MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class 2012 W166 Owner's Manual
Manufacturer: MERCEDES-BENZ, Model Year: 2012, Model line: M-Class, Model: MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class 2012 W166Pages: 396, PDF Size: 14.48 MB
Page 311 of 396

Infr
ared reflect ivewind shield
The infrar ed reflec ting glass preven tsthe
veh icleint erio rfrom becomi ngtoo hot. Itals o
blocks radiowa ves upinto thegiga hertz
range. In
order toopera teradi o-controlled
equ ipme nt,e.g. tollrecordi ngsystems ,
area s: onthe winds hieldare permea bleto
radi owa ves. Inthese areas,you can install
radi o-controlled systems.
These areascan best beseen fromoutside
the vehicl eby observi ngthe light reflected off
the winds hield. Fe
atures
309Stowing and features Z
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310
Page 313 of 396

Useful
information........ .......... .......... 312
Engine compartment ........................ 312
Maint enance .................. .................... 317
Care ...................................... .............. 318 311Maintenance and care
Page 314 of 396

Useful
information
i This
Operat or'sManual describesall
models andallstan dard andoption al
equipment ofyour vehicle available atthe
time ofpublication ofthe Operat or's
Manual. Country-specificdiffer encesare
possible. Pleasenotethat your vehicle may
not beequipped withallfeature s
descr ibed. Thisalso applies tosafet y-
related systemsand func tions. i
Please
readtheinfor mation onqualified
specialist workshops(Ypage 25). Engine
compartment Hood
Opening thehood G
WARN
ING Do
not pull therelease leverwhile thevehicle
is in mot ion. Othe rwise, thehood could be
forc edopen bypassing airflow.
This could cause thehood tocome looseand
inj ure you and/o rothe rs. G
WA
RNING Do
not open the hoodwh en the engineis
ove rheated.Yo ucou ldbe serio uslyinju red.
Ob serve the coolant temp eraturedisp layto
de term inewheth erthe enginemaybe
ove rheated.Ifyo use efla mes orsmo ke
comi ngfromthe enginecomp artment, move
aw ay fromt hevehicle. Waituntiltheengine
has cooled. Ifnecessary, callthefire
department. G
WARNING There
isarisk ofinjury ifthe hood isopen,
even ifthe engine isnot running.
Some engine componen tscan become very
hot.
To avoid therisk ofburns, onlytouch those
componen tsdescribed inthe Operator's
Manual andobserve therelevant safetynotes. G
WARNING To
help prevent personal injury,stayclear of
moving partswhen thehood isopen andthe
engine isrunning.
The radiator fanmay continue torun for
approximately 30seconds ormay even
restart aftertheengine hasbeen turned off.
Stay clear offan blades. G
WARNING Vehicles
withgasoline engine:
The engine isequipp edwith atransist orized
ignition system. Because ofthe high voltage
it is dangerous totouch anycomponen ts
(ignition coils,spark plugsocket s,diagnostic
socket )of the ignition system
R with theengine running
R while startin gthe engine
R when theignition isswitched onand the
engine isturned manually G
WARNING Vehicles
withdiesel engine:
The engine isequipp edwith ahigh-voltage
electronic controlunit forthe inject ion
system. Because ofthe high voltage itis
dangerous totouch anycomponen tsof the
inject ionsystem (injectors,electrical wires)
R with theengine running
R while startin gthe engine
R when theignition isswitched on
X Make surethatthewindshield wipersare
switched off. G
WARNING The
windshield wipersandwiper linkage
could beset inmotion.
When thehood isopen, youorothers could
be injured bythe wiper linkage.
Make surethatthewindshield wipersare
switched off.Remove theSmartKey ormake
sure thatnoignition position hasbeen
selected withKEYLES S-GO.Allindicator
lamps mustbeoff inthe instrumen tcluster. 312
Engi
necompar tmentMaintenance and care
Page 315 of 396

X
Pull release lever:for the hood.
The hood isreleased.
! Make surethatthewindshield wipersare
not folded awayfromthewindshield. You
could otherwise damagethewindshield
wipers orthe hood. X
Reach intothegap, pullhood catch
handle ;upand liftthe hood.
Onc eyou have lifted thehood about
15 inches (40cm), itis automatically
opened therest ofthe way andheld open
by the gas-filled struts.
Closing thehood G
WARNIN
G When
closing thehood, useextreme caution
not tocatc hhands orfingers. Becareful that
you donot close thehood onanyone.
Make surethehood issecurely engaged
before driving off.Donot cont inue driving if
the hood cannolonger engage afteran
accident ,for example. Thehood could otherwise
comeloosewhilethevehicle isin
motion andinjure youand/or others.
X Lower thehood andletitfall from aheight
of approximately 8inches (20cm).
X Check thatthehood hasengaged properly.
If the hood canberaised slightly, itis not
properly engaged. Openitagain andclose
it with alittle more force. Rad
iator i
Vehicles
withadiesel engine: donot
cov erthe radiator ,for examp lewith a
wint erfron tor bug cover.The reading sof
the on-board- diagnos ticsyste mmay
ot her wise beinac curate.Some ofthese
readings arerequired bylaw and must be
accurate atall times. Engine
oil
Notes onthe oillevel Dependin
gon the driving style,thevehicle
consumes upto0.9 USqts. (0.8 l)of oil over
a distance of600 miles (1000 km).Theoil
consumpt ionmay behigher thanthiswhen
the vehicle isnew orifyou frequently driveat
high engine speeds.
Checking theoillevel using theoil
dipst ick Example:
vehicleswithagasoline engine Engine
compar tment
313Maintenance and care Z
Page 316 of 396

Exam
ple: veh icles with adi ese leng ine
X Pa rk the vehicleon alevel surfa ce.
To che ckthe oille vel with the engineat
op era ting temp erature,sw itch theengine
off and waitfor appro xima telyfiv eminu tes.
X Pu lloi ldi psti ck: outo fthe dipstick guide
tube.
X Wipe offoildipstick :.
X Slowly slideoildipstick :into theguide
tube tothe stop, andtake itout again.
If the level isbetween MINmark =and
MAX mark ;,theoillevel iscorrect .
X Ifthe fuel level hassunk toMIN mark =or
below, add0.55 to1.1 USqt(0.5 to1.0 l)
engine oil.
Adding engineoil G
WARNING If
engine oilcomes intocontactwith hot
engine parts,itmay ignite andyoucould burn
yourself. Donot spill anyengine oilon hot
engine parts. H
Environmental
note When
adding oil,take carenottospill any. If
oil enters thesoil orwaterway s,itis harmful
to the environm ent.
! Use only engine oilsand oilfilters that
have been approved forvehicles equipped
with aservice system. Alist ofthe engine
oils and oilfilters tested and approv edin
acc ordan cewith theMerc edes- Benz
Spec ification sfor ServiceProduc tscan be called
upbyvisit inghttp://
www.mb usa.com (USAonly). More
inf orm ation about tested and approv ed
eng ineoils and oilfilters isavailable from
any author izedMerc edes- BenzCent er.
Damage tothe engin eor exhaust systemis
caused bythe following:
R using engineoils and oilfilters which
have notbeen specific allyapproved for
the servic esystem.
R replacing theengin eoil oroil filter after
the replacemen tinterv alreq uired bythe
ser vicesy stem hasel ap sed
R us ing eng ineoilad ditive s.
! Donot addtoo muchoil.If the oille vel is
ab ove the"max" markon the dipsti ck,too
mu choilha sbe en adde d. Thi scan lead to
damag eto theen gin eor thecat alytic
co nvert er. Hav eex ces soil siph oned off. Ex
ample :engi ne oilcap
X Tu rn cap :cou ntercl ockwise and remo ve
it.
X Add engineoil.
If the oille vel isat or below the MIN mark
on the oildi psti ck,
ad d0.55 to1.1 USqt(0.5 to1.0 l)engi ne
oi l.
X Re place cap :onthe fillerneck andturn
clo ckwi se.
Ensu retha tthe cap locks into place
secu rely.
X Ch eck theoille vel againw iththe oil
dipst ick(Ypage 313). 314
Engine
compartm entMaintenance and care
Page 317 of 396

Furth
erinfor mationonengi neoil
(Y page 388). Che
cking and adding otherserv ice
pr odu cts
Checkin gth ecoolant level On
lyche ckthecoo lant level when theveh icle
is on alevel surface and theeng inehas cooled
down .
X Turn theSm artKey toposit ion
2 (Y page 139)intheign itio nlock .
On veh icleswith KEYLE SS-GO ,pres sth e
St art /S topbutt ontwic e(Ypage 139).
X Check thecoolant temperaturegauge in
the multifun ction display.
The coolant temperaturemustbebelow
158 ‡(70 †). G
WARN
ING In
order toavoid anypoten tiallyserious burns:
R use extreme caution whenopenin gthe
hood ifther eare any signs ofsteam or
coolant leakingfromthecoolin gsystem ,or
if the coolant temperaturedisplay indicates
that thecoolant isoverheat ed.
R do not remov ethe pressure caponthe
coolant reservoirifthe coolant temperature
is above 158‡(70 †). Allow theengine to
cool downbefore removin gthe cap. The
coolant reservoircon tains hotfluid andis
under pressure.
R using arag, slowly turnthecap
approximat ely1
/ 2 turn
torelieve excess
pressure. Ifopened immediately, scalding
hot fluid andsteam willbeblown outunder
pressure.
R do not spill antifreeze onhot engine parts.
An tifr eeze contains ethylene glycolwhich
may burn ifit comes intocontact with hot
engine parts. X
Slowly turncap:half aturn count er-
clock wiseandallow excesspressure to
escape.
X Turn cap:furth ercount er-clockwise and
remove it.
If the coolant isat the level ofmarker bar
= inthe filler neck when cold,there is
enough coolant incoolant expansion
tank ;.
If the coolant isapproximat ely0.6 in
(1.5 cm)above marker bar=inthe filler
neck when warm, thereisenough coolant
in coolant expansion tank;.
X Ifneces sary,addcoolant thathasbeen
test edand approved byMercedes- Benz.
X Replace cap:and turn itclock wiseasfar
as itwill go.
For furth erinfor mation oncoolant ,see
(Y page 389).
Windshield washersystemand
headla mpcleaning system The
washer fluidreservo iris used forboth the
windshield washersystemandtheheadlamp
cleanin gsystem. i
Vehicle
compon entsand their servic e
product smust match.You should,
theref ore,only useproduct sthat have been
test edand approved byMercedes- Benz.
Inf ormation ontest edand approved
product scan beobtained atany authorized
Mercedes- BenzCenter oron the Internet at
htt p://ww w.mbu sa.com (USAonly). Engine
compartment
315Maintenance and care Z
Page 318 of 396

G
WARNING Wash
ersolve nt/antifreeze ishigh ly
flamma ble.Donot spill washer solvent/
antifreez eon hot engine parts,because itmay
ignite andburn. Youcould beseriously
burned.
! Attemperatures belowfreezin g:alwa ys
fill the washer fluidreservoir withamix of
water andwindshield washerconcentrate
(e.g. MBWinterF it).There isotherwise a
risk ofdamaging thewindshield washer
system/headlamp cleaningsystem.
! Only usewasher fluidconcentratewhich
is suitable forplastic lenses. Unsuitable
washer fluidconc entratecould damage the
plastic lensesofthe headlamps.
! Donot add distilled orde-ionized waterto
the washer fluidcontainer. Otherwise, the
level sensor maybedamaged. i
Add
windshield washerconcentrate, e.g.
MB SummerF it,to the washer fluidallyear
round. Example:
washerfluidreservoir
X Mix thewindshield washerfluidina
cont ainer beforehand.
X At temp eratures above freezing: fillthe
washer fluidreservoir withamixof water
and winds hieldwasher concentrate (e.g.
MB Summ erFit).
X At tem peratur es below freezing: fillthe
washer fluidreser voirwith amixof water
and winds hieldwasher concentrate (e.g.
MB Wint erFit).Adapt themixingratioto the outs
idetem perat ure.Forinform ation on
the mixing ratio(Y page 390).
X To open: pullcap:upwards bythe tab.
X Add theprem ixedwasher fluid.
X To close: presscap:ontothe filler neck
unt ilit eng ages.
Br ake fluid level !
Ifyou notice that thebrak efluid level in
the brak efluid reser voirhasfallen tothe
MIN mark orless, checkthe brak esyst em
immed iatelyforleaks. Alsocheckthe
thick ness ofthe brake linings. Contact a
qual ified specialist workshop, e.g.an
authorized Mercedes-Ben zCent er
immediately.
Do not add brake fluid.Thisdoes not
corr ectthe error.
Only checkthe brake fluidlevel when the
vehicle isstationary andonalevel surface.
In order tocheck thebrake fluidlevel, the
cover above thebrake fluidreservoir mustbe
removed. X
Remove seal;inthe area around
cover :inthe direction ofthe arrow. 316
Engi
necompar tmentMaintenance and care
Page 319 of 396

X
Raise cover :atthefron t.
X Pull outcover :inthedir ection ofthe
arr ow. The
brak efluid levelisco rrec tifiti sbetween
MIN marking ?and MAX marking =onthe
brake fluidreservoir.
Cover :isinstalled inthe reverse order.
When doingso,make surethattheguide sof
cover :engage inthe slots inthe bulkhead . Maintenance
Service
interval display
Service messages Information
onthe type ofservice andservice
intervals (seeseparate ServiceBooklet).
You canobtain further information froman
authorized Mercedes-Benz Centerorat
http: //www.mbusa.com (USAonly).
The service interval message informsyouof
the next service duedate. The
multifunction displayshows aservice
message forseveral seconds, e.g.: Next
Service ADue in..Days Service
ADue Service
AExceeded by... Days The
letter indicates whichservice isdue. A
stands
foraminor service and B for
amajor
service. Anumber oranother lettermaybe
displa yedafter theletter. Thisfigure indicates
any necessary additionalmaintenance work
to be performed.
You canobtain further information froman
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
The service interval displaydoes nottake into
account anyperiods oftime during whichthe
battery isdisconn ected.
Maintaining thetime-depen dentservice
schedule:
X Note down theservice duedate display ed
in the multifunct iondisplay before
disconn ectingthe battery.
or
X Subtract thebattery disconn ectionperiods
from theservice dateshown onthe display
after recon nectingthe battery. i
The
service intervaldisplay doesnot
provide anyinformat ionregarding the
engine's oillevel. Observe thenoteson the
engine oillevel (Ypage 313).
Hiding aserv ice mes sage X
Pres sth e% ora buttononthe
st eerin gwheel.
Displa yingservice messages X
Swit chon theign itio n.
X Pres s= or; onthest eerin gwheel
to selec tthe Serv. menu.
X Press 9or: toselect the ASSYST
PLUS submenu
andpress atoconfirm .
The service duedate appea rsinthe
multifunction display. Maintenance
317Maintenance and care Z
Page 320 of 396

Please
bearthefollow inginmind Resetting
theservice interval display
Aq ualifi edspec ialist workshop,e.g. an
auth orizedMer cedes- BenzCent er,will reset
the servic eint erval display afterthe
nec essary servicework hasbeen carried out.
Furt herinfor mation ,on maint enanc efor
example, canbeobtained atan authoriz ed
Mercedes- BenzCenter ordirect lyfrom
Mercedes- Benz.
! Ifthe servic eint erval display hasbeen
reset unintentionally, havethesetting
corr ectedataMercedes- BenzCenter .
Have servic ework carried outasdescribed
in the Serv iceBook let.This may other wise
lead toincr eased wearanddamage tothe
major assemblies orthe vehicle.
Driving abroad
An ext ensive Mercedes- BenzServ icenetwork
is also available inother countries.Youcan
obtain furtherinfor mation fromany
authoriz edMercedes- BenzCenter . Care
Notes
oncare
Regular careofyour vehicle isacon dition for
retain ingthe quality inthe long term.
Use care product sand cleanin gagents
recom mended andapproved byMercedes-
Ben z. G
WARN
ING Many
cleanin gproduct scan behazardous.
Some arepoisonous, othersare flammable.
Always followtheinstruct ions onthe
particular container .Always openyour
vehic le'sdoors orwindows whencleaningthe
inside .
Never usefluids orsolven tsthat arenot
design edfor clean ingyour vehic le.
Always lockaway cleaningproduc tsand keep
the mout ofreach ofchildr en. !
For clean ingyour vehic le,do not use any
of the followin g:
R dry, rough orhard cloths
R abrasive cleaningagent s
R solven ts
R clean ingagent scon tain ingsolven ts
Do not scrub.
Do not touc hthe surfac esorprot ective
films withhard objects, e.g. arin gor ice
scr aper. Youcould otherwise scratc hor
damage thesurfac esand protective film. H
Envir
onment alnote Disp
oseofempt ypack aging andclean ing
clot hsinan env iron men tally respo nsible
mann er.
! Donot park thevehic lefor anext ended
period straight afterclean ingit,part icularly
aft erhavin gclean edthe wheels withwheel
clean er.Wheel cleanerscould cause
inc reased corrosio nofthe brake discsand
brake pads/linings. Forthis reason, you
should driveforafew minutes after
cleaning. Brakingheatsthebrake discsand
the brake pads/linings, thusdrying them.
The vehicle canthen beparked. Exterior
care
Automat iccar wash G
WARNING Braking
efficiency isreduced afterwashing
the vehicle. Thiscould cause anaccident. For
this reason, youmust driveparticularly
carefully afterwashing thevehicle untilthe
brakes havedried.
You canwash thevehicle inan automatic car
wash fromthevery start.
! Never cleanyourvehicle inaTouchless
Automatic CarWash asthese usespecial
cleaning agents.Thesecleaning agentscan
damage thepaintwork orplastic parts. 318
CareMaintenance and care