2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class check oil

Night
ViewAssist Plus................... 195
PARKT RONIC................................. 183
Rea rview came ra.......................... 190
Driv ingtips
Automa tictransmis sion................. 147
Brakes ........................................... 159
Break-in period.............................. 138
DISTRONI CPLUS ........................... 177
Downhi llgrad ient........................... 159
Drinking anddriving....................... 158
Driving abroad ............................... 108
Driving inwinter .............................162
Driving onfloo ded road s................ 161
Driving onsand .............................. 165
Driving onwet road s...................... 161
Driving overobsta cles................... 165
Exhaus tcheck ............................... 158
Fuel .............. ..................... ............. 158
Gene ral.......................................... 157
Hydr oplaning ................................. 161
Icy road surfaces........................... 162
Limi tedbraking effici ency on
sal ted road s................................... 160
Off-road driving.............................. 163
Off-road fording............................. 161
Ped als. ........................................... 158
Snow chains.................................. 353
Symmetri callow beam.................. 108
Tire ruts ......................................... 165
Tow ingatrail er.............................. 210
Trave linguphill....... ....... ....... ..........166
Wet road surface........................... 159
DSR (Dow nhil lSpee dRegula tion)
Dis play mess age............................ 259
Function/notes ............................. 208
DVD audio (on-bo ardcomputer) ......230
DVD video(o n-bo ardcomputer) ......230 E
EA
SY-E NTRY feature
Activating/d eactivating ................. 236
Function/notes ............................. 102
EA SY-E XITfeature
Cra sh-resp onsive........................... 102
Function/notes ............................. 102
Switchi ngon/off ........................... 236
EA SY-P ACKload-s ecuring kit........... 291EBD
(elec tronic brakeforce
distributi on)
Displ aymessa ge............................ 241
Function/notes ................................65
Ele ctric alfuses
see Fuse s
Ele ctroni cbrake forcedistributi on
see EBD (electronic brakeforce
dis tribu tion)
Ele ctroni cStabil ityProgram
see ESP®
(Electroni cStab ility Pro gram)
El ec tron icTrac tionSys tem
se e4ETS (Electr onicTra ctio nSy ste m)
Eme rgencyr elease
Dr iver 'sdoor .................................... 80
Vehi cle............................................. 80
Emerge ncyspare wheel
Storage location ............................ 329
Emerge ncyTensi oningDevic es
Function .............. ..................... ........53
Safe tyguideline s............................. 39
Emerge ncyunlo cking
Tai lga te............................................ 84
Emis sions purific ation
Service andwarranty informa tion....21
Eng ine
Che ckEngine warning lamp ....... ....276
Displ aymessa ge............................ 254
Emergency starting........................ 345
Engine number....... ........................382
Irregu larr unn ing............................ 143
Starting problems .......................... 143
Starting theengine withthe
SmartKey ....................................... 140
Starting with KEYLESS-GO .............141
Switchi ngoff .................................. 155
Eng ineelectroni cs
Prob lem(malfunction) ................... 143
Eng ineoil
Addi ng........................................... 314
Additi ves........................................ 388
Che cking theoilleve l....... .............. 313
Che cking theoilleve lusi ng the
dip stick .......................................... 313
Displ aymessa ge............................ 256
Fill ing capa city............................... 384
Notes aboutoil grad es....... ............ 388 In
dex
9

2.
this devicemust accep tany inte rference
rece ived,incl uding inte rference thatm ay
caus eunde sired oper ation.
An yunaut horizedmod ificatio ntothis
device couldvoidtheuser’s authority to
operate theequipment.
The Product labelwithFCCIDand IC
cert ification numbercanbefound inthe
battery caseofthe Smart Key.
Import antnotes onthe use ofKEY LESS-
GO R
The KEYLE SS-GO key can beused likea
conv ention alkey.
R You cancombine KEYLESS-GO funct ions
with those ofaconv ention alkey, e.g.
unlock withKEYLE SS-GO and lock with the
& button .
R Always carryyourKEYLE SS-GO key onyour
person.
R Do not keep theKEYLE SS-GO key toget her
with:
- electron icdevices, e.g.amobile phone
or another key
- metallic objects,e.g. coins ormetal foil.
This canaffect thefunct ionality of
KEYLE SS-GO.
R When lockingand unlockin gusing
KEYLE SS-GO, thedistance between the
Smart Keyand thecorrespon dingdoor
handle mustnotexceed 3ft (1 m).
R Ifthe KEYLE SS-GO key isremoved fromthe
vehicle, itis possible thatthesystem may
not recogn izethe Smart Key.Thevehicle
can then notbelocked orstart edusing
KEYLE SS-GO.
R Ifthe KEYLE SS-GO key has been removed
from thevehicle, e.g.ifapassenger leaves
the vehicle withaKEYL ESS-G Okey : X
To unl ockt he vehi cle:touch theinner
surfa ceofthe door handl e.
X To loc kthe vehi cle:touch sensor
surfa ce:.
X Co nven ienceclo singfeature: touch
recesse dsensor surface; for an
extended period(Ypag e87).
If you pullon the handl eofthe tailgate, only
the cargo compartmen tof the vehicle is
unlocked. Changing
thesettings ofthe lockin g
system
You canchange thesettin gofthe locking
system insuch away that only thedriver's
door andthefuel filler flapareunlocked. This
is useful ifyou frequently travelonyour own.
X To change thesetting: pressandhold
down the% and& buttons
simultaneously forapproximately six
seconds untilthebattery checklamp
(Y page 76)flashes twice. i
If
the settin gof the locking systemis
changed withinthesignal rangeofthe
vehicle, pressing the& or% button
locks orunlocks thevehicle.
The SmartK eynow funct ionsasfollows:
X To unlock thedriver's door:pressthe
% button once.
X To unlock centrally: pressthe%
button twice.
X To lock centrally: pressthe& button. 74
Smar
tKeyOpening/closing

Problems
withthetransmission Problem Possible
causes/co nsequences andM Solutions
The
transm issionhas
problems shiftinggear. The
transm issionislosing oil.
X Have thetransm issioncheckedataqual ified specialist
workshop, e.g.anauthorized Mercedes-B enzCenter,
immediately. The
acceleration ability
is deteriorating.
The transm issionno
longer changes gear. The
transm issionisin emergency mode.
It is only possible toshift intosecon dgear andreverse gear.
X Stop thevehicle.
X Shift thetransm issiontoposition P.
X Switch offthe engine.
X Wait atleast 10seconds beforerestartingthe engine.
X Shift thetransm issiontoposition Dor R.
If D is selected, thetransm issionshiftsintosecon dgear; ifR is
selected, thetransm issionshiftsintoreverse gear.
X Have thetransm issioncheckedataqual ified specialist
workshop, e.g.anauthorized Mercedes-B enzCenter,
immediately. Refueling
Import
antsafety notes G
WARNING Gasoli
neand diesel fuelsarehighly flammable
and poisonous. Theyburnviolently andcan
cause serious injury.
Never allowsparks, flamesorsmoking
materials neargasoline ordiesel fuel!
Turn offthe engine beforerefueling.
Whenever youarearound gasoline ordiesel
fuel, avoid inhaling fumesandanyskin or
clothing contact.Extinguish allsmoking
materials.
Direct skincontactwith fuels andthe
inhalation offuel vapors aredamaging your
health. G
WARNING Overfilling
ofthe fuel tank maycreate
pressure inthe system whichcouldcause a
gas discharge. Thiscould cause thegasoline to
spray backoutwhen removing thefuel
pump nozzle,which couldcause personal
injury. G
WARNING Do
not filldiesel tankswith gasoline. Donot
mix diesel fuelwith gasoline. Otherwise the
fuel system andengine couldbedamaged. In
addition, thevehicle couldcatch fire.
! Donot use gasoline torefuel vehicles with
a diesel engine. Donot use diesel torefuel
vehicles withagasoline engine.Evena
small quantity ofthe wrong fuelwill
damage thefuel system andengine.
! Donot switch onthe ignition ifyou
accidentally refuelwiththewrong fuel.
Otherwise, thefuel willenter thefuel lines.
Notify aqual ified specialist workshop and
have thefuel tank andfuel lines drained
completely. Refueling
149Driving and parking Z

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

Check
listbefor edr iving off-road X
Engine oillevel: check theen gin eoil and
add oilifne ces sary.
When drivingonsteep grad ients,th eoil
leve lmust besuff iciently high toensure a
co rrect oilsupply inthev ehicle.
X DEF tank (BlueTEC vehicles): checkthe
fluid level and,ifnec essary, refilltothe
maximum (13l)(Y page 152).
X Wheel-changing toolkit:chec kthat the
jack isworkin gand make sureyouhave the
lug wrenc h,arobust towcable andafolding
spade inthe vehicle.
X Wheels andtires: chec kthe tire tread
depth andtirepressure.
X Check fordamage andremove anyforeign
objec ts,e.g. small stones,from the
wheels/tir es.
X Replace anymissing valvecaps.
X Replace dentedordamaged wheels.
X Rims: dentedorbent rimscanresult ina
loss oftire pressure anddamage thetire
bead. Therefor e,chec kyour rims before
driving off-road andreplace themas
required.
! Ifthe engine oilwarning lamplights up
while thevehicle isin motion ,stop the
vehicle inasafe place assoon aspossible.
Check theengine oillevel. Theengine oil
warning lampwarning mustnotbeignored.
Continuing thejourney whilethesymbol is
display edcould leadtoengine damage.
Checklist afterdriving off-road G
WARNIN
G If
you notic esudden significant vibrationsor
unusual handling performanc eor ifyou
suspect thatdamage hasoccurred tothe
vehicle, youshould activate thehazard
warning lamps,gentlyreduce speedand
carefully headforanarea thatislocated ata
safe distance fromtheroad.
Check thetires andtheunderside ofthe
vehicle fordamage. Ifthe vehicle seems unsafe,
havethevehicle towedawaytothe
nearest Mercedes-B enzCenter ortire dealer
to be repaired.
! Ifyou detect damage tothe vehicle after
driving off-road, havethevehicle checked
immediately ataquali fiedspecialist
workshop.
Drivin gover rough terrain placesgreater
demands onyour vehicle thandriving on
normal roads.Afterdriving off-road, check
the vehicle. Thisallows youtodetect damage
promptly andreduce therisk ofan accident
to yourself andother roadusers.
X Deact ivateDSR(Ypage 208).
X Vehicles withtheAIRMATIC package:
lower thevehicle toaride height suitable
for the road condit ions,e.g.tothe
highway /high-speed level.
X Clean theheadlamps andrear lights and
check fordamage.
X Clean thefront andrear license plates.
X Clean thewheels/tires withawater jetand
remove anyforeign objects.
X Clean thewheels, wheelarches andthe
vehicle underside withawater jet;check
for any foreign objectsand damage.
X Check whether twigsorother partsof
plants havebecome trapped. These
increase therisk offire and candamage
fuel pipes, brakehoses orthe rubber
bellows ofthe axle jointsand propeller
shafts.
X Aft erthe trip, examine withoutfailthe
entire undercarriage, wheels,tires,brakes,
bodywork structure,steerin g,chassis and
exhaust systemfordamage.
X Aft erdriving forexten dedperiods across
sand, mud,gravel, waterorinsimilarly dirty
condit ions,havethebrake discs, wheels,
brake pads/linings andaxle jointscheck ed
and cleaned.
X Ifyou detect strongvibrations afteroff-road
travel, checkforforeign objectsin the
wheels anddrive trainandremove themif 164
Driving
tipsDriving and parking

Disp
laymessa ges Poss
iblecauses/c onseq uences and M Solu
tions ? The
engin efan isdef ective.
X At coolan ttemperatures under248‡(120 †),drive tothe next
qualified specialist workshop.
X Avo idsubjec tingthe engin etoheavy loads, e.g.driving in
mountainous terrain,andstop- and-go traffic. # The
battery isnot being charged.
Possible causesare:
R adefectiv ealternator
R atorn poly-V-belt
R amalfunct ioninthe electron ics
X Pull over andstop thevehicle safelyandswitch offthe engine,
paying attentiontoroad andtraffic conditions.
X Open thehood.
X Check whether thepoly-V-belt istorn .
If the poly-V- beltistorn:
! Donot cont inue driving. Theengine couldotherwise overheat.
X Consult aquali fiedspecialist workshop.
If the poly-V- beltisnot dam aged:
X Visit aquali fiedspecialist workshop. 4
Check
Engine Oil At
Next Refueling The
engine oillevel hasdropped tothe minimum level.
Aw arning tone also soun ds.
X Chec kthe engine oillevel atthe latest whennextrefueling
(Y page 313).
X Ifnecessary, addengine oil(Ypage 314).
X Ifengine oilneeds tobe added moreoften thanusual,have the
engine checkedataqual ified specialist workshop. Inform
ationonapproved engineoilscan beobtained fromanyqual ified specialist workshop
or on the Internet athttp: //www.mbusa.com (USAonly).
! The oillevel istoo low. Avoid longjourneys withtoolittle engine oil.There isarisk of
engine damage.
The displa ymessages andthecorresponding symbolthatindicate thattheoillevel istoo
low must notbeignored. 256
Display
messagesOn-board computer and displays

X
Pull release lever:for the hood.
The hood isreleased.
! Make surethatthewindshield wipersare
not folded awayfromthewindshield. You
could otherwise damagethewindshield
wipers orthe hood. X
Reach intothegap, pullhood catch
handle ;upand liftthe hood.
Onc eyou have lifted thehood about
15 inches (40cm), itis automatically
opened therest ofthe way andheld open
by the gas-filled struts.
Closing thehood G
WARNIN
G When
closing thehood, useextreme caution
not tocatc hhands orfingers. Becareful that
you donot close thehood onanyone.
Make surethehood issecurely engaged
before driving off.Donot cont inue driving if
the hood cannolonger engage afteran
accident ,for example. Thehood could otherwise
comeloosewhilethevehicle isin
motion andinjure youand/or others.
X Lower thehood andletitfall from aheight
of approximately 8inches (20cm).
X Check thatthehood hasengaged properly.
If the hood canberaised slightly, itis not
properly engaged. Openitagain andclose
it with alittle more force. Rad
iator i
Vehicles
withadiesel engine: donot
cov erthe radiator ,for examp lewith a
wint erfron tor bug cover.The reading sof
the on-board- diagnos ticsyste mmay
ot her wise beinac curate.Some ofthese
readings arerequired bylaw and must be
accurate atall times. Engine
oil
Notes onthe oillevel Dependin
gon the driving style,thevehicle
consumes upto0.9 USqts. (0.8 l)of oil over
a distance of600 miles (1000 km).Theoil
consumpt ionmay behigher thanthiswhen
the vehicle isnew orifyou frequently driveat
high engine speeds.
Checking theoillevel using theoil
dipst ick Example:
vehicleswithagasoline engine Engine
compar tment
313Maintenance and care Z

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