2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class warning

In
this situa tion, ESP®
assi stsyou and can
detect ifthe vehicle /trailer combination
begi nstolurch. ESP®
slow sthe vehicle down
by braking andlimiting theengine outputuntil
the vehicle/tra iler comb inationh as
st abiliz ed.
Trail erstabiliz ationisactive fromaspeed of
approximately 37mph(60 km/h). G
WARNING The
system willnotbeable toassist whenthe
trailer jackknifes
R ifthe ESP ®
has switched offdue toa
malfunction
R on wet oricy roads
R on roads withslippery surface
R in sand orgravel
Trailers withahigh centerofgravity maytip
over before thesystem recognizes swayingof
the trailer.
Traile rstab iliza tiond oes notwork ifESP ®
is
deactivated ordisabled becauseofa
malfunct ion. EBD
(elec tronic brake force
distr ibution) i
Observe
the"Important safetynotes"
section (Ypage 61).
EBD monit orsand cont rolsthebrake
pressure onthe rear wheels toimprove
driving stability whilebraking. G
WARNIN
G If
EBD hasmalfunct ioned,thebraking system
remains availablewith fullbrake boosting
effect .However, therear wheels canstilllock,
e.g. under fullbraking. Thiscould cause you
to lose controlofyour vehicle andcause an
accident .You should therefor eadapt your
driving styletothe different handling
character istics. X
Observe thenoteson warning andindicator
lamps (Ypage 272)aswell asdisplay
messages (Ypage 241). ADA
PTIVE BRAKE
AD APTIVE BRAKEenhancesbraking safety
and offers increased brakingcomfort.In
addition tothe braking function,ADAPTIVE
BRAKE alsohastheHOLD function
(Y page 179)andhillstart assist
(Y page 142). Forfurther informat ion,see
Drivin gtips (Ypage 159). PRE-SAFE
®
Br ake
PRE-S AFE®
Brake isonly availa bleinvehicles
with DISTRONIC PLUS. i
Observe
the"Important safetynotes"
section (Ypage 61).
PRE-S AFE®
Brake canhelp youtominimize
the risk ofafront alcollision withavehicle
ahead orreduce theeffect sofsuch a
co llisio n.IfPRE -SAF E®
Br ake hasdetecteda
ris ko fcollision, youwillbewarned visually
and acoustically aswell asby automatic
braking. PRE-SAFE®
Brake cannotprevent a
collision withoutyourintervention.
At speeds aboveapproximately
20 mph (30km/ h),this funct ionwarns you
when youarerapidly approaching thevehicle
in front .An interm ittentwarning tonewill
then sound andthe· distance warning
lamp inthe instr ument cluster willlight up.
X Brake immediately inorder toincrease the
distance fromthevehicle infront .
or
X Take evasive actionprovided itis safe todo
so. Driving
safetysystems
65Safety Z

G
WARNING PRE-SAFE
®
Brake cannot alwaysdetect
comple xtraffic situations prope rly.
In these cases, PRE-SAFE(R) Brakemay:
R give anunnecessa rywarni ngand then
brake thevehicl e
R neither giveawarni ngnor intervene
There isarisk ofan accide nt.Alwa yspay
particu larattention tothe traffic situationand
be read yto brake, especiallyif PRE-SAFE(R)
Brake warns you.Termina tethe intervention
in anon-critical drivingsitua tion.
In particu lar,the detection ofobstacl escan
be impa iredifthere is:
R dirt onthe sensors oranythi ngelse
covering thesensors
R snow orheavy rain
R interference byother radarsources
R the possibility ofstron gradar reflect ions,
for example inparking garages
R anarrow vehicle traveling infront ,e.g. a
motorbik e
R avehicle traveling infront onadifferent line G
WARNIN
G PRE-S
AFE®
Brake doesnotreact:
R to people oranimals
R to oncom ingvehicles
R to crossin gtraffic
R in curves
As aresult, PRE-SAFE®
Brake cannot
interv eneincritic alsituations. Thereisarisk
of an accident .Always paycaref ulatt ent ion
to the traffic situat ionand beready tobrak e.
In order tomaint ainthe appropr iatedistance
to the vehic lein fro ntand thus preventa
collisio n,you must apply thebrak esyourself .X
To act ivat e/deact ivate:act ivate or
deact ivatePRE-SAFE®
Brak ein the on-
board computer (Ypage 232).
The Ä symbol appears inthe
multif unction display aslong asthe HOL D
func tion isnot activate d(Ypage 179).
On vehicles withActive Parkin gAssist ,the
Ä symbol isdisplayed when
tran smission positionPis select edorifyou
drive faster than22mph(35 km/h).
For PRE-S AFE®
Brak eto assist youwhen
drivin g,the radar senso rsyst em mus tbe
switched on(Ypage 236)andoperational.
Following damagetothe front endofthe
vehicle, havetheconfiguration andoperation
of the radar sensors checked ataqual ified
speciali stworkshop. Thisalso appli esto
collisions atlow speeds wherethereisno
visible damage tothe front ofthe vehicle. STEER
CONTROL
The steering assistant STEERCONTROL helps
you bytransmitt inganoticeable steering
force tothe steering wheelinthe direction
required forvehicle stabilization.
This steering assistance isprovided in
particular if:
R both right wheels orboth leftwheels areon
a wet orslippe ryroad surface whenyou
brake
R the vehicle startstoskid
You have controlover thesteering atall
times. G
WARNING If
the ESP ®
is malfunctioning, youwillnot
receive steering assistance fromtheSTEE R
CONTROL. Thepower steering function,
however, remainsavailable. Driving
safetysystems
67Safety 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). Sma
rtKey Impor
tant safet ynotes G
WARN
ING When
leaving thevehicle, alwaysremovethe
Smart Keyfrom theignit ionlock .Always take
the Smart Keywith youand lock thevehicle.
Do not leave children unsuperv isedinthe
vehicle, evenifthey aresecured inachild
rest raint system ,and donot give them acces s
to an unlock edvehicle. Achild's unsupervised
access toavehicle couldresult inan accident
and/or serious personal injury.Theycould:
R injure themselves onvehicle parts
R be seriously orfatally injured byextrem e
heat orcold
R injure themselves orhave anaccident with
vehicle equipment thatmay stillbein
operation evenaftertheSmartKey has
been removed fromtheignition, suchasthe
seat adjustment ,steering wheel
adjustment ormemory function.
If children openadoor, theycould cause
severe oreven fatalinjury toother persons; if
they getout ofthe vehicle, theycould injure
themselves whendoing soorbe seriously or
even fatally injured byany passing traffic.
Do not expose thechild restraint systemto
direct sunlight. Thechild restraint system's
metal parts, forexample, couldbecome very hot,
andachild could beburned onthese
parts. G
WARNING If
akey ring istoo heavy ortoo large, the
weight actingonthe key could cause itto turn
in the ignition lockorcatch onthe steering
wheel. Thiscould cause theengine tobe
switched offsuddenly. Youcould losecontrol
of the vehicle andcause anaccident. Donot
attach anyheavy orlarge keyrings tothe key
that isinserted inthe ignition. General
notes
If you cannot lockorunlock thevehicle with
the SmartK ey,either thebattery inthe
SmartK eyisdischarged, theSmartK eyis
faulty orthe starter battery isdischarged.
X Check thebattery inthe SmartK eyand
replace itifnecessary (Ypage 76).
X Unlock thedriver's doorusing the
mechanical key(Ypage 80).
X Lock thevehicle usingthemechanical key
(Y page 80).
X Have thestarter battery andthebattery
cont acts check edataqual ified specialist
workshop.
If the SmartK eyisfaulty, contactRoadsi de
Assistanc eor aqual ified specialist workshop. Smar
tKeyfunctions
General notes i
USA
only:
This device complies withPart15ofthe
FCC Rules. Operation issubject tothe
following twocondition s:
1. This device maynotcause harmful
interfer ence,and
2. this device mustaccept anyinterfer ence
received, includinginterferencethatmay
cause undesired operation. 72
Smar
tKeyOpening/closing

Problem Possible
causes/co nsequences andM Solutions
The
engine cannot be
started usingthe
SmartK ey. The
on-board voltageistoo low.
X Switch offnon- essential consumers, e.g.seat heating orinterior
lighting, andtrytostart theengine again.
If this does notwork:
X Check thestarter battery andcharge itifnecessary
(Y page 338).
or
X Jump-start thevehicle (Ypage 341).
or
X Consult aqual ified specialist workshop. The
engine cannot be
started usingKEYLE SS-
GO. TheSmartK eyisin
the vehicle. Ad
oor isopen. Therefore, theSmart Keycann otbe detect edas
easily .
X Close thedoor andtrytostart thevehicle again. There
isinter ferenc efrom apowerful sourceofradio waves.
X Start yourvehicle withtheSmart Keyinthe ignition lock. Doors
Import
antsafety notes G
WARNIN
G When
leaving thevehicle, alwaysremove the
Smart Keyfrom theignition lock.Always take
the Smart Keywith youand lock thevehicle.
Do not leave children unsupervised inthe
vehicle, evenifthey aresecured inachild
restraint system,anddonot give them access
to an unlocked vehicle.Achild's unsupervised
access toavehicle couldresult inan accident
and/or serious personal injury.Theycould:
R injure themselves onvehicle parts
R be seriously orfatally injured byextrem e
heat orcold
R injure themselves orhave anaccident with
vehicle equipment thatmay stillbein
operation evenaftertheSmartKey has
been removed fromtheignition, suchasthe
seat adjustment ,steering wheel
adjustment ormemory function. If
children openadoor, theycould cause
severe oreven fatalinjury toother persons; if
they getout ofthe vehicle, theycould injure
themselves whendoing soorbe seriously or
even fatally injured byany passing traffic.
Do not expose thechild restraint systemto
direct sunlight. Thechild restraint system's
metal parts, forexample, couldbecome very
hot, andachild could beburned onthese
parts. G
WARNING Do
not carry heavy orhard object sin the
passenger compartmen tor cargo
compartmen tunle ssthey arefirmly secu red
in place .
Unse curedorimp roperlypo sitio ned cargo
incre ases achi ld's ris kof inju ryinthe event
of
R stro ngbra king maneu vers
R sudd en cha nges ofdirecti on
R an acci dent 78
Do
orsOpening/closing

i
If
you lock thevehicle asdescribe dabove ,
the fuel filler flap isnot locked. Theanti-
theft alarm system isnot armed. Cargo
compartment Important
safetynotes
Do not leavethe SmartKey inthe cargo
compartment. Youcould otherwis elock
you rself out. G
WARNING When
leaving thevehicle ,alw aysremove the
SmartKey fromtheignition lock.Alway stake
the SmartKey withyouand lock thevehicle .
Do not leavechildre nunsu pervised inthe
veh icle, eve nifthey aresecured inachild
restraint system,anddonot give them access
to an unlocked vehicle.Achild's unsupervised
access toavehicle couldresult inan accident
and/or serious personal injury.Theycould:
R injure themselves onvehicle parts
R be seriously orfatally injured byextrem e
heat orcold
R injure themselves orhave anaccident with
vehicle equipment thatmay stillbein
operation evenaftertheSmartKey has
been removed fromtheignition, suchasthe
seat adjustment ,steering wheel
adjustment ormemory function.
If children openadoor, theycould cause
severe oreven fatalinjury toother persons; if
they getout ofthe vehicle, theycould injure
themselves whendoing soorbe seriously or
even fatally injured byany passing traffic.
Do not expose thechild restraint systemto
direct sunlight. Thechild restraint system's
metal parts, forexample, couldbecome very
hot, andachild could beburned onthese
parts. G
WARNING Do
not carry heavy orhard object sin the
passenger compartmen tor cargo compartmen
tunle ssthey arefirmly secu red
in place .
Unse curedorimp roperlypo sitio ned cargo
incre ases achi ld's ris kof inju ryinthe event
of
R stro ngbra king maneu vers
R sudd en cha nges ofdirecti on
R an acci dent G
WAR
NING Ma
kesure the tailgate isclo sed when the
engi neisrunning andwhiled riving. Among
other dange rs,dea dlycarbon monoxide (CO)
gase smay enter vehicleinterior resultingin
unconsciou snessanddeath.
! The tailgate swings upwards andtothe
rear when opened .Therefore, makesure
that there issufficient clearance aboveand
behind thetailgate.
To open thetailgate completely, aminimum
clearance of7.20 ft(2.20 m)above the
gro und isneces sary.
Fo rv ehicles withoutEASY-PACK tailgat e
you can:
R open andcloseth etailg ateman ually from
outs ide
R unloc kthe tailgate frominside withthe
emergency release
For vehicle swith EASY -PACK tailgate you
can:
R close thetailgate manually fromoutside
R open andclose thetailgate automatically
from outside
R open andclose thetailgate automatically
from inside
R limit theopening angleofthe tailgate
R unlock thetailgate frominside withthe
emergency release Cargo
compar tment
81Opening/closing Z

Opening/closing
fromoutsid e
Opening X
Press the% button onthe Smart Key. X
Pull handle :.
X Raise thetailgate.
Vehicles withtheEASY-PACK tailgate:if
you pull handle :and then release it,the
tailgate opensautomatic ally.
Closing G
WARN
ING To
preven tpossible personal injury,always
keep hands andfingers awayfromthecargo
compartm entopening whenclosing the
tailgate. Beespecially carefulwhensmall
children arearound. X
Pull thetailgate downusingrecess :.
X Push thetailgate closedfromoutside the
vehicle.
X Ifnecessary, lockthevehicle with
the & button onthe Smart Key (Y
page 72)orwith KEYLE SS-GO
(Y page 73). i
If
aKEYLE SS-GO key isdetect edinthe
cargo compartm ent,thetailgate willnot
lock. Opening/cl
osingautomat ically from
outside
Import antsafety notes G
WARNING Make
surethetailgate isclosed whenthe
engine isrunnin gand while driving. Among
other dangers, deadlycarbon monoxide(CO)
gases mayenter vehicle interior resulting in
uncons ciousness anddeath.
! The tailgate swingsupwards andtothe
rear when opened. Therefore, makesure
that there issufficient clearance aboveand
behind thetailgate.
To open thetailgate completely, aminimum
clearance of7.20 ft(2.20 m)above the
gro und isneces sary.
Ope ning Yo
ucan openthe tailgate automatically using
the SmartK eyorthe handle inthe tailgate.
X Press andhold theF button onthe
SmartK eyuntil thetailgate opens.
or
X When thetailgate isunlocked, pullthe
handle andletitgo again immediately.
Closi ng G
WARNING Monitor
theclosing procedure carefullyto
make surenoone isin danger ofbeing
injured. Toprevent possible personal injury,
alwa yskeep hands andfingers awayfromthe
cargo compartmen topenin gwhen closing the
tailgate. Beespecially carefulwhensmall 82
Cargo
compar tmentOpening/closing

chil
drenarearou nd.Tostop theclosing
procedu re,doone ofthe follo wing:
R Press orpul lthe remote tailgate opening/
closing switchonthe driver' sdoor.
R Press thetailgate closing switch.
R Press theKEYLESS-GO locking/closing
switch.
R Pul loutsid ehandl eon the tailgate.
R When noSmartKey isinserted inthe starter
switch (vehicleswith KEYLESS-GO: Make
sure thevehicl e'son-board electronics
have status 0):Press button Fonthe
SmartKey.
You canclose thetailgate automatical lyusi ng
the SmartKey, theclosi ngbutton 4
or the
locking button5
. Clo
sing button andlocking button(examp le:
vehicl ewith theEASY-PACK tailgateand KEYLESS-
GO)
X To clo se: press closingbutton :onthe
tail gate.
or
X Press andhold theF button onthe
SmartKey untilthetailgate closes .
X To clo seand locksimu ltaneously:
Press lockingbutt on; onthe tailgat e. i
Simult
aneously closingand lockingthe
tailgat eis only possible ifall doors areshut
and theSmar tKey islocat edinthe vicin ity
of the tailgat e. i
The
tailgat ecan only beopene dand
close dwith theSmar tKey ifther eis no
Smar tKey inthe ignit ionlock .
If the tailgat etouc hesanobjec twhile
closing, theclosing procedure is
interrupted andthetailgate reopens. i
If
you leave aKEYLE SS-GO key inthe
cargo compartmen t,the tailgate willnot
lock.
The tailgate isnot closed unlessa
KEYLE SS-GO key isdetect ed. Opening/c
losingautomatically from
inside G
WARNING Maintain
sightofthe area around therear of
the vehicle whileoperating thetailgate with
the door-mount edremote tailgate switch.
Monitor theopening procedure carefullyto
make surenoone isin danger ofbeing
injured.
To interrupt theopening procedure, pressor
pull thedoor-mount edremote tailgate switch.
When theSmartK eyisnot inserted inthe
starter switch(vehicles withKEYLES S-GO:
Make surethevehicle's on-board electronic s
have status 0):Press button Fonthe
SmartK ey. G
WARNING Maintain
sightofthe area around therear of
the vehicle whileoperating thetailgate with
the door-mount edremote tailgate switch.
Monitor theclosing procedure carefullyto
make surenoone isin danger ofbeing
injured.
To interrupt theclosing procedure, pressor
pull thedoor-mount edremote tailgate switch.
4 For vehicles withtheEAS Y-PACK tailgateonly.
5 For vehicles withtheEAS Y-PACK tailgateandKEYLES S-GOonly. Cargo
compar tment
83Opening/closing Z

G
WARNING To
prevent possibleperso nalinjury ,alw ays
keep hands andfingers awayfrom thecargo
compartment openingwhenclosing the
tail gate. Beespeci allycarefu lwhen small
child renarearou nd. G
WARNING Make
surethetailgate isclosed whenthe
engine isrunning andwhiledrivi ng.Among
other dange rs,dea dlycarbon monoxide (CO)
gase smay enter vehicleinterior resultingin
unconsciou snessanddeath.
You canopen andclose thetailgate from the
driver' sseat when thevehicl eis stationary
and unlocked . X
To open :pul lremote operatingswitch :
for the tailgate untilthetailgate opens.
X To clo se: turn theSmartKey toposi tion 1
or 2in the ignitio nlock.
X Press remote operatingswitch for
tail gate :until thetailgate isclosed .
If the tailgate comes intocontact withan
object, theclosi ngprocedu reisinterrupted
and thetailgate reope ns.
X To interrupt theclosing procedure: push
or pul lremote operatingswitch forthe
tail gate :. Limiti
ngthe open ingangle ofthe
tailgate
Important safetynotes You
canlimitthe opening angleofthe
tailgate. Thisispossible inthe top half ofits
opening range,uptoapproximately
4 in (10 cm) before thestop.
! Make surethere issufficient clearance to
open thetailgate fullywhen settingthe
opening angle.Thetailgate couldotherwise
be damaged. Ideally,set the opening angle
outside.
Activating X
To open thetailgate: pullthehandle on
the tailgate.
X To stop theopening procedure atthe
desired position: presstheclosing button
(Y page 82)inthe tailgate orpull thehandle
on the outside ofthe tailgate again.
X To store theposition: pressandhold the
closing buttoninthe tailgate untilyouhear
a short tone.
The opening anglelimiter isactivated. The
tailgate willnow stop inthe stored position
when opening.
Deactivating X
Press andhold theclosing button
(Y page 82)inthe tailgate untilyouhear
two short tones. Tailgate
emergency release
If the tailgate cannolonger beopened from
outside thevehicle, usetheemergency
release oninside ofthe tailgate.
X Take themechanical keyoutofthe
SmartK ey(Ypage 75).
To open thetailgate completely, aminimum
clearance of7.20 ft(2.20 m)above the
gro und isneces sary. 84
Carg
oco mpartmentOpening/closing