2015 MERCEDES-BENZ G-CLASS SUV belt

The seat belt system comprises:
R Seat belts
R Emergency Tensioning Devices for the
front seat belts and the outer seat belts in
the rear
R Seat belt force limiters
If the seat belt is pulled out at the belt sash
guide quickly or with a jerky movement, the
belt retractor locks. The belt strap cannot be
extracted any further.
The Emergency Tensioning Device tightens
the seat belt in an accident, pulling the belt
close against the body. However it does not
pull the vehicle occupant back in the direction of the backrest.
The Emergency Tensioning Device does not
correct an incorrect seat position or the rout-
ing of an incorrectly fastened seat belt.
When triggered, a seat belt force limiter helps
to reduce the 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,
which absorb part of the deceleration force.
This can reduce the force exerted on the vehi-
cle occupants during an accident.
!If the front-passenger seat is unoccupied,
do not insert the belt tongue into the buckle of the front-passenger seat. This may oth-
erwise lead to the triggering of the Emer-
gency Tensioning Device in the event of an
accident, which will then need to bereplaced.
Important safety notes
The use of seat belts and child restraint sys-
tems is required by law in:
R all 50 states
R the U.S. territories
R the District of Columbia
R all Canadian provinces
Even where this is not required by law, all
vehicle occupants should correctly fasten
their seat belts before starting the journey.
GWARNING
If the seat belt is incorrectly fastened, it can-
not protect as intended. Furthermore, an
incorrectly fastened seat belt can cause addi- tional injury, for example, in an accident, dur-
ing braking or when abruptly changing direc-
tion. This poses an increased risk of injury or
even fatal injury.
Make sure that all vehicle occupants are
seated properly with a correctly fastened seat belt.
GWARNING
The seat belt does not offer the intended level of protection if you have not moved the back-
rest to an almost vertical position. When brak-
ing or in the event of an accident, you could
slide underneath the seat belt and sustain
abdomen or neck injuries, for example. This
poses an increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Adjust the seat properly before beginning
your journey. Always ensure that the backrest
is in an almost vertical position and that the
shoulder section of your seat belt is routed
across the center of your shoulder.
GWARNING
Persons under 5 ft (1.50 m) in height cannot
fasten the seat belt correctly without an addi- tional suitable restraint system. If the seat
belt is incorrectly fastened, it cannot protect
as intended. Furthermore, an incorrectly fas-
tened seat belt can cause additional injury, for
example, in an accident, during braking or an
abrupt change of direction. This poses an
increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
For this reason, always secure persons under
5 ft (1.50 m) in height in suitable restraintsystems.
If a child younger than twelve years old and
under 5 ft (1.50 m) in height is traveling in the vehicle:
R always secure the child in a child restraint
system suitable for this Mercedes-Benz
44Occupant safety
Safety

vehicle. The child restraint system must beappropriate to the age, weight and size of
the child
R always observe the instructions and safety
notes in the "Children in the vehicle" sec-
tion of this Operator's Manual( Y page 55) in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installa-
tion instructions
GWARNING
The seat belts may not perform their intended protective function if:
R they are damaged, modified, extremely
dirty, bleach or dyed
R the seat belt buckle is damaged or
extremely dirty
R the Emergency Tensioning Devices, belt
anchorages or inertia reels have been modi-
fied
Seat belts may sustain non-visible damage in an accident, e.g. due to glass splinters. Modi-
fied or damaged seat belts may tear or fail,
e.g. in an accident. Modified Emergency Ten-
sioning Devices could accidentally trigger or
fail to deploy when necessary. This poses an
increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Never modify the seat belts, Emergency Ten-
sioning Devices, belt anchorages or inertia
reels. Make sure that the seat belts are
undamaged, not worn out and clean. Follow-
ing an accident, have the seat belts checked
immediately at a qualified specialist work-shop.
Only use seat belts that have been approved
for your vehicle by Mercedes-Benz.
Proper use of the seat belts
Observe the safety notes on the seat belt ( Y page 44).
All vehicle occupants must be wearing the
seat belt correctly before beginning the jour-
ney. Also make sure that all vehicle occu-
pants are always wearing the seat belt cor-
rectly while the vehicle is in motion. When fastening the seat belt, always make
sure that:
R the seat belt tongue is only inserted to the
belt buckle belonging to that seat.
R the seat belt is tight across your body.
Avoid wearing bulky clothing, e.g. a winter coat.
R the seat belt is not twisted.
Only then can the forces which occur be
distributed over the area of the belt.
R the shoulder section of the belt is always
routed across the center of your shoulder.
The shoulder section of the belt must not
come into contact with your neck or be
routed under your arm. Where possible,
adjust the seat belt to the appropriate
height.
R the lap belt passes tightly and as low down
as possible across your lap.
The lap belt must always be routed across
your hip joints and not across your abdo-
men. This applies particularly to pregnant
women. If necessary, push the lap belt
down to your hip joint and pull it tight usingthe shoulder section of the belt.
R the seat belt is not routed across sharp,
pointed or fragile objects.
If you have such items located on or in your
clothing, e.g. pens, keys or eyeglasses,
store these in a suitable place.
R only one person is using a seat belt at atime.
Infants and children must never travel sit-
ting on the lap of a vehicle occupant. In the
event of an accident, they could be crushed
between the vehicle occupant and seat
belt.
R objects are never secured with a seat belt if
the seat belt is also being used by one of the
vehicle's occupants.
Seat belts are only intended to secure and
restrain vehicle occupants. Always observe
the "Loading guidelines" for securing objects,
luggage or loads ( Ypage 192).
Occupant safety45
Safety
Z

Fastening and adjusting the seat belts
Observe the safety notes on the seat belt (Y page 44) and the notes on correct use of
seat belts ( Ypage 45).
If the center rear seat belt is being used, also observe the information about the seat belt
for the center rear seat ( Ypage 46).
X
Adjust the seat ( Ypage 82).
The seat backrest must be in an almost
vertical position.
X Pull the seat belt smoothly out of belt sash
guide =and engage belt tongue ;into
belt buckle :.
X If necessary, pull upwards on the shoulder
section of the seat belt to tighten the belt
across your body.
The shoulder section of the seat belt must
always be routed across the center of the
shoulder. Adjust the belt sash guide if neces-
sary.
X To raise: slide the belt sash guide upwards.
The belt sash guide engages in various posi-
tions.
X To lower: pull release button ?and slide
the belt sash guide downwards.
X Let go of release button ?in the desired
position and make sure that the belt sash
guide engages.
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. Further information can be found
under "Special seat belt retractor"( Y page 56).
Seat belt for the center rear seat
GWARNING
When the three-point seat belt for the center
rear seat is not in use, it may be thrown
around while driving, e.g. when braking or in
an accident. There is a risk of injury.
When the three-point seat belt for the center
rear seat is not in use, always secure both belt
buckle tongues in the retainer.
46Occupant safety
Safety

:Bracket for seat belt tongues
;Belt buckle for fixed belt tongue
=Release button for fixed belt tongue
?Fixed belt tongue
ABelt buckle for movable belt tongue
BRelease button for movable belt tongue
CMovable belt tongue
XPull both seat belt tongues ?and Cfrom
bracket :.
X
Pull the seat belt smoothly from the belt
outlet and engage fixed belt tongue ?in
belt buckle ;.
X
To fasten the seat belt: pull the seat belt
smoothly from the belt outlet and engage
movable belt tongue Cin belt buckle A.
X If necessary, pull upwards on the shoulder
section of the seat belt to tighten the belt
across your body.
Releasing seat belts
!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
Occupant safety47
Safety
Z

mechanism. This could damage the door,
the door trim panel and the seat belt. Dam-aged seat belts can no longer fulfill their
protective function and must be replaced.
Visit a qualified specialist workshop.
X Press release button :, hold belt
tongue ;firmly and guide it back towards
belt sash guide =.
Belt warning for the driver and front
passenger
The 7 seat belt warning lamp in the instru-
ment cluster is a reminder that all vehicle
occupants must wear their seat belts. It may
light up continuously or flash. In addition,
there may be a warning tone.
Regardless of whether the driver's seat belt
has already been fastened, the 7seat belt
warning lamp lights up for six seconds each
time the engine is started. If, after
six seconds, the driver or front-passenger
seat belt has not been fastened and the doors
are closed, the 7seat belt warning lamp
lights up. As soon as the driver's and front-
passenger seat belts are fastened or a front
door is opened again, the 7seat belt
warning lamp goes out.
If the driver's seat belt is not fastened after
the engine is started, an additional warning
tone will sound. This warning tone stops after six seconds or when the driver's seat belt isfastened.
If the vehicle's speed exceeds 15 mph
(25 km/h) once and the driver's and front-
passenger seat belts are not fastened, a
warning tone sounds. A warning tone also
sounds with increasing intensity for
60 seconds or until the driver or front
passenger have fastened their seat belts.
If the driver or front passenger unfasten their
seat belts during the journey, the seat belt
warning is activated again.
iFor more information on the 7seat
belt warning lamp, see "Warning and indi-
cator lamps in the instrument cluster, seat
belts" ( Ypage 161).
Air bags
Introduction
The installation point of an air bag can be rec-
ognized by the AIR BAG symbol.
An air bag complements the correctly fas-
tened seat belt. It is no substitute for the seat
belt. The air bag provides additional protec-
tion in applicable accident situations.
Not all air bags are deployed in an accident.
The different air bag systems function inde-
pendently from one another ( Ypage 51).
However, no system available today can com- pletely eliminate injuries and fatalities.
It is also not possible to rule out a risk of injury
caused by an air bag due to the high speed at which the air bag must be deployed.
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If you do not sit in the correct seat position,
the air bag cannot protect as intended and
could even cause additional injury when
deployed. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
48Occupant safety
Safety

To avoid hazardous situations, always make
sure that all of the vehicle's occupants:R have fastened their seat belts correctly,
including pregnant women
R are sitting correctly and maintain the great-
est possible distance to the air bags
R follow the following instructions
Always make sure that there are no objects
between the air bag and the vehicle's occu-pants.
R Adjust the seats properly before beginning
your journey. Always make sure that the
seat is in an almost upright position. The
center of the head restraint must support
the head at about eye level.
R Move the driver's and front-passenger
seats as far back as possible. The driver's
seat position must allow the vehicle to be
driven safely.
R Only hold the steering wheel on the out-
side. This allows the air bag to be fullydeployed.
R Always lean against the backrest while driv-
ing. Do not lean forwards or lean against
the door or side window. You may other-
wise be in the deployment area of the airbags.
R Always keep your feet in the footwell in
front of the seat. Do not put your feet on the
dashboard, for example. Your feet may oth-
erwise be in the deployment area of the air
bag.
R For this reason, always secure persons less
than 5 ft (1.50 m) tall in suitable restraint
systems. Up to this height, the seat belt
cannot be worn correctly.
If a child is traveling in your vehicle, also
observe the following notes:
R Always secure children under twelve years
of age and less than 5 ft (1.50 m)tall in
suitable child restraint systems.
R Child restraint systems should be installed
on the rear seats. R
Only secure a child in a rearward-facing
child restraint system on the front-
passenger seat when the front-passenger
front air bag is deactivated. If the
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp is
permanently lit, the front-passenger front
air bag is deactivated ( Ypage 43).
R Always observe the instructions and safety
notes on "Children in the vehicle"( Y page 55) and on the "Child restraint
system on the front-passenger seat"( Y page 60) in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installa-
tion instructions.
Objects in the vehicle interior may pre-
vent an air bag from functioning correctly.
Before starting your journey and to avoid risks resulting from the speed of the air bag as it
deploys, make sure that:
R there are no people, animals or objects
between the vehicle occupants and an air
bag.
R there are no objects between the seat, door
and B-pillar.
R no hard objects, e.g. coat hangers, hang on
the grab handles or coat hooks.
R no accessories, such as cup holders, are
attached to the vehicle within the deploy-
ment area of an air bag, e.g. to doors, side
windows, rear side trim or side walls.
R no heavy, sharp-edged or fragile objects
are in the pockets of your clothing. Store
such objects in a suitable place.
GWARNING
If you modify the air bag cover or affix objects
such as stickers to it, the air bag can no longer
function correctly. There is an increased risk
of injury.
Never modify an air bag cover or affix objectsto it.
GWARNING
Sensors to control the air bags are located in the doors. Modifications or work not per-
formed correctly to the doors or door panel-
Occupant safety49
Safety
Z

poses an increased risk of injury or even fatalinjury.
You should only use seat covers that have
been approved for the respective seat by
Mercedes-Benz.
Pelvis air bags :deploy below next to the
outer seat cushions.
When activated, the pelvis air bag enhances
the level of protection of the vehicle occu-
pants on the side of the vehicle on which the
impact occurs.
The pelvis air bag is deployed on the side of
the impact.
Window curtain air bags
Window curtain air bags :are integrated
into the side of the roof frame and deployed in the area from the A-pillar to the C-pillar.
When deployed, the window curtain air bag
enhances the level of protection for the head.
However, it does not protect the chest orarms. In the event of a side impact, the window cur-
tain air bag is deployed on the side on which
the impact occurs.
If the system determines that they can offer
additional protection to that provided by the
seat belt, a window curtain air bag may be
deployed in other accident situations( Y page 51).
Deployment of Emergency Tensioning
Devices and air bags
Important safety notes
GWARNING
The air bag parts are hot after an air bag has
been deployed. There is a risk of injury.
Do not touch the air bag parts. Have a
deployed air bag replaced at a qualified spe-
cialist workshop as soon as possible.
GWARNING
A deployed air bag no longer offers any pro-
tection and cannot provide the intended pro-
tection in an accident. There is an increased
risk of injury.
Have the vehicle towed to a qualified special- ist workshop in order to have a deployed air
bag replaced.
It is important for your safety and that of your
passenger to have deployed air bags replaced and to have any malfunctioning air bags
repaired. This will help to make sure the air
bags continue to perform their protective
function for the vehicle occupants in the
event of a crash.
GWARNING
Pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning Devices
that have been deployed are no longer opera-
tional and are unable to perform their inten-
ded protective function. This poses an
increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Therefore, have pyrotechnic Emergency Ten-
sioning Devices which have been triggered
Occupant safety51
Safety
Z

immediately replaced at a qualified specialistworkshop.
If Emergency Tensioning Devices are trig-
gered or air bags are deployed, you will hear a bang, and a small amount of powder may also
be released. The 6restraint system warn-
ing lamp lights up.
Only in rare cases will the bang affect your
hearing. The powder that is released gener-
ally does not constitute a health hazard, but it
may cause short-term breathing difficulties in
people with asthma or other respiratory prob-
lems. To avoid this, you may wish to get out of
the vehicle or open the windows as soon as it is safe to do so.
Air bags and pyrotechnic Emergency Tension-
ing Devices (ETDs) contain perchlorate mate- rial, which may require special handling and
regard for the environment. National guide-
lines must be observed during disposal. In
California, see www.dtsc.ca.gov/
HazardousWaste/Perchlorate/
index.cfm .
Method of operation
During the first stage of a collision, the
restraint system control unit evaluates impor-
tant physical data relating to vehicle deceler- ation or acceleration, such as:
R duration
R direction
R intensity
Based on the evaluation of this data, the
restraint system control unit triggers the
Emergency Tensioning Devices during a fron- tal or rear collision.
An Emergency Tensioning Device can only be
triggered, if:
R the ignition is switched on
R the components of the restraint system are
operational; see "Restraint system warning lamp" ( Ypage 42)
R the belt tongue is engaged in the buckle on
the respective front-passenger seat The Emergency Tensioning Devices in the
rear compartment are triggered independ-
ently of the lock status of the seat belts.
If the restraint system control unit detects a
more severe accident, further components of
the restraint system are activated independ-
ently of each other in certain frontal collision
situations:
R Driver's air bag
R Front-passenger front air bag
The front-passenger front air bag is activated or deactivated depending on the person on
the front-passenger seat. The front-
passenger front air bag can only deploy in an
accident if the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indi- cator lamp is off. Observe the information on
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp ( Y page 43).
Your vehicle has a two-stage driver's air bag.
During the first deployment stage the driver's air bag fills with sufficient propellant gas to
reduce the risk of injuries. The front air bag is
fully deployed with the maximum amount of
propellant gas if a second deployment thresh- old is reached within a few milliseconds.
The activation threshold of the Emergency
Tensioning Devices and the air bag are deter- mined by evaluating the rate of vehicle decel-
eration or acceleration which occurs at vari-
ous points in the vehicle. This process is pre-
emptive in nature. Deployment should take
place in good time at the start of the collision.
The rate of vehicle deceleration or accelera-
tion and the direction of the force are essen- tially determined by:
R the distribution of forces during the colli-sion
R the collision angle
R the deformation characteristics of the vehi-
cle
R the characteristics of the object with which
the vehicle has collided
Factors which can only be seen and measured after a collision has occurred do not play a
decisive role in the deployment of an air bag.
52Occupant safety
Safety