steering MERCEDES-BENZ GLS 2019 User Guide

Sports Utility Vehicle
G
WARNING
Due to the high center of gravity, the vehicle
may start to skid and roll over in the event of
an abrupt steering maneuver and/or when
the vehicle's speed is not adapted to the road conditions. There is a risk of an accident.
Always adapt your speed and driving style to
the vehicle's driving characteristics and to theprevailing road and weather conditions.
Utility vehicles have a significantly higher roll-
over rate than other types of vehicles.
Failure to operate this vehicle safely may result
in an accident, rollover of the vehicle, and severe or fatal injury.
In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is signif-
icantly more likely to die than a person wearing
a seat belt.
You and all vehicle occupants should always
wear your seat belts. Operating safety
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
If you do not have the prescribed service/
maintenance work or any required repairs
carried out, this can result in malfunctions or system failures. There is a risk of an accident.
Always have the prescribed service/mainte-
nance work as well as any required repairs
carried out at a qualified specialist workshop. G
WARNING
Flammable material such as leaves, grass or
twigs may ignite if they come into contact with hot parts of the exhaust system. There is a risk of fire.
When driving on an unpaved road or off-road,
check the vehicle underside regularly. In par-
ticular, remove trapped plant parts or other
flammable material. Contact a qualified spe-
cialist workshop immediately if damage is
detected. G
WARNING
Modifications to electronic components, their software as well as wiring can impair their
function and/or the function of other net-
worked components. In particular, systems
relevant to safety could also be affected. As a
result, these may no longer function as inten-
ded and/or jeopardize the operating safety of
the vehicle. There is an increased risk of an
accident and injury.
Never tamper with the wiring as well as elec-
tronic components or their software. You
should have all work to electrical and elec-
tronic equipment carried out at a qualified
specialist workshop.
! There is a risk of damage to the vehicle if:
R the vehicle becomes stuck, e.g. on a high
curb or an unpaved road
R you drive too fast over an obstacle, e.g. a
curb, a speed bump or a pothole in the road
R a heavy object strikes the underbody or
parts of the chassis
In situations like this, the body, the under-
body, chassis parts, wheels or tires could be
damaged without the damage being visible.
Components damaged in this way can unex-
pectedly fail or, in the case of an accident, no
longer withstand the loads they are designed
to.
If the underbody paneling is damaged, com-
bustible materials such as leaves, grass or
twigs can gather between the underbody and
the underbody paneling. If these materials
come in contact with hot parts of the exhaust system, they can catch fire.
In such situations, have the vehicle checked
and repaired immediately at a qualified spe-
cialist workshop. If on continuing your jour-
ney you notice that driving safety is impaired,
pull over and stop the vehicle immediately,
paying attention to road and traffic condi-
tions. In such cases, consult a qualified spe-
cialist workshop. Declarations of conformity
USA: "The wireless devices of this vehicle com-
ply with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is
subject to the two following two conditions: 1) 30
Operating safetyIntroduction

nance requirements as well as technical events
and malfunctions.
This information generally documents the con-
dition of a component, a module, a system or the
surroundings, such as:
R Operating states of system components (e.g.
fill levels, battery status, tire pressure)
R Status messages concerning the vehicle or its
individual components (e.g. wheel rpm/
speed, deceleration, lateral acceleration, indi- cation of whether seat belts are fastened)
R Malfunctions and defects in important system
components (e.g. lights, brakes)
R Information about events leading to vehicle
damage
R System responses in special driving situa-
tions (e.g. air bag deployment, intervention of
stability control systems)
R Ambient conditions (e.g. temperature, rain
sensor)
In addition to performing the actual control unit
function, this data is used by manufacturers to
detect and rectify malfunctions and to optimize vehicle functions. Most of this data is volatile
and processed only in the vehicle itself. Only a
small part of the data is stored in event or mal-
function memories.
When you use services, the technical data from
the vehicle can be read out by service network
employees (e.g. workshops, manufacturers) or
third parties (e.g. breakdown services). Services
can include repair services, maintenance pro-
cesses, warranty cases and quality assurance
measures. The data are read out via the con-
nection for the diagnostics connection in the
vehicle, which is required by law. The relevant
offices in the service network or third parties
collect, process and use the data. This data
documents the vehicle's technical states, is
used to help in finding malfunctions and improv-
ing quality and is sent to the manufacturer
where necessary. In addition, the manufacturer is subject to product liability. The manufacturerneeds technical data from vehicles for this pur-
pose.
Malfunction memories in the vehicle can be
reset by a service center during repair or service
work.
You can incorporate data into the vehicle's com- fort and infotainment functions yourself as part
of the selected equipment. These include, for example:
R Multimedia data such as music, films or pho-
tos for playback in an integrated multimedia
system
R Address book data for use in conjunction with
an integrated hands-free system or an inte-
grated navigation system
R Navigation destinations that have been
entered
R Data about using Internet services
This data can be saved locally in the vehicle or
located on a device that you have connected to
the vehicle (e.g. smartphone, USB memory stick or MP3 player). If this data is saved in the vehi-
cle, you can delete it at any time. This data is
sent to third parties only at your request, par-
ticularly when you use online services in accord- ance with the settings that you have selected.
You can save and change comfort settings/
customizations in the vehicle at any time.
Depending on the equipment in question, these can include:
R Seat and steering wheel position settings
R Suspension and climate control settings
R Custom settings such as interior lighting
If your vehicle is equipped appropriately, you
can connect your smartphone or another mobile end device to the vehicle. You can control this by
means of the control elements integrated in the vehicle. The smartphone's picture and sound
can be output via the multimedia system. Spe-
cific items of information are also sent to your
smartphone.
Depending on the type of integration, this can
include:
R General vehicle information
R Position data
This allows the use of selected smartphone
apps, such as navigation or music player apps.
There is no additional interaction between the
smartphone and the vehicle, particularly active
access to vehicle data. The type of additional
data processing is determined by the provider of the app being used. Whether you can configure
settings for it and, if so, which ones, depends on
the app and your smartphone's operating sys-
tem. Data stored in the vehicle
33Introduction Z

Cockpit
Function Page
0043
Steering wheel paddle shifter 152
0044
Combination switch 116
0087
Instrument cluster 37
0085
Horn
0083
DIRECT SELECT lever 148
0084
Parking Assist PARKTRONIC
warning display
191
006B
Overhead control panel 42
006C
Climate control systems 125
006D
Ignition lock 140
Start/Stop button 140 Function Page
006E
Adjusts the steering wheel
manually
108
006F
Adjusts the steering wheel
electrically
108
Steering wheel heating 109
0070
Cruise control lever 171
0071
Opens the hood 321
0072
Diagnostics connection 31
0073
Electric parking brake 159
0074
Light switch 11536
CockpitAt a glance

Multifunction steering wheel
Function Page
0043
Multifunction display 232
0044
Multimedia system display
0087 0059
Switches on voice-operated
navigation or the Voice Con-
trol System
0063
Mute
00810082
Adjusts the volume
0076
Rejects or ends a call 237
Exits phone book/redial
memory
0061
Makes or accepts a call
Switches to the redial mem-
ory Function Page
0085
00590065
Selects a menu 231
00630064
Selects a submenu or scrolls
through lists 231
0076
Confirms a selection 231
Hides display messages 245
0038
Back 231
Switches off voice-operated
navigation or the Voice Con-
trol System i
In vehicles with multimedia system
COMAND you can find further information:
R on the multimedia system in the Digital
Operator's Manual
R on the DVD changer or single DVD drive in
the Digital Operator's Manual
R on the Voice Control System in the sepa-
rate operating instructions i
In vehicles with multimedia system Audio 20
you can find further information:
R on the multimedia system in the Digital
Operator's Manual
R on the voice-operated control of the navi-
gation in the manufacturer's operating
instructions 38
Multifunction steering wheelAt a glance

Door control panel
Function Page
0043
Opens the door 83
0044
00360037Unlocks/locks
the vehicle
83
0087
008D
003700380040
Stores settings for the seat,
exterior mirrors and steering
column (memory function) 113
0085
Adjusts the seats 97
0083
0062007000F50071
Adjusts and folds the exterior
mirrors in/out electrically 110 Function Page
0084
0062
Opens/closes the side
windows 89
006B
00FD
Opens/closes the
hinged power side windows 89
006C
008B
Opens/closes the tail-
gate 87
006D
0089
Activates/deactivates
the override feature for the
side windows in the rear
compartment 65Door control panel
43At a glance

Panic alarm
X
To activate: press0033button 0043for at
least one second.
A visual and audible alarm is triggered if the
alarm system is armed.
X To deactivate: press0033button 0043again.
or X Insert the SmartKey into the ignition lock.
or X Press the KEYLESS-GO Start/Stop button.
The KEYLESS-GO key must be in the vehicle. Occupant safety
Introduction to the restraint system
The restraint system can reduce the risk of vehi- cle occupants coming into contact with parts of
the vehicle's interior in the event of an accident.
The restraint system can also reduce the forces to which vehicle occupants are subjected during
an accident.
The restraint system includes the following com-
ponents:
R seat belt system
R air bags
R child restraint system
R child seat securing systems
The components of the restraint system work in
conjunction with each other. They can only
deploy their protective function if, at all times, all
vehicle occupants:
R have fastened their seat belts correctly
(Y page 47)
R have the seat and head restraint adjusted
properly (Y page 97) As the driver, you also have to make sure that
the steering wheel is adjusted correctly.
Observe the information relating to the correct
driver's seat position (Y page 97).
You also have to make sure that an air bag can
inflate properly if deployed (Y page 49).
An air bag supplements a correctly worn seat
belt. As an additional safety device, the air bag
increases the level of protection for vehicle
occupants in the event of an accident. For exam- ple, if, in the event of an accident, the protectionoffered by the seat belt is sufficient, the air bags
are not deployed. When an accident occurs, only
the air bags that increase protection in that par- ticular accident situation are deployed. How-
ever, seat belts and air bags generally do not
protect against objects penetrating the vehicle
from the outside.
Information on restraint system operation can
be found under "Triggering of the Emergency
Tensioning Devices and air bags" (Y page 56).
See "Children in the vehicle" for information on
children traveling with you in the vehicle as well
as on child restraint systems (Y page 59). Important safety notes
G
WARNING
Modifications to the restraint system may
cause it to no longer work as intended. The
restraint system may then not perform its
intended protective function and may fail in an accident or trigger unexpectedly, for example.
This poses an increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Never modify parts of the restraint system.
Never tamper with the wiring, the electronic
components or their software.
If it is necessary to modify components of the
restraint system to accommodate a person with
disabilities, contact an authorized Mercedes-
Benz Center for details. USA only: for further
information contact our Customer Assistance
Center at 1-800 FOR-MERCEDES
(1‑800‑367‑6372).
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you only use
driving aids which have been approved specifi-
cally for your vehicle by Mercedes-Benz. 44
Occupant safetySafety

seconds or once the driver's seat belt is fas-
tened.
If the vehicle's speed exceeds 15 mph
(25 km/h) once and the driver's and front-
passenger seat belts are not fastened, a warning
tone sounds. A warning tone also sounds with
increasing intensity for 60 seconds or until the
driver or front passenger have fastened their
seat belts.
If the driver or front passenger unfasten their
seat belts during the journey, the seat belt warn- ing is activated again. Air bags
Introduction The installation point of an air bag can be rec-
ognized by the AIRBAG marking.
An air bag complements the correctly fastened
seat belt. It is no substitute for the seat belt.
When deployed, an air bag can increase the pro-
tection provided for the respective vehicle occu-
pant.
Not all air bags are deployed in an accident. The
different air bag systems function independ-
ently from one another (Y page 56).
However, no system available today can com-
pletely eliminate injuries and fatalities.
It is also not possible to rule out a risk of injury
caused by an air bag due to the high speed at
which the air bag must be deployed.
Important safety notes G
WARNING
If you do not sit in the correct seat position,
the air bag cannot protect as intended and
could even cause additional injury when
deployed. This poses an increased risk of
injury or even fatal injury.
To avoid hazardous situations, always make
sure that all of the vehicle's occupants:
R have fastened their seat belts correctly,
including pregnant women
R are sitting correctly and maintain the great-
est possible distance to the air bags
R follow the following instructions Always make sure that there are no objects
between the air bag and the vehicle's occu-
pants.
All vehicle occupants must observe the follow-
ing notes to avoid risks posed by the air bag
when it deploys.
R Adjust the seats properly before beginning
your journey. Always make sure that the seat
is in an almost upright position. The center of the head restraint must support the head at
about eye level.
R Move the driver's and front-passenger seats
as far back as possible. The driver's seat posi- tion must allow the vehicle to be driven safely.
R Only hold the steering wheel on the outside.
This allows the air bag to be fully deployed.
R Always lean against the backrest while driv-
ing. Do not lean forward or lean against the
door or side window. You may otherwise be in the deployment area of the air bags.
R Always keep your feet in the footwell in front
of the seat. Do not put your feet on the dash-
board, for example. Your feet may otherwise
be in the deployment area of the air bag.
R For this reason, always secure persons less
than 5 ft (1.50 m) tall in suitable restraint sys-
tems. Up to this height, the seat belt cannot
be worn correctly.
If a child is traveling in your vehicle, also
observe the following notes:
R Always secure children under twelve years of
age and less than 5 ft (1.50 m)tall in suitable
child restraint systems.
R Child restraint systems should be installed on
the rear seats.
R Secure a child to the front-passenger seat
only when the front-passenger front air bag is
deactivated, and then only in a rearward-
facing child restraint system. The front-
passenger front air bag is deactivated when
the PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp
is lit continuously (Y page 45).
R Always observe the instructions and safety
notes on the "Occupant Classification System
(OCS)" (Y page 51) and on "Children in the
vehicle" (Y page 59) in addition to the child
restraint system manufacturer's installation
and operating instructions.
Objects in the vehicle interior may restrict
the air bag from functioning correctly. To
avoid risks resulting from the speed of the air Occupant safety
49Safety Z

bag as it deploys, vehicle occupants must
ensure the following points.
Before commencing your journey, ensure that:
R there are no people, animals or objects
between the vehicle occupants and an air bag
R there are no objects between the seat, door
and B-pillar
R there are no hard objects, e.g. coat hangers,
hanging on the grab handles or coat hooks
R no accessories, such as cup holders, are
attached to the vehicle within the deployment
area of an air bag, e.g. to doors, side windows,
rear side trim or side walls
R no heavy, sharp-edged or fragile objects are in
the pockets of your clothing. Store such
objects in a suitable place G
WARNING
If you modify the air bag cover or affix objects
such as stickers to it, the air bag can no longer function correctly. There is an increased risk
of injury.
Never modify an air bag cover or affix objects to it. G
WARNING
Sensors to control the air bags are located in the doors. Modifications or work not per-
formed correctly to the doors or door panel-
ing, as well as damaged doors, can lead to the
function of the sensors being impaired. The air bags might therefore not function properly
anymore. Consequently, the air bags cannot
protect vehicle occupants as they are
designed to do. There is an increased risk of
injury.
Never modify the doors or parts of the doors.
Always have work on the doors or door pan-
eling carried out at a qualified specialist work- shop.
Front air bags !
Do not place heavy objects on the front-
passenger seat. This could cause the system
to identify the seat as being occupied. In the
event of an accident, the restraint systems on the front-passenger side may be triggered
and have to be replaced. Driver's air bag
0043deploys in front of the steer-
ing wheel. Front-passenger front air bag 0044
deploys in front of and above the glove box.
When deployed, the front air bags offer addi-
tional head and thorax protection for the occu-
pants in the front seats.
The PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp
informs you about the status of the front-
passenger front air bag (Y page 45).
The front-passenger front air bag will only
deploy if:
R the system, based on the OCS weight sensor
readings, detects that the front-passenger
seat is occupied (Y page 51). The
PASSENGER AIR BAG OFF indicator lamp is
not lit (Y page 52)
R the restraint system control unit predicts a
high accident severity
Driver's knee bag Driver's knee bag
0043deploys under the steering
column. The driver's knee bag is deployed
together with the front air bag.
The driver's knee bag offers additional thigh,
knee and lower leg protection for the occupant
in the driver's seat. 50
Occupant safetySafety

If the seat belt pre-tensioning is not reduced:
X Move the seat backrest or seat back slightly
when the vehicle is stationary.
The seat belt pre-tensioning is reduced and
the locking mechanism is released.
The seat-belt adjustment is an integral part of
the PRE-SAFE ®
convenience function. Informa-
tion about the convenience function can be
found under "Belt adjustment" (Y page 48).PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS (anticipatory occu-
pant protection system PLUS)
Introduction PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS is only available in vehicles
with the Driving Assistance PLUS package.
Using the radar sensor system, PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS is able to detect that a head-on or rear-end
collision is imminent. In certain hazardous sit-
uations, PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS takes pre-emptive
measures to protect the vehicle occupants.
Important safety notes The intervention of PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS cannot
prevent an imminent collision.
The driver is not warned about the intervention
of PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS.
PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS does not intervene if the vehi-
cle is backing up.
When driving, or when parking or exiting a park-
ing space using Active Parking Assist, PRE-
SAFE ®
PLUS will not apply the brakes.
Function PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS intervenes in certain situa-
tions if the radar sensor system detects an
imminent head-on or rear-end collision. PRE-SAFE
®
PLUS takes the following measures
depending on the hazardous situation detected:
R if the radar sensor system detects that a
head-on collision is imminent, the seat belts
are pre-tensioned.
R if the radar sensor system detects that a rear-
end collision is imminent:
- the brake pressure is increased if the driver
applies the brakes when the vehicle is sta- tionary.
- the seat belts are pre-tensioned.
The PRE-SAFE ®
PLUS braking application is can-
celed:
R if the accelerator pedal is depressed when a
gear is engaged
R if the risk of a collision passes or is no longer
detected
R if Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC indicates
an intention to intervene
If the hazardous situation passes without result- ing in an accident, the original settings are
restored. Automatic measures after an acci-
dent
Immediately after an accident, the following
measures are implemented, depending on the
type and severity of the impact:
R the hazard warning lamps are switched on
R the emergency lighting is activated
R the vehicle doors are unlocked
R the front side windows are lowered
R vehicles with a memory function: the electri-
cally adjustable steering wheel is raised when
the driver's door is opened
R the engine is switched off and the fuel supply
is cut off
R vehicles with Mercedes me connect: auto-
matic emergency call Children in the vehicle
Important safety notes
Accident statistics show that children secured
in the rear seats are safer than children secured
in the front-passenger seat. For this reason,
Mercedes-Benz strongly advises that you install Children in the vehicle
59Safety Z

When leaving the vehicle, always take the
SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave children unsupervised in the vehicle. G
WARNING
If persons, particularly children are subjected to prolonged exposure to extreme heat or
cold, there is a risk of injury, possibly even
fatal. Never leave children unattended in the
vehicle. G
WARNING
If the child restraint system is subjected to
direct sunlight, parts may get very hot. Chil-
dren may burn themselves on these parts,
particularly on the metal parts of the child
restraint system. There is a risk of injury.
If you leave the vehicle, taking the child with
you, always ensure that the child restraint
system is not exposed to direct sunlight. Pro- tect it with a blanket, for example. If the child
restraint system has been exposed to direct
sunlight, let it cool down before securing the
child in it. Never leave children unattended in the vehicle.
Child-proof locks for the rear doors You secure each door individually with the child-
proof locks on the rear doors. A door secured
with a child-proof lock cannot be opened from
inside the vehicle. When the vehicle is unlocked, the door can be opened from the outside. X
To activate: press the child-proof lock lever
up in the direction of arrow 0043.
X Make sure that the child-proof locks are work-
ing properly.
X To deactivate: press the child-proof lock
lever down in the direction of arrow 0044.
Override feature for the rear side win-
dows X
To activate/deactivate: press button0043.
If indicator lamp 0044is lit, operation of the rear
side windows is disabled. Operation is only
possible using the switches in the driver's
door. If indicator lamp 0044is off, operation is
possible using the switches in the rear com-
partment. Pets in the vehicle
G
WARNING
If you leave animals unsupervised or unse-
cured in the vehicle, they may press buttons
or switches, for instance.
In this way, animals may:
R activate vehicle equipment and become
trapped, for example
R switch systems on or off and thereby
endanger other road users
Furthermore, unsecured animals may be flung
around inside the vehicle in the event of an
accident or abrupt steering or braking maneu- ver, and thereby injure vehicle occupants.
There is a risk of accident and injury. Pets in the vehicle
65Safety
Z