child restraint MERCEDES-BENZ SL550 2008 R230 Owner's Manual

44 Getting started
Adjusting
Seat adjustment
The seat adjustment switch is located in
the door.
1Head restraint height
2Seat height
3Seat cushion tilt
4Seat cushion depth
5Seat fore and aft adjustment
6Seat backrest tilt
Warning!G
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.
Even with the SmartKey or the SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO* removed from the start-
er switch or the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* removed from the vehicle,
the power seats can be operated when the
respective door is open. Therefore, do not
leave children unattended 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 person-
al injury.
Warning!G
Children 12 years old and under must be
seated and properly secured in an appropri-
ately sized infant restraint, toddler restraint,
or booster seat recommended for the size
and weight of the child For additional infor-
mation, see “Children in the vehicle”
(
page 84).
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.

46 Getting started
Adjusting
Head restraint tilt
Manually adjust the angle of the head re-
straint.
Push or pull on the lower edge of the
head restraint cushion.
For more information on seats, see “Seats”
(
page 124).
Steering wheel
Make sure that

you can reach the steering wheel with
your arms slightly bent at the elbows

you can move your legs freely

all displays (including malfunction and
indicator lamps) on the instrument
cluster are clearly visible
Warning!G
Do not adjust the steering wheel while driv-
ing. Adjusting the steering wheel while driv-
ing could cause the driver to lose control of
the vehicle.
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.
Even with the SmartKey or the SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO* removed from the
starter switch or the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* removed from the vehicle,
the steering wheel adjustment feature can
be operated when the driver’s door is open.
Therefore, do not leave children unattended
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.
iThe memory function (page 129) lets you
store the settings for the steering wheel together
with the settings for the driver’s seat position
and the exterior rear view mirrors.

50 Getting started
Driving
Fastening the seat belts
Warning!G
Make sure that absolutely no objects are
obstructing the pedal’s range of movement.
Keep the driver’s footwell clear of all obsta-
cles. If there are any floormats or carpets in
the footwell, make sure the pedals still have
sufficient clearance.
During sudden driving or braking maneu-
vers, the objects could get caught between
the pedals. You could then no longer brake
or accelerate. This could lead to accidents
or injury.Warning!G
Always fasten your seat belt before driving
off. Always make sure your passenger is
properly restrained.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and
position your seat belt greatly increases
your risk of injuries and their likely severity
in an accident. You and your passenger
should always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your injuries
can be considerably more severe without
your seat belt properly buckled. Without
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury or
death is lessened if you are wearing your
seat belt. The air bags can only provide the
protection they were designed to afford if
the occupants are using their seat belts
(
page 68).
Warning!G
Children 12 years old and under must be
seated and properly secured in an appropri-
ate infant restraint, toddler restraint, or
booster seat recommended for the size and
weight of the child. For additional informa-
tion, see “Children in the vehicle”
(
page 84).
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.

52 Getting started
Driving
Proper use of seat belts

Do not twist the seat belt when fasten-
ing.

Adjust seat belt so that the shoulder
portion is located as close as possible
to the middle of the shoulder (it should
not touch the neck). Never pass the
shoulder portion of the seat belt under
your arm.

Position the lap belt as low as possible
on your hips (over hip joint) and not
across the abdomen.

Place the seat backrest in a position
that is as upright as possible.

Never use a seat belt for more than one
person at a time.

Do not fasten a seat belt around a per-
son and another object at the same
time. When using a seat belt to secure
infant restraints, toddler restraints or
children in booster seats, always follow
the child seat manufacturer’s instruc-
tions.

Check your seat belt during travel to
make sure that it is properly
positioned.

Make sure the seat belt is always fitted
snugly. Take special care of this when
wearing loose clothing.
Warning!G
Do not pass seat belts over sharp edges.
They could tear.
Do not allow the seat belt to get caught in
the door or in the seat adjustment
mechanism. This could damage the
seat belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to
seat belts. This could impair the effective-
ness of the seat belts.
Do not bleach or dye seat belts as this may
severely weaken them. In a crash, they may
not be able to provide adequate protection.
Damaged seat belts or seat belts that were
highly stressed in an accident must be
replaced. Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.

68 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
In this section you will learn the most im-
portant facts about the restraint systems
of the vehicle.
The restraint systems are

Seat belts (page 79)

Child restraints (page 85)
Additional protection potential provided by

Supplemental Restraint System (SRS)
with

Air bags (page 70)

Air bag control unit (with crash
sensors)

Emergency Tensioning Device
(ETD) for seat belts (
page 82)

Roll bar (page 83)Air bag system components with

Passenger front air bag off indicator
lamp (
page 78)

Passenger seat with Occupant
C
lassification System (OCS)
(
page 74)
Although independent systems, their
protective functions work in conjunction
with each other.The SRS system conducts a self-test when
the ignition is switched on and in regular
intervals while the engine is running. This
facilitates detection of malfunctions.
The
1indicator lamp in the instrument
cluster comes on when the ignition is
switched on and goes out no later than a
few seconds after the engine has been
started.
The SRS components are in operational
readiness if the
1indicator lamp is not
lit when the engine is running.
A malfunction in the system has been
detected if the
1indicator lamp:

fails to go out after approximately
4 seconds after the engine was started

does not come on at all

comes on after the engine was started
or while driving
iFor information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and restraint
systems for infants and children, see “Children
in the vehicle” (
page 84).

71 Safety and Security
Occupant safety

Occupants, especially children, should
never lean their heads in the area of the
door where the head-thorax air bag in-
flates. This could result in serious inju-
ries or death should the air bag be
deployed. Always sit as upright as possi-
ble, properly use the seat belts and an
appropriately sized infant restraint,
toddler restraint, or booster seat
recommended for the size and weight of
the child.
Failure to follow these instructions can
result in severe injuries to you or other
occupants.
If you sell your vehicle, it is important that
you make the buyer aware of this safety in-
formation. Be sure to give the buyer this
Operator’s Manual.Warning!G
There is a possibility of a head-thorax air bag
related injury if occupants, especially chil-
dren, are not properly seated or restrained
when next to a head-thorax air bag which
needs to deploy rapidly in a side impact in
order to do its job.
To help avoid the possibility of injury, please
follow these guidelines:
(1) Occupants, especially children, should
never place their bodies or lean their
heads in the area of the door where the
head-thorax air bag inflates. This could
result in serious injuries or death should
the head-thorax air bag be deployed.
(2) Always sit as upright as possible, prop-
erly use the seat belts and for children
12 years old or under, use an appropri-
ately sized infant restraint, toddler
restraint, or booster seat recommended
for the size and weight of the child.
(3) Always wear seat belts properly.
If you believe that, even with the use of
these guidelines, it would be safer for your
passenger seat occupants to have the pas-
senger side head-thorax air bag deactivated,
then deactivation can be accomplished
upon your written election to do so at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center at an
additional cost.
Please contact your local authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center or call the Customer
Assistance Center (in the USA) at
1-800-FOR-MERCedes (1-800-367-6372),
or Customer Service (in Canada) at
1-800-387-0100 for details.
iAir bags are designed to activate only in cer-
tain frontal impacts (front air bags, driver-side
knee bag) and side impacts (head-thorax air
bags) which exceed preset thresholds. Only
during these events, will they provide their
supplemental protection.
The driver and passenger should always wear
their seat belts. Otherwise it is not possible for
the air bags to provide their supplemental
protection.

75 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
Both driver and the passenger should
always use the 5/ indicator lamp
as an indication of whether or not the
passenger is properly positioned.
iIf the seat, including the trim cover and
cushion needs to be serviced in any way, take
the vehicle to an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
Only use seat accessories approved by
Mercedes-Benz. Warning!G
If the 5/ indicator lamp illuminates
when an adult or someone larger than a
small individual is in the passenger seat,
have the passenger re-position himself or
herself in the seat until the 5/ indi-
cator lamp goes out.
More information about air bag display
messages (
page 368).
In the event of a collision, the air bag control
unit will not allow passenger front air bag
deployment when the OCS classified the
passenger seat occupant as being up to or
less than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child in a standard child
restraint or if the passenger seat is sensed
as being empty.
When the OCS senses that the passenger
seat occupant is classified as being up to or
less than the weight of a typical
12-month-old child in a standard child
restraint, the 5/ indicator lamp will
illuminate when the engine is started and
remain illuminated, indicating that the pas-
senger front air bag is deactivated.
When the OCS senses that the passenger
seat is classified as being empty, the
5/ indicator lamp will illuminate
when the engine is started and remain
illuminated, indicating that the passenger
front air bag is deactivated.


76 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
When the OCS senses that the passenger
seat occupant is classified as being heavier
than the weight of a typical 12-month-old
child seated in a standard child restraint or
as being a small individual (such as a young
teenager or a small adult), the
5/indicator lamp will illuminate for
approximately 6 seconds when the engine is
started and then, depending on occupant
weight sensor readings from the seat, re-
main illuminated or go out. With the
5/ indicator lamp illuminated, the
passenger front air bag is deactivated. With
the 5/ indicator lamp out, the pas-
senger front air bag is activated.
When the OCS senses that the passenger
seat occupant is classified as an adult or
someone larger than a small individual, the
5/ indicator lamp will illuminate for
approximately 6 seconds when the engine is
started and then go out, indicating that the
passenger front air bag is activated.If the 5/ indicator lamp is
illuminated, the passenger front air bag is
deactivated and will not be deployed.
If the 5/ indicator lamp is not
illuminated, the passenger front air bag is
activated and will be deployed:

in the event of certain frontal impacts

if impact exceeds a preset deployment
threshold

independently of the head-thorax air
bags
If the passenger front air bag is deployed,
the rate of inflation will be influenced by:

the rate of relevant vehicle deceleration
as assessed by the air bag control unit

the passenger’s weight category as
identified by the Occupant Classification
System (OCS)
Warning!G
Children 12 years old and under must be
seated and properly secured in an appropri-
ate 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 fully in
accordance with the child seat manufactur-
er’s instructions.
Children can be killed or seriously injured by
an inflating air bag. Note the following
important information:

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


77 Safety and Security
Occupant safety

A child in a rear-facing child restraint on
the passenger seat will be seriously in-
jured or even killed if the passenger
front air bag inflates in a collision which
could occur under some circumstances,
even with the air bag technology in-
stalled in your vehicle.

If you install a rear-facing child restraint
on the passenger seat, make sure that
the 5/indicator lamp is illumi-
nated, indicating that the passenger
front air bag is deactivated. Should the
5/ indicator lamp not illuminate
or go out while the restraint is installed,
please check installation. Periodically
check the 5/ indicator lamp
while driving to make sure the
5/ indicator lamp is illuminated.
If the 5/ indicator lamp goes out
or remains out, do not transport a child
on the passenger seat until the system
has been repaired. A child in a
rear-facing child restraint on the
passenger seat will be seriously injured
or even killed if the passenger front air
bag inflates.

If you place a child in a forward-facing
child restraint on the passenger seat,
move the seat as far back as possible,
use the proper child restraint recom-
mended for the age, size and weight of
the child, and secure 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 passenger front
air bag may or may not be activated
(
page 74).
iDeployment of the driver front air bag does
not mean that the passenger front air bag also
should have deployed.
The Occupant Classification System (
page 74)
may have determined:

that the seat was empty or occupied by the
weight up to or less than that of a typical
12-month-old child seated in a standard
child restraint – both instances where the
system suppresses deployment of the pas-
senger front air bag even though the impact
met the criteria and was of sufficient severity
to deploy the driver front air bag.

that the seat was occupied by a small individ-
ual (such as a young teenager or a small
adult) or a child weighing more than the
weight of a typical 12-month-old child in a
standard child restraint – instances where
the system may suppress deployment of the
passenger front air bag even though the
impact met the criteria and was of sufficient
severity to deploy the driver front air bag.

79 Safety and Security
Occupant safety
More information can be found in the
“Practical hints” section (
page 357).
Seat belts
The use of seat belts and infant and child
restraint systems is required by law in all
50 states, the District of Columbia, the
U.S. territories and all Canadian provinces.
Even where this is not the case, all vehicle
occupants should have their seat belts
fastened whenever the vehicle is in
motion.
For information on fastening seat belts,
see “Fastening the seat belts” (
page 50).
Warning!G
If the 5/ indicator lamp should not
illuminate, the system is not functioning.
You must see an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center before seating any child on the
passenger seat.
Warning!G
Never place anything between seat cushion
and child seat (e.g. pillow), since it reduces
the effectiveness of the Occupant Classifi-
cation System. The bottom of the child seat
must make full contact with the passenger
seat cushion. An incorrectly mounted child
seat could cause injuries to the child in case
of an accident, instead of increasing protec-
tion for the child.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for
installation of child seats.
iFor information on infants and children
traveling with you in the vehicle and restraint
systems for infants and children, see “Children
in the vehicle” (
page 84).
Warning!G
Always fasten your seat belt before driving
off. Always make sure your passenger is
properly restrained.
Failure to wear and properly fasten and
position your seat belt greatly increases
your risk of injuries and their likely severity
in an accident. You and your passenger
should always wear seat belts.
If you are ever in an accident, your injuries
can be considerably more severe without
your seat belt properly buckled. Without
your seat belt buckled, you are much more
likely to hit the interior of the vehicle or be
ejected from it. You can be seriously injured
or killed.
In the same crash, the possibility of injury or
death is lessened if you are properly wearing
your seat belt. Air bags can only protect as
they are designed if the occupants are
properly wearing their seat belts.