled down.
The coolant temperaturegauge isin the
inst rument clusteronthe right- hand side.
Under normaloperatin gcon ditions andwith
the specified coolantlevel,thecoolant
temper aturemayriseto248 ‡(120 †). 222
Displays
andopera tionOn-board computer and displays

!
Ifthe coolant temperature istoo high a
displa ymessage isshown.
If the coolant temperature risesabove
248 ‡(120 †),donot drive anyfurther as
this could damage theengine. Tachometer
The redband inthe tachometer indicatesthe
engine's overrevving range.
! Donot drive inthe overrevving range,as
this could damage theengine.
The fuel suppl yis interrupted toprotect the
engine whenthered band isreached. Outside
tempera turedisplay
The outside temperature displayis in the
multifunction display(Y page 224). G
WARNING The
outside temperature indicatorisnot
designed toserve asan ice-warning device
and istherefore unsuitablefor that purpose.
Indicated temperatures justabove the
freezing pointdonot guara nteethattheroad
surface isfree ofice. The road maystillbeicy,
especial lyin wooded areasoron bridges.
Changes inthe outside temperature are
displa yedafter ashort delay. Speedometer
withsegments
The segments inthe speedometer indicate
which speed rangeisavail able.
Cruise control(Ypage 167)activated:
The segments lightupfrom thestored speed
to the maximum speed.
DISTRONIC PLUS(Ypage 169)activated:
One ortwo segments inthe setspeed range
light up.
DISTRONIC PLUSdetects avehicle infront :The
segments betweenthespeed ofthe
vehicle infront andthestored speedlightup. Operating
theon-board computer
Overview The
on-board computer isactivated assoon
as you turn theSmartKey toposition 1in the
ignition lock.
You cancont rolthe multifunction displayand
the settings inthe on-board computer using
the buttons onthe multifunction steering
wheel. :
Multifunction display
; Toswitch onthe Voice Control System;
see theseparate operating instructions
= Right controlpanel
? Left controlpanel
A Back button Dis
plays andoperation
223On-board computer and displays Z

Disp
laymessa ges Poss
iblecauses/c onseq uences and M Solu
tions Lan
eKee ping Ass
ist Ino
perative or Act
ive Lane Kee
pingAss ist Ino
perative Lan
eKee pingAs sis torA ctive Lane Keeping Assi stisdef ectiv e.
X Vis itaqu alifi ed spe cialist wo rksho p. Blin
dSpot Assist Curr
ently Unav
ailableSee Oper
ator'sManu al or Acti
veBlin d Spot
Assist Curr
ently Unav
ailableSee Oper
ator'sManu al Bli
nd Spot Assistor Active Blind Spot Assististemp orarily
inop erative .Possible causesare:
R you have established theelectric alconn ection between the
trailer andyour vehicle.
R the sensors aredirty.
R funct ionisimpaired duetoheavy rainorsnow.
R the radar sensor system isoutside theoperating temperature
range.
R the radar sensor system istemporarily inoperative, e.g.due to
electrom agneticradiation emittedbynearby TVorradio
station sor other sources ofelectrom agneticradiation.
The yellow 9indicator lampsalsolight upinthe exter ior
mirrors.
X When towing atrailer, confirmthedisplay message witha.
If you aredriving without atrailer andthedisplay message does
not disappea r:
X Pull over andstop thevehicle safelyassoon aspossible, paying
atten tiontoroad andtraffic conditions.
X Apply theelectric parking brake.
X Clean thesensors (Ypage 322).
X Restart theengine.
If the system detectsthat thesensors arefully operational, the
display message disappears.
Blind SpotAssist orAct ive Blind SpotAssist isoperational again. Blind
SpotAssist Inoperative
or Active
Blind Spot
Assist Inoperative Blind
SpotAssist orAct ive Blind SpotAssist isdefectiv e.
The yellow 9indicator lampsalsolight upinthe exter ior
mirrors.
X Visit aquali fiedspecialist workshop. Park
Assist Canceled The
driver's doorisopen andthedriver's seatbelthasnotbeen
fasten ed.
X Repeat theparking process withtheseat beltfastened andthe
driver's doorclosed. 260
Display
messagesOn-board computer and displays

i
Vehicles
equipped withMOExt endedtires
are not equi pped withaTIREFIT kitatthe
factory. Itis therefore recommended that
you addi tionally equipyou rvehicle witha
TIREF ITkit ifyou mount tiresthatdonot
feature run-flatpropert ies,e.g. winter tires.
A TIREF ITkit can beobtained froman
authoriz edMercedes- BenzCenter .
X Make surethathighway levelis
select ed25
(Y page 180).
X Stop the vehicle onsolid, non-slippery and
level ground, asfar away aspossible from
traff ic.
X Switc hon the hazard warning lamps.
X En gage theelectr icparkin gbrake manually
(Y page 156).
X Brin gthe fron twheels intothestraight-
ahead position.
X Move theDIRECT SELECT lever toP.
X Switch offthe engine.
X Vehicles withoutKEYLESS-GO: remove
the SmartK eyfrom theignition lock.
X Vehicles withKEYLESS-GO: openthe
driver's door.
The on-board electronic shave status 0,
which isthe same asthe SmartK eyhaving
been removed.
X Vehicles withKEYLESS-GO: removethe
Start /Stopbutton fromtheignition lock
(Y page 139).
X All occupants mustgetout ofthe vehicle.
Make surethatthey arenot endangered as
they doso.
X Make surethatnoone isnear thedanger
area while awheel isbeing changed.
Anyone whoisnot directly assisting inthe
wheel change should,forexample, stand
behind thebarrier.
X Get outofthe vehicle. Payattent ionto
traffic condition swhen doing so.
X Close thedriver's door.
X Unload heavyluggage. i
Only
operate thetire inflation compressor
using a12 Vsocket (Ypage 297), evenif
the ignition isturned off.
An emergency cut-offensures thattheon-
board electrical systemvoltage doesnot
drop toolow. Ifthe on-board electrical
system voltage istoo low, power tothe
socket sis automatically cutoff. This
ensures thatthere issufficient powerto
start theengine. TIREFIT
kit
Using theTIREFIT kit You
canusetheTIREFIT kittoseal small
punctures, particularly thoseinthe tire tread.
You canuseTIREFIT atoutside temperatures
down toÒ4 ‡(Ò20 †). G
WARNING TIREFIT
isalimited repairdevice. TIREFIT
cannot beused forcuts orpunctures larger
than approximately 0.16in(4 mm) andtire
damage causedbydriving withextrem elylow
tire inflation pressure, oron aflat tire, ora
damaged wheel.
Do not drive thevehicle undersuch
circumstan ces.
Contact thenearest authorized Mercedes-
Benz Center forassistance orcall Roadsi de
Assistanc e.
X Do not remove anyforeign objectswhich
have penetrated thetire, e.g.screws or
nails.
X Remove thetire seala ntbottle, the
accompanying "max.80km/h" stickerand
the tire inflation compressor fromthe
stowage wellunderneath thecargo
compartmen tfloor (Ypage 328).
25 Vehicles withtheAIRMATIC package. 330
Flat
tireBreakdown assistance

system
whenthedefective wheelhasbeen
replaced withanew wheel.
Vehicles withtirepressure controlsystem:
all wheels mounted mustbeequip pedwith
function ingsensors. Thedefective wheel
should nolonger beinthe vehicle. MOExtended
tires(tires withrun-flat
propert ies)
MOExt ended tires(tires withrun-flat
properties) allowyou tocont inue driving your
vehicle evenifone ormore tiresareentirely
deflated.
MOExt ended tiresmayonlybeused in
conj unction withtheactivated tirepressure
loss warning systemorwith theactivated tire
pressure monitoring system.
The maximum permissible distancewhich
can bedriven inrun-flat modedepends onthe
load inthe vehicle. Youcandrive 50miles
(80 km) ifthe vehicle ispartiall yladen and
18 miles (30km) ifit is fully laden.
The maximum permissible distancewhich
can bedriven inrun-flat modeiscounted from
the moment thetire pressure losswarning
appea rsinthe multifunction display.
You must notexceed amaximum speedof
50 mph (80km/h). G
WARNING The
handling characteristics ofyour vehicle
deteriorate inrun-flat mode,forexample:
R when cornering
R when braking
R when accelerating rapidly
Adapt yourdriving styleaccordingly andavoid
sudden changes indirection andsudden
acceleration, aswell asdriving overobstacles
(i.e. curbs, potholes), anddriving off-road.
This isparticularly thecase when thevehicle
is heavily laden.
The maximum permissible distancethatcan
be driven inrun-flat modedepends toalarge
extent onthe loads placed onthe vehicle. It can
beshorter duetohigh speeds, aheavy
load, sudden changes indirection, theroad
surface condition, outsidetemperature, etc.,
or further ifyou drive carefully and
conservatively.
Do not cont inue todrive inrun-flat modeif:
R you hear banging noises.
R the vehicle startstoshake.
R you seesmoke andsmell rubber.
R ESP ®
is intervenin gconst antly.
R there aretears inthe sidewa llsofthe tire.
Aft erdriving inrun-flat mode,youmust have
the wheel( s)checked fordamage ata
qual ified speciali stworkshop whichhasthe
necessary specialistknowledge andtools to
carry outthework required. Thedefective tire
must bereplaced inevery case.
Mercedes-Benz recommendsthatyouusean
authorized Mercedes-Benz Centerforthis
purpose. Inparticular, workrelevant tosafety
or on safety-related systemsmustbecarried
out ataqual ified speciali stworkshop. i
When
replacing oneorall tires, make sure
that youonly usetires marked
MOExt ended andofthe specified sizefor
the vehicle. Bat
tery Importa
ntsafety notes
In order forthe battery toachieve the
maximum possibleservicelife,itmust always
be sufficiently charged.
! Have thebattery checked regularlyata
qual ified speciali stworkshop, suchasan
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Adhere tothe service intervals indicated in
the service booklet orask aqual ified
speciali stworkshop, suchasan authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
Have thebattery chargechecked more
frequently ifyou usethevehicle mainlyfor 338
Bat
teryBreakdown assistance

If
the tire pressu reshave been settothe
lowe rvalues forlight erloads and/or lower
road speeds,thepres suressho uld beres et
to thehigh ervalues :
R ifyou want todriv ewit han increas edload
and /or
R ifyou want todriv eat high erroad speeds. i
The
tirepres suresfor increas edloads
and /or high erroad speeds,sho wninthe
tir epres sure table,may have ane gat ive
eff ect ondriv ingcomf ort . i
For
trailer towing ,adj ust thetir epres sure
of therear tires tothemax imum tire
pres sure value state don thet able inside
th efuel fillerflap.
Opt ion 3)The tirepr essur efor the
emer gency/collap siblesparewheel
(depen dingonvehic leequipmen t)can be
foun d:
R prin tedinyellow onthe rim ofthe
emer gency/c ollapsible sparewheel
R in the "Wheel andtirecom binat ions"
sect ion(Ypage 375)in this manual
R on the Tire andLoadin gIn for mat ionplacard
on the B-pillar onthe drive r'sside.
If the tirepress ureisnot setcorrectly, this
can lead toan exc essiv ebuild upofheat and
a sudde nloss ofpressure.
For further information,consult aquali fied
specialist workshop, e.g.anauthorized
Mercedes-B enzCenter. Import
antnotes ontire pressur e G
WARNIN
G Should
thetire pressure droprepeatedly:
R check thetire forforeign bodies.
R check whether thewheel islosing airorthe
valve isleaking.
R make surethatonly avalve capapproved
by Mercedes-B enzisused onthe tire valve.
Tire pressures thataretoo low have a
negative effectonvehicle safety,whichcould
lead youtocause anaccident .
To test tirepressure, useasuitable tire
pressure gauge.Theouter appearance ofa
tire does notpermit anyreliable conclusion
about thetire pressure. Onvehicles equipped
with theelectron ictire pressure monitoring
system, thetire pressure canbecheck ed
using theon-board computer.
The tiretemperat ureand pressure increase
when thevehicle isin motion .This is
dependent onthe driving speedandtheload.
Therefore, youshould onlycorrect tire
pressures whenthetires arecold.
The tires arecold:
R ifthe vehicle hasbeen parked without
direct sunlight onthe tires foratleast three
hours and
R ifthe vehicle hasnotbeen driven morethan
1 mile (1.6km).
The tiretemperature changesdepending on
the outside temperature, thevehicle speed
and thetire load. Ifthe tire temperature
changes by18 ‡(10 †),the tire pressure
changes byapproximately 10kPa (0.1 bar/
1.5 psi). Take thisinto account when
check ingthe pressure ofwarm tiresandonly
correct thetire pressure ifit is too low forthe
current operating conditions.Ifyou check the
tire pressure whenthetires arewarm, the
resulting valuewillbehigher thanifthe tires
were cold.Thisisnormal. Donot reduce the
tire pressure tothe value specified forcold
tires. Thetirepressure wouldotherwise be
too low. Tire
pressure
355Wheels and tires Z