Loading guidelines
GWARNING
If objects, luggage or loads are not secured or
not secured sufficiently, they could slip, tip
over or be flun garounda nd thereb yhit vehicle
occupants. Thereisar isk of injury, particu-
larly in th eeventofs udden braking or asud-
den change in direction.
Always store object ssothatthe yc annot be
flun garound. Secure objects, luggage or
loads against slippingort ipping before the
journey.
GWARNING
Combustio nengine semit poisonous exhaust
gases such as carbon monoxide. Exhaust
gases can enter th evehicle interio rifthe
trunk lid is open when th eengine is running,
especially if th evehicle is in motion.T hereisa
risk of poisoning.
Always switch off th eengine before opening
th et runk lid. Never drivew ith thetrunk lid
open.
GWARNING
The exhaust tail pipe and tail pipe trim can
become veryh ot.Ifyou com eintoc ontact
with these partsoft hevehicle ,you could burn
yourself. Thereisar isk of injury.
Always be particularly careful aroundt he
exhaust tail pipe and th etail pipe trim. Allow
these component stocooldown before touch-
ing them.
The handlingc haracteristicsofaladen vehicle
are dependentont hedistribution of th eload
within th evehicle.
Observe th efollowing notes when loadinga nd
transporting aload:
RNever exceed th emaximum permissible
gross vehicle mass or th egross axle weight
rating for th evehicle (includingo ccupants).
The values are specified on th evehicle iden- tification plateont
heB-pillar of th edriver's
door.
RThe trunk is th epreferred place to carry
objects.
RPosition heavy loads as far forwards as pos-
sible and as low down in th etrunk as possible.
RThe load must not protrude above th eupper
edge of th eseat backrests.
RAlways place th eload against th erear or front
seat backrests .Makes ure that th eseat
backrests are securely locked int oplace.
RAlways place th eload behindu noccupied
seatsifp ossible.
RUse thecargo tie-down rings and th eparcel
net stot ransport loads and luggage.
RUse cargo tie-down rings and fastening mate-
rials appropriatef or theweight and sizeoft he
load.
RSecure th eload with sufficiently stronga nd
wear-resistant tie -downs.Pad sharpe dges for
protection.
Stowage areas
Stowage spaces
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If object sinthepassenge rcompartmenta re
stowed incorrectly, they can slide or be
thrown arounda nd hit vehicle occupants. In
addition,c upholders, open stowage spaces
and mobile phoneb racketscannot always
retain all object stheyc ontain .Thereisar isk
of injury, particularly in th eeventofs udden
braking or asudden change in direction.
RAlways stow object ssothatthe yc annot be
thrown aroundins uch situations.
RAlways makesure that objectsdonot pro-
trude fro mstowage spaces, parcel net sor
stowage nets.
RClose th elockable stowage spaces before
starting ajou rney.
RAlways stow and secure heavy, hard, poin-
ted ,sharp-edged, fragile or bulky object sin
th et runk.
Observe th eloadingg uidelines (
Ypage 237).
Stowage areas237
Stowage and features
Z
Cup holder in thefront center console
:Cup holder
The cup holder and th erubbe rmat underneath
can be remove dfor cleaning. Clean them with
clean, lukewarm wate ronly.
XTo remove: carefullypull in upper sections of
cup holder :on th edriver'sa nd front-
passenger sides until they release.
XLiftt hecup holderu pwards;until it can be
removed.
XTo install: insert cup holder int olateral
curved sections ;in th estowage compart-
ment. Insertt hecup holdersot hatthe wedge of th
eupper sectio nofcup holder :faces
forwards.
XPress th ecup holder downwards until it
engages on th erigh tand left-hand sides.
Cup holder in th erears eat armrest
!Do no tsit on or support your body weighto n
th er ear seat armres twhen it is folded down,
as you coul dotherwise damag eit.
!Close th ecup holderb efore folding th erear
seat armres tup. Otherwise, th ecup holder
coul dbed amaged.
XFoldd own th erear seat armrest.
XTo open: pressthe frontofc up holder :
or ;.
Cup holder :or; extends automatically.
XTo close: slide cup holder :or; back until
it engages.
Sun visors
Overview
GWARNING
If th emirror cover of th evanity mirror is folded
up when th evehicle is in motion,y ou couldbe
blinded by incidentl ight.Thereisar iskofa n
accident.
Always keep th emirror cover folded down
while driving.
Features243
Stowage and features
Z
iJumper cablesand further informatio nregardingj ump-startin gcan be obtaine datany qualified
specialist workshop.
Towing and tow-starting
Important safety notes
GWARNING
Functionsr elevanttos afety are restricted or
no longer available if:
Rth ee ngine is no trunning.
Rtheb rakes ystem or th epower steering is
malfunctioning.
Rthere is amalfunctio ninthevoltage supply
or th evehicle's electrical system.
If your vehicle is beingt owed, muchm ore
force may be necessaryt osteer or brake.
Thereisar isk of an accident.
In such cases, use atow bar. Before towing,
makes ure that th esteering moves freely.
GWARNING
You can no longer steer th evehicle if the
steering wheel lockh as been engaged. There
is ar isk of an accident.
Always switch off th eignitio nwhen towing the
vehicle with atow cable or atow bar.
GWARNING
When towing or tow-startin ganother vehicle
and its weight is greater than th epermissible
gross weight of your vehicle ,the :
Rthet ow ing eye could detach itself
Rthev ehicle/trailer combinatio ncould roll-
over.
Thereisar isk of an accident.
When towing or tow-startin ganother vehicle,
its weight shouldn otbe greater than th eper-
missible gross weight of your vehicle.
Details on th epermissible gross vehicle weight
of your vehicle can be foun donthevehicle iden-
tification plate(
Ypage 314).
!When Activ eBrake Assist,D istance Pilot
DISTRONIC or th eHOLDfunction is activated, th
ev ehicle brakes automatically in certain
situations.
To avoid damage to th evehicle ,deactivate
these systems in th efollowing or similar sit-
uations:
Rwhen towing th evehicle
Rin th ecar wash
!Makes ure that th eelectric parking brak eis
released. If th eelectric parking brakeisf aulty,
visitaq ualifiedspecialist workshop.
!Only secure th etow rope or to wbar at the
towing eyes. Otherwise, th evehicle coul dbe
damaged.
!Do no tuse th etow ing eyes for recoveryp ur-
posesast hisc oul dd amage th evehicle .Ifin
doubt,r ecover th evehicle with acrane.
!When towing ,pull away slowly and
smoothly. If th etractive power is to ohigh,t he
vehicle scoul dbed amaged.
!The vehicle can be towed amaximum of
30 miles (50km ). The towing speed of 30 mph
(50km/h) must no tbeexceeded.
If th evehicle has to be towed moret han
30 miles (50km), th efront axle must be raised
or th eentire vehicle raiseda nd transported.
!Do nottow with sling-type equipment .This
coul ddamage th evehicle.
!When towing vehicle swith KEYLESS-GO,
use th ekey instead of th eStart/Sto pbutton.
Otherwise, th eautomatic transmission may
shifttop ositionPwhen th edriver' sorf ront-
passenger door are opened, whichc ouldlead
to damage to th etransmission.
!Vehicles with automatic transmission must
no tbes tarted by tow-starting. This coul doth-
erwis edamage th etransmission.
It is bette rtohave th evehicle transported than
to have it towed away.
If th evehicle can no longer be driven because of
an accidentorb reakdown,you have thefollow-
ing options:
RTransportin gthe vehicle.
Towing and tow-starting281
Breakdown assistance
Z
CountryRadio type approval number
ne doit pas produire de brouil-
lage, et (2) L'autisatuer de l'ap-
pareil doit accepter tout brouil-
lage radioelectrique subi, meme
si le brouillage est susceptible
d'en compromettre le fonc-
tionnement. WARNING: Changes
or modifications not expressively
approved by thepartyr esponsi-
ble for compliance could void the
users authorityt ooperate the
equipment .The ter m"IC:"b efore
th er adio certification number
onl ysignifies Canada technical
specifications were met.
CanadaIC: 2546A-MW2433A
IC:2546A-GG4 This devic ecom-
plies with part 15 of th eFCC
rules and with licens eexempt
RSS standards of Industry Can-
ada. Operatio nissubject to the
following conditions. (1) This
devic emay not cause harmful
interference, and (2) This device
must accept any interference
received ,includingi nterference
that may cause undesiredo per-
ation. Le present appareil est
conforme d'industrie Canada
applicables aux appereils radio
exemptsdel icense. L'exploita-
tio ne st authorisee aux deux con-
ditionss uivantes.(1). L'appareil
ne doit pas produire de brouil-
lage, et (2) L'autisatuer de l'ap-
pareil doit accepter tout brouil-
lage radioelectrique subi, meme
si le brouillage est susceptible
d'en compromettre le fonc-
tionnement. WARNING: Changes
or modifications not expressively
approved by th epartyr esponsi-
ble for compliance could void the
users authorityt ooperate the
equipment .The ter m"IC:"b efore
th er adio certification number
onl ysignifies Canada technical
specifications were met.
IC: 2546A-MC34MA4
Loading th evehicle
Instruction labels for tires and loads
GWARNING
Overloadedt ires can overheat,c ausing a
blowout.O verloadedt ires can also impair the
steeringa nd driving characteristic sand lead
to brakef ailure. Thereisar isk of accident.
Observe th eload rating of th etires. The load
rating must be at least half of th eGAWR of
your vehicle .Never overload th etires by
exceedingt hemaximum load.
Two instruction labels on your vehicle show the maximum possible load.
(1) The Tire and LoadingI nformation placar dis
on th eB-pillar on th edriver' sside. The Tire
and LoadingI nformation placar dshows the
maximum permissible number of occu-
pant sand th emaximum permissible vehicle
load. It also contain sdetails of th etires izes
and corresponding pressures for tires
mounted at th efactory.
(2) The vehicle identification plateisont heB-
pillar on th edriver' sside. The vehicle iden-
tification platei nformsyou of thegross
vehicle weight rating .Itismade up of the
vehicle weight,a ll vehicle occupants, the
fuel and th ecargo. You can also fin dinfor-
mation about th emaximum gross axle
weight rating on th efront and rear axle.
The maximum gross axle weight rating is
th em aximum weight that can be carried by
one axle (front or rear axle) .Never exceed
th em aximum load or th emaximum gross
axle weight rating for th efront or rear axle.
:B-pillar ,driver' sside
298Loading th evehicle
Wheels and tires
Maximum permissible gross vehicle
weight rating
XSpecification for maximumgross vehicle
weight :is listed in the Tire and Loading
Informatio nplacard: "The combined weight of
occupants and cargo should never exceed
XXX kilograms or XXX lbs."
The gross weight of all vehicleo ccupants, load
and luggage must not exceed the specified
value.
iThe specifications shownont he Tire and
Loading Informatio nplacard in the illustration
are examples. The maximu mpermissible
gross vehiclew eight rating is vehicle-specific
and may differf rom that in the illustration.
You can find the vali dmaximu mpermissible
gross vehiclew eight rating for you rvehicleo n
the Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard.
Number of seats
Maximu mnumber of seats :indicates the
maximu mnumber of occupants allowedt o
travel in the vehicle. This information can be
found on the Tire and Loading Informatio nplac-
ard.
iThe specifications shownont he Tire and
Loading Informatio nplacard in the illustration
are examples. The number of seats is vehicle-
specific and can differf rom the details shown.
The number of seats in you rvehiclec an be
found on the Tire and Loading Information
placard.
Determiningt he correct load limit
Step-by-ste pinstructions
The following steps have been developed as
required of all manufacturers under Title 49,
Cod eofU .S. FederalR egulations, Part 575 pur-
suant to the "National Traffi cand Motor Vehicle
Safety Act of 1966".
XStep 1: Locate the statement "The combined
weight of occupants and cargo should never
exceed XXX kg or XXX lbs." on you rvehicle’s
Tire and Loading Informatio nplacard.
XStep 2: Determine the combined weight of
the drivera nd passengers that wil lberiding in
you rvehicle.
XStep 3: Subtract the combined weight of the
drivera nd passengers from XXX kilograms or
XXX lbs.
XStep 4: The resulting figure equals the avail-
abl eamount of cargo and luggage loadc apa-
city. For example, if the "XXX "amount equals
1400 lbs and there wil lbefive 150-lb pas-
sengers in you rvehicle, the amount of avail-
abl ecargo and luggage loadc apacity is
650 lbs (1400 -750 (5 x150) = 650 lbs).
XStep 5: Determine the combined weight of
luggage and cargo being loaded on the vehi-
cle. That weight may not safel yexceed the
available cargo and luggage loadc apacity cal-
culated in step 4.
Example:s teps1to3
The following table showse xamples on how to calculate total and cargo loadc apacities with varying
seating configurations and number and size of occupants. The following examples use aloadl imito f
Loading the vehicle299
Wheels and tires
Z
1500 lbs (680 kg).This is for illustration purposes only. Make sure you are using the actualload
limi tfor you rvehicle stated on you rvehicle's Tire and Loading Information placard (Ypag e298).
The greater the combined weight of the occupants, the lower the maximu mluggage load.
Step 1
Example 1Example 2Example 3
Combinedm aximum
weight of occupants
and cargo (data from
the Tire and Loading
Information placard)1500 lbs (680 kg)1500 lbs (680 kg)1500 lbs (680 kg)
Step 2
Example 1Example 2Example 3
Number of peopl ein
the vehicle (drive rand
occupants)531
Distributionoft he
occupantsFront: 2
Rear: 3Front: 1
Rear: 2Front: 1
Weight of the occu-
pantsOccupant 1: 150 lbs
(68 kg)
Occupant 2: 180 lbs
(82 kg)
Occupant 3: 160 lbs
(73 kg)
Occupant 4: 140 lbs
(63 kg)
Occupant 5: 120 lbs
(54 kg)Occupant 1: 200 lbs
(91 kg)
Occupant 2: 190 lbs
(86 kg)
Occupant 3: 150 lbs
(68 kg)Occupant 1: 150 lbs
(68 kg)
Gross weight of all
occupants750 lbs (340 kg)540 lbs (245 kg)150 lbs (68 kg)
Step 3
Example 1Example 2Example 3
Permissiblel oad (maxi-
mum gross vehicle
weight rating from the
Tire and Loading Infor-
mation placard minus
the gross weight of all
occupants)1500 lbs (680 kg) Ò
750 lbs (340 kg) =
750 lbs (340 kg)1500 lbs (680 kg) Ò
540 lbs (245 kg)
=960 lbs (435 kg)1500 lbs (680 kg) Ò
150 lbs (68 kg) =
1350 lbs (612 kg)
Vehicle identification plate
Even if you have calculated the total cargo care-
fully,y ou should still make sure that the gross vehicle weight rating and the gross axle weight
rating are not exceeded. Detail
scan be found on
the vehicle identification plate on the B-pillar on
the driver's side of the vehicle (
Ypag e298).
300Loading the vehicle
Wheels and tires
Permissible Gross Vehicle Weight Rating
(GVWR):the gross weight of the vehicle, all pas-
sengers, load and trailer load/noseweight (if
applicable) must not exceed the permissible
gross vehicle weight.
Gross Axle Weight Rating (GAWR): the maxi-
mum 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, occu-
pants, cargo, and full trailer load if applicable)
weighed on asuitable vehicle weighbridge.
All about wheelsa nd tires
Uniform Tire Quality Grading Stand-
ards
Overview of Tire Quality Grading Stand-
ards
Uniform Tire Quality Grading Standards are U.S. governments pecifications. Their purpose is to
provide drivers with uniform reliable information
on tire performance data. Tire manufacturers
have to grade tires using three performance fac-
tors: :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 corre-
sponding quality grading markings on the side-
wall of the tire.
Quality grades can be found, where applicable,
on the tire sidewallb etween tread shoulder and
maximum section width. Example:
RTreadwear grade:
200
RTraction grade:AA
RTemperaturegrade:A
All passenger car tires must conformtot he stat-
utory safety requirements in addition to these
grades.
iThe actual values for tires are vehicle-spe-
cific and may deviate from the values in the
illustration.
Treadwear
The treadwear grade is acomparative rating
based on the wear rate of the tire when tested
under controlled conditionsonas pecified U.S.
governmentc ourse. For example, atire graded
150 would wear one and one-half times as well
on the governmentc ourse asatire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires depends upon the actual conditionsoft heir use, however, and
may depart significantly from the norm due to
variations in driving habits, service practices
and differences in road characteristics and cli-
mate.
Traction
GWARNING
The traction grade assigned to this tire is
based on straight-ahead braking traction
tests, and does not include acceleration, cor-
nering, hydroplaning, or peak traction char-
acteristics.
!Avoid wheelspin. This can lead to damage to
the drive train.
The traction grades –from highest to lowest –
are AA, A, Band C. Those grades represent the
tire's ability to stop on wet pavement as meas-
ured under controlled conditionsons pecified
governmentt est surfaces of asphalt and con-
crete. Atire marked Cmay have poor traction
performance.
The safe speed on awet, snow covered or icy
road is always lower than on dry road surfaces.
You should pay special attention to road condi-
tions when temperatures are around freezing
point.
Mercedes-Benzr ecommendsaminimum tread
depth of ãin (4 mm) on all four winter tires.
All about wheels and tires301
Wheels and tires
Z
Maximum tire load:is the maximum permis-
sible weight for which the tire is approved.
Do not overload the tires by exceeding the
specified load limit. The maximum permissible
load can be found on the vehicle's Tire and
Loading Information placard on the B-pillar on
the driver's side (
Ypage 298).
iThe actual values for tires are vehicle-spe-
cific and may deviate from the values in the
illustration.
DOT, Tire Identification Number (TIN)
US tire regulations stipulate that every tire man-
ufacturer or retreader must imprint aTIN in or on
the sidewall of each tire produced.
The TIN is aunique identification number. The
TIN enables the tire manufacturers or retreaders
to inform purchasers of recalls and other safety-
relevant matters. It makes it possible for the
purchaser to easily identify the affected tires.
The TIN is made up of manufacturer identifica-
tion code ;,tire size =,tire type code ?and
manufacturing date A.
DOT (Department of Transportation): tire
symbol :marks that the tire complies with the
requirements of the U.S. DepartmentofT rans-
portation.
Manufacturer identification code: manufac-
turer identification code ;provides details on
the tire manufacturer. New tires have acode
with two symbols. Retreaded tires have acode
with four symbols.
For further information about retreaded tires,
see (
Ypage 312).
Tire size: identifier=describes the tire size.
Tire type code: tire type code?can be used by
the manufacturer as acode to describe specific
characteristics of the tire. Date of manufacture:
date of manufactureA
provides information about the age of atire. The
first and second positions represent the week of
manufacture, startin gwith "01" for the first cal-
endar week. Positions three and four represent
the year of manufacture. For example, atire that
is marked with "3208", was manufactured in
week 32 in 2008.
iTire data is vehicle-specific and may deviate
from the data in the example.
Tire characteristics
This information describes the type of tire cord
and the number of layers in sidewall :and
under tire tread ;.
iTire data is vehicle-specific and may deviate
from the data in the example.
Definition of termsf or tires and loading
Tire ply composition and material used
Describes the number of plies or the number of
layers of rubber-coated fabric in the tire tread
and sidewall. These are made of steel, nylon,
polyester and other materials.
Bar
Metric unit for tire pressure. 14.5038 pounds
per square inch (psi) and 100 kilopascals (kPa)
are the equivalent of1bar.
DOT (Department of Transportation)
DOT-marked tires fulfill the requirements of the
USD epartmen tofTransportation.
Normal occupant weight
The number of occupants for which the vehicle
is designed multiplied by 68 kilograms (150 lbs).
All about wheels and tires305
Wheels and tires
Z