2013 MERCEDES-BENZ CLS-Class trailer

G
WARNING
Make sure no persons or animals are in or
near the area in which you are parking/
maneuvering. Otherwise, they could be
injured.
PARKTRONIC
is an electronic parking aid with
ultrasonic sensors. It indicates visually and
audibly the distance between your vehicle
and an object.
PARKTRONIC is activated automatically when
you:
R switch on the ignition
R shift the transmission to position D, R or N
R release the parking brake
PARKTRONIC is deactivated at speeds above
11 mph (18km/h). It is reactivated at lower
speeds.
PARKTRONIC monitors the area around your
vehicle using six sensors in the front bumper
and four sensors in the rear bumper.
Range of the sensors General notes
!
When

parking, pay particular attention to
objects above or below the sensors, such
as flower pots or trailer drawbars.
PARKTRONIC does not detect such objects
when they are in the immediate vicinity of
the vehicle. You could damage the vehicle
or the objects.
The sensors may not detect snow and other
objects that absorb ultrasonic waves.
Ultrasonic sources such as an automatic
car wash, the compressed-air brakes on a
truck or a pneumatic drill could cause
PARKTRONIC to malfunction.
PARKTRONIC may not function correctly on
uneven terrain. :
Example: sensors in the front bumper,
left-hand side
The sensors must be free of dirt, ice and
slush. Otherwise, they may not function
correctly.

Clean the sensors regularly, taking
care not to scratch or damage them
(Y page 307). Example: side view
Example: top view184
Driving systems
Driving and parking

G
WARNING
The front of the vehicle will veer out in the
direction of the oncoming traffic during the
parking
operation. In some cases, the vehicle
will also take you onto sections of the
oncoming lane during the parking procedure.
You are responsible for safety at all times and
must pay attention to any road users
approaching or passing. Stop the vehicle if
necessary or cancel the Active Parking Assist
parking procedure. G
WARNING
Make sure no persons or animals are in or
near the area in which you are parking/
maneuvering. Otherwise, they could be
injured.
! If unavoidable, you should drive over
obstacles such as curbs slowly and not at
a

sharp angle. Otherwise, you may damage
the wheels or tires.
Active Parking Assist is an electronic parking
aid with ultrasound. Ultrasound is used to
measure the road on both sides of the vehicle.
A suitable parking space is indicated by the
parking symbol. Active steering intervention
can assist you during parking. You may also
use PARKTRONIC ( Y page 183). When
PARKTRONIC is switched off, Active Parking
Assist is also unavailable.
Use Active Parking Assist for parking spaces:
R that are parallel to the direction of travel
R that are on straight roads, not bends
R that are on the same level as the road, e.g.
not on the pavement
Parking tips:
R on narrow roads, drive past the parking
space as close as possible.
R parking spaces that are littered, overgrown
or partially occupied by trailer drawbars
might be identified incorrectly or not at all.
R snowfall or heavy rain may lead to a parking
space being measured inaccurately. R
pay attention to the PARKTRONIC
(Y

page 185) warning messages during the
parking procedure.
R you can intervene in the steering procedure
to correct it at any time. Active Parking
Assist will then be canceled.
R when transporting a load which protrudes
from your vehicle, you should not use
Active Parking Assist.
R when snow chains or an emergency spare
wheel are mounted, you should not use
Active Parking Assist here either.
R make sure that the tire pressures are
always correct. This has a direct influence
on the parking characteristics of the
vehicle.
R the way your vehicle is positioned in the
parking space after parking is dependent
on various factors. These include the
position and shape of the vehicles parked
in front and behind it and the conditions of
the location. It may be the case that Active
Parking Assist guides you too far into a
parking space, or not far enough into it. In
some cases, it may also lead you across or
onto the curb. If necessary, you should
abort the parking procedure with Active
Parking Assist.
R you can also engage forward gear
prematurely. The vehicle redirects and
does not drive as far into the parking space.
Should the gear change occur too soon to
achieve a sensible parking position, the
parking procedure will be aborted. Driving systems
187
Driving and parking Z

Guide lines in the COMAND display
G
WARNING
Use of rear view camera can be dangerous if
you are color-blind or have impaired color
vision.
Only
use rear view camera if you can see and
distinguish all colored guidelines shown by
rear view camera on the COMAND system
display. G
WARNING
Please note that objects that do not touch the
ground may appear to be further away than
they actually are, for example:
R the

bumper of a vehicle parked behind you
R the trailer drawbar
R the ball coupling of a trailer tow hitch
R the rear end of a truck
R a slanted post
In such cases, you should not use the guide
lines to judge the distance. You may misjudge
the distance, which increases the risk of
impacting the objects.
Even if the object you approach is directly on
the ground, do not approach the object any
closer than the red guide line. Example: information in the COMAND display
Guide

lines ; and = show the approximate
distance to the rear area. Yellow guide
line ; indicates a distance of approximately
3 ft (1 m) and red guide line = indicates a
distance of approximately 10 in (0.25 m). The
distances only apply to objects that are at ground level. Blue guide lines
: depict the
width required for the vehicle. They are used
to

align the vehicle with the edge of the road,
e.g. the curb. ATTENTION ASSIST
Important safety notes G
WARNING
ATTENTION ASSIST is only an aid and may
detect your tiredness or lapses in
concentration too late or not at all. It is not a
substitute for a well-rested and attentive
driver.
Fatigue may cause you to recognize
hazardous situations too late, misjudge a
situation or react more slowly. For this
reason,

make sure you feel rested before you
begin driving and during your journey. Make
sure that you take regular breaks in time,
particularly on long journeys. Otherwise, you
may fail to recognize dangers in time, cause
an accident and injure yourself and others.
General notes ATTENTION ASSIST helps you during long,
monotonous journeys such as on freeways
and interstate highways. It is active in the
range between 50 mph (80 km/h

) and
112 mph (180 km/h).
If ATTENTION ASSIST detects typical
indicators of fatigue or increasing lapses in
concentration on the part of the driver, it
suggests you take a break.
ATTENTION ASSIST assesses your level of
fatigue or lapses in concentration by taking
the following criteria into account:
R your personal driving style, e.g. steering
characteristics
R driving conditions, e.g. time, driving time Driving systems
191
Driving and parking Z

force to steer and brake, you may have to
depress
the brake pedal with maximum force.
Before towing away, make sure that the
steering can be moved and is not locked.
If you tow or tow-start another vehicle, its
weight must not exceed the maximum
permissible 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.
! Only secure the tow rope or tow bar at the
towing eyes. Otherwise, the vehicle could
be damaged.
! Do not use the towing eye for recovery,
this could damage the vehicle. If in doubt,
recover the vehicle with a crane.
! When towing, pull away slowly and
smoothly. If the tractive power is too high,
the vehicles could be damaged.
! Do not tow with sling-type equipment.
This could damage the vehicle.
! When towing vehicles with KEYLESS-GO,
use the key instead of the Start/Stop
button. Otherwise, the automatic
transmission may shift to position P when
the driver's or front-passenger door are
opened, which could lead to damage to the
transmission.
! The vehicle can be towed a maximum of
30 miles (50km). The towing speed of
30 mph (50 km/h) must not be exceeded.
If the vehicle has to be towed more than
30 miles (50km), the entire vehicle must be
raised and transported.
! If you tow or tow-start another vehicle, its
weight must not exceed the maximum
permissible gross vehicle weight of your
vehicle. Information on your vehicle's gross vehicle
weight rating can be found on the vehicle
identification plate (
Y page 365).
It is better to have the vehicle transported
than to have it towed.
If the vehicle has suffered transmission
damage,

have it transported on a transporter
or trailer.
The automatic transmission must be in
position N when the vehicle is being towed.
The battery must be connected and charged.
Otherwise, you:
R cannot turn the SmartKey to position 2 in
the ignition lock
R cannot shift the automatic transmission to
position N
i Deactivate the automatic locking feature
(Y page 81). You could otherwise be locked
out when pushing or towing the vehicle. Installing/removing the towing eye
Installing the towing eye 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. Towing and tow-starting
319
Breakdown assistance Z

It is important that you observe the safety
instructions when towing away your vehicle
(Y page 318).
The automatic transmission automatically
shifts
to position P when you open the driver's
or front-passenger door or when you remove
the SmartKey from the ignition lock. In order
to ensure that the automatic transmission
stays in position N when towing the vehicle,
you must observe the following points:
X Make sure that the vehicle is stationary and
the SmartKey in the ignition lock is in
position 0.
X Turn the SmartKey to position 2 in the
ignition lock.
On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, use the
SmartKey

instead of the Start/Stop button
(Y page 139).
X Depress and hold the brake pedal.
X Shift the automatic transmission to
position N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the parking brake.
X Switch on the hazard warning lamps
(Y page 114).
X Leave the SmartKey in position 2 in the
ignition lock.
i When towing with the hazard warning
lamps switched on, use the combination
switch as usual to signal a change of
direction.

In this case, only the turn signals
for the desired direction flash. When the
combination switch is reset, the hazard
warning lamps start flashing again. Transporting 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.
Otherwise, the vehicle could be damaged.
The towing eye can be used to pull the vehicle
onto a trailer or transporter for transporting
purposes. X
Turn the SmartKey to position 2 in the
ignition lock.
X Shift the automatic transmission to
position N.
As soon as the vehicle is loaded:
X Prevent the vehicle from rolling away by
applying the parking brake.
X Shift the automatic transmission to
position P.
X Turn the SmartKey to position 0 in the
ignition lock and remove the SmartKey
from the ignition lock.
X Secure the vehicle. Notes for 4MATIC vehicles
! Vehicles

with 4MATIC must not be towed
with either the front or the rear axle raised,
as doing so will damage the transmission.
If the vehicle has transmission damage or
damage to the front or rear axle, have it
transported on a transporter or trailer.
In the event of damage to the electrical
system
If the battery is defective, the automatic
transmission will be locked in position P. To
shift the automatic transmission to position
N, you must provide power to the vehicle's
electrical system in the same way as when
jump-starting (Y page 317).
Have the vehicle transported on a transporter
or trailer. Tow-starting (emergency starting)
! Vehicles with automatic transmission
must not be started by tow-starting. This
could otherwise damage the transmission.
You can find information on "Jump-starting"
at (Y page 317). Towing and tow-starting
321
Breakdown assistance Z

Step 3
Exampl
e 1 Exampl
e 2 Exampl
e 3
Permiss
ible
load
(maxim
um
gross
vehicle
weight
rating
from
the Tire
and
Loading
Informa
tion
placard
minus
the
gross
weight
of all
occupa
nts)
1500 lbs
(680 kg)
Ò750 lbs
(340 kg)
=
750 lbs
(340 kg) 1500 lbs
(680 kg)
Ò540 lbs
(245 kg)
=
960 lbs
(435 kg) 1500 lbs
(680 kg)
Ò150 lbs
(68 kg) =
1350 lbs
(612 kg)
Vehicle identification plate
Even if you have calculated the total load
carefully, you should still make sure that the
gross
vehicle weight rating and the gross axle
weight rating are not exceeded. Details can
be found on the vehicle identification plate on
the B-pillar on the driver's side of the vehicle
(Y page 337).
Permissible gross vehicle weight: the
gross weight of the vehicle, all passengers,
load and trailer load/noseweight (if
applicable) must not exceed the permissible
gross vehicle weight.
Gross axle weight rating: the maximum
permissible weight that can be carried by one
axle (front or rear axle). To ensure that your vehicle does not exceed
the maximum permissible values (gross
vehicle weight and maximum gross axle
weight rating), have your loaded vehicle
(including driver, occupants, cargo, and full
trailer load if applicable) weighed on a
suitable vehicle weighbridge.
All about wheels and tires
Uniform Tire Quality Grading
Standards
Overview of Tire Quality Grading
Standards Uniform Tire Quality Grading Standards are
U.S. government specifications. Their
purpose is to provide drivers with uniform
reliable

information on tire performance data.
Tire manufacturers have to grade tires using
three performance factors: : tread wear
grade, ; traction grade and = temperature
grade. These regulations do not apply to
Canada. Nevertheless, all tires sold in North
America are provided with the corresponding
quality grading markings on the sidewall of
the tire.
Where applicable, the tire grading
information can be found on the tire sidewall
between the tread shoulder and maximum
tire width.
Example:
R Treadwear grade: 200
R Traction grade: AA
R Temperature grade: A340
All about wheels and tiresWheels and tires