MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS 2023 Repair Manual

However, no system available today can com-
pletely eliminate injuries and fatalities in every
accident situation. In particular, the seat belt and
air bag generally do not protect against objects penetrating the vehicle from the outside. It is alsonot possible to completely rule out the risk ofinjury caused by the air bag deploying.
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you have the
vehicle towed to a quali"Ned specialist workshop
a"ser an accident. Take this into account, particu-
larly if a Emergency Tensioning Device is triggered
or an air bag deployed.
If the Emergency Tensioning Devices are triggered
or an air bag is deployed, you will hear a bang,
and a small amount of powder may also be released:
= The bang will not generally a"Mect your hearing.
= In general, the powder released is not hazard-
ous to health but may cause short-term breathing di"Pculties to persons su"Mering from
asthma or other pulmonary conditions.
Provided it is safe to do so, leave the vehicle
immediately or open the window in order to
prevent breathing di"Pculties.Air bags and pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning
Devices contain perchlorate material, which may require special handling or environmental protec-
tion measures. National guidelines regarding waste disposal must be observed. In California,
see https://dtsc.ca.gov/. Using the search func- tion, you will "Nnd information on perchlorate, for
example.
Information on the limited protection provided by the restraint system
Risk due to the incorrect behavior of vehicle occu-
pants
Every vehicle occupant must make sure of the fol- lowing in particular:
= They observe the information on the correct
seat position (  page 46).
= There are no heavy, sharp-edged or fragile
objects in the pockets of their clothing. Store
such objects in a suitable place.
&WARNING Risk of injury or death due to
an incorrect seat position
The seat belt does not o"Mer the intended level
of protection if you have not moved the seat backrest to an almost vertical position.
In particular, you could slip beneath the seat- belt and become injured.
Adjust the seat properly before begin-
ning your journey.Always ensure that the seat backrest is
in an almost vertical position and that
the shoulder belt is routed across the
center of your shoulder.
Risk due to objects in the vehicle interior
Every vehicle occupant must make sure of the fol-
lowing in particular:
= They observe the information on the correct
seat position (  page 46).
= There are no objects between the seat, door
and door pillar (B-pillar).
= There are no hard objects, e.g. coat hangers,
hanging on the grab handles or coat hooks.
Occupant safety59

=There are no heavy, sharp-edged or fragile
objects in the pockets of their clothing. Store
such objects in a suitable place.&WARNING Risk of injury or death due to
blocked seat belt buckle or seat belt
anchorage
Objects next to the front seat that block the
seat belt buckle or the moving seat belt
anchorage on the front seat impair the func-
tion of the Emergency Tensioning Devices.
Before starting the journey, make sure
that there are no objects around the seat
belt buckle or between the front seat
and door.&WARNING Risk of injury from objects in
the deployment area of an airbag
Objects in the deployment area of an airbag
can hinder or prevent the correct deployment
of the airbag.
The airbag may then deploy in an uncontrolled manner and may even cause additional inju-
ries to the vehicle occupants by deploying.
This may be the case in particular if the airbag is integrated into the seat.Always stow and secure objects cor-
rectly.Before commencing your journey, make
sure that no objects are stowed in the
deployment area of an airbag.
The installation location of an air bag is identi"Ned
by the AIRBAG (  page 64) symbol.
Observe the following information:
= Notes on loading the vehicle (  page 142)
= Information on the rear air bag in the seat
backrest of the front seat (  page 65)
Risk due to installing accessories
Do not attach accessories such as mobile naviga-
tion devices, mobile phones or cup holders, within the deployment area of an air bag, e.g. on the
cockpit, on the door, on the side window or on the side trim.
In addition, no connecting cables, tensioning
straps or retaining straps must be routed or
attached to the vehicle within the deployment
area of an air bag. Always comply with the acces- sory manufacturer\bs installation instructions and,
in particular, the notes on suitable places for
installation.&WARNING Risk of injury or death due to
unsuitable protective covers
Unsuitable protective covers mean that air
bags can no longer protect vehicle occupants as they are designed to do.
Use only protective covers approved by
Mercedes-Benz for the seat in question.
In addition, the function of the automatic
passenger air bag deactivation may be restricted
by an unsuitable protective cover. If the front
passenger seat is occupied, ensure that the PASSENGER AIR BAG indicator lamps display thecorrect status of the front passenger air bag
(  page 50).
60Occupant safety

Risk due to pets in the vehicle interior&WARNING Risk of accident and injury due
to animals le"s unsecured or unattended in
the vehicle
If you leave animals in the vehicle unattended or unsecured, they could possibly press but-
tons or switches.
An animal may: = Activate vehicle equipment and become
trapped, for example
= Switch systems on or o"M and endanger
other road users
Unsecured animals may be thrown around in
the vehicle in the event of an accident or sud-
den steering and braking maneuvers and
injure vehicle occupants in the process.
Never leave animals in the vehicle unat-
tended.Always correctly secure animals while
driving, e.g. using a suitable animal car-
rier.Risk due to modi"Ncation, damage or wear to the
components of the restraint system&WARNING Risk of injury or death due to
modi"Ncations to the restraint system
Vehicle occupants may no longer be protected
as intended if alterations are made to the
restraint system.
Never alter the parts of the restraint sys- tem.Never tamper with the wiring or any elec-
tronic component parts or their so"s-
ware.If it is necessary to modify the vehicle to accom- modate a person with disabilities, contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center for details.
USA only: for details, contact our Customer Assis-
tance Center on 1-800-FOR-MERCedes (1!

Make sure that the seat belts are undam-
aged, not worn and clean.Always have the seat belts checked immediately a"ser an accident at a quali-
"Ned specialist workshop.Use only seat belts that have been approved for
your vehicle by Mercedes-Benz.&WARNING Risk of injury due to modi"Nca-
tions to the cover of an airbag
If you change the cover of an airbag or attach
objects, e.g. even stickers, to it, the airbag
may no longer function as intended.
Never modify the cover of an airbag.Do not attach any objects to the cover.
The installation location of an air bag is identi"Ned
by the air bag symbol (  page 64).
&WARNING Risk of injury due to a damaged
rear airbag cover
If a rear airbag cover is damaged, the rear air-
bag can no longer function correctly and can
even cause additional injuries when deployed.
Before starting a journey, make sure the
covers for the rear airbags are not dam-
aged. If a rear airbag cover is damaged,
disable the rear airbag. Have a damaged
rear airbag cover replaced at a quali"Ned
specialist workshop as soon as possible.
You can disable or enable the rear air bag via the
multimedia system (  page 53).
Observe the information on the rear air bag in the
seat backrest of the front seat (  page 65)
&WARNING Risk of injury due to malfunc-
tioning sensors in the door
The function of the airbags can be impaired
due to modi"Ncations or incorrect work per-
formed on the doors or door trim, or if the
doors are damaged.
Never modify the doors or parts of the
doors.Always have work on the doors or door
trim carried out at a quali"Ned specialist
workshop.
Risk due to components of the restraint system that have already been deployed
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you have the
vehicle towed to a quali"Ned specialist workshop
a"ser an accident.
&WARNING Risk of burns from hot air bag
components
The air bag parts are hot a"ser an air bag has
been deployed.
Do not touch the air bag parts.Have a deployed air bag replaced at a
quali"Ned specialist workshop as soon as
possible.62Occupant safety

&WARNING Risk of injury due to deployed
airbag
A deployed airbag no longer o"Mers any protec-
tion.
Have the vehicle towed to a quali"Ned
specialist workshop in order to have the
deployed airbag replaced.Have deployed air bags replaced immediately.&WARNING Risk of injury or death from
deployed pyrotechnic Emergency Tension-
ing Devices
Pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning Devices that have been deployed are no longer opera-
tional and are unable to perform their inten-
ded protective function.
Therefore, have deployed pyrotechnic
Emergency Tensioning Devices immedi-
ately replaced at a quali"Ned specialist
workshop.Seat belts
Information on the belt air bag in the rear seat
belt
The BELTBAG identi"Ncation indicates that a rear
seat belt is equipped with a belt air bag.
When activated, the belt air bag increases the
protected area of the vehicle occupant\bs ribcage.
&WARNING Risk of injury or death due to
use of an unsuitable child restraint system
If you attach a child restraint system using a
seat belt equipped with a belt air bag, the belt air bag may damage the child restraint systemin the event of an accident or the belt air bag
itself can be damaged.
Always secure a child restraint system with an integrated harness system withISOFIX.Also secure Top Tether if present.Never secure a child restraint system
with a seat belt equipped with a belt air
bag.Instead, mount the child restraint system e.g. on the front passenger seat.
If the front passenger seat is occupied, ensure
that the status of the front passenger air bag is
correct for the current situation (  page 50).
Observe the information on the function of the automatic front passenger air bag shut o"M
(  page 53).
Straightening out a twisted rear seat belt with a
belt air bag
If the rear seat belt with a belt air bag is twisted, you must straighten it out before fastening the
seat belt tongue.
Slide the seat belt tongue upward to the seat belt outlet and hold it.Pull out the seat belt completely and hold it.The seat belt tongue is now at the more nar-
row part of the seat belt strap.Turn the seat belt strap in the seat belt tongue
slit until it is in the correct position.Occupant safety63

Slide the seat belt tongue downward and allow
the seat belt to retract completely.
Releasing seat belts
Press the release button in the seat belt buckle and guide the seat belt back with the
seat belt tongue.*NOTE Damage caused by trapping the
seat belt
If an unused seat belt is not fully retracted, it
may become trapped in the door or in the seat
mechanism.
Always ensure that an unused seat belt
is fully retracted.Airbags
Overview of air bags
Driver\bs/front passenger seat:1Knee air bag2Driver\bs air bag3Front passenger air bag4Window air bag5Side air bag Rear seats:4Window air bag6Side air bag7Rear air bag
The installation location of an air bag is identi"Ned
by the AIRBAG symbol. An additional arrow sym-
bol P indicates the installation location for cer-
tain air bags.
Observe the information under "Overview of
deployment situations" (  page 57).
64Occupant safety

Information on the cushionbag in the reclining
rear seat
The cushionbag o"Mers additional occupant protec-
tion in the event of frontal impacts. When trig- gered, the cushionbag deploys under the seatcushion. This helps prevent the vehicle occupant
from slipping o"M the seat cushion.
If you install a child restraint system on the reclin- ing rear seat, always observe the additional notes
(  page 67).
Information on the rear air bag in the seat back-
rest of the front seat
The rear air bag o"Mers the occupants on the outer
rear seats additional occupant protection in the
event of certain types of frontal impacts. When
triggered, the rear air bag deploys between the
rear seat occupant and the front seat. The rear air
bag can help prevent the occupants on the rear seats from coming into contact with parts of the vehicle interior in the event of an accident.
Always observe the legal requirements for the rel- evant country. If you are driving with a child in the
vehicle, you can disable the rear air bag according
to the legal requirements.
Observe the following information:
= Inform persons in the rear seats about the
rear air bag in the seat backrest of the front seat.
= A person in the rear seat must adopt the cor-
rect seating position:
= Make sure that the covers for the rear air bags
are not damaged.&WARNING Risk of injury due to a damaged
rear airbag cover
If a rear airbag cover is damaged, the rear air-
bag can no longer function correctly and can
even cause additional injuries when deployed.
Before starting a journey, make sure the
covers for the rear airbags are not dam-
aged. If a rear airbag cover is damaged,
disable the rear airbag. Have a damaged
rear airbag cover replaced at a quali"Ned
specialist workshop as soon as possible.To avoid risks resulting from the deployment of a
rear air bag, observe the following information on
the correct seating position:
= The occupants must always keep their feet on
the "Ooor. Otherwise, feet and legs of occu-
pants may be in the deployment area of the rear air bag.
If an occupant\bs feet cannot reach the "Ooor,
they must adopt the correct seating position and their legs must hang down the front of theseat.
= The feet or legs of the person on the rear seat
must not rest against the seat backrest of the
front seat, for example. Otherwise, their feet
and legs are in the deployment area of the
rear air bag. This should be taken into consid-
eration especially if you are traveling with a
child on the rear seat.
If you are traveling with a child in the le"s or
right rear seat, observe the information on the
child restrain systems .Occupant safety65

Objects behind the front seat
Objects in the deployment area of the rear air bags may prevent the rear air bags from function-ing correctly.&WARNING Risk of injury due to objects
placed in front of the rear airbag cover
Objects in front of the rear airbag cover can
hinder or prevent the correct deployment of
the rear airbag which is integrated into the front seat.
The rear airbag can potentially deploy in an
uncontrolled manner and can cause additional
injury to the person on the front seat.
Always stow and secure objects cor-
rectly.
Observe the notes on loading the vehicle
(  page 142).
Disabling the rear air bag
You can disable or enable the rear air bags individ-
ually via the multimedia system (  page 53). You
can determine the status of the rear air bag via
the REAR SEAT AIR BAG indicator lamp in the
overhead control panel (  page 52).
The rear air bags should be disabled in the follow-
ing situations in particular:
= A child restraint system is secured on the le"s
or right rear seat.
= The person in the rear seat, for example a
child, cannot sit in the correct seat position.
Their feet and legs are potentially in the deployment area of the rear air bag.
= Due to the position of the front seats, an
occupant\bs legs for example, are in the
deployment area of the rear air bag.
= Objects are stored behind the front seat which
are in the deployment area of the rear air bags.66Occupant safety

Brief overview of most important points
Safely transporting children in the vehicle
Always observe the following when transporting
children:
= Never leave children unattended in the vehicle
(  page 69).
=
Secure children up to a height of (1.50 m) on
the respective seat (see illustration above) properly with a suitable and approved child
restraint system , and secure small children in
a rearward-facing child restraint system.
= Observe the child restraint system manufac-
turer\bs installation instructions.
Le"s/right rear seat (preferred seats)
Preferred securing system:®ISOFIX mounting bracketand¯Also secure Top Tether if present
(  page 78).
Alternative securing system:
vVehicle seat belt¯Additionally attach Top Tether if recom-
mended by the manufacturer of the child
restraint system (  page 78).
Be sure to observe:
= If the rear seat is occupied, before commenc-
ing the journey ensure that the status of the
rear air bag is correct for the current situation
(  page 52).
Front passenger seat
Securing system:vVehicle seat belt
Be sure to observe:
= If the front passenger seat is occupied, ensure
that the status of the front passenger air bag
is correct for the current situation
(  page 50).
(*) rearward-facing child restraint system only in
combination with automatic air bag shuto"M
Center rear seat
Securing system:
vVehicle seat belt¯Additionally attach Top Tether if recom-
mended by the manufacturer of the child restraint system (  page 78).Safely transporting children in the vehicle67

Important safety notes
Basic information
Be diligent
Bear in mind that negligence when securing a
child in the child restraint system may have seri-
ous consequences. Always be diligent in securing
a child carefully before every journey.
Never allow babies and children to travel sitting
on the lap of another vehicle occupant.
To improve protection for children younger than
12 years old or under 5 "s (1.50 m) in height,
Mercedes-Benz recommends you observe the fol-
lowing information:
= Always secure the child in a child restraint sys-
tem suitable for this Mercedes-Benz vehicle.
= The child restraint system must be appropriate
to the age, weight and size of the child.
= The vehicle seat must be suitable for the child
restraint system to be installed:
Accident statistics show that children secured on
the rear seats are generally safer than children secured on the front seats. For this reason,
Mercedes-Benz strongly advises that you install a
child restraint system on a rear seat.
The generic term child restraint system The generic term child restraint system is used in this Operator\bs Manual. A child restraint systemis, for example:
= a baby car seat
= a rearward-facing child seat
= a forward-facing child seat
= a child booster seat !