2012 MERCEDES-BENZ R-Class tailgate

GWARNING
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the ignition lock. Always take
the SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle.
Do not leave children unsupervised in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child
restraint system, and do not give them access
to an unlocked vehicle. A child's unsupervised
access to a vehicle could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury. They could:
R injure themselves on vehicle parts
R be seriously or fatally injured by extreme
heat or cold
R injure themselves or have an accident with
vehicle equipment that may still be in
operation even after the SmartKey has
been removed from the ignition, such as the
seat adjustment, steering wheel
adjustment or memory function.
If children open a door, they could cause
severe or even fatal injury to other persons; if
they get out of the vehicle, they could injure
themselves when doing so or be seriously or
even fatally injured by any passing traffic.
Do not expose the child restraint system to
direct sunlight. The child restraint system's
metal parts, for example, could become very
hot, and a child could be burned on these
parts.
GWARNING
Do not carry heavy or hard objects in the
passenger compartment or cargo
compartment unless they are firmly secured
in place.
Unsecured or improperly positioned cargo
increases a child's risk of injury in the event
of
R strong braking maneuvers
R sudden changes of direction
R an accident
GWARNING
Make sure the tailgate is closed when the
engine is running and while driving. Among
other dangers, deadly carbon monoxide (CO)
gases may enter vehicle interior resulting in
unconsciousness and death.
! The tailgate swings upwards and to the
rear when opened. Therefore, make sure
that there is sufficient clearance above and
behind the tailgate.
To open the tailgate completely, a minimum
clearance of 7.20 ft (2.20 m) above the
ground is necessary.
You can:
R open and close the tailgate manually from
outside
R open and close the tailgate automatically
from outside
R open and close the tailgate automatically
from inside
R open the tailgate manually from inside
R limit the opening angle of the tailgate
Opening/closing from the outside
Opening
XPress the % button on the SmartKey.XPull handle :.XRaise the tailgate.
Closing
GWARNING
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the cargo
82Cargo compartmentOpening/closing

compartment opening when closing the
tailgate. Be especially careful when small
children are around.XPull the tailgate down using recess :.XPush the tailgate closed from outside the
vehicle.XIf necessary, lock the vehicle with
the & button on the SmartKey
( Y page 72) or with KEYLESS-GO
( Y page 73).
i
If a KEYLESS-GO key is detected in the
cargo compartment, the tailgate will not
lock.
Opening/closing automatically from
outside
Important safety notes
GWARNING
Make sure the tailgate is closed when the
engine is running and while driving. Among
other dangers, deadly carbon monoxide (CO)
gases may enter vehicle interior resulting in
unconsciousness and death.
! The tailgate swings upwards and to the
rear when opened. Therefore, make sure
that there is sufficient clearance above and
behind the tailgate.
To open the tailgate completely, a minimum
clearance of 7.20 ft (2.20 m) above the
ground is necessary.
Opening
You can open the tailgate automatically using
the SmartKey or the handle in the tailgate.
XPress and hold the F button on the
SmartKey until the tailgate opens.
or
XWhen the tailgate is unlocked, pull the
handle and let it go again immediately.
Closing
GWARNING
Monitor the closing procedure carefully to
make sure no one is in danger of being
injured. To prevent possible personal injury,
always keep hands and fingers away from the
cargo compartment opening when closing the
tailgate. Be especially careful when small
children are around. To stop the closing
procedure, do one of the following:
R Press or pull the remote tailgate opening/
closing switch on the driver's door.
R Press the tailgate closing switch.
R Press the KEYLESS-GO locking/closing
switch.
R Pull outside handle on the tailgate.
R When no SmartKey is inserted in the starter
switch (vehicles with KEYLESS-GO: Make
sure the vehicle's on-board electronics
have status 0): Press button F on the
SmartKey.
You can close the tailgate automatically using
the SmartKey, the closing button 5
or the
locking button 6
.
5 For vehicles with the EASY-PACK tailgate only.
6 For vehicles with the EASY-PACK tailgate and KEYLESS-GO only.Cargo compartment83Opening/closingZ

Closing button and locking button (example:
vehicle with the EASY-PACK tailgate and KEYLESS-
GO)
XTo close: press closing button : on the
tailgate.
or
XPress and hold the F button on the
SmartKey until the tailgate closes.XTo close and lock simultaneously:
Press locking button ; on the tailgate.
i
The tailgate can only be opened and
closed with the SmartKey if there is no
SmartKey in the ignition lock.
If the tailgate touches an object while
closing, the closing procedure is
interrupted and the tailgate reopens.
i If you leave a KEYLESS-GO key in the
cargo compartment, the tailgate will not
lock.
The tailgate is not closed unless a
KEYLESS-GO key is detected.
Opening/closing automatically from
the inside
GWARNING
Maintain sight of the area around the rear of
the vehicle while operating the tailgate with
the door-mounted remote tailgate switch.
Monitor the opening procedure carefully to
make sure no one is in danger of being
injured.
To interrupt the opening procedure, press or
pull the door-mounted remote tailgate switch.
When the SmartKey is not inserted in the
starter switch (vehicles with KEYLESS-GO:
Make sure the vehicle's on-board electronics
have status 0): Press button F on the
SmartKey.GWARNING
Maintain sight of the area around the rear of
the vehicle while operating the tailgate with
the door-mounted remote tailgate switch.
Monitor the closing procedure carefully to
make sure no one is in danger of being
injured.
To interrupt the closing procedure, press or
pull the door-mounted remote tailgate switch.
GWARNING
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the cargo
compartment opening when closing the
tailgate. Be especially careful when small
children are around.
GWARNING
Make sure the tailgate is closed when the
engine is running and while driving. Among
other dangers, deadly carbon monoxide (CO)
gases may enter vehicle interior resulting in
unconsciousness and death.
You can open and close the tailgate from the
driver's seat when the vehicle is stationary
and unlocked.
84Cargo compartmentOpening/closing

XTo open: pull remote operating switch :
for the tailgate until the tailgate opens.XTo close: turn the SmartKey to position 1
or 2 in the ignition lock.XPress remote operating switch for
tailgate : until the tailgate is closed.
If the tailgate comes into contact with an
object, the closing procedure is interrupted
and the tailgate reopens.
XTo interrupt the closing procedure: push
or pull remote operating switch for the
tailgate :.
Opening the tailgate from inside the
vehicle
GWARNING
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle. Children could open the tailgate from
the inside, which could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
! Always make sure there is sufficient
space when opening.
You can unlock and open the tailgate from
inside the vehicle.
The handle is on the lower part of the tailgate
window on the right-hand side when viewed
in the direction of travel.
XPress handle : in the direction of
arrow ; as far as it will go and hold it there.XFrom this position, pull handle : in the
direction of arrow = as far as it will go and
hold it there.XSwing the tailgate upwards.
i Vehicles with the EASY-PACK tailgate:
If you do not open the tailgate after
unlocking, it will lock again automatically
after a few seconds.
Limiting the opening angle of the
tailgate
Important safety notes
You can limit the opening angle of the tailgate
in the top half of its opening range. This could
be useful, for example, if there is insufficient
space above the tailgate.
! Make sure there is sufficient clearance to
open the tailgate fully when setting the
opening angle. The tailgate could otherwise
be damaged. Ideally, set the opening angle
outside.
Activating
XTo open the tailgate: pull the handle on
the tailgate.XTo stop the opening procedure at the
desired position: press the closing button
( Y page 83) in the tailgate or pull the handle
on the outside of the tailgate again.XTo store the position: press and hold the
closing button in the tailgate until you hear
a short tone.
The opening angle limiter is activated. The
tailgate will now stop in the stored position
when opening.Cargo compartment85Opening/closingZ

DeactivatingXPress and hold the closing button
( Y page 83) in the tailgate until you hear
two short tones.
Side windows
Important safety notes
GWARNING
When opening or closing the windows, make
sure there is no danger of anyone being
harmed by the opening/closing procedure.
The door windows are equipped with the
express operation and automatic reversal
function. If in express operation mode a door
window encounters an obstruction that
blocks its path, the automatic reversal
function will stop the door window and open
it slightly.
The door windows operate differently when
the switch is pulled and held. See the "Closing
when a door window is blocked" section in
this chapter for details.
The closing of a door window can be
immediately halted by releasing the switch or,
if the switch was pulled past the resistance
point and released, by either pressing or
pulling the respective switch.
The closing of the hinged quarter windows can
be immediately halted by pressing or pulling
the switch.
If a window encounters an obstruction that
blocks its path in a circumstance where you
are closing the windows by pressing and
holding button & on the SmartKey or by
pressing and holding the lock button (vehicles
with KEYLESS-GO) on an outside door handle,
the automatic reversal function will not
operate.
Activate the override switch when children
are riding in the back seats of the vehicle. The
children may otherwise injure themselves,
e.g. by becoming trapped in the window
opening.
GWARNING
Do not keep any part of your body up against
the window pane when opening a window. The
downward motion of the pane may pull that
part of your body down between the window
pane and the door frame and trap it there. If
there is a risk of entrapment, release the
switch and pull it to close the window.
Opening and closing the side
windows
:Front left;Front right=Rear right?Rear left
The switches for all side windows are located
on the driver's door. There is also a switch on
each door for the corresponding side window.
The switches on the driver's door take
precedence.
i The side windows cannot be operated
from the rear when the override feature for
the side windows is activated ( Y page 63).
XTurn the SmartKey to position 1 or 2 in the
ignition lock.XTo open: press the corresponding switch.XTo close: pull the corresponding switch.
i
If you press the switch beyond the point
of resistance, an automatic opening/
closing process is started in the
corresponding direction. You can stop
86Side windowsOpening/closing

:Backup lampXTurn the bulb holder counter-clockwise and
remove it.XRemove the bulb from the bulb holder.XInsert the new bulb into the bulb holder.XInsert the bulb holder and turn it clockwise.XClose the side trim panel ( Y page 123).
License plate lamps
XSwitch off the lights.XOpen the tailgate.XRemove screws :.XRemove the license plate lamp.XReplace the bulb.XInsert the license plate lamp.XReplace and tighten screws :.Windshield wipers
Switching the windshield wipers on/
off
GWARNING
Wiper blades are components that are subject
to wear and tear. Replace the wiper blades
twice a year, preferably in the spring and fall.
Otherwise the windows will not be wiped
properly. As a result, you may not be able to
observe surrounding traffic conditions and
could cause an accident.
! Do not operate the windshield wipers
when the windshield is dry, as this could
damage the wiper blades. Moreover, dust
that has collected on the windshield can
scratch the glass if wiping takes place when
the windshield is dry.
! If the windshield wipers leave smears on
the windshield after the vehicle has been
washed in an automatic car wash, wax or
other residues may be the reason for this.
Clean the windshield using washer fluid
after washing the vehicle in an automatic
car wash.
Combination switch
1$ Windshield wipers off2Ä Intermittent wipe, low 113Å
Intermittent wipe, high 124°
Continuous wipe, slow11
Rain sensor set to low sensitivity.
12 Rain sensor set to high sensitivity.124Windshield wipersLights and windshield wipers

XOpen the tailgate.XOpen the right-hand side trim panel
( Y page 123).XPull emergency release : in the direction
of the arrow.
The fuel filler flap is unlocked.XOpen the fuel filler flap.Refueling159Driving and parkingZ

Problems with fuel and the fuel tankProblemPossible causes/consequences and M SolutionsFuel is leaking from the
vehicle.GRisk of explosion or fire
The fuel line or the fuel tank is defective.
XTurn the SmartKey to position 0(Y page 145) in the ignition lock
immediately and remove it.XDo not restart the engine under any circumstances.XConsult a qualified specialist workshop.The fuel filler flap
cannot be opened.The fuel filler flap is not unlocked.
or
The SmartKey battery is discharged.XUnlock the vehicle using the mechanical key ( Y page 75).XOpen the tailgate.XManually unlock the fuel filler flap using the emergency release
( Y page 158).The fuel filler flap is unlocked, but the opening mechanism is
jammed.XManually unlock the fuel filler flap using the emergency release
( Y page 158).XConsult a qualified specialist workshop.The engine will not
start.The fuel tank of a vehicle with a diesel engine has been run
completely dry.XRefuel the vehicle with at least 5.3 US qt (5 liters) of diesel.XTurn the ignition on for at least 10 seconds ( Y page 145).XStart the engine continuously for up to 10 seconds until it runs
smoothly.
If the engine does not start:
XTurn the ignition on again for approximately 10 seconds
( Y page 145).XStart the engine again continuously for up to 10 seconds until
it runs smoothly.
If the engine does not start after three attempts:
XConsult a qualified specialist workshop.160RefuelingDriving and parking