The power assistance for the steering and the
brake force booster do not work when the
engine is not running. You will need more
force to steer and brake, you may have to
depress the brake pedal with maximum force.
Before towing away, make sure that the steer-
ing can be moved and is not locked.
If you tow or tow-start another vehicle, its
weight must not exceed the maximum per-
missible gross vehicle weight of your vehicle. G
WARNING
The vehicle is braked when the HOLD function
or DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Therefore,
deactivate HOLD and DISTRONIC PLUS if the
vehicle is to be towed.
It is better to have the vehicle transported
than to have it towed.
! You may tow the vehicle for a maximum
of 50km. A towing speed of 50 km/h must
not be exceeded.
For towing distances over 50 km, the entire
vehicle must be lifted up and transported.
! Make sure that the electric parking brake
is released. If the electric parking brake is
faulty, visit a qualified specialist workshop.
! Only secure the tow rope or towing bar to
the towing eyes. The vehicle may otherwise
be damaged.
! Do not use the towing eye for recovery,
as this could damage the vehicle. If in
doubt, recover the vehicle with a crane.
! Pull away smoothly when towing away or
tow-starting a vehicle. If the tractive power
is too high, the vehicles could be damaged.
! On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, use the
key instead of the Start/Stop button. Turn
the key to position 2in the ignitio nlock and
shift the automatic transmission to N.
Then, turn the key back to 0and leave it in
the ignition lock. When towing a vehicle with an automatic
transmission, the transmission must be in
position N.
The battery must be connected and charged.
Otherwise, you:
R cannot turn the key in the ignition lock to
position 2
R cannot shift the transmission to position
N on vehicles with automatic transmission
Vehicles with automatic transmission:
release the selector lever lock manually to
move it out of position P(Y page 142).
i Before the vehicle is towed, switch off the
automatic locking feature (Y page 72). You
could otherwise be locked out when push-
ing or towing the vehicle.
Deactivate tow-away protection
(Y page 62) before the vehicle is towed. Fitting/removing the towing eye
Fitting the towing eye X
Remove the towing eye from the vehicle
tool kit (Y page 261). G
WARNING
The exhaust tail pipe may be hot. You could
burn yourself if you touch the tail pipe. Be
particularly careful when removing the rear
cover.
The mountings for the removable towing eyes
are located in the bumpers. They are at the
front and at the rear, under the covers. Towing and tow-starting
279Breakdown assistance Z
X
Press the mark on cover :inwards in the
direction of the arrow.
X Take cover :off the opening.
X Screw the towing eye in clockwise to the
stop and tighten it.
Removing the towing eye X
Loosen the towing eye and unscrew it.
X Attach cover :to the bumper and press
until it engages.
X Place the towing eye in the vehicle tool kit. Towing the vehicle with the rear axle
raised
When towing your vehicle with the rear axle
raised, it is importan tthat you observe the
safety instructions (Y page 278).
! The ignition must be switched off if you
are towing the vehicle with the rear axle
raised. Intervention by ESP ®
could other-
wise damage the brake system. X
Switch on the hazard warning lamps
(Y page 103).
X Turn the key in the ignition lock to position
0and remove the key from the ignition
lock.
X When leaving the vehicle, take the key or
the KEYLESS-GO key with you. Towing the vehicle with both axles on
the ground
It is important that you observe the safety
instructions when towing away your vehicle
(Y page 278). G
WARNING
The power assistance for the steering and the
brake force booster do not work when the
engine is not running. You will then need
much more effort to brake and steer the vehi-
cle. Adapt your style of driving accordingly.
X Switch on the hazard warning lamps
(Y page 103).
i When towing with the hazard warning
lamps switched on, use the combination
switch as usual to signal achange of direc-
tion. In this case, only the turn signals for
the desired direction flash. When the com-
bination switch is reset, the hazard warning
lamps start flashing again.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
X When the vehicle is stationary, depress the
brake pedal and keep it depressed.
X Vehicles with manual transmission:
depress the clutch pedal.
X Engage neutral.
or
X Vehicles with automatic transmission:
shift the automatic transmission to posi-
tion N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the parking brake. 280
Towing and tow-startingBreakdown assistance
Transporting the vehicle
The towing eye can be used to pull the vehicle
onto a trailer or transporter for transporting
purposes.
X Vehicles with manual transmission:
shift to neutral.
X Vehicles with automatic transmission:
tur nthe key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
X Move the selector lever to N.
As soon as the vehicle is loaded:
X Prevent the vehicle from rolling away by
applying the parking brake.
X Vehicles with manual transmission:
shift to first gear or reverse gear.
X Vehicles with automatic transmission:
move the selector lever to P.
X Turn the key in the ignition lock to position
0 and remove the key from the ignition
lock.
X Secure the vehicle.
! Only lash the vehicle down by the wheels
or wheel rims, not by parts of the vehicle
such as axle or steering components. Oth-
erwise, the vehicle could be damaged. Tow-starting (emergency engine
starting)
When tow-starting, it is important that you
observe the safety instructions (Y page 278)
and the legal requirements in each respective
country.
! Vehicles with automatic transmission
must not be tow-started. The transmission
may otherwise be damaged.
You can find information on "Jump-starting"
at (Y page 277). Before tow-starting the following conditions
must be fulfilled:
R
the battery is connected.
R the engine has cooled down.
R the catalytic converters have cooled down.
X Switch on the hazard warning lamps
(Y page 103).
X Fit the towing eye (Y page 279).
X Secure the rigid towing bar or the towing
rope.
X Depress and hold the brake pedal.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
X Depress the clutch pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Engage neutral.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Tow-start the vehicle.
X Engage second gear.
X Release the clutch pedal slowly;d o not
depress the accelerator pedal while doing
so.
The engine is started.
X Depress the clutch pedal and shift to neu-
tral.
X Stop at a suitable place.
X Depress the parking brake.
X Remove the rigid towing bar or towing rope.
X Remove the towing eye (Y page 280).
X Switch off the hazard warning lamps. Electrical fuses
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
Only use fuses that have been approved for
Mercedes-Benz vehicles and which have the
correct fuse rating for the systems con-
cerned. Do not attempt to repair or bridge
faulty fuses. Using fuses which have not been
approved or attempting to repair or bridge
faulty fuses could cause the fuse to be over- Electrical fuses
281Breakdown assistance
Z
