The restraint system may not work as intended if the following components have been modified or work on these components has not been performed correctly:

• restraint system, consisting of the seat belts and anchorages, belt tensioners, belt force limiters, airbags

• wiring

• networked electronic systems

Airbags or belt tensioners could then fail, e.g. in the event of an accident in which the deceleration force would normally be high enough to trigger the systems, or they could be triggered unintentionally. Never carry out any modifications on the restraint systems. Never tamper with electronic components and their software.

Always have maintenance work carried out at a qualified specialist workshop which has the necessary specialist knowledge and tools to carry out the work required.

Mercedes-Benz recommends that you use a Mercedes-Benz Service Centre for this purpose.

In particular, all work relevant to safety or on safety-related systems must be carried out at a qualified specialist workshop. The operating safety of the vehicle can be affected if this work is carried out incorrectly. There is a risk of accident and injury.

If SRS is malfunctioning, individual systems may be activated unintentionally or not be triggered in the event of an accident with heavy braking.

A malfunction has occurred if the warning lamp:

• does not light up when you switch on the ignition

• does not go out after the engine has been running for a few seconds

• lights up again once the engine is running

In this case, have the SRS checked immediately at a qualified specialist workshop.

The belt buckle tensioners on the front seats only function if the belt buckles can be pulled down unhindered. This must not be restricted in any way. For this reason, do not grasp the belt buckles and do not place any objects under the belt buckles. The belt tensioner will otherwise be restricted by the buckle or will not function. You will then have no additional protection.

If the seat belt tensioners have been triggered, they provide no additional protection in the event of another accident. Therefore, have belt tensioners which have been triggered replaced at a qualified specialist workshop.

Comply with safety regulations when disposing of belt tensioners. Any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre can provide details of these regulations.

Airbags provide additional protection; they are not, however, a substitute for the seat belts.

Observe the following to reduce the risk of serious or even fatal injuries caused by an inflating airbag:

• Vehicle occupants ‒ in particular, pregnant women - must wear their seat belt correctly at all times and lean back against their backrest, which should be positioned as close to the vertical as possible. The head restraint must support the back of the seat occupant's head at about eye level.

• Always secure children less than 1.50 m tall or under 12 years of age in suitable child restraint systems.

• All occupants of the vehicle must select a seat position that is as far away as possible from the airbags. The driver's seat position must allow the vehicle to be driven safely. The driver's chest should be as far away from the middle of the driver's front airbag cover as possible.

• Move the front-passenger seat as far back as possible. This is especially important if you have secured a child in a child restraint system to the front-passenger seat.

• Vehicle occupants - in particular, children - must not lean their head into the area of the window in which the sidebag/windowbag is deployed.

• Rearward-facing child restraint systems must not be fitted to the front-passenger seat unless the front-passenger front airbag has been disabled. The front-passenger airbag is disabled if a child restraint system with automatic child seat recognition is detected on the front-passenger seat if the front-passenger seat has automatic child seat recognition*. The  PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF warning lamp must always be lit.

  If your vehicle does not feature automatic child seat recognition on the front-passenger seat*, or the rearward-facing child restraint system does not have automatic child seat recognition: secure children in a child restraint system on a suitable seat in the rear compartment. If you secure a forward-facing child restraint system to the front-passenger seat, you must move the front-passenger seat as far back as possible.

• Make sure that there are no heavy or sharp-edged objects in the pockets of items of clothing.

• Do not lean forwards, e.g. over the cover of the driver's front airbag, particularly when the vehicle is in motion.

• Do not put your feet on the dashboard.

• Only hold the steering wheel by the rim. This allows the airbag to inflate fully. You could be injured if the airbag is deployed and you are holding the inside of the steering wheel.

• Do not lean on the doors from inside the vehicle.

• Make sure that there are no people, animals or objects between the vehicle occupants and the area of deployment of the airbag.

• Do not place any objects between the seat backrest and the door.

• Do not hang any hard objects, for example coat hangers, on the grab handles or coat hooks.

• Do not attach accessories, e.g. cup holders, to the doors.

It is not possible to rule out the risk of injuries caused by an airbag due to the high speed at which the airbag is required to deploy.

The airbag's functionality can only be guaranteed if the following parts are not covered and no badges or stickers are attached to them:

• Padded steering wheel boss

• Front-passenger front airbag cover

• Outer side of seats

When an airbag deploys, a small amount of powder is released. The powdery dust may cause short term breathing difficulties to persons suffering from asthma or pulmonary problems.

In order to prevent possible breathing difficulties you should leave the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do so. You can also open the window to allow fresh air to enter the interior. The powder does not constitute a health hazard and does not indicate that there is a fire in the vehicle.

The airbag parts are hot after the airbag has been triggered. Do not touch them, otherwise you may burn yourself.

Occupants are not protected by the airbags in the event of another accident. Have the airbags checked at a qualified specialist workshop.

If you wish to use seat covers, Mercedes-Benz recommends that, for safety reasons, you only use those seat covers that have been approved for Mercedes-Benz vehicles. The seat cover must have special tear seams for sidebags. Otherwise, a sidebag may not deploy correctly and could fail to provide the intended protection in the event of an accident. These seat covers can be obtained from a Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.

Sensors to control the airbags are located in the doors. Therefore, do not make any modifications to the doors or door trims, e.g. retrofitting loudspeakers. Damage to the doors can affect how the sidebags operate.

Make sure that nobody can become trapped as you adjust the seat.

Head restraint covers prevent the NECK-PRO head restraints from triggering correctly. Consequently, the NECK-PRO head restraints cannot provide the intended level of protection. Do not use head restraint covers.

Do not leave children unsupervised in the vehicle, even if they are secured in a child restraint system. They could be injured on parts of the vehicle. They could be seriously or even fatally injured by prolonged exposure to extreme heat or cold.

Do not expose the child restraint system to direct sunlight. The metallic parts of the child restraint system could heat up and the child could be burned by them.

If the children open a door, they could injure others. They could get out and injure themselves or be injured by a passing vehicle.

An unsecured or incorrectly positioned load increases the risk of injury to the child in the event of:

• an accident

• a braking manoeuvre

• a sudden change of direction

Do not carry heavy or hard objects inside the vehicle unless they are secured. You will find further information under "Loading guidelines" in the index.

To reduce the risk of serious or even fatal injury to the child in the event of an accident, braking or sudden change in direction:

• Children less than 1.50 m tall and under twelve years of age must always be secured in special child restraint systems on a suitable seat. This is necessary because the seat belts are not designed for children.

• Do not secure children under twelve years of age on the front-passenger seat. Exception: the vehicle is fitted with automatic child seat recognition on the front-passenger seat* and the child is secured in a child restraint system with automatic child seat recognition.

• If you fit a child restraint system to the front-passenger seat, you must move the front-passenger seat as far back as possible.

• Never allow children to travel sitting on the lap of another occupant. Due to the forces occurring in the event of an accident, heavy braking or sudden change in direction, it would not be possible to restrain the child. The child would be thrown against parts of the vehicle interior and be seriously or even fatally injured.

If a child restraint system is not fitted properly to a suitable seat in the vehicle, it cannot provide its protective function. It would not be possible to restrain the child in the event of an accident, sudden braking or a sudden change in direction. The child could be seriously or even fatally injured. For this reason, observe the manufacturer’s installation instructions and correct use when fitting the child restraint system.

Child restraint systems should preferably be fitted to the rear seats. The child is generally better protected there.

The entire base of the child restraint system must always be resting on the seat cushion. For this reason you should never place objects, e.g. a cushion, under the child restraint system.

Only use child restraint systems with the original cover designed for them. Only replace damaged covers with genuine Mercedes-Benz covers.

Only use child restraint systems which have been approved for use in Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

If the front-passenger front airbag is not disabled:

• The child secured in a child restraint system on the front-passenger seat could be injured seriously or even fatally if the front-passenger front airbag is deployed in an accident, especially if it is near the front-passenger front airbag when it is triggered.

• You must not secure a child in a rearward-facing child restraint system on the front-passenger seat. Only secure a rearward-facing child restraint system on a suitable rear seat.

• You must move the front-passenger seat to the rearmost position if you wish to secure a child in a forward-facing child restraint system on the front-passenger seat.

The front-passenger front airbag is not disabled:

• on vehicles without automatic child seat recognition in the front-passenger seat*

• on vehicles with automatic child seat recognition on the front-passenger seat* if there is no child restraint system with automatic child seat recognition fitted to the front-passenger seat.

• if the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF warning lamp on the centre console is not lit on vehicles with automatic child seat recognition on the front-passenger seat*.

To draw attention to this danger, there is an appropriate warning sticker on the dashboard as well as on both sides of the sun visor on the front-passenger side.

Information about recommended child restraint systems is available at any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.

If the PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF warning lamp does not light up when the child restraint system is fitted, the front-passenger front airbag has not been disabled. If the front-passenger front airbag is inflated, the child could be seriously or even fatally injured.

Proceed as follows:

• Do not use a rearward-facing child restraint system on the front-passenger seat.

• Fit a rearward-facing child restraint system on a suitable rear seat.

or

• Only use a forward-facing child seat on the front-passenger seat and move the front-passenger seat to its rearmost position.

• Have the automatic child seat recognition checked at a qualified specialist workshop.

To ensure that the automatic child seat recognition on the front-passenger seat functions correctly, never place objects, e.g. a cushion, under the child restraint system. The entire base of the child restraint system must always be resting on the seat cushion. An incorrectly fitted child restraint system cannot perform its intended protective function in the event of an accident, and could even lead to injuries.

Do not place items of electronic equipment on the front-passenger seat, e.g.:

• laptops, if switched on

• mobile phones

• cards with transponders, e.g. ski passes or access passes

as signals from electronic equipment can cause interference in the automatic child seat recognition sensor system. This can cause the system to malfunction. It could cause the  PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF warning lamp to light up even when no child seat with automatic child seat recognition has been fitted. The front-passenger front airbag would not be triggered in an accident. It may also be that the  PASSENGER AIRBAG OFF warning lamp does not light up briefly when you turn the key to position 2 in the ignition lock.

A child restraint system secured by the ISOFIX child seat securing system does not provide sufficient protection for children weighing more than 22 kg. For this reason, do not secure children weighing more than 22 kg in a child restraint system secured by the ISOFIX child seat securing system. If the child weighs more than 22 kg, secure the child restraint system using a lap-shoulder belt.

If a child restraint system is not fitted properly to a suitable seat in the vehicle, it cannot provide its protective function. It would not be possible to restrain the child in the event of an accident, sudden braking or a sudden change in direction. The child could be seriously or even fatally injured. For this reason, observe the manufacturer’s installation instructions and correct use when fitting the child restraint system.

On the rear seats, only use child restraint systems with an ISOFIX child seat securing system which have been recommended for use in Mercedes-Benz vehicles.

An incorrectly fitted child restraint system could come loose and seriously or even fatally injure the child or other vehicle occupants. When fitting the child restraint system, make sure that it is engaged in the securing rings on both sides.

To ensure that the child restraint system can perform its protective function as intended, the backrest of the outer seat in the 2nd row must be in the upright position.

Please note that child restraint systems cannot provide a protective function if they or their retaining systems are damaged or have been subjected to a load in an accident. The child secured in this system could be injured seriously or even fatally in the event of an accident, sudden braking or a sudden change in direction.

You must therefore have child restraint systems that are damaged or have been subjected to a heavy load in an accident checked immediately along with their anchorages at a qualified specialist workshop.

Do not secure the TopTether hook* to the loop underneath the TopTether anchorage if you are securing a child restraint system in the 3rd row of seats*. The child restraint system is then not secure. An incorrectly fitted child restraint system cannot perform its intended protective function in the event of an accident, and could even lead to injuries.

Make sure that the seats are locked and the backrests are locked in a vertical position after fitting the TopTether belt*.

The outer seats in the 2nd row are only locked if the lock verification indicator is folded in and the indicator area is barely visible.

If the backrests are not locked, they could fold forwards in the event of an accident, sudden braking or a sudden change of direction. Instead of restraining an occupant, they could then cause additional serious or even fatal injury.

Activate the child-proof locks on the rear doors and deactivate the rear-compartment window controls when children are travelling in the vehicle. The children could otherwise open doors or windows while the vehicle is in motion, injuring themselves and others.

Activate the child-proof locks on the rear doors and deactivate the rear-compartment window controls when children are travelling in the vehicle. The children could otherwise open doors or windows while the vehicle is in motion, injuring themselves and others.