MERCEDES-BENZ GL550 2008 X164 Owners Manual

90 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
In an impact, emergency tensioning
devices remove slack from the belts in
such a way that the seat belts fit more
snugly against the body. Belt force limiters,
when activated, are employed to help
reduce the peak force exerted by the seat
belts on occupants during a crash.Active head restraint
The active head restraints are intended to
offer the driver and front passenger
increased protection from whiplash type
injuries. In the event of a rear-end collision,
the active head restraints on the driver’s
and front passenger’s seats are designed
to move forward in the direction of travel,
providing the head with increased support
earlier on in the collision sequence. The
active head restraints move forward
whether the seat is occupied or not.
Warning!G
A pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning Device
(ETD) that was activated must be replaced.
When disposing of the pyrotechnic emer-
gency tensioning device, our safety instruc-
tions must be followed. These are available
at any authorized Mercedes-Benz Light
Truck Center.
Warning!G
Only use seat or head restraint covers which
have been tested and approved by
Mercedes-Benz for your vehicle model.
Using other seat or head restraint covers
may interfere with or prevent the activation
of the active head restraint. Contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center for availability.
Do not attach any objects (e.g. hangers) to
the head restraints posts. Otherwise, the
active head restraints may not be able to
function properly or offer the intended
degree of protection in the event of an
accident.
Warning!G
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust head restraint so that it is as close to
the head as possible and the center of the
head restraint supports the back of the head
at eye level. This will reduce the potential for
injury to the head and neck in the event of
an accident or similar situation.
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91 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
You cannot remove the active head
restraint on the driver’s and front
passenger’s seats.
For removal of the active head restraints
we recommend that you contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.
For information on head restraint adjust-
ment, see “Seats” (
page 45).
For information on resetting the activated
active head restraints, see “Resetting acti-
vated head restraints” (
page 499).
Rear head restraintsChildren in the vehicle
If an infant or child is traveling with you in
the vehicle:
Secure the child using an infant or child
restraint appropriate to the age and
size of the child.
Make sure the infant or child is
properly secured at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
Warning!G
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat
head restraints installed when the rear seats
are occupied. Head restraints are intended
to help reduce injuries during an accident.
With a rear seat occupied, make sure to
move the respective head restraint up from
the lowest non-use position and have the
occupant adjust the head restraint properly.
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust the head restraint in such a way that
it is as close to the head as possible and the
head restraint supports the back of the head
at eye level. This will reduce the potential for
injury to the head and neck in the event of
an accident or similar situation.
Warning!G
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in a child re-
straint system. The children could

injure themselves on parts of the vehicle

be seriously or fatally injured through
excessive exposure to extreme heat or
cold

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92 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Infant and child restraint systems
We recommend all infants and children be
properly restrained at all times while the
vehicle is in motion.
All lap-shoulder belts except the driver’s
seat belt have special seat belt retractors
for secure fastening of child restraints.
To fasten a child restraint, follow child
restraint instructions for mounting. Then
pull the shoulder belt out completely and
let it retract. During seat belt retraction, a
ratcheting sound can be heard to indicate
that the special seat belt retractor is acti-
vated. The belt is now locked. Push down
on child restraint to take up any slack.
To deactivate, release seat belt buckle and
let seat belt retract completely. To deacti-
vate the special seat belt retractor for the
front passenger seat, the front passenger
seat must be in the most backward posi-
tion. The seat belt can again be used in the
usual manner.The use of infant or child restraints is re-
quired by law in all 50 states, the District
of Columbia, the U.S. territories and all
Canadian provinces.Do not expose the child restraint system to
direct sunlight. The child restraint system’s
metal parts, for example, could become very
hot, and the child could be burned on these
parts.
If children open a door, they could

injure other persons

get out of the car and injure themselves
or be injured by following traffic
Do not carry heavy or hard objects in the
passenger or cargo compartment unless
they are firmly secured in place. For more in-
formation, see “Loading” (
page 295) and
“Useful features” (
page 315).
Unsecured or improperly positioned cargo
increases a child’s risk of injury in the event
of

strong braking maneuvers

sudden changes of direction

an accident
Warning!G
Never release the seat belt buckle while the
vehicle is in motion, since the special seat
belt retractor will be deactivated.
iFor information on child seats with mounting
fittings for tether anchorages, see “Installation
of infant and child restraint system”
(
page 96).
For information on LATCH-type child seat
mounts, see “Child seat anchors – LATCH type”
(
page 95).

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93 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Infants and small children should be
seated in an appropriate infant or child
restraint system properly secured in
accordance with the manufacturer’s
instructions for the child restraint, that
complies with U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle
Safety Standards 213 and 225 and
Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety Standards
213 and 210.2.
A statement by the child restraint manu-
facturer of compliance with these
standards can be found on the instruction
label on the restraint and in the instruction
manual provided with the restraint.
When using any infant or child restraint
system, make sure to carefully read and
follow all manufacturer’s instructions for
installation and use.
Please read and observe warning labels
affixed to the inside of the vehicle and to
infant or child restraints.
Warning!G
According to accident statistics, children
are safer when properly restrained in the
rear seating positions than in the front seat-
ing position. Thus, we strongly recommend
that children be placed in the rear seats
whenever possible. Regardless of seating
position, children 12 years old and under
must be seated and properly secured in an
appropriate infant or child restraint
recommended for the size and weight of the
child.
The infant or child restraint must be properly
secured with the vehicle’s seat belt, the seat
belt and top tether strap, or lower anchors
and top tether strap, fully in accordance
with the child seat manufacturer’s
instructions.
Always sit as upright as possible, properly
use the seat belts and use an appropriately
sized infant restraint, toddler restraint, or
booster seat recommended for the size and
weight of the child.
Children can be killed or seriously injured by
an inflating air bag. Note the following im-
portant information when circumstances
require you to place a child in the front
passenger seat:

Your vehicle is equipped with air bag
technology designed to turn off the front
passenger front air bag in your vehicle
when the OCS senses the weight of a
typical 12-month-old child or less along
with the weight of a standard
appropriate child restraint on the front
passenger seat.

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94 Safety and Security
Occupant safety

A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be serious-
ly injured or even killed if the front
passenger front air bag inflates in a
collision which could occur under some
circumstances, even with the air bag
technology installed in your vehicle. The
only means to completely eliminate this
risk is to never place a child in a rear-fac-
ing child restraint in the front seat. We
therefore strongly recommend that you
always place a child in a rear-facing child
restraint in the back seat.
If you must install a rear-facing child
restraint on the front passenger seat be-
cause circumstances require you to do
so, make sure that the
59indicator lamp is illumi-
nated, indicating that the front passen-
ger front air bag is deactivated. Should
the 59indicator lamp not
illuminate or go out while the restraint is
installed, please check installation.
Periodically check the
59indicator lamp while
driving to make sure the lamp is illumi-
nated. If the 59indicator
lamp goes out or remains out, do not
transport a child on the front passenger
seat until the system has been repaired.
A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the front passenger seat will be serious-
ly injured or even killed if the front pas-
senger front air bag inflates.
If you have to place a child in a
forward-facing child restraint on the
front passenger seat, move the seat as
far back as possible, use the proper
child restraint recommended for the
age, size and weight of the child, and se-
cure child restraint with the vehicle’s
seat belt according to the child seat
manufacturer’s instructions. For
children larger than the typical
12-month-old child, the front passenger
front air bag may or may not be
activated (
page 82).
Warning!G
Infants and small children should never
share a seat belt with another occupant.
During an accident, they could be crushed
between the occupant and seat belt.
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints
are not properly secured in the vehicle
and/or the child is not properly secured in
the child restraint.

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95 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Child seat anchors – LATCH type
This vehicle is equipped with two LATCH
(L
ower Anchors and Tethers for CHildren)
type anchors (at each of the outer rear
seats) for the installation of a LATCH child
seat with matching mounting fittings.
Children too big for a toddler restraint must
ride in seats using regular seat belts. Posi-
tion shoulder belt across chest and shoul-
der, not face or neck. A booster seat may be
necessary to achieve proper belt positioning
for children from 41 lb until they reach a
height where a lap/shoulder belt fits
properly without a booster.
When the child restraint is not in use,
remove it from the vehicle or secure it with
the seat belt to prevent the child restraint
from becoming a projectile in the event of an
accident.
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system.
A child’s unsupervised access to a vehicle
could result in an accident and/or serious
personal injury.
Warning!G
Children too big for a toddler restraint must
ride in seats using regular seat belts. Posi-
tion shoulder belt across chest and shoul-
der, not face or neck.
A booster seat may be necessary to achieve
proper belt positioning for children over
41 lb until they reach a height where a
lap/shoulder belt fits properly without a
booster.
Install child seat according to manufactu-
rer’s instructions.
The child seat must be firmly attached to the
right and left side anchors2 (
page 96).
An incorrectly mounted child seat may come
loose during an accident which could result
in serious injury or death to the child.
Damaged or impact damaged child seats or
child seat mounting fittings must be re-
placed.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, even if the children are secured in a
child restraint system.
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96 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
The LATCH anchors are blended with
covers.
Example, second-row seats
1Anchorage ring covers
Remove anchorage ring cover1 from
the seat on which a child seat is to be
installed.
Example, second-row seats
2Anchors
Install a LATCH type child seat accord-
ing to the manufacturer’s instructions.Installation of infant and child restraint
system
This vehicle is equipped with tether
anchorages for a top tether strap at the
second-row seat backrest. For installing an
infant and child restraint system at the
third-row seats, use the cargo tie-down
rings in the cargo compartment
(
page 303).
1Anchorage ring cover
Remove anchorage ring cover1 from
seat backrest of the seat on which a
child seat is to be installed.
!Make sure the seat belt for the center seat
can operate freely with a child seat installed.
iOnly the rear outer seats can be used for in-
stalling a LATCH type child seat.
For installing a Non-LATCH type child seat use
the vehicle’s seat belt system. Install child seat
according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
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97 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
2Anchorage ring
3Hook
Move the respective head restraint to
its uppermost position (
page 135).
2Anchorage ring
3Hook
4Top tether strap
Guide top tether strap4 between
head restraint and top of seat backrest.
Securely fasten hook3, which is part
of the tether strap4, to anchorage
ring2.
Make sure

the top tether strap is not twisted

the head restraint is installed and
positioned such that the top tether
strap can pass freely between the
head restraint and top of seat back-
rest

top tether strap is positioned be-
tween the seat backrest and the
cargo compartment cover blind (if
installed)

the top tether strap is positioned
between the seat backrest and the
cargo net* (if installed)
iFor safety, make sure hook3 has attached
to anchorage ring2 beyond the safety catch, as
illustrated.

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98 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Lower the head restraint if necessary
(
page 135).
Make sure the top tether strap can
pass freely between the head restraint
and top of seat backrest.
Install the child restraint system and
tighten the top tether strap according
to the child restraint manufacturer’s in-
structions.
Blocking of rear door window operation
With the override switch you can disable
the rear side window switches in the rear
door panels.The override switch is located on the
driver’s door control panel.
1Override switch
For more information on power windows,
see “Power windows” (
page 246).
Warning!G
After installing top tether straps, make sure
that the seat backrests are in an upright po-
sition and are properly locked. Check for
secure locking by pushing and pulling on the
seat backrests. If a seat backrest is not
properly locked, the seat backrest could
fold. The child seat would no longer be prop-
erly supported or positioned to provide its
intended benefit.
Warning!G
Activate the override switch when children
are riding in the back seats of the vehicle.
The children could otherwise injure them-
selves, e.g. by becoming trapped in the win-
dow opening.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it with you, and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. A child’s unsupervised
access to a vehicle could result in an
accident and/or serious personal injury.

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99 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Disabling
Press override switch1 until it engag-
es.
The switch engages in the recessed
position.
The rear door windows can no longer
be operated using the switches located
in the rear doors.
Enabling
Press override switch1 once more.
The switch disengages from its
recessed position back to its original
position.
The rear door windows can again be
operated using the switches located in
the rear doors.
iOperating the rear door windows using the
switches located on the door control panel of the
driver’s door is still possible.
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