Table of Contents
Manual structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Content . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Safety First . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Safe driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Brief introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Proper sitting position for occupants . . . . . . . . . 10
Pedal area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Storing objects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Seat belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Brief introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
Why wear seat belts? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Seat belts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Seat belt tensioners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Airbag system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Brief introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Front airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Knee airbag* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
Side airbags* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Curtain airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Deactivating airbags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Child safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Brief introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47
Child seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49
Securing child seats . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 Operating Instructions
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Cockpit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59
Instruments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Warning and indicator lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Driver information system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74
Auto-check system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Speed warning* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Onboard computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Menu display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Tyre pressure monitoring* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
Steering wheel controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Multifunction steering wheel* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
Unlocking and locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Remote control keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
Central locking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Rear lid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Childproof lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Remote control key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108
Anti-theft alarm system* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110
Electric windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Sliding/tilting sunroof* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Lights and visibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Interior lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125
Visibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Windscreen wipers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
Rear view mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132
Seats and storage compartments . . . . . . . . . . 135
Manual adjustment of the front seats . . . . . . . . . 135
Electric adjustment of front seats* . . . . . . . . . . . 137
Lumbar support* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 138
Driver seat memory* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139 Head restraints . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Armrests . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143
Luggage compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Roof rack / roof rails* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152
Drink holder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Ashtray*, cigarette lighter* and electric sockets* . .154
Compartments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Air conditioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
2C-Climatronic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Driving . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Safety . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172
Ignition lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Starting and stopping the engine . . . . . . . . . . . . 174
Start-Stop function* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
Handbrake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Parking aid acoustic system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Cruise speed* (Cruise control system) . . . . . . . . 183
Manual gearbox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 186
Automatic gearbox* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
Practical Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Intelligent technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Electronic Stability Control (ESC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198
Power steering . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199
Servotronic* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 200
Driving and the environment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Running-in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
Exhaust gas purification system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202
Economical and environmentally friendly driving 203
Driving abroad . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
3
Table of Contents
59
Cockpit
Operating Instructions Cockpit
Overview Dash panel overview
Electric windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112
Door handle
Central locking switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Electric control for exterior mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133
Air outlets with thumbwheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 169
Light switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Lever for turn signals and main beam headlights . . . . . . . . . . .124
Instrument panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Levers and switches for:
– Windscreen wipers and washer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129
– Onboard computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
– Menu display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Ignition lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 173
Depending on equipment fitted:
– Electronic Stability Control (ESC) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
– Start-Stop switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 176
– Warning lamp indicating that front passenger airbag has
been disabled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
– Switch for acoustic parking aid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Hazard warning lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123
123456789
1011
12
Drink holder
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Storage compartment
Depending on equipment fitted: Sound system or navigation
system
Lockable glove compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159
Front passenger airbag . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Air conditioner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164
Switch for heated rear window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Thumbwheel for seat heating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 171
Ashtray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Manual gear lever
Cigarette lighter / Power socket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154
Auxiliary socket
Tyre pressure monitoring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Storage compartment
Handbrake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179
Seat memory* . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Bonnet lock release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Headlight range control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121
– coming home and leaving home: delayed lights off and
anticipated lights on function . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 119
Lever for cruise control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183
131415
161718192021222324252627282930
31
Safety FirstOperating InstructionsPractical TipsTechnical Specifications
180Driving
Releasing the handbrake
–Pull the lever up slightly and at the same time press in the re-
lease button ⇒ Fig. 152 (arrow).
– Keep the release button pressed and push the lever all the way
down ⇒
.
If you drive by mistake with the handbrake still applied, you will hear a
warning buzzer and the display will show the message: Handbrake on
The handbrake warning switches on after driving for 3 seconds at speeds
above 5 km/h.
The handbrake warning lamp lights up when the handbrake is applied
with the ignition on.
WARNING
Please note that the handbrake should be released all the way. If it is on-
ly partially released, this will cause rear brakes overheating, which can
impair the function of the brake system and could lead to an accident.
CAUTION
Once the vehicle has come to a standstill, always apply the handbrake firm-
ly and then, on a manual gearbox, engage a gear, or select P on an auto-
matic. Parking
The following points will ensure there is no risk of the vehi-
cle rolling away accidentally after it is parked:
– Use the foot brake to stop the vehicle.
– Apply the handbrake firmly.
– Switch the engine off.
– On a manual gearbox engage 1st gear or on an automatic move
the selector lever to P ⇒
.
When parking on slopes:
Turn the steering wheel so that the, if the vehicle moves, it will do so to-
wards the curb.
WARNING
● Do not leave anyone (especially children) in the vehicle when it is
locked. Locked doors could delay assistance in an emergency, potentially
putting lives at risk.
● Never leave children unsupervised in the vehicle. They could release
e.g. the handbrake or gear lever, moving the vehicle and causing an acci-
dent.
188Driving
Driving instructions
The gears are changed automatically.
Fig. 157 Detailed view of
the centre console: Se-
lector lever with lock but-
ton
Starting the vehicle
– Press and hold the brake pedal.
– Press and hold the interlock button (the button on the selector
lever handle), move the selector lever to the required position,
for instance D, and release the interlock button.
– Wait for the gearbox to engage the gear (a slight movement can
be felt).
– Release the brake and press the accelerator ⇒
.
Stopping briefly
– Apply the foot brake to hold the vehicle when stationary (for in-
stance at traffic lights). –
To prevent the vehicle from rolling away, apply the parking
brake before moving off on steep gradients ⇒
.
Parking the vehicle
– Press and hold the brake pedal ⇒
.
– Apply the parking brake.
– Press and hold the interlock button, move the selector lever to P
and release the interlock button.
The engine can only be started when the selector lever is at P or N.
On level ground it is sufficient to move the selector lever to P. On slopes,
first engage the parking brake and then put the selection lever into the P
position. This avoids overloading the locking mechanism and it will be eas-
ier to move the selector lever from position P.
Vehicles with multitronic® gearbox: Your vehicle is equipped with the hill
hold assist function which makes it easier to start off on a slope. The sys-
tem is activated when you press and hold the brake pedal for a few sec-
onds. When you release the brake pedal the braking force will be main-
tained for a short moment in order to prevent the vehicle rolling back when
you drive away.
WARNING
● While you are selecting a gear and the vehicle is stopped with the en-
gine running, do not accelerate. Failure to do so could result in an acci-
dent.
● Please note that some power will still be transmitted when you stop
temporarily with the selector lever in position D, S or R. Therefore, when
stopping you will need to press the brake with the force required to hold
the vehicle still. Failure to do so could result in an accident.
● Never move the selector lever to R or P when driving, as this could
cause an accident.
189
Driving
Selector lever positions
This section covers all the selector lever positions.
Fig. 158 Display: Selec-
tor lever positions
The current selector lever position is shown on the instrument panel dis-
play.
P - parking lock
This locks the driving wheels mechanically. The parking brake should only
be used when the vehicle is already stopped
⇒
.
The interlock button (the button on the selector lever handle) must be
pressed in and the brake pedal must be depressed before moving the selec-
tor lever either in or out of position P. This is only possible when the ignition
is on.
R - Reverse gear
When reverse gear is engaged the gearbox automatically selects the lowest
gear ratio.
The reverse gear may be engaged only when the vehicle is stationary and
the engine is idling ⇒
. To move the selector lever to position R, press in the interlock button
and at
the same time press the brake pedal. Depending on the model, one or two
reverse lights will come on in selector lever position R (when ignition is
switched on).
N - Neutral (idling)
In this position the gearbox is in neutral ⇒
.
D - Drive (forward)
In this position, the gearbox selects the optimal transmission ratio depend-
ing on the engine load, speed and the dynamic gear regulation programme
(DRP).
Press the brake pedal when moving the selector lever from N to D if the ve-
hicle is stationary or at speeds below 5 km/h ⇒
.
Under certain circumstances (e.g. when driving in mountains or towing a
trailer or caravan) it can be advantageous to switch temporarily to tiptronic
mode ⇒ page 192, so that the gear ratios can be selected manually to suit
the driving conditions.
S - Sport position
To drive in sports mode, select the position S. The engine power reserve is
used to its maximum. When accelerating the gear shifts will be noticeable.
Press the brake pedal when moving the selector lever from N to S if the vehi-
cle is stationary or at speeds below 5 km/h ⇒
.
WARNING
● Never move the selector lever to R or P when driving. Failure to do so
could result in an accident.
● In selector position D or S the vehicle must always be held with the
foot brake when the engine is running. This is because an automatic
gearbox still transmits power even at idling speed, and the vehicle tends
Safety FirstOperating InstructionsPractical TipsTechnical Specifications
190Driving
WARNING (Continued)
to “creep”. The throttle must on no account be opened inadvertently (for
instance by hand from the engine compartment) when a gear is engaged
with the vehicle stationary. The vehicle could otherwise start moving im-
mediately (in some cases even if the parking brake is engaged) and pos-
sibly cause an accident.
● To avoid accidents, apply the parking brake and put the selector lever
in position P before opening the bonnet and working on the vehicle with
the engine running. Please observe the important safety warnings
⇒ page 234, Work in the engine compartment.
Note
● Applies to vehicles with tiptronic gearbox:
● If the lever is moved accidentally to N when driving, release the accelera-
tor and let the engine speed drop to idling before selecting D or S again.
● For the sake of fuel economy (and the environment), the gearbox ratios
on some models are designed so that maximum speed is only obtained
when the gear lever is in position S. Selector lever lock
The selector lever lock prevents gears from being engaged
inadvertently, so that the vehicle is not set in motion unin-
tentionally.
Fig. 159 Selector lever
lock functions
The selector lever lock is released as follows:
– Switch the ignition on.
– Press the brake pedal and at the same time press in the inter-
lock button.
Automatic selector lever lock
With the ignition turned on, the selector lever is locked in the positions P
and N. To remove it from these positions, press on the brake. The following
message appears in the instrument panel as a reminder for the driver when
the selector lever is in position P or N: WHEN STATIONARY APPLY FOOTBRAKE WHILE SELECTING GEAR
271
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