ECO mode MERCEDES-BENZ C300 4MATIC 2008 W204 Owner's Manual

9
Product information

Introduction
Product information
Please observe the following in your own
best interest:
We recommend using Genuine
Mercedes-Benz Parts as well as conversion
parts and accessories explicitly approved
by us for your vehicle model.
We have tested these parts to determine
their reliability, safety and special suitabili-
ty for Mercedes-Benz vehicles.We are unable to make an assessment for
other products and therefore cannot be
held responsible for them, even if in indi-
vidual cases an official approval or authori-
zation by governmental or other agencies
should exist. Use of such parts and acces-
sories could adversely affect the safety,
performance or reliability of your vehicle.
Please do not use them.Genuine Mercedes-Benz parts, as well as
approved conversion parts and accesso-
ries are available at your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center. Here they can be
properly installed and you will receive com-
prehensive information, including advice
on permissible technical modifications.

39 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When you sell your vehicle we strongly
urge you to give notice to the subsequent
owner that it is equipped with an SRS by
alerting them to the applicable section in
the Operator’s Manual.
Front air bags
1Driver air bag
2Front passenger front air bag
The front air bags are designed to provide
increased protection for the driver and
front passenger against the risk of injuries
to the head and thorax.
Driver and front passenger front air bag are
deployed:
in the event of certain frontal impacts

if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold

if the system determines that airbag
deployment can offer additional pro-
tection to that provided by the seat belt

depending on whether the seat belt is
in use

independently of the front side impact
air bags, rear side impact air bags*
and/or the window curtain air bags.

For your protection and the protection
of others, when scrapping the air bag
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, required inflation volume, and
the textile structure of the air bags,
there is the possibility of abrasions or
other, potentially more serious injuries
resulting from air bag deployment.
Warning!G
Only use seat covers which have been
tested and approved by Mercedes-Benz for
your vehicle model. Using other seat covers
may interfere with or prevent the
deployment of the front side impact air bags
or the rear side impact air bags. Contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center for avail-
ability.
iThe front air bags in this vehicle have been
designed to inflate in two stages. This allows the
air bag to have different rates of inflation that are
based on the rate of relevant vehicle decelera-
tion as assessed by the air bag control unit.
On the front passenger-side, the front air bag de-
ployment is additionally influenced by the pas-
senger’s weight category as identified by the
Occupant Classification System (OCS)
(
page 41).
The lighter the front passenger-side occupant,
the higher the vehicle deceleration rate required
for the second stage inflation of the air bag.

83 Controls in detail
Starter switch positions
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
(Canada only)
Vehicles equipped with the KEYLESS-GO
feature are supplied with a SmartKey with
integrated KEYLESS-GO function and a re-
movable KEYLESS-GO start/stop button.
With the KEYLESS-GO start/stop button
inserted and the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO present in the vehicle, press-
ing the KEYLESS-GO start/stop button

without the brake pedal depressed
corresponds to the various starter
switch positions (
page 84)

with the brake pedal firmly depressed
will start the engine (
page 128)If you wish or should there be a need to in-
sert the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO in the
starter switch, the KEYLESS-GO start/stop
button can be easily removed by pulling it
out of the starter switch.
1KEYLESS-GO start/stop button
2Starter switch
Insert KEYLESS-GO start/stop
button1 into starter switch 2 (if not
inserted already).
iThe function of the SmartKey overrules the
KEYLESS-GO function.
iThe KEYLESS-GO start/stop button does
not need to be removed from the starter switch
when you leave the vehicle. However, always
take the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO with you
when you leave the vehicle. As long as the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is in the vehicle, the
vehicle’s electrical systems can be switched on
or the engine can be started using the
KEYLESS-GO start/stop button.
iWhen you switch from SmartKey mode back
to KEYLESS-GO mode, the system requires
2 seconds of detection time before you can use
the KEYLESS-GO button as usual.


144 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Automatic shift program
The program mode selector switch is
located on the lower part of the center
console.
Program mode selector switch
C Comfort For comfort driving
S Sport For standard drivingThe selected program mode appears in the
multifunction display.
1Selected program mode (comfort or
sport)
Press program mode selector switch
repeatedly until the letter of the
desired program mode appears in the
multifunction display.
SelectCfor comfort driving:

The vehicle starts out in second
gear (both forward and reverse) for
gentler starts. This does not apply if
full throttle is applied or gear
range1 is selected.

Traction and driving stability are
improved on icy roads.

Upshifts occur earlier even when
you give more gas. The engine then
operates at lower rpms and the
wheels are less likely to spin.
SelectSfor standard driving:

The vehicle starts out in first gear.

Upshifts occur later.
!Never change the program mode when the
gear selector lever is out of park positionP. This
could result in a change of driving characteristics
for which you may not be prepared.
iThe last selected program mode (CorS) is
switched on when the engine is restarted.

146 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Emergency operation
(Limp-Home Mode)
If vehicle acceleration becomes less re-
sponsive or sluggish or the transmission
no longer shifts, the transmission is most
likely operating in limp-home (emergency
operation) mode. In this mode only second
gear and reverse gear can be selected.
Stop the vehicle in a safe location.
Move the gear selector lever to park
positionP.
Turn off the engine.
Wait at least 10 seconds before
restarting.
Restart the engine.
Move the gear selector lever to
positionD (for second gear) or
positionR.
Have the transmission checked at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center as
soon as possible.

151 Controls in detail
Control system
Control system
The control system is activated as soon as
the SmartKey in the starter switch is
turned to position2 or as soon as the
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button (Canada
only) is in position 2. The control system
enables you to:

call up information about your vehicle

change vehicle settings
For example, you can use the control
system to find out when your vehicle is
next due for service, to call up statistical
data on your vehicle, and much more.
The control system relays information to
the multifunction display.
Multifunction display
1Text field
2Line for main menus
3Temperature
4Current program mode
(automatic transmission*)
5Current gear selector lever
position/gear range
(automatic transmission*)
Additional speedometer
(manual transmission)
6Digital clock
Settings, functions, submenus as well as
any malfunctions are shown to you in the
text field.
Warning!G
A driver’s attention to the road and traffic
conditions must always be his/her primary
focus when driving.
For your safety and the safety of others,
selecting features through the multifunction
steering wheel should only be done by the
driver when traffic and road conditions
permit it to be done safely.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet
(approximately 14 m) every second.

167 Controls in detail
Control system
Instrument clusterTime/DateLightingVehicleConvenience
(page 168)(page 170)(page 171)(page 173)(page 174)
Select speedometer
display modeSet the time (hours)Setting daytime running
lamp mode (USA only)Set automatic
lockingActivate easy-entry/exit
feature* (Canada only)
Switch the additional
speedometer on or off
(vehicles with manual
transmission)Set the time (minutes)Setting locator lightingSetting fold-in function*
for exterior rear view
mirrors
Permanent display
(vehicles with automatic
transmission*)Set the date (month)Setting night security
illumination
Set the date (day)Setting interior lighting
delayed shut-off
Set the date (year)

177 Controls in detail
Audio system
Operating safetyAudio system components
With the audio system you can operate the
following main functions:

audio function with the radio, Sat*,
disc (CD audio or MP3 mode)

the telephone* with the phone book

various system settings
The audio system consists of the following:

audio control unit

audio display

audio controller with back and delete
button
In addition, the audio system can also be
operated with the multifunction steering
wheel (
page 152).
In these instructions, the keypad (right
side of audio control unit) and the function
buttons are referred to as “buttons”.Audio control unit
With the audio control unit you can:

switch the audio system on/off

adjust the volume

select the operating modes

enter telephone numbers and accept,
reject, initiate and end telephone calls

load and eject CDs
Warning!G
Any alterations made to electronic
components can cause malfunctions.
The radio, amplifier, CD changer*, satellite
radio*, and telephone* are interconnected.
When one of the components is not opera-
tional or has not been removed/replaced
properly, the function of other components
may be impaired.
This condition might seriously impair the
operating safety of your vehicle.
We recommend that you have any service
work on electronic components carried out
at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.

211 Controls in detail
Audio system
Multisession CDs
For multisession CDs, the first session
type of the CD determines how the audio
system will process the CD.
For example, if the first session type is ac-
cording to the audio CD standard and the
second session type is according to the
data CD standard containing MP3 tracks,
the audio system will treat the CD as a con-
ventional audio CD. This means that it is
only possible to access the audio CD
tracks. Access to the MP3 tracks is not
possible.
Similarly, if the first session type is accord-
ing to the data CD standard containing
MP3 tracks and the second session type is
according to the audio CD standard, the
audio system will treat the CD as a data
CD. This means that it is only possible to
access the MP3 tracks. Access to the au-
dio CD tracks is not possible.File structure on a disc
When you create an MP3 disc, the MP3
tracks can be organized in folders. A folder
can also contain other folders. A disc can
contain a maximum of 255 folders. Each
folder can contain a maximum of
255 tracks and 255 folders. A disc can
contain a maximum of 4 000 tracks. Usual-
ly this number will not be reached because
each minute of an MP3 track requires ap-
proximately 1 MB of storage space.Track and folder names
When you create an MP3 disc, you can as-
sign names to the MP3 tracks and folders.
The audio system uses these names for
the corresponding display in MP3 mode.
Empty folders or folders which contain
data other than MP3 tracks are not dis-
played by the audio system.
If MP3 files are saved in the root directory
itself (uppermost directory on storage me-
dium), the root directory will also be treat-
ed as a folder. The audio system will then
show the name of the root directory as the
folder name.

212 Controls in detail
Audio system
You must observe the following when as-
signing track names:

Track names must have at least one
character.

Track names must have the extension
“mp3”.

There must be a period between the
track name and the extension.
Example of a correct track name:
Track1.mp3
The audio system is unable to recognize an
MP3 track if:

there is no period between the track
title and the extension

there is no extensionPermissible MP3 formats
The audio system supports the MPEG1 Au-
dio Layer 3 format.
Compatible file systems and compres-
sion methods
The following compression methods are
compatible:

MP3

WMA
Permissible bit and sampling rates

Fixed and variable bit rates up to
320 kbit/s

Sampling rates of 24 kHz – 48 kHzNotes on copyright
The music tracks that you create for MP3
mode and can play back in MP3 mode are
generally subject to copyright protection in
accordance with the applicable interna-
tional and national regulations.
In many countries, reproductions are not
permitted without the prior consent of the
copyright holder, not even for private use.
Make sure you know the applicable copy-
right regulations and that you comply with
these.
If you own these rights yourself, e.g. for
your own compositions and recordings, or
the copyright holder has granted you per-
mission, these restrictions do not apply.
iThe audio system does not support ID3 tags.
iThis format is generally known as “MP3”.
iIf music files, created with different com-
pression methods, in addition to MP3 files, are
stored together on a disc, the loading process
may take longer before the first track is played.
iOnly use MP3 tracks with a bit rate of at
least 128 kbit/s or higher and a sampling rate of
at least 44.1 kHz or higher. Smaller rates can
cause a noticeable deterioration in sound quali-
ty. This is especially the case if you have activat-
ed the surround sound* function.