2013 MERCEDES-BENZ S-Class Owner's Manual

keep both feet on the floor in front of the
seat.
R Whe nusing a seat belt to secure infant
restraints, toddler restraints, or children in
booster seats, always follow the child seat
manufacturer's instructions. G
WARNING
Do not pass seat belts over sharp edges. They
could tear.
Do not allow the seat belt to get caught in the
door or in the seat adjustment mechanism.
This could damage the seat belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to seat
belts. This could impair the effectiveness of
the seat belts.
Fastening seat belts G
WARNING
According to accident statistics, children are
safer when properly restrained on the rear
seats than on the front-passenger seat. Thus,
we strongly recommend that children be
placed in the rear seat whenever possible.
Regardless of seating position, children 12
years old and under must be seated and
properly secured in an appropriately sized
child restraint system or booster seat
recommended for the size and weight of the
child. For additional information, see the
"Children in the vehicle" section.
Ac hild's risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle and/
or the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint. X
Adjust the seat and move the backrest to
an almost vertical position (Y page 106).
X Pull the seat belt smoothly through belt
sash guide 0002.
X Without twisting it, guide the shoulder
section of the seat belt across the middle
of your shoulder and the lap section across
your hips.
X Engage belt tongue 0003in buckle 0026.
Seat-belt adjustment:ifn ecessary, the
driver's and front-passenger seat belts
automatically adjust to the upper body
(Y page 64).
X If necessary, adjust the seat belt to the
appropriate height (Y page 64).
X If necessary, pull upwards on the shoulder
section of the seat belt to tighten the belt
across your body.
All seat belts except the driver's seat belt are
equipped with a special seat belt retractor to
securely fasten child restraint systems in the
vehicle. For further information about special
seat belt retractors, see (Y page 68). Occupant safety
63Safety Z

For more information abou
treleasing the seat
belt with release button 0025, see "Releasing
seat belts" (Y page 64).
Seat belt adjustment The seat-belt adjustment function adjusts the
driver's and front-passenger seat belt to the
upper body of the occupants.
The belt strap is tightened slightly when:
R
you engage the belt tongue in the belt
buckle and you then turn the SmartKey to
position 2in the ignition lock.
R the SmartKey is in position 2in the ignition
lock and you then engage the belt tongue
in the buckle.
The seat-belt adjustment will apply a
retraction force if any slack is detected
between the occupan tand the sea tbelt. Do
not hold on to the seat belt tightly while it is
adjusting. You can switch the seat-belt
adjustment on and off in the on-board
computer (Y page 388).
The seat-belt adjustment is an integral part of
the PRE-SAFE ®
convenience function. More
information about PRE-SAFE ®
can be found
in the "PRE-SAFE ®
(preventative occupant
protection)" section (Y page 59).
Belt height adjustment You can adjust the seat belt height on the
driver's seat and the front-passenger seat.
Adjust the height so that the upper part of the
seat belt is routed across the center of your
shoulder. X
To raise: slide the belt sash guide upwards.
The belt sash guide engages in various
positions.
X To lower: press and hold belt sash guide
release 0002.
X Slide the belt sash guide downwards.
X Release belt sash guide release 0002and
make sure that the belt sash guide has
engaged.
The seat belts for the outer seats in the rear
are adjusted automatically.
Releasing seat belts X
Press release button 0025(Ypage 63) and
guide belt tongue 0003back towards belt
sash guide 0002.
! Make sure that the seat belt is fully rolled
up. Otherwise, the seat belt or belt tongue
will be trapped in the door or in the seat
mechanism. This could damage the door,
the door trim panel and the seat belt.
Damaged seat belts can no longer fulfill
their protective function and must be
replaced. Visit a qualified specialist
workshop.
Belt warning for the driver and front
passenger Regardless of whether the driver's and front-
passenger seat belts have already been
fastened, the
001Bseat belt warning lamp will
light up for six seconds each time the engine
is started. It then goes out if the driver and
the fron tpassenger have fastened their seat
belts.
If the driver's seat belt is no tfastened when
the engine is started, an additional warning
tone will sound. The warning tone goes out
after approximately six seconds or once the
driver's seat belt is fastened. 64
Occupant safetySafety

If after six seconds the driver's or front-
passenger seat belt is not fastened and the
doors are closed, the 001Bseat belt warning
lamp will remainl it:
R until the driver's or front passenger's seat
belt is fastened
R once the vehicle has exceeded a speed of
15 mph (25 km/h), in addition a warning
tone will sound with increasing intensity for
up to 60 seconds or until the driver's or
front-passenger seat belt is fastened.
If the drive rorfront passenger unfastens their
seat beltd uring the journey, the 001Bseat
belt warning lamp lights up and the warning
tone sounds again.
The warning tone ceases after 60 seconds
eve nift he driver or front passenger has still
not fastened their seat belt. The 001Bseat
belt warning lamp stops flashing, but remains
lit.
After the vehicle has come to a stop, the
warning tone will be reactivated and the
001B seat belt warning lamp will flash again
once the vehicle has exceeded a speed of
15 mph (25 km/h).
The 001B seat belt warning lamp will not go
out until:
R both the driver and the front passenger
have fastened their seat belts.
or
R the vehicle is stationary and a door is open.
i For more information on the 001Bseat
belt warning lamp, see "Warning and
indicator lamps in the instrument cluster,
seat belt" (Y page 426).
Emergency Tensioning Devices, belt
force limiters The front seat belts and the outer seat belts
in the rear are equipped with ETDs and seat
belt force limiters.
The ETDs tighten the seat belts in an accident,
pulling them close against the body. The ETDs do not correct incorrect seat
positions or incorrectly fastened seat belts.
The ETDs do not pull vehicle occupants back
towards the backrest.
Seat belt force limiters, when triggered, help
to reduce the peak force exerted by the seat
belt on the vehicle occupant.
The seat belt force limiters for the front seats
are synchronized with the front air bags.
These take on a part of the deceleration force.
Thus, the force exerted on the occupant is
distributed over a greater area.
The ETDs can only be activated when:
R
the ignition is switched on.
R the restraint systems are operational; see
"SRS warning lamp" (Y page 48).
R the belt tongue is engaged in the buckle on
each of the lap-shoulder belts in the front.
R the front-passenger seat is occupied and
the belt tongue is engaged in the buckle on
the front-passenger side.
The ETDs on the outside seats in the rear
compartmenta re triggered independently of
the lock status of the seat belts.
The ETDs are triggered depending on the type
and severity of an accident:
R if, in the event of a head-on or rear-end
collision, the vehicle decelerates or
accelerates rapidly in a longitudinal
direction during the initia lstages of the
impact
R if, in the event of a side impact, on the side
opposite the impact the vehicle
decelerates or accelerates rapidly in a
lateral direction
R if, in certai nsituations where the vehicle
overturns, the system determines that it
can provide additional protection
If the air bags are deployed, you will hear a
bang, and a small amoun tofpowder may also
be released. Only in rare cases will the bang
affect your hearing. The powder that is
released generally does not constitute a
health hazard. The 001ASRS warning lamp
lights up. Occupant safety
65Safety Z

G
WARNING
Pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning Devices
that have been deployed must be renewed.
For yours afety, when disposing of Emergency
Tensioning Devices, always observe the
safety instructions. These are available from
any authorized Mercedes-Ben zCenter.
The PRE-SAFE ®
system has electrically
operated reversible pre-tensioners that do
not require replacement after activation.
! If the front-passenger seat is not
occupied, do not engage the seat belt
tongue in the buckle on the front-
passenger seat. Otherwise, the Emergency
Tensioning Device could be triggered in the
event of an accident.
Automatic comfort-fit feature The fron
tseat belts have an automatic
comfort-install feature. In vehicles with a rear
bench seat with electrically adjustable outer
seats, the seat belts for the outer seats have
an automatic comfort-install feature. The
automatic comfort-install feature reduces the
retraction force of the seat belts. This results
in increased seat belt comfort. Children in the vehicle
Child restraint systems
Important safety notes We recommend that all infants and children
be properly secured in an infan
torchild
restraint system at all times while the vehicle
is in motion.
The use of seat belts and infant and child
restraint systems is required by law in all 50
states, the DistrictofC olumbia, the U.S.
territories and all Canadia nprovinces.
Infants and children must always be seated in
an appropriate infant or child restraint system
recommended for the size and weight of the
child .The infant or child restraint system must be properly secured in accordance with
the manufacturer's instructions. All infant or
child restraint systems must comply with U.S.
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards 213
and 225 and CanadianM
otor Vehicle Safety
Standards 213 and 210.2.
An information label on the child restraint
system indicates whether it meets these
standards. This information is also provided
in the installation instructions supplied with
the child restraint system.
Always read and follow the manufacturer's
instructions when using an infant or child
restraint system or booster seat.
Observe all warning signs in the vehicle
interior and on the infant or child restraint. G
WARNING
According to accident statistics, children are
safer when properly restrained on the rear
seats than on the front-passenger seat. Thus,
we strongly recommend that children be
placed in the rear seats whenever possible.
Regardless of seating position, children 12
years old and under must be seated and
properly secured in an appropriately sized
child restraint system or booster seat
recommended for the size and weight of the
child.
The infant or child restraint system must be
properly secured with the vehicle's seat belt,
the seat belt and Top Tether strap, or lower
anchors and Top Tether strap, fully in
accordance with the child seat
manufacturer's instructions.
Occupants, especially children, should always
sit as upright as possible, wear the seat belt
properly and use an appropriate sized infant
restraint, toddler restraint, or booster seat
recommended for the size and weight of the
child. 66
Children in the vehicleSafety

Children can be killed or seriously injured by
an inflating air bag. Note the following
important information when circumstances
require you to place a child in the front-
passenger seat:
R Your vehicle is equipped with air bag
technology designed to deactivate the
front-passenger fron tair bag in your vehicle
when the system senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard appropriate
child restraint on the front-passenge rseat.
R Ac hild in a rear-facing child restraint on the
front-passenger seat will be seriously
injured or even killed if the front-passenger
front air bag inflates in a collision which
could occur under some circumstances,
even with the air bag technology installed
in your vehicle. The only means to eliminate
this risk completely is never to place a child
in a rear-facing child restraint in the front-
passenger seat. We therefore strongly
recommend that you always place a child
in a rear-facing child restraint on the rear
seat.
R If you install a rear-facing child restraint on
the front-passenger seat, make sure the
00170016 indicator lamp is
illuminated, indicating that the front-
passenger front air bag is deactivated.
Should the 00170016 indicator lamp
not illuminate or go out while the restraint
is installed, please check installation.
Periodically check the 00170016
indicator lamp while driving to make sure
the 00170016 indicator lamp is
illuminated. If the 00170016indicator
lamp goes out or remains out, do not
transport a child on the front-passenger
seat until the system has been repaired.
Ac hild in a rear-facing child restraint on the
front-passenger seat will be seriously
injured or even killed if the front-passenger
front air bag inflates. R
If you place a child in a forward-facing child
restraint on the front-passenger seat:
-move the seat as far back as possible
- use the proper child restraint
recommended for the age, size and
weight of the child
- secure child restraint with the vehicle's
seat belt according to the child seat
manufacturer's instructions
R For children larger than a typical 12-month-
old child, the front-passenger front air bag
can be activated or deactivated. G
WARNING
Infants and small children should never share
a seat belt with another occupant. In the event
of an accident, they could be crushed
between the occupant and seat belt.
Ac hild's risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle and/
or the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint.
Children that are too large for a child restraint
must travel in seats using normal seat belts.
Position the shoulder belt across the chest
and shoulder, not face or neck.Ab ooster seat
may be necessary to achieve proper seat belt
positioning for children over 41 lb (18 kg) until
they reach a height where a lap-shoulder belt
fits properly without a booster.
When the child restraint is not in use, remove
it from the vehicle or secure it with the seat
belt to prevent the child restraint from
becoming a projectile in the event of an
accident.
If an infant or child is traveling in the vehicle:
X Secure the infant or child with an
appropriate infant or child restraint
recommended for the child's age and
weight.
X Make sure that the infant or child is
properly secured at all times while the
vehicle is in motion. Children in the vehicle
67Safety Z

G
WARNING
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 unattended in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child
restraint system, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Achild's unsupervised
access to a vehicle could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury. The children
could:
R injure themselves on parts of the vehicle
R be seriously or fatally injured through
excessive exposure to extreme heat or cold
R injure themselves or cause an accident with
vehicle equipment that can be operated
even if the SmartKey is removed from the
ignition lock or removed from the vehicle,
such as seat adjustment, steering wheel
adjustment, or the memory function
If children open a door, they could injure other
persons or get out of the vehicle and injure
themselves or be injured by following 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 the child could be burned on these
parts. G
WARNING
Do not carry heavy or hard objects in the
passenger compartmentort runk 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
Special seat beltr etractorAll seat belts except th
edriver's seat belta re
equipped with a special seat beltr etractor.
When activated, the special seat belt retractor ensures the seat belt will not
slacken once the child restraint system has
been secured.
Installing a child restraint system:
X
Always comply with the manufacturer's
installation instructions.
X Pull the seat belt smoothly from the inertia
reel.
X Engage the seat belt tongue in the belt
buckle.
Activating the special seat belt retractor:
X Pull the seat belt out fully and let the inertia
reel retract it again.
While the seat belt is retracting, you should
hear a ratcheting sound. The special seat
belt retractor is enabled.
X Push down on the child restraint system to
take up any slack.
Removing a child restraint system/
deactivating the special seat belt retractor:
X Always comply with the manufacturer's
installation instructions.
X Press the seat belt release button and
guide the belt tongue to the belt outlet.
The special seat belt retractor is
deactivated. G
WARNING
Never release the seat belt buckle while the
vehicle is in motion, since the special seat belt
retractor will be deactivated.
LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child seat anchors
in the rear G
WARNING
Children that are too large for a child restraint
must travel in seats using normal seat belts.
Position shoulder belt across the chest and
shoulder, not face or neck.
Ab ooster seat may be necessary to achieve
proper seat belt positioning for children over
41 lb (18 kg) until they reach a height where 68
Children in the vehicleSafety

a lap/shoulde
rbelt fits properly without a
booster.
Install the child restraint system in
accordance with the manufacturer's
instructions.
Attach the child restraint system to both
securing rings.
An incorrectly installed child restraint system
could come loose during an acciden tand
seriously or eve nfatally injure the child.
Child restraint systems or child seat securing
rings that are malfunctioning or damaged as
the result of a collision must be replaced.
ISOFIX is a standardized securing system for
specially designed child restraint systems on
the rear seats. Securin grings for two LATCH-
type (ISOFIX) child restraint systems are
installed on the left and right of the rear seats.
Secure non-LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child
restraint systems using the vehicle's seat belt
system. Always install child restraint systems
according to the manufacturer's instructions.
! Vehicles with a center seat in the rear:
when installing the LATCH-type (ISOFIX)
child restraint system, make sure that the
seat belt for the center seat does not get
trapped. Otherwise, the seat belt could be
damaged. Installation instructions
0002indicate the
installation location of securing rings 2.X
Move the backrest of the electrically
adjustable rear seat to an upright position
(Y page 108).
X Fold upholstery cover 0026and the Velcro
fastener upwards.
X Turn installation aid 0025to a vertical position
to prevent upholstery cover 0026fromf olding
down.
X Install the LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child
restraint systems on both securing
rings 0003. Comply with the manufacturer's
instructions when installing the LATCH-
type (ISOFIX) child restraint system. G
WARNING
Vehicles with rear power seats:
Never change the rear seat position after
installing the child restraint .This could
R damage the child restraint
R introduce undesirable slack or tension into
the seat belt
R loosen the child restraint
R misposition the child restraint
All of the above will lessen the
effectiveness of the child restraint and thus
increase the chance or severity of injury in
an accident.
Top Tether Top Tether provides an additional connection
between the child restraint system secured
with ISOFIX and the rear seat. It helps reduce
the risk of injury even further.
The Top Tether anchorage points are located
in the rear compartmentb
ehind the head
restraints. Children in the vehicle
69Safety Z

X
Vehicles with electrically adjustable rear
seats: move the rear seat backrests to an
uprightp osition (Y page 108).
X Remove respective covering cap 0002of the
Top Tether anchorage.
X Place covering cap 0002in a suitable place
(e.g. in the glove box). X
Move the head restraint upwards.
X Route Top Tether belt 0025under the head
restraint between the two head restraint
bars.
X Hook Top Tether hook 0026of Top Tether
belt 0025into Top Tether anchorage 0003.
Ensure that:
R Top Tether hook 0026is hooked into Top
Tether anchorage 0003as shown.
R Top Tether belt 0025is not twisted.
R Top Tether belt 0025can move freely
between the rear seat backrest and the
head restraint.
X Install the LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child
restraint system with Top Tether. Comply
with the manufacturer's installation instructions when doing so. Make sure that
Top Tether belt
0025is tight.
The child restraint system with Top Tether
belt 0025has been removed:
X Slide covering cap 0002onto Top Tether
anchorage 0003. G
WARNING
Vehicles with rear power seats:
Never change the rear seat position after
installing the child restraint .This could
R damage the child restraint
R introduce undesirable slack or tension into
the seat belt
R loosen the child restraint
R misposition the child restraint
All of the above will lessen the
effectiveness of the child restraint and thus
increase the chance or severity of injury in
an accident. Child-proof locks
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Activate the child-proof locks for the rear
doors and the override switch for the rear
windows when children are traveling in the
vehicle.
Children could injure themselves or others
while the vehicle is in motion if, for example,
they:
R open the doors
R open the side windows
R adjust the seats
R operate the cigarette lighter 70
Children in the vehicleSafety