and to have any malfunctioningair bags
repaired. This will help to makes ure theair bags
continue to perform their protective function for
th ev ehicle occupant sintheeventofac rash.
GWARNING
Emergenc yTensioning Devices that have
deployed pyrotechnically are no longer opera-
tional and are unabl etoperform their inten-
ded protective function.T his posesan
increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Hav epyrotechnically triggered Emergency
Tensioning Devices replaced immediately at a
qualified specialist workshop.
If Emergenc yTensioning Devices are triggered
or air bags are deployed, you will hear abang,
and asmall amountofp owder may also be
released. The 6restraint system warning
lamp lightsu p.
Only in rar ecases will th ebang affect your hear-
ing .The powder that is released generally does
no tconstitut eahealthh azard, but it may cause
short-term breathingd ifficulties in peoplewith
asthma or other respiratory problems.P rovided
it is safe to do so, you shouldl eave thevehicle
immediately or open th ewindow in orde rtopre-
ven tbreathingd ifficulties.
Air bags and pyrotechnic Emergenc yTensioning
Devices (ETDs )contain perchlorate material,
whichm ay require special handlinga nd regard
for th eenvironment. National guidelines must
be observed durin gdisposal. In California, see
www.dtsc.ca.gov/HazardousWaste/
Perchlorate/index.cfm .
Method of operation
During thefirst stage of acollision,t herestraint
system control unit evaluates important physi-
cal datar elating to vehicle deceleratio noraccel-
eration,s uchas:
Rduration
Rdirection
Rintensity
Based on th eevaluation of this data, the
restraint system control unit triggerst heEmer-
gency Tensioning Devices durin gafrontal or
rear collision. An Emergenc
yTensioning Devic ecan only be
triggered, if:
Rth ei gnition is switched on
Rthec omponent softherestraint system are
operational. You can fin dfurther information
unde r"Restrain tsystem warning lamp"
(
Ypage 41)
Rth es eat belt buckle tongue has engaged in
th eb elt buckle of th erespectiv efront seat
The Emergenc yTensioning Devices in th erear
compartmenta re triggered independently of the
locks tatus of th eseat belts.
If th erestraint system control unit detect sa
mores evere accident, further component sof
th er estraint system are activated independ-
ently of each other in certain frontal collision
situations:
RFronta ir bags as well as driver'sa nd front-
passenger knee bags
RWindow curtain air bag, if th esystem deter-
mines that deploymen tcan offer additional
protection to that provided by th eseat belt
The front-passenger fronta ir bag is activated or
deactivate ddependingont he
person on t
he
front-passenger seat.T he front-passenger front
air bag can only deployinana ccidentifthe
PASSENGER AI RBAG OFFi ndicator lamp is off.
Observ ethe informatio nonthePASSENGER AIR
BA Gindicator lamps (
Ypage 41).
Your vehicle has two-stag efront air bags. In the
first deploymen tstage, th efront air bag is filled
with propellantg as. The frontair bag is fully
deployed with th emaximum amountofp ropel-
lant gas if asecondd eploymen tthreshold is
reached within afew milliseconds.
The activation threshold of th eEme rgenc yTen-
sioning Devices and th eair bags is determined
by evaluating th erateofv ehicle deceleratio nor
acceleratio nwhicho ccurs at various points in
th ev ehicle .This process is pre-emptive in
nature. Deployment shouldt akep lace in good
tim eatt hestart of th ecollision.
The rat eofvehicle deceleratio noracceleration
and th edirection of th eforce are essentially
determine dby:
Rthed istribution of forces durin gthe collision
Rthec ollision angle
Rthed eformatio ncharacteristics of th evehicle
Rthec haracteristics of th eobject with which
th ev ehicle has collided
Factors whichc an only be seen and measured
after acollision has occurre ddonotplay adeci-
Occupant safety53
Safety
Z
sive role in the deployment of an air bag. Nor do
they provide an indication of air bag deploy-
ment.
The vehicle can be deformed considerably, with-
out an air bag being deployed. This is the case if only parts which are relatively easilyd eformed
are affected and the rate of deceleration is not
high. Conversely, air bags may be deployed even
though the vehicle suffers only minor deforma-
tion. This is the case if, for example, very rigid
vehicle parts such as longitudinal body mem-
bers are hit, and sufficient deceleration occurs
as aresult.
If the restraint system control unit detects aside
impact or if the vehicle rolls over, the applicable
componentsoft he restraint system are activa-
ted independently of each other depending on
the apparent type of accident.
RSide impact air bags on the side where the
impact takes place, independently of the
EmergencyT ensioning Device and the use of
the seat belt on the driver's seat and outer
seats in the second row
The side impact air bag on the front-
passenger side deploysu nder the following
conditions:
-the OCS system detects that the front-
passenger seat is occupied or
-the seat belt buckle tongue is engaged in
the belt buckle of the front-passenger seat
RWindow curtain air bag on the side of impact, independently of the use of the seat belt and
independently of whether the front-
passenger seat is occupied
REmergencyT ensioning Devices, if the system
determines that deployment can offer addi-
tional protection in this situation
RWindow curtain air bags on the driver's and
front-passenger side in certain situations
when the vehicle rolls over, if the system
determines that deployment can offer addi-
tional protection to that provided by the seat
belt
iNot all air bags are deployed in an accident.
The different air bag systems work independ- ently of each other. How the air bag system works is determined
by the severity of the accident detected,
especially the vehicle deceleration or accel-
eration and the apparent type of accident:
RFrontal collision
RSide impact
RRollover
Automatic measures after an acci-
dent
Immediately after an accident, the following
measures are implemented, depending on the
type and severity of the impact:
Rthe hazard warning lamps are activated
Rthe emergency lighting is activated
Rthe vehicle doors are unlocked
Rthe front side windows are lowered
Rthe engine is switched off and the fuel supply
is cut off
Rvehicles with mbrace: automatic emergency
call
Children in the vehicle
Important safety notes
Accident statistics show that children secured
in the rear seats are safer than children secured
in the front-passenger seat. For this reason,
Mercedes-Benz strongly advises that you install
ac hild restraint system on arear seat. Children
are generally better protected there.
If ac hild younger than twelve years old and
under 5ft(1.50 m) in height is traveling in the
vehicle:
Ralways secure the child in achild restraint
system suitable for Mercedes-Benz vehicles.
The child restraint system must be appropri-
ate to the age, weight and size of the child
Rbe sure to observe the instructions and safety
notes in this section in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installation
instructions
Rbe sure to observe the instructions and safety notes on the "Occupant classification system
(OCS)" (
Ypage 47)
54Children in the vehicle
Safety
GWARNING
If you leave children unsupervised in the vehi-
cle, they coul dset it in motion by, for example:
Rrelease the parking brake.
Rshift the automatic transmission out of the
parking position P.
Rstart the engine.
In addition, they may operate vehiclee quip-
ment and become trapped. There is arisk of
an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, alway stake the
SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle. Never
leave children unsupervised in the vehicle.
GWARNING
If persons, particularl ychildren are subjected
to prolonged exposure to extreme heato r
cold, there is arisk of injury ,possibly even
fatal .Never leave children unattended in the
vehicle.
GWARNING
If the child restraint system is subjected to
direct sunlight, parts may get very hot. Chil-
dren may burn themselves on these parts,
particularl yonthe metal parts of the child
restraint system. There is arisk of injury.
If you leave the vehicle, taking the child with
you ,alway sensure that the child restraint
system is not exposedtod irect sunlight. Pro-
tect it with ablanket, for example. If the child
restraint system has been exposedtod irect
sunlight, let it cool downb efore securing the
child in it. Never leave children unattended in
the vehicle.
Always ensure that all vehicleo ccupants have
their seat belts fastened correctly and are sitting
properly.P articular attention must be pai dto
children.
Observe the safety notes on the seat belt
(
Ypage4 2) and the notes on correct use of seat
belts (Ypage4 3).
Ab ooster seat may be necessary to achieve
propers eat beltp ositioning for children over
41 lbs (18 kg )until they reach aheight where a three-point seat beltc
an be properly fastened
without abooster seat.
Special seatbelt retractor
GWARNING
If the seat beltisr eleased while driving, the
child restraint system wil lnolonger be
secure dproperly.T he special seat beltr etrac-
tor is disableda nd the inertia real draw sina
portion of the seat belt. The seat beltc annot
be immediatel yrefastened. There is an
increased risk of injury ,possibly even fatal.
Stop the vehiclei mmediately, paying atten-
tion to road and traffic conditions. Reactivate
the special seat beltr etractor and secure the
child restraint system properly.
All seat belts in the vehicle, except the driver's
seat belt, are equipped with aspecial seat belt
retractor. When activated, the special seat belt
retractor ensure sthat the seat beltc annot
slacken once the child seat is secured.
Installing achild restraint system:
XMake sure you observe the child restraint
system manufacturer's installation instruc-
tions.
XPul lthe seat belts moothly from the belto ut-
let.
XEngage seat beltt ongue in beltbuckle.
Activating the special seat beltr etractor:
XPullthe seat belto ut fullyand let the inertia
reel retract it again.
Whilet he seat beltisr etracting, you should
hear aratcheting sound .The special seat belt
retractor is enabled.
XPush the child restraint system downsot hat
the seat beltist ight and does not loosen.
Removing the child restraint system and deac-
tivating the special seat beltr etractor:
XMake sure you observe the child restraint
system manufacturer's installation instruc-
tions.
XPress the release button of the seat belt
buckle and guide the seat beltt ongue back
toward sthe belts ash guide.
The special seat beltr etractor is deactivated.
Children in the vehicle55
Safety
Z
LATCH-type(ISOFIX) child seat secur-
ing system
GWARNING
LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child restraint systems
do not offer sufficient protection for children
whose weight combine dwith th echild
restraint system is greater than 65 lbs (29 kg) and who are secured usingt hesafety belt
integrated in th echild restraint system. In the
even tofana ccident, achild mightn ot be
restrained correctly. This poses an increased
risk of injury or even fatal injury.
If th echild and th echild restraint system
together weigh moret han65l bs (29 kg), only
use LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child restraint sys-
tem swith whicht hechild is also secured with
th ev ehicle seat belt.A lsos ecure th echild
restraint system with th eTop Tether belt,i f
available.
Always comply with th emanufacturer' sinstal-
latio nand operatin ginstructionsf or thechild
restraint system used.
Before ever ytrip, makes ure that th eLATCH-
type (ISOFIX) child restraint system is engaged
correctly in bothL ATCH-type (ISOFIX) securing
rings
!When installing th echild restraint system,
makes ure that th eseat belt for th emiddle
seat does not get trapped. The seat belt could otherwise be damaged.
XInstall th eLATCH-type (ISOFIX) child restraint
system on bothL ATCH-type (ISOFIX) securing
rings :.
ISOFI Xisas tandardized securings ystem for
specially designed child restraint systems on
th er ear seats. LATCH-type (ISOFIX) securing rings for two LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child restraint
systems are installe
dontheleft and rightoft he
rear seats.
Non-LATCH-type (ISOFIX) child seatsm ay also
be used and can be installe dusingt hevehicle's
seat belt system. Install th echild seat according
to th emanufacturer' sinstructions.
Top Tether
Introduction
Top Tether provides an additional connection
between th echild restraint system secured with
aL ATCH-type (ISOFIX) system and th evehicle.
This helps reducet herisk of injury even further.
If th echild restraint system is equipped with a
Top Tether belt,t hiss hould always be used.
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If th erear seat backrests are not locked ,the y
could fold forwards in th eeventofana cci-
dent, heavy braking or sudden changes of
direction. As aresult, child restraint systems
cannot perform their intended protective
function.R ear seat backrests that are not
locked can also cause additional injuries,e .g.
in th eeventofana ccident. This poses an
increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Always lock rear seat backrests after instal-
ling aTop Tether belt.O bserve thelockv eri-
ficatio nindicator. Adjust th erear seat backr-
estssot hatthe ya re in an uprightp osition.
If th erear backrestisn ot engaged and locked,
th er ed lock verificatio nindicator will be visible
(
Ypage 240).
Children in th evehicle57
Safety
Z
Rearward-facingchild restraint system
If it is absolutely necessary to install arearward-
facing child restraint system on the front-
passenger seat, always make sure that the
front-passenger front ai rbag is deactivated.
Only if the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator
lamp is permanently li t(
Ypage 41)ist he front-
passenger front ai rbag deactivated.
Alway sobserve the child restraint system man-
ufacturer's installation and operating instruc-
tions.
Forward-facing child restraint system
If it is absolutely necessary to install aforward-
facing child restraint system on the front-
passenger seat, always move the front-
passenger seata sfar back as possible .Fully
retract the seatc ushionlen gth. The entir ebase
of the child restraint system mus talway sresto n
the seatc ushionofthe front-passenger seat.
The backrest of the child restraint system must
li easf lata sp ossible against the backrest of the
front-passenger seat. The child restraint system
mus tnot touch the rooforbes ubjecte dtoal oad
by the headr estraint. Adjust the angle of the
seatb ackrest and the headr estraint position
accordingly .Alway smake sure that the shoul-
der bel tstrapisc orrectly routed from the vehi-
cle bel toutlet to the shoulder bel tguide on the
child restraint system. The shoulder bel tstrap
mus tberouted forward and dow nfrom the vehi-
cle bel toutlet. If necessary, adjust the vehicle
bel toutlet and the front-passenger seata ccord-
ingly.
Alway sobserve the child restraint system man-
ufacturer's installation and operating instruc-
tions.
Child-proof locks
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If children are traveling in the vehicle, they
could:
Rope ndoors, thuse ndangering otherp eople
or roadu sers
Rexitt he vehicl eand be caught by oncoming
traffic
Roperate vehicl eequipment and become
trapped
There is ariskofana ccident and injury.
Alway sactivate the child-proof locks and
overrid efeature if children are traveling in the
vehicle. Whenl eaving the vehicle, always take
the key with yo uand lock the vehicle. Never
leave children unattende dinthe vehicle.
Overrid efeature for:
Rthe reard oors (Ypage 60)
Rthe rearsidew indow s(Ypage 60)
GWARNING
If yo ulea ve children unsupervised in the vehi-
cle ,they could set it in motion by ,for example:
Rrelease the parking brake.
Rshift the automatic transmissio noutof the
parking position P.
Rstartthe engine.
In addition, they may operate vehicl eequip-
ment and become trapped .There is arisko f
an accident and injury.
Whenl eaving the vehicle, always take the
SmartKey with yo uand lock the vehicle. Never
leave children unsupervised in the vehicle.
GWARNING
If persons,p articularly children are subjected
to prolonged exposure to extreme heato r
cold, there is ariskofi njury, possibly even
fatal. Neverl eave children unattende dinthe
vehicle.
Childrenint he vehicle59
Safety
Z
GWARNING
If the child restraint system is subjected to
direct sunlight, parts may get very hot. Chil-
dren may burn themselves on these parts,
particularl yonthe metal parts of the child
restraint system. There is arisk of injury.
If you leave the vehicle, taking the child with
you ,alway sensure that the child restraint
system is not exposedtod irect sunlight. Pro-
tect it with ablanket, for example. If the child
restraint system has been exposedtod irect
sunlight, let it cool downb efore securing the
child in it. Never leave children unattended in
the vehicle.
Child-proof locks for the rear doors
You secure each door individually with the child-
proof locks on the rear doors. Adoor secured
with achild-proof lock cannot be opened from
insid ethe vehicle. When the vehicleisu nlocked,
the door can be opened from the outside.
XTo activate: press the child-proof lock lever
up in the direction of arrow :.
XMake sure that the child-proof locks are work-
ing properly.
XTo deactivate: press the child-proof lock
leverd ownint he direction of arrow ;.
Override feature for the rear side win-
dows
XTo activate/deactivate: press button:.
If indicator lamp ;is lit, operation of the rear
side windows is disabled. Operation is only
possible using the switches in the driver's
door. If indicator lamp ;is off, operation is
possible using the switches in the rear com-
partment.
Pets in the vehicle
GWARNING
If you leave animals unattended or unsecured
in the vehicle, they coul dpress buttons or
switches, for example.
As aresult, they could:
Ractivate vehiclee quipment and become
trapped, for example
Ractivate or deactivate systems ,thereby
endangering other road users
Unsecure danimals coul dalsobef lung around
the vehicleint he event of an accident or sud-
den steering or braking, thereby injuring vehi-
cle occupants. There is arisk of an accident
and injury.
Never leave animals unattended in the vehi-
cle. Always secure animals properly during
the journey ,e.g. use asuitable anima ltrans-
port box.
60Pets in the vehicle
Safety
Drivingsafet ys ystems
Overview of drivin gsafet ys ystems
In this section ,you will fin dinformati on about
th ef ollowin gdrivin gsafet ysystems :
RABS(Anti-lock Brakin gSystem)
(Ypage 61)
RBA S(Brak eAssist System) (Ypage 61)
RActive Brak eAssist(Ypage 62 )
RESP®(Electronic Stability Program)
(Ypage 64)
REB D( Electroni cBrak eforce Distribution )
(Ypage 67 )
RADAPTIV EBRAKE (Ypage 68 )
RSTEERCONTROL (Ypage 68)
Important safet ynotes
If you fail to adapt your drivin gstyle or if you are
inattentive ,the drivin gsafet ysystems can nei-
ther reduce th eriskofana ccidentnor override
th el aws of physics. Driving safet ysystems are
merely aids designed to assist driving. You are
responsible fo rmaintainin gthe distanc etothe
vehicle in front, fo rvehicle speed, fo rbraking in
goo dtime, and fo rstayin ginl ane. Always adapt
your drivin gstyle to suit th eprevailin groada nd
weather condition sand maintain asafed istanc e
from th evehicle in front. Drive carefully.
The drivin gsafet ysystems described only wor k
as effectively as possible when there is ade-
quat econtac tbetween th etires and th eroad
surface. Please pay special attention to th e
note sont ires ,recommended minimum tire
tread depths, etc. (
Ypage 288).
In wintr ydrivin gconditi ons, always use winte r
tires (M+ Stires )a nd if necessary,s now chains.
Onlyint hiswaywill the driving safety systems
describe dinthissection work as effectively as
possible.
ABS (Anti-lock Brakin gSystem)
General information
ABS regulate sbrake pressure in such awaythat
the wheels do not lock when yo ubrake. This
allows yo utocontinue steering the vehicl ewhen
braking. The
! ABS warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up when the ignition is switched
on. It goe soutwhen the engine is running.
ABS works from aspeed of about5m ph
(8 km/h), regardless of road-surface conditions.
ABS works on slippery surfaces, eve nwheny ou
onlyb rake gently.
Important safety notes
iObserve the "Important safety notes "sec-
tio n(Ypage 61).
GWARNING
If ABS is faulty ,the wheels could lock when
braking .The steerability and braking charac-
teristic smaybe severely impaired.A ddition-
ally ,further driving safety systemsa re deac-
tivated.T here is an increased danger of skid-
ding and accidents.
Driv eonc arefully. Hav eABS checked imme-
diately at aquali fied specialist workshop.
Whe nABS is malfunctioning ,othe rsystems,
including driving safety systems, will also
become inoperative. Observe the information
on the ABS warning lamp (
Ypage 220 )and dis-
play messages which maybes hown in the
instrument cluster (
Ypage 192).
Braking
XIf ABS intervenes: continue to depress the
brake peda lvigorously unti lthe braking sit-
uatio niso ver.
XTo make afullb rake application: depress
the brake peda lwithf ullf orce.
If ABS intervene swhenb raking ,you will fee la
pulsing in the brake pedal.
The pulsating brake peda lcan be an indication
of hazardousr oadconditions, and functions as a
reminder to take extra car ewhile driving.
BAS (Brak eAssis tSystem)
General information
BAS operates in emergency braking situations.
If yo udepress the brake peda lquickly, BAS
automaticall yboosts the braking force,t hus
shortening the stopping distance.
Driving safety systems61
Safety
Z
Important safety notes
iObservethe "Importan tsafet ynotes "sec-
tion (Ypage 61).
GWARNIN G
If BA Sism alfunctioning ,the braking distanc e
in an emergenc ybraking situation is
increased. Ther eisariskofana ccident.
In an emergenc ybraking situation ,depress
th eb rak epedal wit hfull force .ABS prevents
th ew heels from locking.
Braking
XKee pthe brak epedal firmly depressed until
th ee mergenc ybraking situation is over.
AB Sp revents th ewheels from locking.
The brakes will function as usual once you
release th ebrak epedal .BAS is deactivated.
Active Brak eAssist
General information
iObserv ethe "Importan tsafet ynotes "sec-
tion (Ypage 61).
Active Brake Assist consist sofadistancewarn-
ing function wit hanautonomous braking func-
tion and situation-dependen tbraking assis-
tance
Active Brake Assist can help you to minimiz ethe
ris kofac ollision wit hthe vehicl etraveling in
fron torr educe th eeffects of suc hacollision .
If Active Brake Assist detects that there is arisk
of collision ,you will be warned visually and
acoustically. If you do no treac ttot hevisual and
audible collision warning ,autonomous braking
can be initiate dincritical situations. If you apply
th eb rak eyourself in acritical situation ,Adap-
tive Brake Assist support syou wit hsituation -
dependen tbraking assistance.
Important safety notes
Detection of hazardous situation scan be par-
ticularly impaired if:
Rthere is dirt on th esensor soranythin gelse
covering th esensor s
Rthere is snow or heav yrain
Rthere is interferenc ebyother radar source s
Rthere are strongradar reflections, for exam-
ple in parking garages
Ran arrow vehicl eistraveling in front, e.g. a
motorbike
Rav ehicl eistraveling in fron tonadifferentlin e
Ryou are driving anew vehicl eorservicing on
th eA ctiv eBrake Assist system has jus tbeen
carrie dout
Observ ethe important safet ynotes in the
"Breaking-in notes" section (
Ypage 121).
Followin gdamag etothefron tend of th evehicle,
hav ethe configuration and operation of th e
radar sensor checke dataqualified specialist
workshop. This also applie stocollision satlow
speeds wher enovisible damag etothefron tof
th ev ehicl eisa pparent.
Activating/deactivating
Active Brake Assist is active after every ignition
cycle.
You can activat eordeactivat eActiv eBrake
Assist (
Ypage 185) in th eon-bo ard computer.
When deactivated, th edistanc ewarning func-
tion and th eautonomous braking function are
also deactivated.
If Active Brake Assist is deactivated, th eæ
symbol appear sintheassistanc egraphic dis-
play.
Distance warning function
Gene ralinformation
The distanc ewarning function can help you to
minimiz ethe riskofaf ront-end collision wit ha
vehicl eahead or reduce th eeffects of suc ha
collision .Ifthedistanc ewarning function
detects that there is ariskofac ollision ,you will
be warned visually and acoustically.
Imp ortant safety notes
iObserv ethe "Importan tsafet ynotes "sec-
tion for driving safet ysystems (Ypage 61).
GWARNIN G
The distanc ewarning function does no treact:
Rto people or animals
Rto oncomin gvehicles
Rto crossing traffic
Rwhen cornering
62Driving safety systems
Safety