
239
Checking and refilling levels
A highly explosive mixture of gases is released when the bat-
tery is under charge.
Keep children away from acid and batteries!
WARNING
Always be aware of the danger of injury and chemical burns as well as
the risk of accident or fire when working on the battery and the electrical
system:
● Wear eye protection. Protect your eyes, skin and clothing from acid
and particles containing lead.
● Battery acid is very corrosive and caustic. Wear protective gloves and
eye protection. Do not tilt the batteries. This could spill acid through the
vents. Rinse battery acid from eyes immediately for several minutes with
clear water. Then seek medical care immediately. Neutralise any acid
splashes on the skin or clothing with a soapy solution, and rinse off with
plenty of water. If acid is swallowed by mistake, consult a doctor immedi-
ately.
● Fires, sparks, open flames and smoking are prohibited. When han-
dling cables and electrical equipment, avoid causing sparks and electro-
static charge. Never short the battery terminals. High-energy sparks can
cause injury.
● A highly explosive mixture of gases is released when the battery is
under charge. The batteries should be charged in a well-ventilated room
only.
● Keep children away from acid and batteries.
● Before working on the electrical system, you must switch off the en-
gine, the ignition and all consumers. The negative cable on the battery
must be disconnected. When a light bulb is changed, you need only
switch off the light.
WARNING (Continued)
● Deactivate the anti-theft alarm by unlocking the vehicle before you
disconnect the battery! The alarm will otherwise be triggered.
● When disconnecting the battery from the vehicle electrical system,
disconnect first the negative cable and then the positive cable.
● Switch off all electrical consumers before reconnecting the battery.
Reconnect first the positive cable and then the negative cable. Never re-
verse the polarity of the connections. This could cause an electrical fire.
● Never charge a frozen battery, or one which has thawed. This could
result in explosions and chemical burns. Always replace a battery which
has frozen. A flat battery can also freeze at temperatures close to 0 °C.
● Ensure that the vent hose is always connected to the battery.
● Never use a defective battery. This could cause an explosion. Replace
a damaged battery immediately.
CAUTION
● Never disconnect the battery if the ignition is switched on or if the en-
gine is running. This could damage the electrical system or electronic com-
ponents.
● Do not expose the battery to direct sunlight over a long period of time,
as the intense ultraviolet radiation can damage the battery housing.
● If the vehicle is left standing in cold conditions for a long period, protect
the battery from freezing. If it freezes it will be damaged.
Charging the battery
A fully-charged battery is important for reliable starting. – Note the warnings ⇒
in Important safety warnings for han-
dling a vehicle battery on page 239 and ⇒ .
Safety FirstOperating InstructionsPractical TipsTechnical Specifications

263
If and when
Fuse assignment
This list shows the fuses which can be replaced relatively
easily by the owner.
No.ConsumerAmps1Air conditioner102Footwell lamps53Heated washer jets54Radiator fan55Parking aid, automatic gearbox106Air conditioner (air purity sensor), pressure sensor5
7Electronic Stability Control (ESC), brake light switch,
clutch pedal switch, steering angle sensor10
8Telephone59Lambda probe heater1010Adaptive headlights right5
11Airbag and disconnection of the front passenger air-
bag5
12Diagnostic socket1013Steering column unit1014Brake lights1015Instrument panel1016Vacant 17Tyre pressure control, rain/light sensor1018Adaptive headlights left519Start-Stop control unit1020Engine management1521Start/Stop battery power management522Vacant 23Vacant
No.ConsumerAmps24Central electrics unit for convenience equipment2025Heater blower3026Rear window heater3027Power socket for trailer (control unit)3028Fuel pump, auxiliary pump for diesel2029Radio, amplifier (with Start-Stop)2030Sliding/tilting sunroof20
31Diagnosis connection, automatic anti-dazzle interior
mirror, reverse light, automatic gearbox15
32Towing socket1533Lighter2034Rear electric windows3035Luggage compartment power socket*2036Wiper system30
37Pump for windscreen washer and headlight washer
system30
38Luggage compartment illumination, alarm1539Radio, amplifier (without Start-Stop)2040Horn2541230 volt socket3042Electronic Stability Control (ESC)2543Front electric windows3044Seat heating35
Some of the electrical items listed in the table are only fitted on certain
models or are optional extras.
Safety FirstOperating InstructionsPractical TipsTechnical Specifications

Index
Numbers and Symbols
230 V socket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
A
Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221 Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Adaptive headlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121 Faulty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Airbag Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66
Airbag covers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Curtain airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Front airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
Side airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Air conditioner 2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Air distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Air outlets . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Air purity sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Air recirculation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Air recirculation (automatic) . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Automatic mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Blower . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157
Defrosting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
ECON Mode (economy) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159 Economical use . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Key settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163
Solar-powered blower/sunroof . . . . . . . . . 163
Temperature selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158
Air duct Fitting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266, 273
Removing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266, 272
Air purity sensor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Alcantara . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
Alternator Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Ambient lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 124
Anti-lock brake system How it works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189
Anti-theft alarm system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107 Interior monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Antifreeze . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 231
Aquaplaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Armrest Storage compartment in front armrest . . . 141
Armrests Adjusting the front armrest . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Ashtray Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Rear . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
ASR How the system works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 190
Warning lamp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Athermic windscreen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222 Auto-check system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Automatic car wash tunnel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210
Automatic gearbox
Dynamic gear control programme . . . . . . . 184
Kick-down feature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184
multitronic® . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
Paddle levers (tiptronic mode) . . . . . . . . . 186
Safety interlock for ignition key . . . . . . . . . 166
Selector lever lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
Selector lever positions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182
Steering wheel with paddle levers . . . . . . 186
tiptronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180
tiptronic mode . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
Automatic headlight control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Auxiliary heater . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
B
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237 Battery voltage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
Charging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Disconnection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238
Long periods of non-use . . . . . . . . . . 237, 238
Replacing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237, 238
Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237
Winter operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237, 238
Bicycle rack Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Biodiesel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
Biodiesel fuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 225
305
Index