2022 MERCEDES-BENZ GLS SUV Owners Manual


Wait until the ball neck has locked in place.
When indicat or lamp 2 is continuously lit, the
ball neck is securely locked in place.
If the ball neck is not securely locked in place,
indicator lamp 2 will Oash and the message
Check trailer hitch lock will appear on the
instrument display. Retracting the ball neck fully electrically

Pull button 1.
Indicat
or lamp 2 will Oash and the message
Trailer coupling extending

=
The tr ailer cables or adapter plugs have been
removed.
Multimedia system: 4 © 5
Settings 5
Quick access
Extending the ball neck fully electrically 
Select

=
T railer Manoeuvering Assist
= Active Lane Keeping Assist
= Parking Assist PARKTRONIC
= Active Parking Assist
= Blind Spot Assist or Active Blind Spot Assist
= Drive Away Assist
= Cross TraPc Alert
= Reversing camera
= 360° camera
= AIRMATIC
= E-ACTIVE BODY CONTROL
Coupling up a trailer
* NOTE Damag
e to the starter battery due
to full discharge Charging the trailer battery using the power
suppl

y of the trailer can damage the starter
battery. 
Do not use the vehicle's power supply to
c

harge the trailer battery. 
Remove the cover cap from the ball head and
s

tore it in a safe place. 
Position the trailer on a level surface behind
t

he vehicle and couple it up to the vehicle. 
Open the socket cap. 
Insert the plug with lug 1 int
o groove 3 on
the socket. 
Turn bayonet coupling 2 t
o the right as far as
it will go. 
Let the cap engage. 
Secure the cable to the trailer with cable ties
(onl
y if you are using an adapter cable). 
Make sure that the cable is always slack for
ease of mo
vement during cornering.
In the following circumstances, a message may
appear on t
he instrument display even if the
trailer has been connected correctly:
= LEDs have been installed in the trailer lighting
system.
= The current has fallen below the trailer lighting
system's minimum current (50 mA).
% Accessories can be connected to the perma-
nent po

wer supply up to 180 W and to the
power supply that is switched on via the igni-
tion lock.
Uncoupling a trailer &
WARNING Risk of being cr
ushed and
becoming trapped when uncoupling a
trailer
When uncoupling a trailer with an engaged
iner
tia-activated brake, your hand may
become trapped between the vehicle and the
trailer drawbar. 304
Driving and parking


Do not uncouple trailers with an engaged
o verrun brake. *
NOTE Damag
e during uncoupling with an
engaged overrun brake The vehicle may be damaged if you uncouple
wit
h an engaged overrun brake. 
Do not uncouple trailers with an engaged
o
verrun brake. &
WARNING Risk of becoming tr
apped when
disconnecting the trailer cable
Vehicles with level control system: The v
ehicle
may lower when the trailer cable is disconnec-
ted.
This could result in you or other people
becoming trapped if your or their limbs are
between the vehicle body and the tyres or
underneath the vehicle. 
Make sure that nobody is underneath the
v

ehicle or in the immediate vicinity of the wheel arches when you disconnect the
tr
ailer cable. *
NOTE Damag
e to the rear bumper from
installing adapter cables or adapter plugs The following parts could be damaged when
swiv
eling the ball neck fully electrically:
= Bumper
= Adapter cable
= Adapter plug 
Always remove the adapter cable or
adap

ter plug before swiveling the ball
neck fully electrically. 
Secure the trailer against rolling away. 
Disconnect the electrical connection between
t

he vehicle and the trailer. 
Uncouple the trailer. 
Place the cover cap on the ball head.
% Trailers with LED lighting: aser uncoupling t
he
trailer, switch the vehicle on and then oM
again. Bicycle rack function
&
WARNING Risk of an accident if t
he bicy-
cle rack is used incorrectly
The bicycle rack may become detached from
t
he vehicle in the following cases:
= the permissible load capacity of the trailer
hitch is exceeded.
= the bicycle rack is used incorrectly.
= the bicycle rack is secured to the ball neck
beneath the ball head.
Observe the following for your own safety and
that of other road users:
= always adhere to the permissible load
capacity of the trailer hitch.
= always observe the permissible rear axle
load of the towing vehicle.
= use the bicycle rack only to transport bicy-
cles. Driving and parking
305

=
alw ays mount the bicycle rack properly by
attaching to the ball head and the ball
neck guide pin, if possible.
= when transporting four bicycles, always
use bicycle racks that have additional sup-
port on the ball neck guide pin.
= use only bicycle racks approved by
Mercedes-Benz.
= always observe the bicycle rack operating
instructions. *
NOTE Damag
e to or breakage of the trailer
hitch due to unsuitable or improperly used
bicycle rack. 
Only use bicycle racks approved by
Mer
cedes-Benz properly as described
below. *
NOTE Incr
eased risk of damage to prop-
erty due to folded-out ball neck 
When the trailer is not coupled or the
bicy
cle rack is attached, fold in the ball neck or, in the case of a fully electric
tr
ailer hitch, retract the ball neck. *
NOTE The oper
ating permit may be invali-
dated due to the illegal installation of
trailer hitches The installation !

=
When mount ed on ball head 1 and guide pin
2, the maximum load capacity is 100 kg. You
can transport up to four bicycles.
The maximum load capacity is calculated from the
weight of the bicycle rack and the bicycle rack
load.
Observe the notes on driving with a roof load,
trailer or fully laden vehicle (  page 197).
When using a bicycle rack, set the tyre pressure
for increased load on the rear axle of the vehicle.
Further information on the tyre pressure can be
found in the tyre pressure table (  page 404).
Notes on loading
The larger the distance between the load's centre
of gravity and the ball head, the greater the load
on the trailer hitch.
Observe the following notes: = mount heavy bicycles as close to the vehicle
as possible
= always distribute the load on the bicycle rack
as evenly as possible across the vehicle's lon-
gitudinal axis Mercedes-Benz recommends removing all detach-
able par ts from bicycles (e.g. baskets, child seats,
rechargeable batteries) before loading them onto
the bicycle rack. This will improve the aerody-
namic resistance and centre of gravity of the bicy-
cle rack.
Always secure the bicycles to prevent them from
moving around and check them at regular inter-
vals to ensure that they are secure.
Do not use tarpaulins or other covers. The driving
characteristics and rear view may be impaired. In
addition, aerodynamic resistance and the load on
the trailer hitch will increase. Load distribution on the bicycle rack
1 Vertical distance between centre of gravity
and ball head
2 Horizontal distance between centre of gravity
and ball head
3 The centre of gravity is on the vehicle's centre
axis
Observe the following information when loading
t
he bicycle rack: Driving and parking
307

Loading the bicycle rack
3 bicycles 4 bicycles
Total weight
of bicy cle
rack and load Up to 75 kg Up to 100 kg
Max. distance
1 420 mm 420 mm
Max. distance
2 300 mm 400 mmWhen transporting four bicycles or a total weight
be

tween 75 kg and 100 kg, always use bicycle
racks with additional support on both trailer hitch
guide pins. Vehicle towing instructions
The v
ehicle is not suitable for the use of tow bar
systems that are used for Oat towing or dinghy
towing, for example. Attaching and using tow bar
systems can result in damage to the vehicle.
When you are towing a vehicle with tow bar sys-
tems, safe driving characteristics cannot be guar- anteed for the towing vehicle or the towed vehicle.
The v

ehicle-trailer combination may swerve from
side to side.
Observe the following information:
= Permitted towing methods (  page 395)
= The notes on towing the vehicle with both
axles on the ground (  page 396)308
Driving and parking

Notes on the instrument display and on-board
com puter &
WARNING Risk of accident if t
he instru-
ment display fails
If the instrument display has failed or is mal-
functioning, function r
estrictions in systems
relevant to safety cannot be detected.
The operating safety of your vehicle may be
impaired. 
Drive on carefully. 
Have the vehicle checked immediately at
a q

ualiNed specialist workshop. &
WARNING Risk of dis
traction from infor-
mation systems and communications
equipment
If you operate information systems and com-
munication de
vices integrated in the vehicle
when driving, you could be distracted from the
traPc situation. This could also cause you to
lose control of the vehicle. 
Only operate this equipment when the
tr

aPc situation permits. 
If you cannot be sure of this, stop the
v
ehicle whilst paying attention to road
and traPc conditions and operate the
equipment with the vehicle stationary. *
NOTE Mer
cedes-AMG vehicles 
Observe the notes in the Supplement.
Y
ou could otherwise fail to recognise
dangers. You must observe the legal requirements for the
countr

y in which you are currently driving when
operating the on-board computer.
The on-board computer shows only display mes-
sages and warnings from speciNc systems on the
instrument display. You must therefore ensure
that your vehicle is always safe to operate.
If the operating safety of your vehicle is impaired,
park the vehicle immediately and in accordance
with the traPc conditions. Contact a qualiNed
specialist workshop. Instrument display and on-board computer
309