R
the seat belt is not twisted.
Only then can the forces produced during
an accident be distributed across the sur-
face of the seat belt.
R the shoulder section of the belt is routed
across the centre of your shoulder.
The shoulder section of the belt should not
touch the neck nor be routed under your
arm.
R the lap belt is fastened closely and routed
as low as possible across your lap, i.e.
across your hips.
The lap belt must always be routed across
the hip joints and never across your stom-
ach or abdomen. This is of particular impor-
tance for pregnant women. If necessary,
push the lap belt downwards into your pel-
vic area and pull it tight using the shoulder section of the belt.
R the seat belt is not routed across sharp-
edged, pointed or breakable objects.
Should you have such objects on or in your
clothing, e.g. pens, keys or spectacles,
stow these in a suitable place.
R only one person uses each seat belt at any
one time.
Infants and children must never travel sit-
ting on the lap of another vehicle occupant. In the event of an accident, they could be
crushed between vehicle occupant and
seat belt.
R never to secure objects with a seat belt if
the seat belt is also being used by a vehicle
occupant
Also make sure that there are never any
objects between a person and the seat, e.g. pillows.
Seat belts are solely intended to secure and
restrain vehicle occupants. When securing
objects, luggage or loads, always observe the instructions and safety notes in "Loading
guidelines" (Y page 316). Fastening seat belts Observe the safety notes on the seat belt
(Y
page 44) and the notes on correct use of
seat belts (Y page 45). G
WARNING
If the seat-belt extender extends during the
journey, the seat belt is not sitting correctly
across your body. The seat belt then cannot
perform its intended protective function.
There is an increased risk of injury, possibly
even fatal.
During a journey, make sure that the seat-belt extender is retracted. Seat-belt extender
The seat-belt extender for the driver and front passenger helps you fasten your seat belt.
Seat-belt extender =is extended when the
respective door is closed and the key is
turned to position 1or 2in the ignition lock. You can also extend seat-belt extender
=
with seat-belt extender button ?.46
Occupant safetySafety
X
Press seat-belt extender button ?.
Seat-belt extender =extends.
Seat-belt extender =is retracted again if:
R the belt tongue is engaged in the seat belt
buckle
R the belt tongue is not engaged in the seat
belt buckle within 60 seconds
In this case, you can extend seat-belt
extender =again. Press seat-belt
extender button ?again.
R the respective door is opened
R the key is turned to position 0in the ignition
lock
R you release the seat backrest and fold it
forwards
R the front-passenger seat remains unoccu-
pied after approximately five seconds
If you press seat-belt extender button ?
after this, seat-belt extender =will not
extend. Basic illustration
X Adjust the seat (Y page 108).
The seat backrest must be in an almost
vertical position.
X Pull the seat belt smoothly out of seat-belt
extender =and engage belt tongue ;
into belt buckle :.
The seat belt on the driver's seat and the
front-passenger seat may be tightened automatically, see "Belt adjustment"
(Y
page 47).
X If necessary, pull upwards on the shoulder
section of the seat belt to tighten the belt
across your body.
Releasing the 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
mechanism. This could damage the door,
the door trim panel and the seat belt. Dam- aged seat belts can no longer fulfil their
protective function and must be replaced.
Visit a qualified specialist workshop. Basic illustration
X Press release button :, hold belt
tongue ;firmly and guide it back towards
seat-belt extender =.
Seat belt adjustment The seat-belt adjustment is an integral part of
the PRE-SAFE ®
convenience function. This
function adjusts the driver's and front-
passenger seat belt to the upper body of the
occupants. Occupant safety
47Safety Z
The system does not disable:
R the sidebag
R the windowbag
R the seat belt tensioner
Make sure that your vehicle is equipped with
the automatic front-passenger front airbag
deactivation system (Y page 63). If this is
not the case, always install a child restraint
system on a suitable rear seat (Y page 65).
If it is absolutely necessary to fit a child
restraint system on the front-passenger seat,
be sure to observe the correct positioning of
the child restraint system. Never place
objects under or behind the child restraint
system, e.g. a cushion. Fully retract the seat
cushion length. The entire base of the child
restraint system must always rest on the seat cushion of the front-passenger seat. The
backrest of the forward-facing child restraint
system must, as far as possible, be resting on the backrest of the front-passenger seat. The
child restraint system must not touch the roof or be put under strain by the head restraint.
Adjust the angle of the seat backrest and the
head restraint position accordingly. Only then is the correct function of the automatic front- passenger front airbag deactivation system
guaranteed. Always observe the information
on suitable positioning of the child restraint
system (Y page 65) in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installation
instructions. Operation of automatic front-passenger
front airbag deactivation :
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp
; PASSENGER AIR BAG ON indicator lamp
The indicator lamps inform you whether the
front-passenger front airbag is disabled or
enabled. X Press the Start/Stop button once or twice,
or turn the key to position 1or 2in the
ignition lock.
The system carries out a self-diagnosis.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF and
PASSENGER AIR BAG ON indicator lamps
must light up simultaneously for approx-
imately six seconds.
The indicator lamps display the status of the
front-passenger front airbag:
R PASSENGER AIR BAG ON lights up: the
front-passenger front airbag is enabled. If,
in the event of an accident, all deployment
criteria are met, the front-passenger front
airbag is deployed.
R PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF lights up: the
front-passenger front airbag is disabled. It
will then not be deployed in the event of an accident.
If the status of the front-passenger front air-
bag changes while the vehicle is in motion, an
airbag display message appears in the instru-
ment cluster (Y page 279). When the front-
passenger seat is occupied, always pay atten-
tion to the PASSENGER AIR BAG ON and
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamps. Be aware of the status of the front-passenger 52
Occupant safetySafety
Deployment of belt tensioners and air-
bags
Important safety notes G
WARNING
After the airbag deploys, the airbag parts are
hot. There is a risk of injury.
Do not touch the airbag parts. Have a
deployed airbag replaced at a qualified spe-
cialist workshop as soon as possible. G
WARNING
Pyrotechnic seat belt tensioners that have
been deployed are no longer operational and
are unable to perform their intended protec-
tive function. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
Therefore, have pyrotechnic belt tensioners
which have been triggered immediately
replaced at a qualified specialist workshop.
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you have
the vehicle towed to a qualified specialist
workshop after an accident. Take this into
account, particularly if a seat belt tensioner
was triggered or an airbag was deployed.
An electric motor is used by PRE-SAFE ®
to
trigger the tightening of the seat belt in haz-
ardous situations. This procedure is reversi-
ble.
If the belt tensioners are triggered or an air-
bag is deployed, you will hear a bang, and a
small amount of powder may also be
released. The 6restraint system warning
lamp lights up.
Only in rare cases will the bang affect your
hearing. In general, the powder released is
not hazardous to health but may cause short- term breathing difficulties to persons suffer-
ing from asthma or other pulmonary condi-
tions. Provided it is safe to do so, you should
leave the vehicle immediately or open the
window in order to prevent breathing difficul- ties. 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 seat
belt tensioners in the event of a head-on or
rear collision.
A seat belt tensioner 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" (Y page 43)
R the belt tongue has engaged in the belt
buckle of the respective front seat
The seat belt tensioners in the rear compart-
ment are triggered independently of the lock
status of the seat belts.
If the restraint system control unit detects a
high severity of an accident, in certain head-
on collisions, additional components of the
restraint system are deployed independently
of each other:
R Front airbags and driver's kneebag
R Windowbag, if the system determines that
deployment can offer additional protection
to that provided by the seat belt
On vehicles with the automatic front-
passenger front airbag deactivation system:
depending on the person in the front-
passenger seat, the front-passenger front air-
bag is either disabled or enabled. The front-
passenger front airbag can only be deployed
in an accident if the PASSENGER AIR BAG ON indicator lamp is lit. Observe the information
on the PASSENGER AIR BAG indicator lamps
(Y page 43).
Your vehicle has two-stage front airbags. In
the first deployment stage, the front airbag is
filled with propellant gas to reduce the risk of Occupant safety
57Safety Z
Important safety notes
!
Make sure that there are no objects in the
footwell or behind the seats. There is a risk that the seats and/or the objects could be
damaged when PRE-SAFE ®
is activated.
Although your vehicle is equipped with a PRE-
SAFE ®
system, the possibility of injury in the
event of an accident cannot be ruled out.
Always adapt your driving style to suit the
prevailing road and weather conditions and
maintain a safe distance from the vehicle in
front. Drive carefully.
Function PRE-SAFE
®
intervenes:
R in emergency braking situations, e.g. when
BAS is activated
R in critical driving situations, e.g. when phys-
ical limits are exceeded and the vehicle
understeers or oversteers severely
R vehicles with the Driving Assistance pack-
age: when a driver assistance system inter-
venes powerfully or the radar sensor sys-
tem detects an imminent danger of colli-
sion in certain situations
PRE-SAFE ®
takes the following measures
depending on the hazardous situation detec-
ted:
R the front seat belts are pre-tensioned.
R if the vehicle skids, the side windows are
closed so that only a small gap remains.
R the front-passenger seat is adjusted if it is
in an unfavourable position.
R vehicles with a multicontour seat: the air
pressure in the side bolsters of the back-
rest is increased.
If the hazardous situation passes without
resulting in an accident, PRE-SAFE ®
slackens
the belt pre-tensioning. On vehicles with mul-
ticontour seats, the air pressure in the side
bolsters is reduced again. All settings made
by PRE-SAFE ®
can then be reversed. If the seat belt pre-tensioning is not reduced:
X Move the seat backrest or seat back
slightly when the vehicle is stationary.
Seat belt pre-tensioning is reduced and the
locking mechanism is released.
The seat-belt adjustment is an integral part of
the PRE-SAFE ®
convenience function. Infor-
mation about the convenience function can
be found under "Belt adjustment"
(Y page 47). PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS (anticipatory occu-
pant protection PLUS)
Introduction PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS is only available in vehicles
with the Driving Assistance package.
Using the radar sensor system, PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS is able to detect that a head-on or rear-
end collision is imminent. In certain hazard-
ous situations, PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS takes pre-
emptive measures to protect the vehicle
occupants.
Important safety notes The intervention of PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS cannot
prevent an imminent collision.
The driver is not warned when PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS intervenes.
PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS does not intervene when
reversing.
When driving, or when parking or exiting a
parking space with assistance from Active
Parking Assist, PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS will not
apply the brakes.
Function PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS intervenes in certain situa-
tions if the radar sensor system detects an
imminent head-on or rear-end collision. Occupant safety
59Safety Z
PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS takes the following meas-
ures depending on the hazardous situation
detected:
R if the radar sensor system detects that a
head-on collision is imminent, the seat
belts are pre-tensioned
R if the radar sensor system detects that a
rear-end collision is imminent:
- the rear hazard warning lamps are acti-
vated and flash at a higher frequency
- the brake pressure is increased if the
driver applies the brakes when the vehi-
cle is stationary
- the seat belts are pre-tensioned
The PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS braking application is
cancelled:
R if the accelerator pedal is depressed when
a gear is engaged
R if the risk of a collision passes or is no lon-
ger detected
R if DISTRONIC PLUS indicates an intention
to pull away
If the hazardous situation passes without
resulting in an accident, the original settings
are restored. Automatic measures after an acci-
dent
Immediately after an accident, the following
measures are implemented, depending on
the type and severity of the impact:
R the hazard warning lamps are activated
R the emergency lighting is activated
R the vehicle doors are unlocked
R the front side windows are lowered
R the electrically adjustable steering wheel is
raised
R the engine is switched off and the fuel sup-
ply is cut off
R vehicles with the Mercedes-Benz emer-
gency call system: automatic emergency
call Children in the vehicle
Important safety notes
Accident statistics show that children
secured in the rear seats are safer than chil-
dren secured in the front-passenger seat. For this reason, Mercedes-Benz strongly advises
that you install a child restraint system on a
rear seat. Children are generally better pro-
tected there.
If a child younger than twelve years old and
under 1.50 m in height is travelling in the
vehicle:
R always secure the child in a child restraint
system suitable for Mercedes-Benz vehi-
cles. The child restraint system must be
appropriate to the age, weight and size of
the child.
R be sure to observe the instructions and
safety notes in this section in addition to
the child restraint system manufacturer's
installation instructions.
R always pay attention to the instructions
and safety notes on the automatic front-
passenger front airbag deactivation system (Y page 51). G
WARNING
If you leave children unattended in the vehi-
cle, they may be able to set the vehicle in
motion if, for example, they:
R release the parking brake
R shift the automatic transmission out of park
position P
R start the engine
In addition, they may operate vehicle equip-
ment and become trapped. There is a risk of
an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, always take the key
with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave
children unattended in the vehicle. G
WARNING
If persons (particularly children) are exposed
to heat or cold for a prolonged period, there is 60
Children in the vehicleSafety
Recommended "Universal"/"Semi-Universal" category ISOFIX child restraint sys-
tems Weight cat-
egories Size
cate-
gory Manufac-
turer Type Approval
number
(E1 ...)
Order number
3 Category
0+:
up to 13 kg
E Britax Römer BABY
SAFE plus 04 301146 B6 6 86 8224
Category I:
9 kg to
18 kg
B1 Britax Römer DUO plus 04 301133 A 000 970 16 00
A 000 970 21 00
A 000 970 37 00
Pets in the vehicle
G
WARNING
If you leave animals unsupervised or unse-
cured in the vehicle, they may push a button
or a switch, for example.
They could:
R activate vehicle equipment and become
trapped, for example
R switch vehicle systems on or off, thus
endangering other road users
In the event of an accident, sudden braking or
abrupt changes of direction, unsecured ani-
mals could be flung around the vehicle, injur-
ing the vehicle occupants. There is a risk of an accident and injury.
Never leave animals unattended in the vehi-
cle. Always secure animals correctly during a
journey, e.g. in an animal transport box. Driving safety systems
Driving safety systems overview
In this section, you will find information about the following driving safety systems:
R ABS ( Anti-lock BrakingSystem)
(Y page 70)
R BAS ( Brake Assist System) (Y page 70)
R BAS PLUS (B rakeAssist System PLUS) with
Cross-Traffic Assist (Y page 71)
R COLLISION PREVENTION ASSIST PLUS
(distance warning function and Adaptive
Brake Assist) (Y page 72)
R Adaptive brake lamps (Y page 75)
R ESP ®
(Electronic StabilityProgram)
(Y page 75)
R EBD ( electronic brake force distribution)
(Y page 77)
R ADAPTIVE BRAKE (Y page 77)
R PRE-SAFE ®
Brake (Y page 77)
R STEER CONTROL (Y page 80) Important safety notes
If you fail to adapt your driving style or if you
are inattentive, the driving safety systems can neither reduce the risk of an accident nor
3 Colour code 9H95. Driving safety systems
69Safety Z
override the laws of physics. Driving safety
systems are merely aids designed to assist
driving. You are responsible for maintaining
the distance to the vehicle in front, for vehicle
speed, for braking in good time, and for stay- ing in lane. Always adapt your driving style to
suit the prevailing road and weather condi-
tions and maintain a safe distance from the
vehicle in front. Drive carefully.
The driving safety systems described only
work as effectively as possible when there is
adequate contact between the tyres and the
road surface. Please pay special attention to
the notes on tyres, recommended minimum
tyre tread depths etc. (Y page 376).
In wintry driving conditions, always use winter
tyres (M+S tyres) and, if necessary, snow
chains. Only in this way will the driving safety
systems described in this section work as
effectively as possible. ABS (Anti-lock Braking System)
General notes ABS regulates brake pressure in such a way
that the wheels do not lock when you brake.
This allows you to continue steering the vehi- cle when braking.
The ! ABS warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up when the ignition is switched on. It goes out when the engine is running.
ABS works from a speed of about 8 km/h,
regardless of road-surface conditions. ABS
works on slippery surfaces, even when you
only brake gently.
Important safety notes i
Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (Y page 69). G
WARNING
If ABS is faulty, the wheels could lock when
braking. The steerability and braking charac-
teristics may be severely impaired. Addition-
ally, further driving safety systems are deac- tivated. There is an increased danger of skid-
ding and accidents.
Drive on carefully. Have ABS checked imme-
diately at a qualified specialist workshop.
If ABS is malfunctioning, other systems,
including driving safety systems, will also
become inoperative. Observe the information on the ABS warning lamp (Y page 305) and
display messages which may be shown in the
instrument cluster (Y page 267).
Brakes X
If ABS intervenes: continue to depress the
brake pedal with force until the braking sit- uation is over.
X To make a full brake application:
depress the brake pedal with full force.
If ABS intervenes when braking, you will feel a
pulsing in the brake pedal.
The pulsating brake pedal can be an indica-
tion of hazardous road conditions; this serves as a reminder to take extra care while driving. BAS (Brake Assist)
General notes BAS operates in emergency braking situa-
tions. If you depress the brake pedal quickly,
BAS automatically boosts the braking force,
thus shortening the stopping distance.
Important safety notes i
Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (Y page 69). G
WARNING
If BAS is malfunctioning, the braking distance
in an emergency braking situation is
increased. There is a risk of accident.
In an emergency braking situation, depress
the brake pedal with full force. ABS prevents
the wheels from locking. 70
Driving safety systemsSafety