2021 MERCEDES-BENZ GLS Owners Manual

*
NO
TEWearing out thebr ak elinings by
continu ously dep ressing thebr ak epedal #
Donotdepr essthebr ak epedal contin‐
uousl ywhils tdr iving. #
Touse thebr aking effect of theengine,
shif tto alowe rge ar ingood time. *
NO
TEDama getothedr ivet ra in and
engin ewhen pulling away #
Donotwa rm uptheengine whilethe
ve hicle isstatio nary.Pull away immed i‐
at ely. #
Avoid high engine speeds anddriving at
full thro ttle untilth eengine hasreac hed
its operatin gte mp eratur e. *
NO
TEDama getothecat alytic converter
due tonon-com busted fuel The
engine isno tru nning smoothly and is
misf iring.
Non-c ombus tedfuel mayge tint oth ecat a‐
lyt iccon verter . #
Onlydepr esstheaccelera torpeda l
slig htly. #
Have thecause rectif ied imme diat ely at
a qu alif ied spec ialistwo rkshop. No
teson driving onsalt- treat edroads
The braking effect islimit edon salt-tr eated
ro ads.
Ther efor e, obse rveth efo llo wing notes:
R due tosalt build-up onthebr ak ediscs and
br ak epads, thebr aking distan cecan increase
consi derablyor result inbraking onlyon one
side
R maint ainamuc hgr eat ersaf edis tance tothe
ve hicle infront
To remo vesalt build-up:
R brak eoccasionall ywhile paying attention to
th etra ffic con dition s
R carefull ydepr essthebr ak epedal attheend
of thejour neyand when star tin gth ene xt
jour ney No
teson hydropl aning
Hyd roplaning cantake place onceacer tain
amount ofwa terhas accumu lated on thero ad
sur face.
Obs erve thefo llo wing notesdur ing heavyprecip‐
it ation orinconditions inwhic hhy droplaning
ma yocc ur:
R reduce speed
R avoid tireru ts
R avoidsudden steer ing movements
R brak ecar eful ly
% Alsoob ser vetheno teson regular lych ecking
wheels andtires (/ page356).
No teson driving through wateron the road
sur face
Wa terwhi chhas entered intoth eve hicle can
damag eth eengine, electricsand transmission .
Wa tercan alsoent ertheair intakeof theengine
and cause engine damage. Dr
iving andparking 17
5

Obser
vethefo llo wing ifyo umus tdr ive th ro ugh
wa ter:
R Obser vethemaximum permissible ford ing
dep th(/ pag e403).
R Drive at wa lkin gpace atmos t,other wise
wa tercan entertheve hicle interior orengine
com partment .
R Vehicles trave ling infront ,or onc omin gve hi‐
cles, cancreat ewav eswhic hma yexc eed the
maximu mper missi bledep thofthewa ter.
The braking effect of thebr ak es isreduced afte r
fo rd ing. Brak ecar efull ywhile paying attent ion to
th etra ffic con dition sunt ilbr akin gpo we rhas
been fullyrestor ed. No
teson off-r oad driving &
WARNIN GRisk ofacci dent ifyo udo not
ke ep toline offallon inclines
If yo udr ive at an ang leor tur non anincline,
th eve hicle could slipside ways,tip and roll‐
ove r. #
Alw aysdr ive on inclines intheline of
fa ll(s traight upordown) and donot
tur n. &
WARNIN GRisk offire due toflammab le
mat erials onhotpar tsof theex haus t
sy stem
Flammable material suc has lea ves, grass or
twigs mayignit eif th ey come intocont act
wi th hotpar tsof theex haus tsy stem. #
When driving onunpavedro ads oroff-
ro ad, regular lych eckth eve hicle under‐
side. #
Remo vetrap pe dplants orother flam‐
mable material, inpar ticular . #
Ifth er eis damag e,con sult aqu alif ied
spec ialistwo rkshop immediat ely. When
driving off-r oad, sand, mudandwateror
wa termix edwithoil ma yget intoth ebr ak es.
This maylead toare duction inbraking effect or
tot albrak efa ilur eas are sult ofincr eased wear.
The brakin gch aract eristic swill vary dependin g
on themat erial that has entered thesy stem. Clean
thebr ak es afte rdr iving off-r oad .If yo u
th en notice reduced braking effect or hea r
scr aping nois es,have thebr ak esy stem checked
at aqu alif ied spec ialistwo rkshop. Adaptyo ur
dr ivin gst yle to thech ang edbrakin gch aract eris‐
tic s.
* NO
TEDama gecau sed bydriving over
obs tacle s The
vehicle canbedamag edby:
R driving upont ohigh curbs orunpaved
ro ads.
R quickl ydr ivin gove robs tacle ssu ch as
cur bs, spee dbum psorpotholes.
R hea vyobject shittin gth eunderbody or
ch assis components. #
Donotdr ive ove robs tacle sth at coul d
damag eth eve hicle. #
Chec kth eve hicle regular lyfordama ge
dur ing off-r oad driving. #
Adjus tth eve hicle speed tosuit the
ro ad sur face condi tions. 17
6
Driving and parking

#
Ifth er eis damag e,con sult aqu alif ied
spec ialistwo rkshop immediat ely. +
ENVIR
ONMENT ALNOTEEnvironme ntal
da ma gedue tonon-ob servance ofpro‐
hi bi tio nsigns En
vironme ntal protect ion has prior ity.Tr eat
natur ewit hre spect. #
Besureto obser veprohibition signs. Chec
klistbef oredr iving off-r oad
Chec kth efo llo wing pointsbef oredr ivin gof f-
ro ad:
R Fuelleve l
R Engi neoille ve l:fill engin eoil tothemaxi‐
mum leve lto ensur efull gradeability
(/ page32 4).
R Tire -cha ngeto ol kit and spar ewheel
R Tire sand wheels
% Further information aboutspecial all-terrain
tir es forre trof itti ng can beobtained from a
qu alif ied spec ialistwo rkshop. Of
f-road driving
Re ad this sect ionbeforedr ivin gyo ur vehicle off-
ro ad. Pract ice bydriving overmor ege ntle off-
ro ad terrain firs t.
R Observeth eno teson thecr oss-c ountr yABS
(/ page203).
R Ifneces sary,select theF orG drive
pr ogr am (vehicles withan Off-road package )
bef oredr iving off-r oad (/page18 4).
R Beforedr ivi ng off-r oa d, shi ftthetransf er
case totheLOW RANGEoff-r oa dge ar (vehi‐
cle swit han Offroad package )(/ page19 0).
R Select ave hicle leve lsuit able forof f-r oad ter‐
ra in (/ page23 1). Toavo iddamagin gth e
ve hicle, makesur eth er eis alw ayssuf ficie nt
gr ou nd clearance .
R Alw ayske ep theengine running andingear
when drivin gon downh illgradien tsand
slope s.Obse rveth eno teson driving in
mount ainous terrain.
R Donotdr ive on unk nown terrain that isno t
easil yvisi ble and stay on mar kedro utes. R
Alw ayske ep thedoor sand windo wsclos ed
whi letheve hicle isin mo tion.
R Deactiv ateAc tiveDis tance AssistDIS TRONI C
and cruise contr ol.
R Adaptyo ur drivin gst yle to thete rrain.
R Donotuse theHOLD function onsteep
do wnhill oruphill gradients withslipper yor
loose surfaces.
Dr ivi ng on sand
Whe ndr ivi ng on sand ,al so obs erve thefo llo wing
ins truct ions :
R Selec tth eF drive pr og ram.
R Select ahighe rve hicle leve l.
R Shif tto alowe rge ar.
R Drive qu ickl yto ove rcome thero lling resis t‐
ance, other wise theve hicle maydig itself in.
R Drive in thetrac ks ofother vehicles ifpossi‐
ble. Makesur eth at thefo llo wing prereq ui‐
sit es areme t:
- thetir eru ts areno tto odeep
- thesand isfirm enough Dr
iving andparking 17
7

-
thegr ound clearance issuf ficie nt
Mer cedes -AMG vehicl es:obse rveth eno tesin
th eSupplement .Yo uco uld other wise failto rec‐
ogni zedangers.
Fo rding
Also obser vethefo llo wing informatio nwhen
fo rd ing:
R Drive no faster than 6mp h(1 0 km/h).
R Obser vethemaximum permissible ford ing
dep th(/ pag e403) .
R Switc hof faut omatic climatecon trol
(/ page16 1).
R Ensu rethat abo wwav edoes notfo rm asyou
dr ive.
R Donotst op inthewa terand donotswi tch
of fth eengine. Ensur eth eEC Ostar t/ stop
funct ionisswitc hedoff(/ page18 0).
Dr ivin gin mou ntain ouste rrain Also
observeth efo llo wing informatio nwhen
dr ivin gin moun tainous terrain:
R Obse rveth eva lues oftheappr oach/depar‐
tur eang leand ofthemaximum gradient
(/ page403).
R Avoid high engine speeds.
R Use thebr aking powe rof theengine when
dr iving downhill.
R Shif tto alowe rge ar on uphill gradien tsand
on long,steep downhill gradients.
R ActivateDSR before driving downhill, ifnec ‐
essar y(/ page21 4).
Ch ecklistaf te rdr ivin gof f-r oad
Dr iving off-r oa dplace sgr ea terdema ndsonyour
ve hicle than drivin gon norm alroads. Chec kth e
ent ire ve hicle fordama geand fore ign bodies
eve rytim eaf te rdr iving off-r oad .Fo reign bodies
in thewheels ordrivet ra in can lead toimbalan‐
ces and ther efor evibr ations.
R Ifth eF orG drive pr og ram issele c‐
te d: select another drive pr og ram.
R Shif tth etra nsf ercase totheon- road posi‐
tio nHIGH RANGE. R
Deact ivat eDS R.
R Lowe rth eve hicle leve lag ain toaleve lsuit a‐
ble tothero ad con dition s,e.g .to thenor mal
le ve l.
R Appl yth ebr ak es todryth em afte rfo rd ing.
R Chec kth at theser vice brak eis wo rking nor‐
mall yaf te ra long downhil lst re tch.
R Clea nth efo llo wing compone ntseve rytim e
af te rdr iving off-r oad :
- license platenum ber
- hea dlamps andtaillam ps
- tires, wheels andwheel arch es
- underbody
R Afterdr iving thro ugh sand,mud, wateror
gr av el, have thefo llo wing compone nts
ch eckedand cleaned:
- brak ediscs andbrak epads
- tires and wheels
- axle joints 17
8
Driving and parking

ECO
star t/s topfunc tion Ope
ratio nof the ECOstar t/s topfunc tion
Mer cedes -AMG vehicl es:obse rveth eno tesin
th eSupplement .Yo uco uld other wise failto rec‐
ogni zedangers.
% The ECOstar t/ stop funct ionisavailable only
in theC, A, ;,Nand=
dr ive pr og rams (dep ending onthese tting).
The engine isswitc hedoffaut omaticall yin the
fo llo wing situat ionsifall vehicle conditions for
an aut omat iceng inestop areme t:
R youbr ak eth eve hicle toast ands tillin trans ‐
miss ionposit ion005Bor005C.
R vehicl eswith a48 Von-b oardele ctrical
sy stem: youdepr essthebr ak epedal when
tra veling atalow speed.
If th esy stem has detected one ofthefo llo wing
situat ions,th eengine willnotst op:
R youstop atast op sign andther eis no vehi‐
cle infront ofyou.
R theve hicle that stopped infront ofyoustar ts
up again. R
youman euver,tur nth esteer ing wheel
shar plyor eng agere ve rsege ar.
% When theHOLD function isactiv eand in
tra nsmiss ionposition 005D,theengine can
st op inspit eof an intellig entstop inhibit or.
The engine isrestar tedaut omatic allyif:
R youen gage trans missi on positio n005B or005E.
R youdepr esstheaccelera torpeda l.
R anautomatic engine star tis requ ired bythe
ve hicle.
R youre lease thebr ak epedal.
R vehicl eswith a48 Von-b oardele ctrical
sy stem:
- youre lease thebr ak epedal onado wnhill
gradient andtheve hicle does notro ll.
- theve hicle rolls on ado wnhill gradien t
and does notaut omat icallyent erglide
mode at15 mp h(20 km/h). EC
Ostar t/ stop funct ionsymbols inthemulti‐
func tion displa y:
R the00D6 symbol (green) appear swhen the
ve hicle isat ast ands till:th eengine was
switc hedoffby theEC Ostar t/ stop funct ion.
R the00D5 symbol (yello w)appear swhen the
ve hicle isat ast ands till:no tall vehicle condi‐
tions foran engine stop have been met.
R neit her the00D6 nor00D5 symbol appears
when theve hicle isat ast ands till:an intelli‐
ge nt stop inhibit orwa sde tected, e.g. ast op
sign.
R thes symbol appears:theEC Ostar t/
st op funct ionisdeactiv ated orther eis amal‐
func tion.
If th eengine wasswitc hedoffby theEC Ostar t/
st op funct ionand youlea vetheve hicle, awa rn‐
ing tone sou nds and theengine isno tre star ted.
In addition, thefo llo wing displa ymess age
appear sin themultifunc tiondispla y:
Vehicle ReadytoDriv eSwitc hthe Ignit ionOff
Befor eEx iting Dr
iving andparking 17
9

If
yo udo notswit choffth eignition ,th eignition
is aut omaticall yswitc hedoffaf te rth re e
minut es.
De activ ating oractiv ating theECO star t/
sto pfunc tion #
Press button 1.
A displ ayappear sin theins trument cluster
when switching theEC Ostar t/ stop funct ion
of f/on .
% Acont inuous sdispla yappear sin the
ins trumen tclus terwhi letheEC Ostar t/ stop
funct ionisdeactiv ated. ECO
displa yfunction The
ECOdispla ysummar izesyour drivin gch ar‐
act eristic sfrom thest ar tof thejour neyto its
com pletion andassis tsyouin achie vingth e
mos teconomical driving style.
Yo ucan influen ceconsum ption bydoing thefo l‐
lo wing:
R Drive wit hpar ticular care
R Drive th eve hicle indrive pr ogr am ;
R Followthege arshif tre comme ndations The
letter ing inthesegment willlight upbrightl y,
th eout eredg ewill light upand thesegmen twill
fi ll up when thefo llo wing drivin gst yle is adop‐
te d:
R 1 Steady speed
R 2 Gentle deceler ationandrolling
R 3 Moderat eacc eler ation
The letter ing inthesegment willbegra y,the
out eredg ewill bedar kand thesegment will
em ptywhen thefo llo wing drivin gst yle is adop‐
te d:
R 1 Fluct uations inspeed
R 2 Hea vybraking 18
0
Driving and parking

R
3 Spor tyacce lera tio n
The ECO disp lay wi llsho wyo uwhen youha ve
dr iven econ omicall y:
R The thre esegment swill fill up com pletely at
th esame time
R The edgesaround allthre esegment swill
light up
The additional rang eac hieve das are sult ofyour
dr ivin gst yle in com parison withadr iver wit ha
ve ry spor tydriving style will besho wninthe
cent erofdispl ay4 .The rang edispl ayed does
no tindicat eafixe dre duction incon sum ption. ECO
Assis tfunct ion Ve
hicl eswith a48 Von-b oardele ctrical sys‐
te m (EQ Boo sttech nology):
EC OAssis tanalyz esdat afo rth eve hicle's expec‐
te dro ute. This allowsthesy stem tooptimally
adjus tth edr iving style fo rth ero uteahead, save
fuel andrecup erate. Ifth esy stem detects an
eve ntahead, e.g .a spe edlimit oraro unda bout, it
will appear onthemultifunc tiondispla y.The
fo llo wing symbols canbedispla yed: Ex
am ples ofan eve ntahead 1
Event ahead
2 Distance displ ayforth eev ent ahead
3 "Foo tof fth eacceler ator" prom pt
Dis tance displ aysegments 2showthedis‐
ta nce totheeve ntaheadas follo ws :
R Afew segm entslight up:theeve ntaheadis
nea r.
R Man ysegments lightup:theeve ntaheadis
fur ther aw ay.
When theve hicle nearsth eeve nt,ECOAssi st
will calc ulateth eop timal speed formaximu m
fuel econom yand recup erati ve ener gybased on
th edis tance, speedand downh ill gr ad ient. The Dr
iving and parking 18
1

Foot
offthe Accele rator3mess ageap pea rsin
th emultifunc tiondispla y.The firs tse gme ntsin
fr ont oftheve hicle willturngr een. Theremain‐
ing segments willinitia llystay whit e.Ifth edr iver
ta ke sth eir foot offth eacceler ator pedal ingood
time, there maini ngsegments onthedispla ywill
success ivel ytur ngr een until theeve ntsho wnis
re ac hed. Thedrivet ra in will besetfo rmaximu m
fuel econom y.Re cup erati on willch arge thebat‐
te ry.Re cup erati on willbe adaptedto theselec‐
te ddr ive pr og ram.
The eventwillbe sho wnfora shor ttime afte rit
has been passed.Ifth er eis no response tothe
Foot offthe Accele ratorprom pt,th esegment s
will remain white.
If th eeve ntinvo lves ave hicle infront, allseg‐
ments willimmediat elytur ngr een once ther eis
a re sponse totheFoot offthe Accelerator
pr om pt.
Fo ractiv eEC OAssis tin drive pr ogr am ;,
symb ol3 willapp ear onthemultifunc tiondis‐
pla yand ontheHead-up Displaybeside trans‐
mission position 005B.Symbol 3will also appear
when theassis tant displ ayisno tselec ted. If
th esy stem does notint erve ne during the
eve ntahead, nothing will bedispla yed. The sys‐
te m ispass ive.
EC OAssis tis activ eonl yin drive pr ogr ams ;
and A.
Sy stem limit s
EC OAs sis tcan function evenmor epr eci sely if
th ero uteis adher edtowhen routeguidan ceis
act ive. The basic function isalso available with‐
out active ro uteguidan ce.Notall informat ion
and traffic situ ations canbefore seen. Thequal‐
ity depen dson themap data.
EC OAssis tis onl yan aid. Thedriver isresponsi‐
ble forke eping asaf edis tance from theve hicle
in front, forve hicle speed andforbr aking in
good time. Thedriver mus tbe ready tobrak eat
all times irre spectiv eof whe ther thesy stem
int erve nes.
The system maybe impair edorma yno tfunc tion
in thefo llo wing situat ions:
R Ifth er eis poor visibility ,e.g. due toinsuf fi‐
cie ntillu mina tionofthero ad, high lyvariable
shade condition s,rain, sno w,fogor hea vy
spr ay. R
Ifth er eis glar e, e.g .fr om oncom ingtraf fic,
di re ct sunli ght orreflect ions.
R Ifth er eis dir ton thewindshield inthear ea
of themultifunc tioncamer aor thecamer ais
fo gg ed up, damag edorobscur ed.
R Iftraf fic sig ns areha rd todiscer n,e.g. due to
dir t,sno wor insuf ficie ntlighti ng,orbeca use
th ey areobsc ured.
R Ifth einf ormation onthena vig ation system's
digit almap isincor rect or outof date.
R Ifsigns areambi guou s,e.g. traf fic sig ns in
ro adw orks orinadjacent lanes. DY
NA MIC SELECT switch Fu
nction oftheDY NA MIC SELECT switch Mer
cede s-AMG vehicl es:obse rveth eno tesin
th eSupplement .Yo uco uld other wise failto rec‐
ogni zedangers.
% Depe nding ontheengine andequipment,
th eve hicle hasdiffere nt drive pr ogr ams. 18
2
Driving and parking