2018 MERCEDES-BENZ GLS SUV brake

Most U.S. states and all Canadian provinces
require by law:
RSafety chains between the towing vehicle and
the trailer. The chains should be cross-wound
under the trailer drawbar. They must be fas-
tened to the vehicle's trailer coupling, not to
the bumper or the axle.
Leave enough play in the chains to make tight
cornering possible.
RA separate brake system for certain types of
trailer.
RSafety switch for braked trailers. Check the
specific legal requirements applicable to your
state.
If the trailer becomes detached from the tow-
ing vehicle, the safety feature triggers the
trailer brakes.
Towing a trailer
There are numerous legal requirements con-
cerning the towing of a trailer, e.g. speed restric-
tions. Make sure that your car/trailer combina-tion complies with the local regulations:
Rin your place of residence
Rin the location to which you are driving
The police and local authorities can provide reli-
able information.
Observe the following when towing a trailer:
RTo gain driving experience and to become
accustomed to the new handling characteris-
tics, you should practice the following in a
traffic-free location:
-cornering
-stopping
-backing up
RBefore driving, check:
-trailer tow hitch
-safety switch for braked trailers
-safety chains
-electrical connections
-lights
-wheels
RAdjust the exterior mirrors to provide an
unobstructed view of the rear section of the
trailer.
RIf the trailer has electronically controlled
brakes, pull away carefully. Brake manually using the brake controller and check whether
the brakes function correctly.
RSecure any objects on the trailer to prevent
the cargo from slipping when the vehicle is in
motion.
RWhen you couple up a trailer, check at regular
intervals that the load is firmly secured. If the
trailer is equipped with trailer lights and
brakes, check the trailer to ensure that these
are working.
RBear in mind that the handling will be less
stable when towing a trailer than when driving
without one. Avoid sudden steering move-
ments.
RThe vehicle/trailer combination is heavier,
accelerates more slowly, has a decreased
gradient climbing capability and a longer
braking distance.
It is more susceptible to side winds and
requires more careful steering.
RIf possible, do not brake suddenly, but instead
depress the brake pedal moderately at first so
that the trailer can activate its brakes. Then
increase the pressure on the brake pedal.
RIf the automatic transmission repeatedly
shifts between gears on uphill or downhill gra-
dients, shift to a lower gear using the left-hand
steering wheel paddle shifter.
A lower gear and lower speed reduce the risk
of engine failure.
RWhen driving downhill, shift to a lower gear to
utilize the engine's braking effect.
Avoid continuous brake application as this
may overheat the vehicle brakes and, if instal-
led, the trailer brakes.
RIf the coolant temperature increases dramat-
ically while the air-condit ioning system is
switched on, switch off the air-conditioning
system.
Coolant heat can also be dissipated by open-
ing the windows and switching the ventilation blower and the interior temperature to the
highest level.
RWhen overtaking, pay particular attention to
the extended length of your vehicle/trailer
combination.
Due to the length of the vehicle/trailer com-
bination, you require additional road space in
relation to the vehicle you are overtaking
before you can change back to the original
lane.
228Towing a trailer
Driving and parking

Decouplingatrailer
GWARNING
If you uncoupl e atrailer wit hth eoverrun
brake engaged, you could trap your han d
between th evehicle and th etrailer drawbar .
There is aris kof injury.
Do no tuncoupl e atrailer if th eoverrun brake
is engaged.
GWARNING
Vehicles wit hlevel control:
The vehicle is lowered as soo nas you discon-
nect th etrailer cable. Thi scould result in your
limbs or those of other people that are
between th evehicle bod yand tires or under-
neat hth evehicle bein gtrapped. There is a
ris kof injury.
Mak esur ethat nobod yis in th eimmediate
vicinit yof th ewhee lhousings or under th e
vehicle when you disconnec tth etrailer cable.
!Do no tdisconnec t atrailer wit han engage d
overrun brake .Otherwise ,your vehicle could
be damaged by th ereboundin gof th eoverrun
brake .
XShift th etransmissio nto position P.
XApply thevehicle' selectric parking brake .
XStart theengine.
XClos eth edoors and tailgate.
XApply th etrailer's parking brake .
XDetach thetrailer cable and decoupl eth e
trailer .
XSwitchof fth eengine.
Permissible trailer loads an ddrawbar
loads
Weight specifications
Maximum allowable gross mass
The gross vehicle weight of th etrailer is calcu-
lated by addin gth eweight of th etrailer to th e
weight of th eload and equipmen ton th etrailer .
You will fin dinstallin gdimensions and load s
under "Technical data" (
Ypage 395).
Permissible noseweigh t
You will findinstallin gdimensions and load s
under "Technical data" (Ypage 395).
Loadingatrailer
RWhe nloadin gth etrailer ,mak esur ethat nei-
ther th epermissible gross weight of th etrailer
no rth egross vehicle weight are exceeded.
The permissible gross vehicle weight is indi-
cated on th eidentification plat elocated on
th eB-pilla ron th edriver's sid eof th evehicle.
You can fin dth emaximum permissible values
on th etyp eplates of your vehicle and th e
trailer .Whe ncalculatin ghow muc hweight
th evehicle and trailer may carry, pay atten-
tion to th erespective lowest values.
RThe trailer drawbar load on th eball couplin g
mus tbe adde dto th erea raxl eload to avoid
exceedin gth epermissible gross axl eweight .
The permissible gross vehicle weight is indi-
cated on th eidentification plat elocated on
th eB-pilla ron th edriver's sid eof th evehicle.
iMercedes-Ben zrecommends atrailer load
wher eth etrailer drawbar noseweigh t
accounts fo r 8 %to 15 %of th etrailer's per -
missible gross weight .
iThe weight of additional accessories ,pas-
sengers, and cargo reduce sth epermissible
trailer load and drawbar load fo ryour vehicle.
Checking th evehicle an dtrailer weigh t
RTo checkthat th eweight sof th etowin gvehi-
cl e and th etrailer compl ywit hth emaximum
permissible values, hav eth evehicle/trailer
combination (includin gth edriver ,passen -
gers, and cargo wit h afullylade ntrailer )
weighed on acalibrated weighbridge .
RCheckth egross axl eweight ratin gof th efron t
and rea raxles, th egross weight of th etrailer
and th etrailer drawbar noseweight.
Removin gth eball coupling
XRemov eth esprin gcotter.
XRemov eth ebolt from th eball couplin g
recess .
XRemov eth eball couplin gfrom th eball cou-
plin grecess .
Towing a trailer229
Driving and parking
Z

XPress the6ora button to start dialing.
or
XTo exit the redial memory: press the~
or % button.
Assistance menu
Introduction
Depending on the equipment installed in the
vehicle, you have the following options in the
DriveAssist
menu:
RDisplaying the assistance graphic
(Ypage 241)
RActivating/deactivating the Traffic Sign
Assist display (Ypage 241)
RActivating or deactivating Steering Pilot
(Ypage 241)
RActivating or deactivating Active Brake Assist (Ypage 242)
RActivating or deactivating Active Brake Assist
with cross-traffic function (Ypage 242)
RActivating/deactivating ATTENTION ASSIST
(Ypage 242)
RActivating/deactivating Blind Spot Assist or
Active Blind Spot Assist (Ypage 242)
RActivating/deactivating Lane Keeping Assist
or Active Lane Keeping Assist (Ypage 242)
Displaying the assistance graphic
XPress the =or; button on the steering
wheel to select the DriveAssistmenu.
XPress9or: to select AssistanceGraphic.
XConfirm by pressing aon the steering
wheel.
The multifunction display shows the Distance
Pilot DISTRONIC distance display in the assis-
tance graphic display.
The assistance graphic displays the status of
and information from the following driving
systems or driving safety systems:
RTraffic Sign Assist (Ypage 208)
RDistance Pilot DISTRONIC (Ypage 176)
RActive Brake Assist (Ypage 67)
RActive Brake Assist with cross-traffic func-
tion (Ypage 73)
RATTENTION ASSIST (Ypage 207)
RLane Keeping Assist (Ypage 211) or Active
Lane Keeping Assist (Ypage 215)
RDSR (Ypage 218)
ROff-road program (vehicles with Off-Road
Engineering package) (Ypage 220)
RRear window wiper (Ypage 123)
XPress :to display the ATTENTION ASSIST
assessment.
Traffic Sign Assist
You can switch the Traffic Sign Assist message
function on or off in the TrafficSignAssistmenu. When the function is activated, detected
traffic signs and information appear in the mul-
tifunction display for five seconds.
XPress the=or; button on the steering
wheel to select the DriveAssistmenu.
XPress the9or: button to select
Traffic Sign Assist.
XConfirm by pressing aon the steering
wheel.
The current selection appears.
XTo activate/deactivate the message func-
tion: press the abutton again.
For further information about Traffic Sign Assist,
see (
Ypage 208).
Activating or deactivating Steering Pilot
XPress the =or; button on the steering
wheel to select the DriveAssistmenu.
XPress9or: to select SteeringPilot.
XConfirm by pressing aon the steering
wheel.
The current selection appears.
XTo activate/deactivate: press theabut-
ton again.
When the Steering Pilot is activated, the mul- tifunction display displays a Steering
PilotOnmessage.
Further information about Distance Pilot
DISTRONIC with Steering Pilot (
Ypage 182).
Menus and submenus241
On-board computer and displays
Z

Activating/deactivating Active Brake
Assist
You can use these functionsto activate/deac -
tivat eActive Brake Assis tor, on vehicles wit h
th eDrivin gAssistance package, to activat eor
deactivat eActive Brake Assis twit hcross-traffic
function .
XPress the= or; buttonon th esteering
whee lto select th eDriveAssistmenu.
XPress th e9 or: buttonto select
Brake Assist.
XPress ato confirm .
The curren tselection appears.
XTo activate/deactivate: press thea but-
to nagain .
When Active Brake Assis tor Active Brake
Assis twit hcross-traffic function is deactiva-
ted, th eæ symbol appear sin th emulti-
function display in th eassistanc egraphic dis-
play.
Further information on Active Brake Assis t
(
Ypage 67) and Active Brake Assis twit hcross -
traffic function (Ypage 72).
Activating/deactivating ATTENTION
ASSIST
XPress the= or; buttonon th esteering
whee lto select th eDriveAssistmenu.
XPress th e9 or: buttonto select
Attention Assist.
XPress th ea button.
The curren tselection appears.
XPress ato confirm .
XPress the: or9 buttonto set Off,
Standardor Sensitive.
XPress th ea buttonto sav eth esetting .
When ATTENTION ASSIST is deactivated, th e
é symbol appear sin th emultifunction dis-
play in th eassistanc egraphic sdisplay.
Fo rfurther information about ATTENTION
ASSIST ,see (
Ypage 207).
Activating/deactivating Blind Spot
Assist
XPress th e= or; buttonon th esteering
whee lto select th eDriveAssistmenu.
XPress th e9 or: buttonto select
Blind Spo tAssist.
XConfir mby pressing aon thesteering
wheel.
The curren tselection appears.
XTo activate/deactivate: press thea but-
to nagain .
Fo rfurther information about Blind Spot Assist,
see (
Ypage 209).
Fo rfurther information about Active Blind Spot
Assist, see (
Ypage 213).
Activating/deactivating Lane Keeping
Assist
XPress th e= or; buttonon th esteering
whee lto select th eDriveAssistmenu.
XPress th e9 or: buttonto select
Lan eKeepin gAssist.
XPress ato confirm .
The curren tselection appears.
XPress ato confirm .
XPress the: or9 buttonto set Off,
Standardor Adaptive.
When Lan eKeepin gAssis tor Active Lan e
Keepin gAssis tis activated, th emultifunction
display shows th elan emarking sas bright
lines in th eassistanc egraphic .
XPress th ea buttonto sav eth esetting .
Fo rfurther information about Lan eKeepin g
Assist, see (
Ypage 211).
Fo rfurther information about Active Lan eKeep-
ing Assist, see (
Ypage 215).
Service menu
Dependingon th eequipmen tinstalled in th e
vehicle, you hav eth efollowin goption sin th e
Serv.
menu:
Rcalling up display message sin message mem -
ory (Ypage 248)
Rrestarting th etire pressur eloss warning sys-
te m (Ypage 361) or checking th etire pres-
sur eelectronically (Ypage 363)
Rcalling up theservic edue dat e (Ypage 329).
242Menus and submenus
On-board computer and displays

Safety systems
Display messagesPossible causes/consequences andMSolutions
!÷
Currently Unavaila‐ble See Operator'sManual
ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) and ESP®(Electronic Stability Pro-
gram) are temporarily not available.
Other driving systems and driving safety systems may also malfunc-
tion.
In addition, the ÷,åand! warning lamps light up in the
instrument cluster.
Possible causes are:
Rself-diagnosis is not yet complete
Rthe on-board voltage may be insufficient
GWARNING
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheels could therefore lock if you brake
hard, for example.
The steerability and braking characteristics may be severely affected.
The braking distance in an emergency braking situation can increase.
If ESP
®is not operational, ESP®is unable to stabilize the vehicle.
There is an increased risk of skidding and an accident.
XCarefully drive a suitable distance, making slight steering move-
ments at a speed above 12 mph (20 km/h).
If the display message disappears, the functions mentioned above are available again.
If the multifunction display still shows the display message:
XDrive on carefully.
XVisit a qualified specialist workshop immediately.
!÷
Inoperative SeeOperator's Manual
ABS and ESP®are malfunctioning.
Other driving systems and driving safety systems may also malfunc-
tion.
The $ (USA only) or J(Canada only), ÷,åand!
warning lamps in the instrument cluster also light up.
GWARNING
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheels could therefore lock if you brake
hard, for example.
The steerability and braking characteristics may be severely affected.
The braking distance in an emergency braking situation can increase.
If ESP
®is not operational, ESP®is unable to stabilize the vehicle.
There is an increased risk of skidding and an accident.
XDrive on carefully.
XVisit a qualified specialist workshop immediately.
Display messages249
On-board computer and displays
Z

Display messagesPossible causes/consequences andMSolutions
÷
Currently Unavaila‐ble See Operator'sManual
ESP®is temporarily unavailable .
Other drivin gsystems and drivin gsafet ysystems may also malfunc -
tion .
In addition ,th e÷ andå warning lamp sligh tup in th einstru-
men tcluster.
The self-diagnosis function might no tbe complete, for example.
ATTENTION ASSIST is deactivated.
GWARNIN G
The brak esystem continues to function normally, but without th e
function slisted above. The wheels could therefor eloc kif you brak e
hard, for example.
The braking distanc ein an emergenc ybraking situation can thus
increase.
If ES P
®is no toperational, ES P®is unable to stabiliz eth evehicle.
There is an increased ris kof skiddin gand an accident.
XCarefully drive asuitable distance, making slight steering move-
ments at aspeed abov e12 mph (20 km/ h).
If the display message disappears, the functions mentioned above are available again.
If the multifunction display still shows the display message:
XDrive on carefully.
XVisit a qualified specialist workshop immediately.
÷
Inoperative SeeOperator's Manual
ESP®is malfunctioning.
Other driving systems and driving safety systems may also malfunc-
tion.
In addition, the ÷andå warning lamps light up in the instru-
ment cluster.
GWARNING
The brake system continues to function normally, but without the
functions listed above. The wheels could therefore lock if you brake
hard, for example.
The braking distance in an emergency braking situation can thus
increase.
If ESP
®is not operational, ESP®is unable to stabilize the vehicle.
There is an increased risk of skidding and an accident.
XDrive on carefully.
XVisit a qualified specialist workshop immediately.
250Display messages
On-board computer and displays

Display messagesPossible causes/consequences andMSolutions
T!
÷
Inoperative SeeOperator' sManual
EB D(electronic brak eforce distribution), AB Sand ES P®are malfunc -
tioning .
Other drivin gsystems and drivin gsafet ysystems may also malfunc -
tion .
In addition ,th e÷, åand! warning lamp sligh tup in th e
instrumen tcluste rand awarning tone sounds.
GWARNIN G
The brak esystem continues to function normally, but without th e
function slisted above. The wheels could therefor eloc kif you brak e
hard, for example.
The steerabilit yand braking characteristics may be severely affected.
The braking distanc ein an emergenc ybraking situation can increase.
If ES P
®is no toperational, ES P®is unable to stabiliz eth evehicle.
There is an increased ris kof skiddin gand an accident.
XDrive on carefully.
XVisit aqualified specialist workshop immediately.
F(US A
only)
!(Canada
only)
Tur nOn the Igni‐
tio ntoReleas etheParkingBrake
The red F(USAonly) or !(Canada only) indicator lamp lights
up.
You attempte dto release th eelectric parking brak ewhile th eignition
was switched off .
XSmartKey:insert th eSmartKey int oth eignition loc kand tur nto
position 1.
XKEYLESS-GO: switch on theignition .
F(USA
only)
!(Canada
only)
Please
Releas ePark‐ing Brake
The red F(USAonly) or !(Canada only) indicator lamp flashes
and awarning tone sounds. Acondition for automatic release of th e
electric parking brak eis no tfulfilled (
Ypage 162).
You are drivin gwit hth eelectric parking brak eapplied.
XReleas eth eelectric parking brak emanually.
The red F(USAonly) or !(Canada only) indicator lamp flashes
and awarning tone sounds.
You are usin gth eelectric parking brak efor emergenc ybraking
(
Ypage 162).
F(US A
only)
!(Canada
only)
Parkin gBrake See
Operator' sManual
The yellow !warning lamp lights up.
The electric parking brak eis malfunctioning .
To apply :
XSwitchth eignition off .
XPress theelectric parking brak ehandle for at least te nseconds.
XShift th etransmission to position j.
XConsult aqualified specialist workshop .
Display messages251
On-board computer and displays
Z

Display messagesPossible causes/consequences andMSolutions
The yellow!warning lamp lights up. The red F(USAonly)
or ! (Canada only) indicator lamp flashes for about te nseconds
after th eelectric parking brak ehas been applie dor released. It then
goe sout or remain slit .
The electric parking brak eis malfunctioning .
XSwitchoff th eignition and tur nit bac kon .
XApply th eelectric parking brake.
If it is no tpossibl eto engage th eelectric parking brake:
XShift th etransmission to position j.
XVisitaqualified specialist workshop .
If it is no tpossibl eto release th eelectric parking brake:
XReleas eth eelectric parking brak eautomatically (Ypage 162).
If th eelectric parking brak estill canno tbe released:
XConsult aqualified specialist workshop .
The yellow!warning lamp lights up. If you manually apply or
release th eelectric parking brake, th ered F (USAonly) or !
(Canada only) indicator lamp flashes .
The electric parking brak eis malfunctioning .It is no tpossibl eto apply
th eelectric parking brak emanually.
XShift th etransmission to position j.
XVisit aqualified specialist workshop .
F(USA
only)
!(Canada
only)
Parkin gBrake Inop‐
erativ e
The yellow !warning lamp lights up. The red F(USAonly)
or ! (Canada only) indicator lamp flashes for about te nseconds
after th eelectric parking brak ehas been applie dor released. It then
goe sout or remain slit .
The electric parking brak eis malfunctioning ,e.g. because of over-
voltag eor undervoltage.
XRemove th ecaus efor th eovervoltage or undervoltage, e.g. by
charging th ebattery or restarting th eengine.
XEngage or release th eelectric parking brake.
If it remain simpossible to apply or release th eelectric parking brake:
XSwitc hoff th eignition and tur nit bac kon .
XEngage or release th eelectric parking brake.
If th eelectric parking brak estill canno tbe released:
XConsult aqualified specialist workshop .
If th eelectric parking brak estill canno tbe applied:
XVisit aqualified specialist workshop .
Display messages253
On-board computer and displays
Z