MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS 2003 Workshop Manual

51 Getting started
Parking and locking
Switching off headlamps
Turn the exterior lamp switch to
M
.
For more information, see “Lighting”
(
page 120).
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
KEYLESS-GO* card (if so equipped) with you
and lock the vehicle. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. Children could release
the parking brake and/or move the gear se-
lector lever from positionP, either of which
could result in an accident and/or serious
injury.
Warning!
G
Getting out of your vehicle with the selector
lever not fully engaged in positionP is dan-
gerous. Also, when parked on an incline,
positionP alone may not prevent your vehi-
cle from moving, possibly hitting people or
objects.
Always set the parking brake in addition to
shifting to positionP (
page 162).
When parked on an incline, turn front wheels
towards the road curb.

52 Getting startedParking and lockingTurning off engine 
Place the gear selector lever in
positionP.
Turning off engine with the SmartKey

Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
(page 31) to position0 and remove
it.
The immobilizer is activated.

Press the seat belt release button
(page 41).

After exiting the vehicle press the lock
button
‹
on the SmartKey
(
page 30).
The locking knobs on the doors move
down. The turn signal indicators light
up briefly.For more information, see “Locking and
unlocking” (
page 86).
iAlways set the parking brake in addi-
tion to shifting to position P.
On steep slopes, turn the front wheels
towards the curb.iThe SmartKey can only be removed
from the starter switch with the gear
selector lever in positionP.
!With the SmartKey removed and the
driver’s door open, a warning sounds if
the vehicle’s exterior lamps are not
switched off.Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure that there
is no possibility of someone getting caught
in a door during closing.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch and lock
the vehicle. Do not leave children unattend-
ed in the vehicle, or with access to an un-
locked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle
equipment may cause an accident and/or
serious injury.

53 Getting started
Parking and locking
Turning off engine with KEYLESS-GO* 
Place the gear selector lever in P.

Press and hold the KEYLESS-GO
start/stop button until the engine
shuts off.
With the driver's door closed, the start-
er switch is now in position1. With the
driver’s door opened, the starter switch
is set to position0, same as SmartKey
removed from starter switch
(page 31).

Press the seat belt release button
(page 41).
1Lock button on the door handle

After exiting the vehicle, press lock
button1 on the door handle or on the
trunk lid.
The locking knobs on the doors move
down. The turn signal indicators light
up briefly.
For more information, see “Controls in de-
tail” (page 85).
!If you hear a warning signal you have ei-
ther:

forgotten to turn off the lights, or


not put the gear selector lever inP
before opening the driver’s door
Turn off the lights or place the gear se-
lector lever inP.
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure that there
is no possibility of someone getting caught
in a door during closing.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
KEYLESS-GO* card (if so equipped) with
you, and lock your vehicle. Do not leave chil-
dren unattended in the vehicle, or with ac-
cess to an unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised
use of vehicle equipment may cause an ac-
cident and/or serious personal injury.

54

55 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Panic alarm
Driving safety systems
Anti-theft systems

56 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety
Occupant safetyIn this section you will learn the most im-
portant facts about the restraint systems
of the vehicle.
The restraint systems are:

Seat belts


Emergency tensioning device


Airbags


Child seats


Child seat recognition


Lower anchors and tethers for children
(LATCH)
As independent systems their protective
effects work in conjunction with each oth-
er.The
1
indicator lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up


for about four seconds when you turn
the key in the starter switch to
position1 or press the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button once. It then goes
out briefly, lights up again and remains
lit until you start the engine.


for about four seconds when you start
the engine by turning the key or press-
ing the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop but-
ton.The restraint systems are fully operational
if the 1 indicator lamp is not lit when the
engine is running.
A malfunction in the system has been de-
tected, if the 1 indicator lamp:


fails to go out after approximately four
seconds.


does not come on at all.


comes on after the engine was started
or while driving.
For safety reasons, we strongly recom-
mend that you visit an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center immediately to
have the system checked.
More information can be found in the
“Practical hints” section (
page 289).
iFor information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and re-
straint systems for infants and chil-
dren, see “Children in the vehicle”
(page 67).
iThe
1
indicator lamp lights up and
remains lit if the key is turned to posi-
tion 2 and left there or the
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button is
pressed twice. The indicator lamp will
go out when you start the engine.

57 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Airbags
Warning!
G
In the event that the 1 indicator lamp lights
up during driving or does not come on at all,
the SRS may not be operational. For your
safety, we strongly recommend that you vis-
it an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center im-
mediately to have the system checked;
otherwise the SRS may not be activated
when needed in an accident, which could re-
sult in serious or fatal injury, or it might de-
ploy unexpectedly and unnecessarily which
could also result in injury.
Improper work on the restraint systems, in-
cluding incorrect installation and removal,
can lead to possible injury through an unin-
tended activation of the SRS.
In addition, through improper work there is
a risk of rendering the SRS inoperative or
causing unintended airbag deployment.
W o r k o n t h e S R S m u s t t h e r e f o r e o n l y b e p e r -
formed by an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Warning!
G
Airbags are designed to reduce the potential
of injury and fatality in certain frontal im-
pacts (front airbags), side impacts (side im-
pact airbags and head protection window
curtain airbags) or rollovers (head protec-
tion window curtain airbags). However, no
system available today can totally eliminate
injuries and fatalities.
The activation of the SRS temporarily releas-
es a small amount of dust from the airbags.
This dust, however, is neither injurious to
your health, nor does it indicate a fire in the
vehicle. The dust might cause some tempo-
rary breathing difficulty for people with asth-
ma or other breathing trouble. To avoid this,
you may wish to get out of the vehicle as
soon as it is safe to do so. If you have any
breathing difficulty but cannot get out of the
vehicle after the airbag inflates, then get
fresh air by opening a window or door.
Warning!
G
To reduce the risk of injury when the front
airbags inflate, it is very important for the
driver and front passenger to always be in a
properly seated position and to wear your
seat belts.
For maximum protection in the event of a
collision always be in normal seated position
with your back against the seat backrest.
Fasten your seat belt and ensure that it is
properly positioned on your body.
Since the airbag inflates with considerable
speed and force, a proper seating and hands
on steering wheel position will help to keep
you at a safe distance from the airbag. Oc-
cupants who are unbelted, out of position or
too close to the airbag can be seriously in-
jured by an airbag as it inflates with great
force in the blink of an eye:

Sit properly belted in an upright position
with your back against the seat back-
rest.

58 Safety and SecurityOccupant safety

Adjust the driver seat as far as possible
rearward, still permitting proper opera-
tion of vehicle controls. The distance
from the center of the driver’s breast-
bone to the center of the airbag cover on
the steering wheel must be at least ten
inches (25 cm) or more. You should be
able to accomplish this by a combina-
tion of adjustments to the seat and
steering wheel. If you have any prob-
lems, please see your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.


Do not lean with your head or chest
close to the steering wheel or dash-
board.


Keep hands on the outside of steering
wheel rim. Placing hands and arms in-
side the rim can increase the risk and
potential severity of hand/arm injury
when driver front airbag inflates.


Adjust the front passenger seat as far as
possible rearward from the dashboard
when the seat is occupied.


Occupants, especially children, should
never lean their heads in the area of the
door where the side airbag inflates. This
could result in serious injuries or death
should the airbag be triggered. Always
sit upright, properly use the seat belts
and appropriate size infant or child re-
straint system.


Children 12 years old and under must
never ride in the front seat, except in a
Mercedes-Benz authorized
BabySmart
TM compatible child seat,
which operates with the BabySmart
TM
system installed in the vehicle to deacti-
vate the passenger front airbag when it
is properly installed. Otherwise they will
be struck by the airbag when it inflates
in a crash. If this happens, serious or fa-
tal injury will result.
Failure to follow these instructions can re-
sult in severe injuries to you or other occu-
pants.
If you sell your vehicle you are responsible
to make the buyer aware of these points. Be
sure to give the buyer this Operator’s Manu-
al.
Warning!
G
Accident research shows that the safest
place for children in an automobile is in the
rear seat. Should you choose to place a child
12 years old or under in the front passenger
seat of your vehicle, you must properly use
a BabySmart
TM child restraint which will
turn off the passenger front airbag.
BabySmart
TM will not, however, turn off any
side impact airbag.
It should be noted that with respect to both
front and rear side impact airbags there is a
possibility for a side airbag related injury if
occupants, especially children, are not prop-
erly seated or restrained when next to a side
airbag which needs to deploy rapidly in a
side impact in order to do its job.
To help avoid the possibility of injury, please
follow these guidelines:
(1) Occupants, especially children, should
never place their bodies or lean their
heads in the area of the door where the
side airbag inflates. This could

59 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
result in serious injuries or death should
the side airbag be activated.
(2) Always sit upright, properly use the seat
belts and use an appropriately sized in-
fant or child restraint system for all chil-
dren 12 years old or under.
(3) Always wear seat belts properly.
If you believe that, even with the use of
these guidelines, it would be safer for your
rear seat occupants to have both rear door
mounted side airbags deactivated, then de-
activation can be accomplished upon your
written request to do so at your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center at an additional cost.
Please contact your local authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center or call our Customer
Assistance Center at 1-800-FOR-MERCedes
(1-800-367-6372) for details.
iAirbags are designed to activate only in
certain frontal impacts (front airbags),
side impacts (side impact and head
protection window curtain airbags)
which exceed preset thresholds, and in
certain rollovers (head protection win-
dow curtain airbags). Only during these
events will they provide their supple-
mental protection.
The driver and passengers should al-
ways wear their seat belts. Otherwise it
is not possible for the airbags to pro-
vide their supplemental protection.
In cases of other types of impacts and
impacts below airbag deployment
thresholds, the airbags will not be acti-
vated. The driver and passengers will
then be protected to the extent possi-
ble by a properly fastened seat belt. A
properly fastened seat belt is also
needed to provide the best possible
protection in a rollover.
We caution you not to rely on the pres-
ence of the airbags in order to avoid
wearing your seat belt.
Your vehicle was originally equipped
with airbags that are designed to acti-
vate in certain impacts exceeding a
preset threshold to reduce the poten-
tial and severity of injury. It is important
for your safety and that of your passen-
ger that you replace deployed airbags
and repair any malfunctioning airbags
to ensure that the vehicle will continue
to provide supplemental crash protec-
tion for occupants.

60 Safety and SecurityOccupant safetySafety guidelines for the seat belt,
emergency tensioning device and
airbagWarning!
G


Damaged seat belts or belts that were
highly stressed in an accident must be
replaced and their anchoring points
must also be checked. Use only belts in-
stalled or supplied by an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.


Airbags and ETDs are designed to func-
tion on a one-time-only basis. An airbag
or emergency tensioning device (ETD)
that was activated must be replaced.


No modifications of any kind may be
made to any components or wiring of
the SRS. This includes changing or re-
moving any component or part of the
SRS, the installation of additional trim
material, badges etc. over the steering
wheel hub, front passenger airbag cov-
er, door trim panels, or door frame
trims, and installation of additional elec-
trical/electronic equipment on or near
SRS components and wiring. Keep area
between airbags and occupants free
from objects (e.g. packages, purses,
umbrellas, etc.).


Do not pass belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.


Do not make any modification that could
change the effectiveness of the belts.


Do not hang items such as coat hangers
from the coat hooks or handles over the
door. These items may turn into projec-
tiles and cause head and other injuries
when curtain airbag is deployed.


An airbag system component within the
steering wheel gets hot after the airbag
has inflated. Do not touch.


Improper work on the system, including
incorrect installation and removal, can
lead to possible injury through an unin-
tended activation of the SRS.


In addition, through improper work
there is a risk of rendering the SRS inop-
erative or causing unintended airbag de-
ployment. Work on the SRS must
therefore only be performed by an au-
thorized Mercedes-Benz Center.


For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the airbag
unit or emergency tensioning device,
our safety instructions must be fol-
lowed. These instructions are available
from your authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.


Given the considerable deployment
speed and the textile structure of the
airbags, there is the possibility of abra-
sions or other injuries resulting from air-
bag deployment.