2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class low

Exam
ple: veh icles with adi ese leng ine
X Pa rk the vehicleon alevel surfa ce.
To che ckthe oille vel with the engineat
op era ting temp erature,sw itch theengine
off and waitfor appro xima telyfiv eminu tes.
X Pu lloi ldi psti ck: outo fthe dipstick guide
tube.
X Wipe offoildipstick :.
X Slowly slideoildipstick :into theguide
tube tothe stop, andtake itout again.
If the level isbetween MINmark =and
MAX mark ;,theoillevel iscorrect .
X Ifthe fuel level hassunk toMIN mark =or
below, add0.55 to1.1 USqt(0.5 to1.0 l)
engine oil.
Adding engineoil G
WARNING If
engine oilcomes intocontactwith hot
engine parts,itmay ignite andyoucould burn
yourself. Donot spill anyengine oilon hot
engine parts. H
Environmental
note When
adding oil,take carenottospill any. If
oil enters thesoil orwaterway s,itis harmful
to the environm ent.
! Use only engine oilsand oilfilters that
have been approved forvehicles equipped
with aservice system. Alist ofthe engine
oils and oilfilters tested and approv edin
acc ordan cewith theMerc edes- Benz
Spec ification sfor ServiceProduc tscan be called
upbyvisit inghttp://
www.mb usa.com (USAonly). More
inf orm ation about tested and approv ed
eng ineoils and oilfilters isavailable from
any author izedMerc edes- BenzCent er.
Damage tothe engin eor exhaust systemis
caused bythe following:
R using engineoils and oilfilters which
have notbeen specific allyapproved for
the servic esystem.
R replacing theengin eoil oroil filter after
the replacemen tinterv alreq uired bythe
ser vicesy stem hasel ap sed
R us ing eng ineoilad ditive s.
! Donot addtoo muchoil.If the oille vel is
ab ove the"max" markon the dipsti ck,too
mu choilha sbe en adde d. Thi scan lead to
damag eto theen gin eor thecat alytic
co nvert er. Hav eex ces soil siph oned off. Ex
ample :engi ne oilcap
X Tu rn cap :cou ntercl ockwise and remo ve
it.
X Add engineoil.
If the oille vel isat or below the MIN mark
on the oildi psti ck,
ad d0.55 to1.1 USqt(0.5 to1.0 l)engi ne
oi l.
X Re place cap :onthe fillerneck andturn
clo ckwi se.
Ensu retha tthe cap locks into place
secu rely.
X Ch eck theoille vel againw iththe oil
dipst ick(Ypage 313). 314
Engine
compartm entMaintenance and care

Furth
erinfor mationonengi neoil
(Y page 388). Che
cking and adding otherserv ice
pr odu cts
Checkin gth ecoolant level On
lyche ckthecoo lant level when theveh icle
is on alevel surface and theeng inehas cooled
down .
X Turn theSm artKey toposit ion
2 (Y page 139)intheign itio nlock .
On veh icleswith KEYLE SS-GO ,pres sth e
St art /S topbutt ontwic e(Ypage 139).
X Check thecoolant temperaturegauge in
the multifun ction display.
The coolant temperaturemustbebelow
158 ‡(70 †). G
WARN
ING In
order toavoid anypoten tiallyserious burns:
R use extreme caution whenopenin gthe
hood ifther eare any signs ofsteam or
coolant leakingfromthecoolin gsystem ,or
if the coolant temperaturedisplay indicates
that thecoolant isoverheat ed.
R do not remov ethe pressure caponthe
coolant reservoirifthe coolant temperature
is above 158‡(70 †). Allow theengine to
cool downbefore removin gthe cap. The
coolant reservoircon tains hotfluid andis
under pressure.
R using arag, slowly turnthecap
approximat ely1
/ 2 turn
torelieve excess
pressure. Ifopened immediately, scalding
hot fluid andsteam willbeblown outunder
pressure.
R do not spill antifreeze onhot engine parts.
An tifr eeze contains ethylene glycolwhich
may burn ifit comes intocontact with hot
engine parts. X
Slowly turncap:half aturn count er-
clock wiseandallow excesspressure to
escape.
X Turn cap:furth ercount er-clockwise and
remove it.
If the coolant isat the level ofmarker bar
= inthe filler neck when cold,there is
enough coolant incoolant expansion
tank ;.
If the coolant isapproximat ely0.6 in
(1.5 cm)above marker bar=inthe filler
neck when warm, thereisenough coolant
in coolant expansion tank;.
X Ifneces sary,addcoolant thathasbeen
test edand approved byMercedes- Benz.
X Replace cap:and turn itclock wiseasfar
as itwill go.
For furth erinfor mation oncoolant ,see
(Y page 389).
Windshield washersystemand
headla mpcleaning system The
washer fluidreservo iris used forboth the
windshield washersystemandtheheadlamp
cleanin gsystem. i
Vehicle
compon entsand their servic e
product smust match.You should,
theref ore,only useproduct sthat have been
test edand approved byMercedes- Benz.
Inf ormation ontest edand approved
product scan beobtained atany authorized
Mercedes- BenzCenter oron the Internet at
htt p://ww w.mbu sa.com (USAonly). Engine
compartment
315Maintenance and care Z

G
WARNING Wash
ersolve nt/antifreeze ishigh ly
flamma ble.Donot spill washer solvent/
antifreez eon hot engine parts,because itmay
ignite andburn. Youcould beseriously
burned.
! Attemperatures belowfreezin g:alwa ys
fill the washer fluidreservoir withamix of
water andwindshield washerconcentrate
(e.g. MBWinterF it).There isotherwise a
risk ofdamaging thewindshield washer
system/headlamp cleaningsystem.
! Only usewasher fluidconcentratewhich
is suitable forplastic lenses. Unsuitable
washer fluidconc entratecould damage the
plastic lensesofthe headlamps.
! Donot add distilled orde-ionized waterto
the washer fluidcontainer. Otherwise, the
level sensor maybedamaged. i
Add
windshield washerconcentrate, e.g.
MB SummerF it,to the washer fluidallyear
round. Example:
washerfluidreservoir
X Mix thewindshield washerfluidina
cont ainer beforehand.
X At temp eratures above freezing: fillthe
washer fluidreservoir withamixof water
and winds hieldwasher concentrate (e.g.
MB Summ erFit).
X At tem peratur es below freezing: fillthe
washer fluidreser voirwith amixof water
and winds hieldwasher concentrate (e.g.
MB Wint erFit).Adapt themixingratioto the outs
idetem perat ure.Forinform ation on
the mixing ratio(Y page 390).
X To open: pullcap:upwards bythe tab.
X Add theprem ixedwasher fluid.
X To close: presscap:ontothe filler neck
unt ilit eng ages.
Br ake fluid level !
Ifyou notice that thebrak efluid level in
the brak efluid reser voirhasfallen tothe
MIN mark orless, checkthe brak esyst em
immed iatelyforleaks. Alsocheckthe
thick ness ofthe brake linings. Contact a
qual ified specialist workshop, e.g.an
authorized Mercedes-Ben zCent er
immediately.
Do not add brake fluid.Thisdoes not
corr ectthe error.
Only checkthe brake fluidlevel when the
vehicle isstationary andonalevel surface.
In order tocheck thebrake fluidlevel, the
cover above thebrake fluidreservoir mustbe
removed. X
Remove seal;inthe area around
cover :inthe direction ofthe arrow. 316
Engi
necompar tmentMaintenance and care

Please
bearthefollow inginmind Resetting
theservice interval display
Aq ualifi edspec ialist workshop,e.g. an
auth orizedMer cedes- BenzCent er,will reset
the servic eint erval display afterthe
nec essary servicework hasbeen carried out.
Furt herinfor mation ,on maint enanc efor
example, canbeobtained atan authoriz ed
Mercedes- BenzCenter ordirect lyfrom
Mercedes- Benz.
! Ifthe servic eint erval display hasbeen
reset unintentionally, havethesetting
corr ectedataMercedes- BenzCenter .
Have servic ework carried outasdescribed
in the Serv iceBook let.This may other wise
lead toincr eased wearanddamage tothe
major assemblies orthe vehicle.
Driving abroad
An ext ensive Mercedes- BenzServ icenetwork
is also available inother countries.Youcan
obtain furtherinfor mation fromany
authoriz edMercedes- BenzCenter . Care
Notes
oncare
Regular careofyour vehicle isacon dition for
retain ingthe quality inthe long term.
Use care product sand cleanin gagents
recom mended andapproved byMercedes-
Ben z. G
WARN
ING Many
cleanin gproduct scan behazardous.
Some arepoisonous, othersare flammable.
Always followtheinstruct ions onthe
particular container .Always openyour
vehic le'sdoors orwindows whencleaningthe
inside .
Never usefluids orsolven tsthat arenot
design edfor clean ingyour vehic le.
Always lockaway cleaningproduc tsand keep
the mout ofreach ofchildr en. !
For clean ingyour vehic le,do not use any
of the followin g:
R dry, rough orhard cloths
R abrasive cleaningagent s
R solven ts
R clean ingagent scon tain ingsolven ts
Do not scrub.
Do not touc hthe surfac esorprot ective
films withhard objects, e.g. arin gor ice
scr aper. Youcould otherwise scratc hor
damage thesurfac esand protective film. H
Envir
onment alnote Disp
oseofempt ypack aging andclean ing
clot hsinan env iron men tally respo nsible
mann er.
! Donot park thevehic lefor anext ended
period straight afterclean ingit,part icularly
aft erhavin gclean edthe wheels withwheel
clean er.Wheel cleanerscould cause
inc reased corrosio nofthe brake discsand
brake pads/linings. Forthis reason, you
should driveforafew minutes after
cleaning. Brakingheatsthebrake discsand
the brake pads/linings, thusdrying them.
The vehicle canthen beparked. Exterior
care
Automat iccar wash G
WARNING Braking
efficiency isreduced afterwashing
the vehicle. Thiscould cause anaccident. For
this reason, youmust driveparticularly
carefully afterwashing thevehicle untilthe
brakes havedried.
You canwash thevehicle inan automatic car
wash fromthevery start.
! Never cleanyourvehicle inaTouchless
Automatic CarWash asthese usespecial
cleaning agents.Thesecleaning agentscan
damage thepaintwork orplastic parts. 318
CareMaintenance and care

!
Alway smaintain adistance ofat least
11.8 in(30 cm) between thevehicle andthe
power washer nozzle.Information about
the correct distance isavail able from the
equi pment manufacturer.
Move thepower washer nozzlearound
when cleaning yourvehicle.
Do not aim directly atany ofthe followi ng:
R tires
R door gaps, roofgaps, joints etc.
R electrical component s
R battery
R conn ectors
R lights
R seals
R trim elements
R ventilation slots
Damaged sealsorelectrical component s
can lead toleaks orfailu res.
Cle aning thewhee ls !
Donot use acidic wheelcleaning products
to remove brakedust.Thiscould damage
wheel boltsandbrake component s.
! Donot park thevehicle foranextended
period straight aftercleaning it,particula rly
after having cleaned thewheels withwheel
cleaner. Wheelcleaners couldcause
increased corrosionofthe brake discsand
brake pads/li nings.Forthis reason, you
should driveforafew minutes after
cleaning. Brakingheatsthebrake discsand
the brake pads/li nings,thusdrying them.
The vehicle canthen beparked.
Cle aning thepaintwork Scratc
hes,corrosive deposits,areasaffected
by corrosion anddamage causedby
inadequ atecare cannot always becompletely
repaired .Ins uch cases, visitaqualif ied
spec ialist workshop,e.g. an auth orized
Mer cedes- BenzCent er. X
Remove impurities immediately, where
possible, whilstavoiding rubbingtoohard.
X Soak insectremains withinsec tremover
and rinse offthe treat edareas afterwards.
X Soak birddroppings withwater andrinse
off the treat edareas afterwards.
X Remove coolant,brake fluid,treeresin,
oils, fuels andgreases byrubbing gently
with aclot hsoaked inpetroleum etheror
lighter fluid.
X Use tarremover toremove tarstains .
X Use silicone remover toremove wax.
! Donot affix:
R stic kers
R films
R magnet icplates orsimilar items
to painted surfaces. Youcould otherwise
damage thepaintwork .
If water nolonger forms"beads" onthe paint
surface, usethepaint careproduct s
recom mended andapproved byMercedes-
Ben z.This isthe case approximat elyevery
thr ee tofive mont hs,depending onthe
climate conditions andthecare product used.
If dirt has penet rated thepaint surface orthe
paint hasbecome dull,thepaint cleaner
recom mended andapproved byMercedes-
Ben zshould beused.
Do not use these careproducts inthe sun or
on the hood while thehood ishot.
X Use asuitable touch-up stick,e.g. MB
Touch-Up Stick,to correct smaller areasof
paint damage quicklyandprovisionally .
Matt efinish care If
your vehicle hasaclear matte finish,
observe thefollowing instructionsinorder to
avoid damage tothe paintwork dueto
incorrec tcare.
These notesalsoapply tolight alloy wheels
with aclear matte finish. 320
CareMaintenance and care

!
Never polish thevehicle orthe light alloy
wheels. Polishingcauses thefinish to
shine.
! The followi ngmay cause thepaint to
become shinyandthus reduce thematte
effect:
R Vigorous rubbingwithunsuitabl e
materials.
R Frequent useofcar washes.
R Washing thevehicle indirect sunlight.
! Never usepaint cleaner, buffingor
polishi ngproducts, orgloss preserver, e.g.
wax. These products areonly suitabl efor
high-gloss surfaces.Theiruseonvehicles
with matte finishleadsto considerable
surface damage (shiny,spotted areas).
Alway shave paintwork repairsperformed
at aqual ified speciali stworkshop, e.g.an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
! Donot use wash programs withahot wax
treatment underanycircumstances. i
The
vehicle shouldpreferably bewashed
by hand using asoft sponge, carshampoo
and plenty ofwater. i
Use
only insect remover andcarshampoo
from therange ofrecommended and
approved Mercedes-Benz careproducts.
Cle aning thewindow s G
WARNING Before
cleaning thewindshiel dorwiper
blades, switchoff the windsh ieldwipers and
remo vethe Smar tKey fromthe ignit ionlock .
On vehic leswith KEYLE SS-GO, press the
St art/ Stop butt onrepeat edlyuntilall
indic atorlamps inthe inst rumen tcluster have
gon eout. Thewindsh ieldwipers could
oth erwise moveandinjure you.
X Clean theinside andouts ideofthe
windows withadamp clothand aclean ing
agent thatisrec omme ndedandapprov ed
by Merc edes- Benz. !
Donot use drycloths,abrasive products,
solven tsor clean ingagent scont aining
solvent sto clean theinside ofthe windows.
Do not touch theinsides ofthe windows
with hard object s,e.g. anice scraper or
ring. There isotherwise arisk ofdamaging
the windows.
! Clean thewater drainage channelsofthe
windshield andtherear window atregular
interv als.Deposits suchasleaves, petals
and pollen mayunder certain
circumst ancesprevent waterfromdraining
away .This can lead tocorrosion damage
and damage toelectron iccomponen ts.
Cleanin gthe wiper blades G
WARNING Before
cleaning thewindshield orwiper
blades, switchoffthe windshield wipersand
remove theSmartK eyfrom theignition lock.
On vehicles withKEYLES S-GO,pressthe
Start /Stopbutton repeatedly untilall
indicator lampsinthe instrumen tcluster have
gon eout. Thewindsh ieldwipers could
oth erwise moveandinjure you.
! Donot pull thewiper blade. Otherwise,
the wiper bladecouldbedamaged.
! Donot clean wiper blades toooften and
do not rub themt oohard. Otherwise, the
graphite coatingcouldbedamaged. This
could cause wipernoise.
X Fold thewiper armsaway fromthe
windshield.
X Carefully cleanthewiper blades witha
damp cloth.
X Fold thewindshield wipersbackagain
before switching onthe ignition.
! Hold thewiper armsecurely whenfolding
back. Thewindshield couldbedamaged if
the wiper armsmacks againstitsuddenly. Care
321Maintenance and care Z

Int
erior car e
Clean ingthedis pla y X
Be for ecle anin gth edisp lay,mak esure that
it is swit ched off and hascooled down .
X Clean thedisp laysurf ace usinga
co mm ercially- availab lemic rofiber cloth
and TFT/ LCD displaycleane r.
X Dr yth edisp laysurf ace usingadry
mic rofiber cloth.
! Forc leanin g,do not use anyofthe
followin g:
R alcoho l-basedthin ner orgasolin e
R abrasiv eclean ingagent s
R com merc ially-available household
clean ingagent s
These maydamage thedisplay surface. Do
not putpress ureonthe display surface
when cleaning.This could leadto
irrep arable damage tothe display.
Cleaning NightView Assist Plus !
Never cleanthecamer alens. When
clean ingthe field ofvision ofthe drivin g
syste ms,make surethatyoudonot spray
glass cleaneron the camer alens. Ifthe
camer alens isdirt y,visit aqualified
spec ialist workshop. G
WARN
ING Please
donot forg etthat your primar y
respo nsibilit yis to drive thevehic le.Ad river's
attention tothe road must alwaysbe his/he r
prima ryfocus whendriving.For yoursafety
and thesafety ofothers, stopbefore tryingto
remove windowfoggi ngorclea ning the
windo win front ofthe Night ViewAssist Plus
camera .
Bear inmind thatataspee dof just 30mph
(ap proxima tely50km/h), yourvehicle is
cover ingadistanc eof 44 feet (approximately
14 m)every second. X
Fold down thecamera coverbyrecess :. X
Use asoft cloth toclean thewindshield in
fron tof camera ;.
Cleaning theplast ictrim G
WARN
ING When
cleanin gthe steerin gwheel bossand
dashboard, donot use cock pitsprays or
cleanin gagents containin gsolvent s.Cleaning
agents containin gsolvent scause thesurface
to become porous,andasaresult, plastic
parts maybreak awayandbethro wnaround
the inter iorwhen anair bag isdeployed, which
may result insevere injuries.
! Donot affix thefollowing toplastic
surfaces:
R stic kers
R films
R scen tedoilbott lesorsimilar items
You canother wisedamage theplastic.
! Donot allow cosmet ics,insect repellent
or sunscr eentocome intocontact with the Care
323Maintenance and care Z

plastic
trim.This maintains thehigh-quali ty
look ofthe surfaces.
X Wipe theplastic trimwith adamp, lint-free
cloth, e.g.amicrofiber cloth.
X Heavy soiling:use carcare andcleaning
products recommen dedandapproved by
Mercedes-Ben z.
The surface maychange colortemporarily.
Wait untilthesurface isdry again.
Cleanin gthe steering wheelandgear or
selec torlever X
Thoroughly wipewithadamp clothoruse
leather careagents thathave been
recommen dedandapproved byMercedes-
Benz .
Cleanin ggenuine woodand trim
elements X
Wipe thewooden trimandtrim pieces with
a damp, lint-free cloth ,e.g. amicr ofiber
clo th.
X Hea vysoilin g: usecar care andcleani ng
pro ducts reco mmend edand appro ved by
Mer cedes-Be nz.
! Donot usesol vent-b ased cleani ngagents
su ch astar remo ver,wheelcleaner s,
polishes orwaxes. Thereisoth erwise arisk
of damagin gthe surface.
! Donot use chrome polish ontrim pieces .
The trim pieces haveachr ome lookbutare
most lymade ofanodiz edaluminum and
can lose theirshin eif chr ome polish is
used. Useadamp, lint-free clothinst ead
when cleaningthe trim pieces .
If the chrome- plated trim pieces arevery
dirt y,you can useachr ome polish. Ifyou
are unsur eas towhet herthetrim pieces
are chrome- plated ornot ,con sult an
author izedMerc edes- BenzCent er. Cleaning
theseat covers !
Donot use microf iberclothstoclean
genuine leather,artificialleather or
Alcan tara® covers.Ifused often,these can
damage thecover .
! Observe thefollowing whencleanin g:
R clean genuine leathercoverscaref ully
wit hadamp clothand then wipe the
co ver sdown withadry cloth.M ake sure
th at theleat her does notb ecome
soaked. Itmay other wisebecome rough
and crack ed.Only useleather care
agents thathave been testedand
approved byMercedes- Benz.You can
obtain thesefromaqualified specialist
worksho p,e.g. aMercedes- BenzService
cen ter.
R clean artificialleather coverswith aclot h
moisten edwith asolution containin g1%
detergen t(e.g. dish washing liquid).
R clean clothcover swith amicrof ibercloth
moisten edwith asolution containin g1%
detergen t(e.g. dish washing liquid).Rub
carefully andalway swipe entireseat
sect ions toavoid leaving visiblelines.
Leave theseat todry afterwards.
Cleaning resultsdepend onthe type of
dirt and how long ithas been there.
R clean Alcantara® coverswith adamp
clot h.Make sureyouwipe entireseat
sect ions toavoid leaving visiblelines. i
Note
thatregular careisessent ialto
ensure thattheappearance andcomf ortof
the cover sis retain edover time.
Cleaning theseat belts X
Use clean, lukewarm waterandsoap
solution.
! Donot clean theseat belts using chemic al
cleanin gagents .Donot drythe seat belts
by warming themabove 176‡(80 †)or
placing themindirect sunlight. 324
CareMaintenance and care