2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class 4 way

Rear
control panel:
M Directsthe airflo wthrou ghthe rear
center andrearsid eairvents.
O Directsthe airflo wthrou ghthe
footw ellai rv ent s i
Using
therear control panel, youcan also
activat eboth airdistribut ionposition s
simultaneously. Inorder todo this, press
both airdistribut ionbutton s.The airisthen
routed through allrear airvent s. i
Regardless
ofthe airdistribut ionsett ing,
airflow isalway sdirect edthrough theside
air vent s.The side airvent scan only be
closed whenthecontrols onthe side air
vent sare turn eddownwards.
X Turn theSmart Keytoposition 2in the
ignition lock.
X Front control panel:pressthe_
button repeatedly untilthedesired symbol
appears inthe display.
X Rear control panel:presstheM and/
or O button . Sett
ingthe airflow
X Turn theSmart Keytoposition 2in the
ignition lock.
X To increase: presstheK button .
X To redu ce:press theI button . i
You
canuseautomatic climatecontrol to
set the airflow inthe rear compart ment
separately. Switching
theZONE function on/off
X To switch on:press theá button .
The indicat orlamp inthe á button lights
up.
Dual-z oneautomatic climatecontrol: the
temper aturesettingforthe driver's sideis not
adopted forthe fron t-passenger side.
The temper atureofthe fron t-passenger
side isadopted forthe rear compart ment.
Autom aticclimate control: the
temper aturesettingforthe driver's sideis
not adopted forthe fron t-passenger side
and therear compart ment.
When thebutton sor con trols for
temper ature,airflow orair distribut ionare
activat ed,the temper aturesettingforthe
driver's sideisnot adopted forthe other
climate control zones.
X To switch off:press theá button .
The indicat orlamp inthe á button goes
out.
The temper aturesettingforthe driver's
side isadopted forthe fron t-passenger side
and therear compart ment. Defrosting
thewindshield
You canusethis func tion todefrost the
windshield ortodefrost theinside ofthe
windshield andtheside windows. i
You
should onlyselect thedefrost ing
func tion until thewindshield isclear again.
X Turn theSmart Keytoposition 2in the
ignition lock.
X To activa te:press the¬ button .
The indicat orlamp inthe ¬ button lights
up.
The climate control system switchestothe
following functions:
R cooling withairdehumidification on11
R high airflow 12
R high temper ature12
R air distribut iontothe windshield and
fron tside windows
R air-r ecirculat ionmode off
11 Only withenginerunn ing.
12 Depe ndingon the outs idetem perat ure. Oper
ating theclima tecontr olsyst em
131Climate control Z

X
To dea ctivate :pre ssthe Ì/Á
bu tton.
The indicator lamp inthe Ì/Á
bu tton goesou t. i Re
sidu alhea tisdeactivated
automaticall y:
R after about30 minutes
R when theignition isswitched on
R ifthe battery voltage drops
R ifthe coolant temperature istoo low Setting
theairvents Importa
ntsafety notes G
WARNING When
operating theclimate control,the air
that enters thepassenger compartment
through theairvents canbevery hotorvery
cold (depending onthe settemperature). This
could cause burnsorfrostbite tounprotected
skin inthe immediate areaofthe airvents.
Always keepsufficient distancebetween
unprotected partsofthe body andtheair
vents. Ifnecessary, usetheairdistribution
adjustment todirect theairtoair vents inthe
vehicle interior thatarenot inthe immediate
area ofunprotected skin.
In order toensure thedirect flowoffresh air
through theairvents intothevehicle interior,
please observe thefollowi ngnotes:
R keep theairinlet grille onthe hood andin
the engine compartment onthe front -
passenger sidefreeofblockages, suchas
ice, snow orleaves.
R never covertheairvents orair intake grills
in the vehicle interior. i
For
virtually draft-free ventilation, adjust
the sliders ofthe airvents tothe cent er
position. Setting
thecenter airvents :
Center airvent, left
; Center airvent, right
= Center ventthumbwheel, right
? Center ventthumbwheel, left
X To open/c lose:turnthumbwheels =
and ?tothe right orleft. Setting
theside airvents X
To open/c lose:turn thumbwheel =upor
down. Setting
theglove boxairvent
When automatic climatecontrolisactivated,
the glove boxcanbecooled, forinstance to
cool itscont ents. Thelevel ofairflow depends
on the airflow andairdistribution settings.
At high outside temperatures, opentheair
vent andactivate the"cooling withair
dehumid ification" function. 134
Setting
theairventsClimate control

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). Br
eaking-in notes The
first 1000 miles (1500 km)
The more youlook after theengin ewhen itis
new, themore satisfiedyou willbewith its
perfor mancein the future.
R Driv eat varying vehiclespeeds andengin e
speeds forthe first 1000miles (1500km)
for this reason .
R Avo idovers trainingthe vehicle duringthis
period, e.g.drivin gat full throttle.
R Change gearingood time, atthe latest
when thetach omet erneedle is⅔o fthe
way tothe red area inthe tachomet er
displa y.
R Do not manually shifttoalower gearto
brake thevehicle.
R Only select shiftranges 3,2or 1when
driving slowly,e.g. inmountainous terrain.
Aft er1000 miles(1500 km),you can increase
the engine speedgraduall yand bring the
vehicle uptofull speed. i
You
should alsoobserve thesenoteson
runnin gin ifthe engine orparts ofthe drive
train onyour vehicle havebeen replaced. i
Always
observe therespect ivespeed
restr iction s. Driving
Import
antsafety notes G
WARNIN
G Make
sureabsolutely noobject sare
obstruct ingthe pedals' rangeofmovemen t.
Keep thedriver's footwell clearofall
obstacles. Ifthere areany floormats or
carpets inthe footwell, makesurethepedals
still have sufficient clearance.
During sudden drivingorbraking maneuvers
the object scould getcaught between the
pedals. Youcould thennolonger brakeor
accelerate. Thiscould leadtoaccident sand
injury. G
WARNIN
G 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. G
WARNIN
G It
is dangerous toshift theautomatic
transm issionoutofparking position Por
neutral position Nifthe engine speedis
higher thanidlespeed. Ifyour footisnot firmly
on the brake pedal, thevehicle could
accelerate quicklyforward orinreverse. You
could losecontrolofthe vehicle andhit
someone orsomethin g.Only shiftintogear
when theengine isidling normally andwhen
your right footisfirmly onthe brake pedal.
! Warm upthe engine quickly. Donot use
the engine's fullperformanc euntil ithas
reached operating temperature.
Only shifttheautomatic transmission to
the desired driveposition whenthevehicle
is station ary.
Where possible, avoidspinnin gthe drive
wheels whenpulling awayonslippery
roads. Youcould otherwise damagethe
drive train. 138
DrivingDriving and parking

i
You
canstartthe engine without preglow
if the engine iswarm. i
You
canalso usethetouch-st artfunct ion.
To do this, turntheSmartK eytoposition 3
(Y page 139)andrelease itimmediately.
The engine thenstarts automatically .
Using KEYLESS-GO tostar tthe eng ine G
WARNING As
long asthe SmartKey isin you rvehicle, the
vehicle canbestart ed.Therefor e,never leave
children unattended inthe vehicle, asthey
could otherwiseacciden tallystart theengine.
When leaving thevehicle, alwaystake the
Smart Keywith youand lock thevehicle. Do
not leave children unattended inthe vehicle,
or with access toan unlock edvehicle. A
child's unsupervised accesstoavehicle could
result inan acciden tand/o rserious personal
injury. i
The
Start/ Stop button canbeused to
start thevehicle without insertingthe
Smart Keyintothe ignition lock.TheStart/
St op button mustbeinsert edinto the
ignition lockandtheSmart Keymust bein
the vehicle.
X Depress thebrake pedalandkeep it
depressed.
X To star tag asolineeng ine:press the
Start/Stop button(Ypag e139) once.
The engine starts.
X To start adiesel engine: presstheStart/
St op butt on(Ypage 139)onc e.
Preglow isact ivated andtheengin estar ts. Pulling
away
Autom atic transm ission G
WARN
ING It
is danger oustoshift theautomat ic
tr ansm ission outofparkin gposition Por
neutral position Nifthe engine speedis higher
thanidlespeed. Ifyour footisnot firmly
on the brake pedal, thevehicle could
accelerate quicklyforward orinreverse. You
could losecontrolofthe vehicle andhit
someone orsomethin g.Only shiftintogear
when theengine isidling normally andwhen
your right footisfirmly onthe brake pedal. i
It
is only possible toshift thetrans mission
from position Pto the desired position if
you depress thebrake pedal. Onlythenis
the parking lockreleased. Ifyou donot
depress thebrake pedal, youcan move the
DIRECT SELECT lever buttheparking lock
remains engaged.
X Depress thebrake pedalandkeep it
depressed.
X Shift thetrans mission toposition Dor R
(Y page 144).
X Relea sethe brake pedal.
X Carefully depresstheaccelerator pedal.
The electric parking brake(Ypage 156)is
automatically released.
The redF (USAonly)or! (Canada
only) indicator lampinthe instr ument
cluster goesout. i
The
vehicle lockscentrally once youhave
pulled away.The locking knobsinthe doors
drop down.
You canopen thedoors fromtheinside at
any time.
You canalso deactivate theautomatic
locking feature(Ypage 235). i
Upshifts
takeplace athigher engine
speeds afteracold start. Thishelps the
catalytic convertertoreach itsoperating
temperature morequickly.
Pulling awaywithatra iler To
ensure thatyoudonot rollbackwards
when pullingaway onanuphill slope, engage
the electric parking brake. Driving
141Driving and parking Z

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

Aut
oma tic trans mission Imp
ortant safety notes G
WAR
NING It
is dan gerous toshif tthe automatic
transmission outofparking position Por
neutral position Nifthe engine speedis
higher thanidlespeed. Ifyour footisnot firmly
on the brake pedal, thevehicle could
accelerate quicklyforward orinreverse. You
could losecontrolofthe vehicle andhit
someone orsomething. Onlyshiftintogear
when theengine isidling normally andwhen
your right footisfirmly onthe brake pedal. G
WARNING Keep
inmind thatturning offthe engine alone
only willshift theautomatic transmission into
neutral position Nautomatically .
Always shifttheautomatic transmission into
park position Pbefore turning offthe engine.
Otherwise thevehicle couldrollaway which
could result inan accident and/orserious
personal injury. DIREC
TSELECT lever
Over view oftrans mis sion positions The
DIRECT SELECT leve rison the right ofthe
steering column. P
Park position withparking lock
R Reverse gear
N Neutral
D Drive i
The
DIRECT SELECTlever alwaysreturns
to its original position. Thecurrent
transmission positionP,R, Nor Dappea rs
in the transmission positiondisplay
(Y page 145)inthe multifunction display.
Engagin gpar kposit ionP X
Push theDI RECT SELECT lever inthe
direc tiono farrow P. i
The
automatic transmissi onshifts
au tomatical lyinto park position Pifyou
open thedrive r'sdoor when thevehicl eis
stationary ordrivi ngatvery lowspee d,and
the transmissi onisin posi tion Dor R.
! Ifthe engine speedis too high orthe
vehicl eis moving, donot shift the
au tomatic transmissi ondire ctly from Dto
R, from Rto Dor dire ctly toP.T he
automatic transmission couldotherwise be
damaged.
Engaging parkposit ionPau tom atically Park
positionPis autom atically engaged if:
R you switchoff theeng ineusin gth e
Sm artKey and remove theSm artKey, orif
you switchoff theeng ineusin gth eSt art /
St op butt onand open oneof thefron t
door s.
R theHOL Dfun ction (Ypage 179)or
DI STRO NICPLUS(Y page 169)brak es
your vehicle untilit is statio naryand atleast
on eof thefollo wing condition sis fulf illed:
- there isasyst emmalf unction.
- there isasev ere uphill ordown hillslope .
The electric park ingbrak eis then also
applied.
Engag ingreversegear R !
Onlyshif tthe automatic transmission to
R when thevehicle isstationary. 144
Automat
ictransmissionDriving and parking

X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leveruppast the
first point ofresistan ce.
Shift ingtoneutr alN X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leverupordown
to the first point ofresistan ce.
If the engine hasbeen switched off,the
automatic transmission automatic ally
switches toN.
Rema ininginneutr alN
If the automatic transmission isto remain in
neutr alN, e.g. forwashing thevehicle incar
washes withatowing device, pleaseobserve
the following instruct ions: G
WARN
ING When
leaving theSmart Keyinthe start er
switch, donot leave children unattended in
the vehicle. Itis possible forchildren toswitch
on the ignition whichcouldresult in
unsupervised useofvehicle equipment.
Unsuperv iseduseofvehicle equipment could
result inan accident and/orserious personal
injury.
Using theSma rtKey:
R make surethattheignition isswitched on.
R when thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedalandkeep itdepressed.
R shift toneutr alN.
R release thebrake pedal.
R ifapplied, releasetheelectr icparking
brake.
R switch offthe ignition andleave the
Smart Keyinthe ignition lock.
Using KEYLESS-GO:
R make surethattheignition isswitched on.
R when thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedalandkeep itdepressed.
R engage parkposition P. R
release thebrake pedal.
R remove theStart/ Stop button fromthe
ignition lock.
R insert theSmart Keyinto theignition lock.
R switch onthe ignition .
R depress thebrake pedalandkeep it
depressed.
R shift toneutr alN.
R release thebrake pedal.
R ifapplied, releasetheelectr icparking
brake.
R switch offthe ignition andleave the
Smart Keyinthe ignition lock.
Shift ingtotransmission positionD X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leverdown past
the first point ofresistan ce. Tr
ansmission positiondisplay
The curren ttransmis sionposition isshow nin
the multifu nctio ndisplay. :
Tran smiss ionposit ion
The arrows inthe transm ission position
display showhowandintowhich
tr ansm ission positionsyoucan chan geusing
the DIRECT SELECT lever .
! Ifthe transm ission positiondisplay inthe
mult ifunc tiondisplay isnot work ing,you
should pullaway carefully tochec kwhether
the desired transmission positionis
engaged. Selecttransmission positionD.
Do not restrict theshift range. Automat
ictransmission
145Driving and parking Z

Dri
vin gtips
Kickd own Use
kick down formax imum acceler ation .
X Ve hic les forUSA: fullydepr essthe
acc eler ator peda l.
The trans mis sions hifts toalower gear
depending onthe engine speed.
X Vehicles forCanada: depressthe
accelerator pedalbeyond thepressure
point.
The transmission shiftstoalower gear
depending onthe engine speed.
Rocking thevehicle free Rocking
thevehicle freebyshifting backand
forth between transmission positionsDand
R can help tofree avehicle thathasbecome
stuck inmud orsnow. Theengine
management systemofthe vehicle limits
shifting backandforth between transmission
positions Dand Rto amaximum speedof
5 mph (9km/h). Toshift back andforth
between transmission positionsDand R,
move theselector leverupand down beyond
the pressure point.
Working onthe vehicle G
WARNING When
working onthe vehicle, engagethe
electronic parkingbrakeandshift the
automatic transmission intopark position P.
Otherwise thevehicle couldrollaway which
could result inan accident and/orserious
personal injury.
Tra iler towing X
Drive inthe middle ofthe engine speed
range onuphill gradients.
X Depending onthe uphill ordownhill
gradient, shiftdown intoshift range 3or
2(Y page 147), evenifcruise controlor
DIS TRONIC PLUSareswitched on. Steering
wheelpaddleshifters You
canrestrict orderestrict theshift range
by using thesteering wheelpaddle
shifters :and ;(Y page147). i
You
canonly change gearwiththe
steering wheelpaddle shifters whenthe
transmission isin position D. Shift
ranges
Introduction In
transmission positionD,you can usethe
steering wheelpaddle shiftertorestrict or
derestrict theshift range forthe automatic
transmission (Ypage 147).
The shift range selected isshown inthe
multifunction display.The automatic
transmission shiftsonlyasfar asthe selected
gear. Driving
situations =
You
canusetheengine's braking
effect . Automat
ictransmission
147Driving and parking Z