warning MERCEDES-BENZ S CLASS 2005 Owners Manual

195 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Nearly all dust particles, pollutants and
odors are filtered out before outside air en-
ters the passenger compartment through
the air distribution system.
The air conditioning will not engage (no
cooling) if the ± mode is selected
(page 202).
Setting the temperature
Use temperature controls aand8
(page 194) to separately adjust the air
temperature on each side of the passenger
compartment. You should raise or lower
the temperature setting in small incre-
ments, preferably starting at 72°F (22°C).
Increasing/decreasing

Press button a or 8 repeatedly until
the display shows the desired tempera-
ture.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for heat-
ing and cooling given on the following pag-
es. Otherwise the windows could fog up,
impairing visibility and endangering you and
others.
iThe current climate control settings
(ON/OFF, temperature, air volume, ac-
tivated charcoal filter, etc.) are stored
for each SmartKey before it is removed
from the starter switch or when the ve-
hicle is locked using the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* (
page 108).
If the vehicle interior is hot, ventilate
the interior before driving off.
Keep the air intake grille in front of the
windshield free of snow, leaves, sticks,
and any other debris.
Do not obstruct air volume by placing
objects on the air volume-through ex-
haust slots below the rear window.
iWhen operating the climate control
system in automatic mode, you will
only rarely need to adjust the tempera-
ture, air volume and air distribution.

199 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Defrosting
Activating
Press buttonP (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.

Switch off air recirculation, if selected.

Press button, (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.

Close center air vents.

Adjust side air vents upwards.
Deactivating

Press buttonP (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. Defrosting is turned off.
Air recirculation mode
Switch to air recirculation mode to prevent
unpleasant odors from entering the vehicle
from the outside. This setting cuts off the
intake of outside air and recirculates the
air in the passenger compartment.
Activating
Press button, (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
iThese settings should only be selected
for a short time.
Warning!
G
When the outside temperature is below
41°F (5°C), only switch to air recirculation
mode for short periods to prevent window
fogging.iIf you keep button, pressed, the
side windows and the tilt/sliding sun-
roof will close.
Warning!
G
Never operate the side windows and the
tilt/sliding sunroof if there is the possibility
of anyone being harmed by the closing pro-
cedure.
In the event that the procedure causes po-
tential danger, the closing of the side win-
dows can be immediately halted by pressing
the respective window switch. The closing of
the tilt/sliding sunroof can be immediately
halted by moving the tilt/sliding sunroof
switch in the overhead control panel in any
direction.
The closing of the side windows and the
tilt/sliding sunroof can be reversed by again
pressing and holding the, button.

201 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Deactivating
Press buttone (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.The system automatically switches to the
air recirculation mode if the carbon
monoxide (CO) or nitrogen oxide (NO
X)
concentration of the outside air increases
beyond a predetermined level, for example
in a tunnel.
The automatic air recirculation mode does
not function if ± is selected or if the
outside temperature has fallen below
41°F (5°C).
The activated charcoal filter should be
switched off when windows fog up on the
inside, or if the passenger compartment
needs to be quickly heated or cooled
down.
Rear window defroster
The rear window defroster uses a large
amount of power. To keep battery drain to
a minimum, switch off the defroster as
soon as the rear window is clear. The de-
froster is automatically deactivated after
approximately 6 to 17 minutes of opera-
tion depending on the outside tempera-
ture.
Activating
Press buttonF (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
Deactivating

Press buttonF (
page 194) again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
Warning!
G
Never operate the side windows and the
tilt/sliding sunroof if there is the possibility
of anyone being harmed by the closing pro-
cedure.
In the event that the procedure causes po-
tential danger, the closing of the side win-
dows can be immediately halted by pressing
the respective window switch. The closing of
the tilt/sliding sunroof can be immediately
halted by moving the tilt/sliding sunroof
switch in the overhead control panel in any
direction.
The closing of the side windows and
tilt/sliding sunroof can be reversed by again
pressing and holding thee button.
iIf you keep buttone pressed, the
side windows and the tilt/sliding sun-
roof will return to their previous posi-
tion.

202 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control
Deactivating the climate control sys-tem
Deactivating
It is possible to completely deactivate the
automatic climate control system. 
Press button M (
page 194).
The display shows “0”.
Reactivating
There are several ways to reactivate the
automatic climate control system:

Press one of the following buttons,
M, P, U, a temperature con-
trol switch (
page 194) or air volume
switch 9 on the automatic climate
control panel.
Air conditioning
The air conditioning is operational while
the engine is running and cools the interior
air to the temperature set by the operator.
Deactivating
It is possible to deactivate the air condi-
tioning (cooling) function of the automatic
climate control system. The air in the vehi-
cle will then no longer be cooled or dehu-
midified.
Press button± (
page 194).
The indicator lamp on the button±
comes on.
Warning!
G
Any accumulation of snow and ice should be
removed from the rear window before driv-
ing. Visibility could otherwise be impaired,
endangering you and others.!If the rear window defroster switches
off too soon and the indicator lamp
starts flashing, this means that too
many electrical consumers are operat-
ing simultaneously and there is insuffi-
cient voltage in the battery. The system
responds automatically by deactivating
the rear window defroster.
As soon as the battery has sufficient
voltage, the rear window defroster au-
tomatically turns itself back on.
iCondensation may drip out from under-
neath the vehicle. This is normal and
not an indication of a malfunction.

206 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlRear automatic climate control panel
iWhen the rear seats are not occupied
(rear seat belts unbuckled) the rear cli-
mate control system adopts the set-
tings of the front climate control
system.
Item
1
Left center air vent, adjustable
2
Display
3
Right center air vent, adjustable
4
Thumbwheel for air distribution
5
Temperature control, right
6
Air volume (automatic, manual)
7
Temperature control, left
8
Rear climate control system on/off
Residual engine heat utilization
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for heat-
ing and cooling as given in the instructions
for the front automatic climate control
(page 192). Otherwise the windows could
fog up, impairing visibility for the driver and
endangering you and others.

207 Controls in detail
Power windows
Power windows
Opening and closing the power windows
The side windows are opened and closed
electrically. The switches for all side win-
dows are on the driver’s door. The switch-
es for the respective windows are on the
front passenger door and the rear doors.
1Left front window
2Right front window
3Right rear window
4Left rear window
5Rear window override switch
(
page 78)
Warning!
G
When closing the windows, make sure that
there is no danger of anyone being harmed
by the closing procedure.
The closing of the door windows can be im-
mediately halted by releasing the switch or,
if the switch was pressed past the resis-
tance point and released, by pressing the re-
spective switch.
The door windows are equipped with the ex-
press-close and automatic reversal func-
tion. If the window encounters an
obstruction that blocks its path in a circum-
stance where you pressed the switch past
the resistance point and released it to close
the window, the automatic reversal function
will stop the window and open it slightly.
If the window encounters an obstruction
that blocks its path in a circumstance where
you are closing the window by pressing and
holding the switch, by pressing and holding
button ‹ on the SmartKey, or by press-
ing and holding the lock button (vehicles
with KEYLESS-GO*) on the door handle, the
automatic reversal function will not operate.
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. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.iYou can also open or close the win-
dows using the SmartKey, see “Sum-
mer opening feature” (
page 209) and
“Convenience closing feature”
(
page 210).
You can close and reopen the windows
using the air recirculation button,
or the charcoal filter buttone in the
climate control panel (
page 194).

208 Controls in detailPower windows
Switch on ignition (
page 34).
Opening the windows

Press switch1 to 4 at the
symbolk to the resistance point.
The corresponding window will move
downwards until you release the
switch.Closing the windows

Press switch1 to 4 at the
symbolj to the resistance point.
The corresponding window will move
upwards until you release the switch.
Fully opening the windows
(Express-open)

Press switch1 to 4 at the
symbolk past the resistance point
and release.
The corresponding window opens com-
pletely.Fully closing the windows
(Express-close)

Press switch1 to 4 at the
symbolj past the resistance point
and release.
The corresponding window closes com-
pletely.
iOperating the windows from the rear is
not possible if you activate the override
switch (
page 78).
iWith the SmartKey in starter switch po-
sition 0 or removed from the starter
switch, the power windows can be op-
erated:

until you open the driver’s or front
passenger door


for at least five minutes.
Warning
G
If you press and hold the switch up when
closing the window, and upward movement
of the window is blocked by some obstruc-
tion including but not limited to arms, hands,
fingers, etc., the automatic reversal will not
operate.
Warning!
G
Driver's door only:
If within five seconds you again press the
switch past the resistance point and re-
lease, the automatic reversal will not func-
tion.

210 Controls in detailPower windows
Aim transmitter eye of the SmartKey or
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* at the
driver’s outside door handle.

Press and hold button Πuntil the
windows and tilt/sliding sunroof have
reached the desired position.

Release button Πto interrupt pro-
cedure.
Convenience closing feature
When you lock the vehicle, you can close
the windows and tilt/sliding sunroof simul-
taneously. 
Aim transmitter eye of the SmartKey or
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* at the
driver’s outside door handle
(page 210).

Press and hold button ‹ until the
windows and tilt/sliding sunroof are
completely closed.

Release button ‹ to interrupt pro-
cedure.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:

Press and hold button ‹ or the lock
button at the outside door handle
(page 58) until the side windows and
the tilt/sliding sunroof are completely
closed.

Release button Πor the lock button
at the outside door handle to interrupt
procedure.
Warning!
G
When closing the windows and the tilt/slid-
ing sunroof, make sure that there is no dan-
ger of anyone being harmed by the closing
procedure.
If potential danger exists, proceed as fol-
lows:

Release button
‹
to reverse direc-
tion of movement, press button
Œ

for opening or button
‹
for closing.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*:


Pull on the door handle and hold firmly.
The side windows and the tilt/sliding
sunroof will open for as long as the door
handle is held but the door is not
opened.

211 Controls in detail
Power tilt/sliding sunroof
Power tilt/sliding sunroof
Opening and closing the power tilt/sliding sunroof
The tilt/sliding sunroof can be opened and
closed electrically. The switch for the
tilt/sliding sunroof is on the overhead con-
trol panel.
1Push up to raise sunroof at rear
2Pull down to lower sunroof at rear
3Push forward to slide sunroof closed
4Push back to slide sunroof openWith the sunroof closed or tilted open, a
screen can be slid into the roof opening to
guard against sun rays. When sliding the
sunroof open, the screen will also retract.
Warning!
G
When closing the tilt/sliding sunroof, make
sure that there is no danger of anyone being
harmed by the closing procedure.
The closing procedure of the tilt/sliding sun-
roof can be immediately halted by releasing
the switch or, if the switch was moved past
the resistance point and released, by mov-
ing the switch in any direction.
The tilt/sliding sunroof is made out of glass.
In the event of an accident, the glass may
shatter. This may result in an opening in the
roof.
In a vehicle rollover, occupants not wearing
their seat belts or not wearing them properly
may be thrown out of the opening. Such an
opening also presents a potential for injury
for occupants wearing their seat belts
properly as entire body parts or portions of
them may protrude from the passenger
compartment.


214 Controls in detailDriving systemsThe driving systems of your vehicle are de-
scribed on the following pages:

Cruise control and Distronic*, with
which the vehicle can maintain a preset
speed.


Airmatic adjusts the vehicle suspen-
sion characteristics automatically and
controls the vehicle level.


ABC* with vehicle level control system,
with which you can change vehicle sus-
pension characteristics.


Parktronic*, which serves as a parking
assistant.
For information on the BAS, ABS, and ESP
driving systems, see “Driving safety sys-
tems” (
page 80).
Cruise control
Cruise control automatically maintains the
speed you set for your vehicle.
Use of cruise control is recommended for
driving at a constant speed for extended
periods of time. You can set or resume
cruise control at any speed over 20 mph
(30 km/h).
The cruise control function is operated by
means of the cruise control lever.
The cruise control lever is the uppermost
lever on the left-hand side of the steering
column (
page 22).
Warning!
G
Cruise control is a convenience system de-
signed to assist the driver during vehicle op-
eration. The driver is and must remain at all
times responsible for the vehicle speed and
for safe brake operation.
Only use cruise control if the road, traffic
and weather conditions make it advisable to
travel at a steady speed.

The use of cruise control can be danger-
ous on winding roads or in heavy traffic
because conditions do not allow safe
driving at a steady speed.


The use of cruise control can be danger-
ous on slippery roads. Rapid changes in
tire traction can result in wheel spin and
loss of control.


Deactivate cruise control when driving
in fog.
The “Resume” function should only be oper-
ated if the driver is fully aware of the previ-
ously set speed and wishes to resume this
particular preset speed.