Starting the vehicle
Important safety notes G
WARNING
If children are left unsupervised in the vehicle, they could:
R open doors, thereby endangering other per-
sons or road users
R get out and be struck by oncomingt raffic
R operate vehicle equipment and become
trapped, for example
In addition, the children could also set the
vehicle in motion, for example, if they:
R release the parking brake
R shift the automatic transmission out of park
position Porshift manual transmission into
neutral
R start the engine
There is arisk of an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, always take the key with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave
children and animals unattended in the vehi-
cle. Keep the keys out of the reach of children. G
WARNING
Combustion engines emit poisonous exhaust
gases such as carbon monoxide. Inhaling
these exhaust gases leads to poisoning. There is ar isk of fatal injury. Therefore never leave
the engine running in enclosed spaces with-
out sufficient ventilation. G
WARNING
Flammable materials introduced through
environmental influence or by animals can
ignite if in contact with the exhaust system or parts of the engine that heat up. There is arisk
of fire.
Carry out regular checkstom ake sure that
there are no flammable foreign materials in
the engine compartmen torinthe exhaust
system. General notes Vehicles with
apetrol engine: the catalytic
converter is preheated for up to 30 seconds
after acold start. The sound of the engine may
change during this time.
Manual transmission X
Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Fully depress the clutch pedal.
X Shift to neutral N.
Automatic transmission X
Shift the transmission to position P
(Y page 158).
The transmission position indicator in the
multifunction display shows P(Y page 159).
i You can start the engine in transmission
position Pand N.
Starting procedurew ith the key To start the engine using the key instead of the
Start/Stop button, pull the Start/Stop button
out of the ignition lock.
X To startad iesel engine:t urn the key to
position 2in the ignition lock (Y page 145).
The % preglow indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster lights up.
X Turn the key to position 3in the ignition lock
and release it as soon as the engine is running
(Y page 145).
i Vehicles with
adiesel engine: you can
start the engine without preglow if the engine
is warm.
If the engine will not start:
X Remove the key from the ignition lock.
X Reinsert the key into the ignition lock after
waiting for ashort period.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition lock
(Y page 145).
The indicator lamps in the instrumen tcluster
light up (Y page 285).
X Turn the key to position 3(Y page 145) in the
ignition lock and release it as soon as the
engine is running. Driving
147Driving and parking Z
Problems with the engine
Problem
Possible causes/consequences and
M
MSolutions The engine does not
start. The HOLD function or DISTRONIC PLUS is activated.
X Deactivat ethe HOLD function (Y page 192) or DISTRONIC PLUS
(Y page 184).
X Try to start the engine again (Y page 147).The engine does not
start. The starter motor
can be heard. R
There is amalfunction in the engine electronics.
R There is amalfunction in the fuel supply.
Before attempting to start the engine again:
X Turn the key back to position 0in the ignition lock.
or X Press the Start/Stop button repeatedly until all indicator lamps in
the instrumen tcluster go out.
X Try to start the engine again (Y page 147). Avoid excessively long
and frequent attemptstos tart the engine, as this will drain the
battery.
If the engine does not start after several attempts:
X Consult aqualified specialist workshop. The engine does not
start. The starter motor
can be heard. The
reserve fuel warning
lamp is lit and the fuel
gauge display is at the
reserve level. The fuel tank is empty.
X Refuel the vehicle. The engine does not
start. You cannot hear
the starter motor. The on-board voltage is too low because the battery is too weak or
discharged.
X Jump-start the vehicle (Y page 345).
If the engine does not start despite attemptstoj ump-start it:
X Consult aqualified specialist workshop. The starter motor was exposed to
athermal load that was too high.
X Try to start the engine again (Y page 147).
If the engine still does not start:
X Consult aqualified specialist workshop. Vehicles with
apetrol
engine:
The engine is not running
smoothly and is misfir-
ing. There is
amalfunction in the engine electronics or in amechanical
componen tofthe engine management system.
X Only depress the accelerator pedal slightly.
Otherwise, non-combusted fuel may get into the catalytic converter
and damage it.
X Have the cause rectified immediately at aqualified specialist work-
shop. Driving
153Driving and parking Z
engine or to the catalytic converter. Have
exces
sengine oil siphoned off. Example
X Turn cap :anti-clockwise and remove it.
X Top up the engine oil.
If the oil level is at or below the MIN mark on
the oil dipstick ,top up with 1.0 lofe ngine oil.
X Replace cap :on the filler neck and turn
clockwise.
Make sure that the cap locks securely into
place.
X Check the oil leve lagain with the oil dipstick
(Y pag e323).
For further information on engine oil ,see
(Y pag e375). Other service products
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Certain components in the engine compart-
ment coul dbevery hot, e.g. the engine, the
radiator and parts of the exhaust system.
There is arisk of injury when accessing the
engine compartment.
As far as possible ,allow the engine to cool
dow nand only touch the components descri-
bed in the following. G
WARNING
The cooling system is pressurised, particu-
larl yw hen the engine is warm. If you open the
cap, you coul dbescalded if hot coolant
sprays out. There is arisk of injury. Let the engine cool dow
nbefore you open the
cap. Wea rglove sand eye protection. Open
the cap slowly to release the pressure. G
WARNING
If windscreen washer concentrate comes into contact with hot components of the engine or
the exhaust system, it can ignite. There is a
risk of fire and injury.
Make sure the windscreen washer concen-
trate does not come into contact with the filler neck.
Checking the coolan tlevel X
Park the vehicl eonalevelsurface.
Only check the coolant leve lifthe vehicl eis
on aleve lsurface and the engine has cooled
down.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition lock
(Y pag e145).
or
X On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, press the
Start/Stop button twice (Y page145).
X Check the coolant temperature display in the
instrument cluster (Y page233).
The coolant temperature must be below
70 †.
X Turn the key to position 0(Y pag e145).
or
X On vehicles with KEYLESS-GO, pul lthe Start/
Stop button from the ignition lock
(Y pag e145).
X Slowl yturn cap :halfat urn anti-clockwise
to allow excess pressure to escape. 324
Engine compartmentMaintenance and care
Jump-starting
For the jump-starting procedure, use only the jump-starting connection point, consisting of apos-
itive terminal and an earth point, in the engine compartment.
All vehiclese xcept vehiclesw ithalithium-ion battery: G
WARNING
Battery acid is caustic. There is arisk of injury.
Avoid contact with the skin, eyes or clothing. Do not breathe in any battery gases. Do not lean over the battery. Keep the batteries out of the reach of children. Immediately rinse off battery acid
thoroughly with plenty of clean water and seek medical attention at once. G
WARNING
During charging and jump-starting, explosive gases can escape from the battery. There is arisk
of an explosion.
Particularly avoid fire, naked flames, creating sparks and smoking. Ensure there is sufficient
ventilation while charging and jump-starting. Do not lean over abattery. G
WARNING
During the charging process, abattery produces hydrogen gas. If ashort circuit occurs or sparks
are created, the hydrogen gas can ignite. There is arisk of an explosion.
R Make sure that the positive terminal of aconnected battery does not come into contact with
vehicle parts.
R Never place metal objects or tools on abattery.
R It is important that you observe the described order of the battery terminals when connecting
and disconnecting abattery.
R When jump-starting, make sure that the battery poles with identical polarity are connected.
R It is particularly important to observe the described order when connecting and disconnecting
the jump leads.
R Never connect or disconnectt he battery terminals while the engine is running.G
WARNING
Ad ischarged battery can freeze at temperatures below freezing point. When jump-starting the
vehicle or charging the battery, gases can escape from the battery. There is arisk of an explosion.
Allow the frozen battery to thaw out before charging it or jump-starting.
If the indicator/warning lamps do not light up at low temperatures, it is very likely that the dis-
charged battery has frozen.Int his case you may neither jump-start the vehicle nor charge the
battery. The service life of abattery that has been thawed may be reduced. The starting charac-
teristics may be impaired, especially at low temperatures. Have the thawed battery checked at a
qualified specialist workshop.
All vehicles:
! Vehicles with
apetrol engine: avoid repeated and lengthy starting attempts.O therwise, the
non-combusted fuel may damage the catalytic converter. Jump-starting
345Breakdown assistance Z
components in the exhaus
tsystem may over-
hea tunnoticed. There is ariskoff ire.
Neve rrefuel with petrol. Neve radd petro lto
diese lfuel.
! Whe
nrefuelling, only us ediese lfue lthat
conform stothe Europea nstandard EN 590 or
is of equivalent quality .Fuelthat doe snot
conform to EN 590 can lead to increase dwear
as well as damag etothe engine and exhaust
system.
! Do not us
ethe following:
R marine diesel
R heating oil
R bio-diesel
R vegetable oil
R petrol
R paraffin
R kerosene
Do not mix such fuels with diese lfue land do
not us eany specia laddit ives. Otherwise,
engine damag emay occur.
Usually yo uwillf ind information abou tthe fuel
grade on the pump. If yo ucannot find the label
on the petro lpum p, ask the filling station staff.
Information on refuelling (Y page 167).
Lo wo utside temperatures
In winter months, diese lfue lw ithani mproved
cold flo wquality is available .InEurope, the
EN 590 standard defines variou sclimate-
dependent temperature categories. Malfunc-
tions can be avoided by refuelling with diesel
fue lthat corresponds to the climati cspecifica-
tions outlined in EN 590. At unusually low out-
sid etemperatures, it is possible that the flow
characteristics of the diese lfue lcould be insuf-
ficient. Accordingly ,diese lfue lfrom warmer
areas may not be suitabl efor operation in colder
climati cconditions.
i Further information on country-specific fuel
properties and fue ltypes with low-tempera-
ture resistance can be obtained from oil com- panies ,e.g. at filling stations. AdBlue
®
Important safety notes AdBlue
®
is aw ater-solubl efluid for the exhaust
ga sa ftertreatment of diese lengines. It is:
R non-toxic
R colourless and odourless
R non-flammable
If yo uopent he AdBlue ®
tank, small amounts of
ammonia vapou rmay be released.
Ammoni avapours have apungent odour and are
particularly irritating to the skin, to mucous
membrane sand to the eyes. You may experi-
ence aburning sensation in your eyes, nose and
throat. You may also experience coughing and
watery eyes.
Do not inhale any ammonia vapours that may be
released .Only fil lthe AdBlue ®
tank in well-ven-
tilated areas.
Lo wo utside temperatures AdBlue
®
freezes at atemperature of approx-
imately -11 †. The vehicle is delivered from the
factory equipped with an AdBlue ®
preheating
system. Winte roperation can thus be guaran-
teed eve nattemperatures below -11 †.
Additives !
Only us
eAdBlue ®
in accordance with ISO
22241. Do not us eaddit ivesw ithA dBlue ®
and do not dilute AdBlue ®
with water. This
may destroy the BlueTEC exhaus tgas after-
treatment system.
Purity !
Impurities in AdBlue ®
(e.g .due to othe rser-
vice products, cleaning agents or dust) lead
to:
R increase demission values
R damag etothe catalytic converter
R engine damage
R malfunctions in the BlueTEC ®
exhaus tgas
aftertreatment system
Assuring the purity of AdBlue ®
is particularly
important with respect to avoiding malfunctions
in the BlueTEC exhaus tgas aftertreatment sys-
tem. 374
Servic
eproducts and capacitiesTechnical data