all wheel drive MERCEDES-BENZ S430 2000 W220 Owner's Manual

66 Easy-entry/exit feature
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Easy-entry / exit feature
The switch is located on the steering column adjustment
lever.
Turn the switch in direction:
1to switch on
2to switch offWith the easy-entry/exit feature activated, the steering
wheel tilts upwards to allow easier entry into and exit
from the vehicle when the driver’s door is opened.
However, the engine must be turned off.
When the electronic key is inserted in the starter switch
or, with a valid KEYLESS-GO-card, when pressing the
start- / stop button on the gear selector lever, and if the
driver’s door is closed, the steering wheel returns to the
last position set for it.
Wa r n i n g !
You must ensure that no one can become trapped
or injured by the moving steering wheel when the
easy-entry / exit feature is in operation and you
open the driver’s door or remove the electronic key
from the starter switch. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle
equipment may cause serious personal injury.

68 Seats
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
The switches are located in each front door.
We recommend to adjust the power seat in the following
order:
1Seat adjustment, fore / aft
Press the switch (fore / aft direction) until a
comfortable seating position is reached that still
allows you to reach the accelerator / brake pedal
safely. The position should be as far rearward as
possible, consistent with ability to properly operate
controls.Note:
Do not move the front passenger seat completely
forward if objects are stored in the parcel net in the
front passenger-side footwell. Items in the net may
be damaged.
2Press and hold the E button.
When depressed, the exterior mirrors, interior
mirror and steering wheel position are preset based
on the fore / aft position of the driver’s seat.
Only minor personal adjustments, as described
below, should then be required.
For steering wheel adjustment, see page 105;
rear view mirror, see page 106;
exterior rear view mirrors, see page 107.
3Seat, up / down
Press the switch (up / down direction) until
comfortable seating position with still sufficient
headroom is reached.
2
7533
4
61
4
1
5
P54.00-1521-26

70 Seats
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Important!
Prior to operating the vehicle, the driver should adjust
the seat height for proper vision as well as fore/aft
placement and backrest angle to insure adequate
control, reach, operation, and comfort. The head
restraint should also be adjusted for proper height. See
also airbag section on page 94 for proper seat
positioning.
In addition, also adjust the steering wheel to ensure
adequate control, reach, operation, and comfort.
Both the inside and outside rear view mirrors should be
adjusted for adequate rearward vision.Fasten seat belts. Infants and small children should be
seated in a properly secured restraint system that
complies with U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 213 and Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety
Stand ard 213.
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and rear view
mirror adjustments as well as fastening of seat belts
should be done before the vehicle is put into motion.

98 Restraint systems
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Your vehicle was originally equipped with airbags
which are designed to activate in certain impacts
exceeding a preset threshold to reduce the potential
and severity of injury. It is important to your safety
and that of your passenger that you replace deployed
airbags and repair any malfunctioning airbags to
ensure the vehicle will continue to provide crash
protection for occupants.
Wa r n i n g !
To reduce the risk of injury when the front airbags
inflate, it is very important for the driver and front
passenger to always be in a properly seated
position and to wear their seat belts.For maximum protection in the event of a collision
always be in normal seated position w ith your back
against the backrest. Fasten your seat belt and
ensure that it is properly positioned on your body.Since the airbag inflates with considerable speed
and force, a proper seating and hands on steering
wheel position will help to keep you at a safe
distance from the airbag. Occupants who are
unbelted, out of position or too close to the airbag
can be seriously injured by an airbag as it inflates
with great force in the blink of an eye:
• Sit properly belted in an upright position with
your back against the backrest.• Adjust the driver’s seat as far as possible
rearward, still permitting proper operation of
vehicle controls. The distance from the center
of the driver’s breastbone to the center of the
airbag cover on the steering wheel must be at
least ten inches (25 cm) or more. You should be
able to accomplish this by a combination of
adjustments to the seat and steering wheel. If
you have any problems, please see your
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.• Do not lean with your head or chest close to the
steering wheel or dashboard.• Keep hands on the outside of steering wheel
rim. Placing hands and arms inside the rim
can increase the risk and potential severity of
hand / arm injury when driver front airbag
inflates.

112 Memory function
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Storing positions into memory:
Driver’s seat: with the electronic key in starter switch
position 1 or 2 or with the driver’s door open and the
electronic key inserted in the starter switch.
Front passenger seat and rear seats: with electronic key
in starter switch position 1 or 2 or the relevant doors
open.
Adj ust t he seat a nd mul ticontou r back re st to t he d esired
position. You can also adjust the steering wheel, the
exterior mirrors electrically and the interior rear-view
mirror by hand for the driver’s seat. See page 107 for
exterior mirror adjustment and page 105 for steering
wheel adjustment.
Push memory button “M”, release and push a stored
position button “1”, or “2” within 3 seconds.Recalling positions from memory:
To recall a seat / head restraint / steering wheel and
exterior rear view mirror position, push and hold
button “1” or “2” until seat / head restraint / steering
wheel and exterior rear view mirror movement has
sto pp ed.
The seat / head restraint / steering wheel and exterior
rear view mirror movement stops when the button is
released.
Caution!
Do not operate the power seats using the memory
button if the seat backrest is in an excessively reclined
position. Doing so could cause damage to front or rear
seats.
First move backrest to an upright position.

113 Memory function
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index Important!
Prior to operating the vehicle, the driver should check
and adjust if necessary the seat height, seat position
fore and aft, and backrest angle to insure adequate
control, reach and comfort. The head restraint should
also be adjusted for proper height. See also airbag
section for proper seat positioning.
In addition, also adjust the steering wheel to ensure
adequate control, reach, operation and comfort. Both the
inside and outside rear view mirrors should be adjusted
for adequate rearward vision.
Fasten seat belts. Infants and small children should be
seated in a properly secured restraint system that
complies with U.S. Federal Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 213 and Canadian Motor Vehicle Safety
Standard 213.
All seat, head restraint, steering wheel, and rear view
mirror adjustments as well as fastening of seat belts
should be done before the vehicle is put into motion.
Wa r n i n g !
Children 12 years old and under must never ride in
the front seat, except in a Mercedes-Benz
authorized BabySmart
TM compatible child seat,
which operates with the BabySmart
TM system
installed in the vehicle to deactivate the passenger-
side front airbag when it is properly installed.
Otherwise they will be struck by the airbag when it
inflates in a crash. If this happens, serious or fatal
injury can result.
According to accident statistics, children are safer
when properly restrained in the rear seating
positions than in the front seating positions.
Infants and small children must ride in back seats
and be seated in an appropriate infant or child
restraint system, which is properly secured with
the vehicle’s seat belt, fully in accordance with the
child seat manufacturer’s instructions.A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints are
not properly secured in the vehicle and the child is
not properly secured in the child restraint.

137 Multifunction steering wheel, multifunction display
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index Press the è or ÿ button repeatedly until the
message memory (1 or 2) is displayed.
Press the j or k button if display (2) appears.
The stored messages will now be displayed in order.
See page 303 for malfunction and warning messages.
Display (2) will reappear after you have scanned all the
malfunction and warning messages.
Should any malfunction or warning messages be stored
while driving, they will reappear in the display (2) when
the electronic key is in starter switch position 0 or
removed from the starter switch.
The malfunction or warning messages will now be
displayed for approximately 5 seconds each. Pressing
the Jbutton in the instrument cluster displays the
next malfunction and warning message immediately.The message memory will be cleared when the
electronic key is turned in the starter switch to
position 1 or 2. Should any subsequent faults occur,
they will be displayed in the message memory.
Pressing the è or ÿ button displays the next or
previous system.
Important!
Malfunction and warning messages are only indicated
for certain systems and displayed to a low level of detail.
The malfunction and warning messages are simply a
reminder with respect to the operation of certain
systems and do not replace the driver’s responsibility to
maintain the vehicle’s operating safety by having all
required maintenance and safety checks performed on
the vehicle and by bringing the vehicle to an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center to address the malfunction and
warning messages. See page 303.

150 Tire inflation pressure monitor
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Tire inflation pressure monitor
The tire inflation pressure, as selected by the driver, is
monitored in all four wheels on the ground. A warning
is issued to the driver in the case of a decrease in the
inflation pressure in one or more of the tires.Inquiry of present tire inflation pressure
Turn electronic key in starter switch to position 1 or 2.
Press è or ÿ button on the multifunction
steering wheel until the display for trip and main
odometer appears, see page 124.
Press the j or k button repeatedly until the tire
inflation pressure monitor is displayed.
The present tire inflation pressure for each wheel is
displayed in multifunction display.
Wa r n i n g !
The tire inflation pressure monitor does not
indicate a warning for wrongly selected inflation
pressures. Always adjust tire inflation pressure
according to the label affixed on the fuel filler flap.
See page 348 for tire inflation pressure.The tire inflation pressure monitor is not able to
issue a warning due to a sudden loss of pressure
(e.g. tire puncture caused by a foreign object). In
this case bring vehicle to a halt by carefully
applying the service brakes and avoiding abrupt
steering maneuvers.

238 Automatic transmission
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index
Press and hold selector lever in the æ direction:
The transmission will shift from the current gear
directly to gear range “D”.
Important!
With transmission in gear range “D”, “4” or “3”,
upshifting from 1st to 2nd to 3rd gear is delayed
depending on vehicle speed and engine temperature.
This allows the catalytic converter to heat up more
quickly to operating temperatures.
During the brief warm-up period this delayed upshift
and increased engine noise might be perceived as a
malfunction. However, neither the engine nor
transmission are negatively affected by this mode of
operation.The delayed upshift is effective with vehicle speeds
below 31 mph (50 km/h) at partial throttle and engine
temperatures below 95°F (35°C).
To avoid overrevving the engine when the selector lever
is moved to a lower gear range, the transmission will not
shift to a lower gear, if the engine’s revolutions per
minute limit would be exceeded. In this case there will
be no downshift, even when the vehicle speed reaches
the engine’s rpm limit of that gear, e.g. by applying the
service brakes.
To prevent the engine from laboring at low RPM when
driving uphill gradients or with your vehicle heavily
loaded, the automatic transmission will downshift when
necessary to maintain engine RPM within the best
torque range.
Wa r n i n g !
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift in order
to obtain braking action. This could result in drive
wheel slip and reduced vehicle control. Your
vehicle’s ABS will not prevent this type of loss of
control.

245 Driving instructions
Te ch n ica l
data Instruments
and controlsOperationDrivingInstrument
cluster displayPractical hints Car care Index Caution!
When driving down long and steep grades, relieve the
load on the brakes by shifting into a lower gear to use
the engine’s braking power. This helps prevent
overheating of the brakes and reduces brake pad wear.
After hard braking, it is advisable to drive on for some
time, rather than immediately parking, so the air stream
will cool down the brakes faster.Driving off
Apply the service brakes to test them briefly after
driving off. Perform this procedure only when the road
is clear of other traffic.
Warm up the engine smoothly. Do not place full load on
the engine until the operating temperature has been
reached.
When starting off on a slippery surface, do not allow one
drive wheel to spin for an extended period with the ESP
switched off. Doing so may cause serious damage to the
drive train which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.