Occupant safety
Restraint systems
In an accident, your vehicle may be subjected to rapid acceleration or deceleration. During this acceleration or deceleration, the vehicle occupants will be propelled towards the force of the impact. There is therefore the risk of vehicle occupants injuring themselves on the vehicle interior or on parts of the vehicle. The purpose of the vehicle’s complementary restraint systems is to minimise this risk of injury. However, seat belts and the driver’s airbag are generally unable to prevent injuries caused by objects penetrating the vehicle from the outside.
The most important restraint systems are the seat belts and the child restraint systems.
The SRS restraint system (Supplemental Restraint System) offers additional protection (available as an optional extra). The SRS consists of a belt tensioner on the driver's side and an airbag system with airbag control unit and driver's airbag.
The driver’s airbag increases the degree of protection for the driver and is therefore only an additional restraint system to the seat belt. The driver’s airbag does not replace the requirement for the driver to wear his/her seat belt correctly at all times. This is because, on the one hand, the driver’s airbag is not deployed in all types of accidents, as its deployment in certain situations would not enhance the protection already provided by a correctly fastened seat belt.
On the other hand, deployment of the driver's only provides increased protection if the seat belt is worn correctly.The seat belt helps to keep the driver in the best position in relation to the airbag. In addition, the seat belt prevents the driver from being propelled towards the force of the impact thus providing better protection to reduce the risk of injury. This is the case with a frontal collision for instance.
In accidents in which the driver’s airbag is deployed, the airbag will only be able to enhance the protection provided by the seat belt, i.e. offer additional protection, if the seat belt is worn correctly.
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Modifications to or work performed incorrectly on restraint systems (seat belts, anchorages, belt tensioners or airbags) or their wiring, as well as work on other networked electronic systems, may prevent the restraint systems from working correctly. The airbag or belt tensioner could be activated inadvertently or could fail in accidents in which the deceleration force is sufficient to trigger them. For this reason, never carry out any modifications to the restraint systems.
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Seat belts
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Airbags provide additional protection. Airbags do not, however, replace seat belts in any way. To reduce the risk of serious or even fatal injuries, make sure that all vehicle occupants in particular, pregnant women have fastened their seat belt correctly, that they have adopted a normal upright position and that the seat is positioned almost vertically.
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The most important restraint systems in the vehicle are the seat belts and the child restraint systems. In the event of a collision, they restrain the movement of the vehicle occupants in the direction of the impact and thus reduce the risk of the occupants making contact with the vehicle interior.
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If you do not wear the seat belt correctly or if you do not engage it in its buckle correctly, the seat belt cannot perform its intended protective function. This could result in serious or even fatal injury. For this reason, make sure that all occupants in particular, pregnant women always wear their seat belts correctly for every trip.
Make sure that the belt:
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crosses over your pelvis as low down as possible, i.e. over your hip joints and not across your stomach
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is close-fitting
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is not twisted
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crosses over the middle of your shoulder
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is not routed across your neck or under your arm
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is pulled tight over your hip joints by pulling the shoulder section of the belt upwards
Do not secure an object with a seat belt if the seat belt is also being used by one of the vehicle’s occupants.
Avoid wearing bulky clothing, e.g. a winter coat.
Do not route the seat belt strap over sharp or fragile objects, especially if these are on or in your clothing, e.g. spectacles, pens or keys. The seat belt strap could tear, which could result in injury to yourself or other vehicle occupants.
Only one person should use each seat belt at any one time.
On no account should children travel sitting on the lap of another occupant. It would not be possible to restrain the child in the event of an accident, braking or a sudden change in direction. This could result in serious injuries to the child and other vehicle occupants in the event of abrupt braking or even fatal injuries in the event of an accident.
Persons less than 1.50 m tall and children under twelve years of age cannot wear their seat belt properly. For this reason, secure these occupants in special suitable restraint systems installed on a suitable seat. Always observe the installation instructions of the child restraint system manufacturer.
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Many countries have legislation concerning the use of seat belts and child restraint systems.
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The seat belt can only provide the degree of protection intended if the backrest is in an almost vertical position and the occupant is sitting upright. Avoid seat positions which do not allow a seat belt to be routed correctly. For this reason, position the backrest as close to the vertical as possible. Never drive with the backrest tilted back too far.
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The seat belt cannot function correctly if the belt or buckle is dirty or damaged. Keep the belt and buckle clean, otherwise the belt tongue cannot engage correctly.
Otherwise, the belt could tear in the event of an accident. You or others could be seriously or even fatally injured.
Have seat belts which have been damaged or subjected to heavy loads in an accident replaced and have their anchorages checked.
For safety reasons, Mercedes-Benz recommends that you only use seat belts which have been specially approved for your vehicle by Mercedes-Benz.
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Fastening seat belts
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 | Buckle |
 | Belt tongue |
 | Release button |
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Seat belt warning
If the seat belt is not fastened on the driver's side while the engine is running, a warning tone will sound for approx. 5 seconds depending on the vehicle's equipment.
Releasing the seat belt
Supplemental restraint system (SRS)
The SRS restraint system (Supplemental Restraint System) consists of the seat belt tensioniser on the driver's side and the airbag system with airbag control unit and driver's airbag.
Belt tensioners and airbag systems are items of optional equipment and are therefore not fitted to every vehicle.
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If appears in the display, this indicates a fault. Individual systems could be triggered inadvertently or may not be triggered in the event of an accident with a high rate of vehicle deceleration.
In this event, have the SRS system checked and repaired immediately at a qualified specialist workshop which has the necessary specialist knowledge and tools for the work required. Mercedes-Benz recommends that you use a Mercedes-Benz Service Centre for this purpose.
All work relevant to safety or on safety-related systems must be carried out at a qualified specialist workshop.
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Triggering of belt tensioners and of the driver’s airbag
In the event of a collision, the sensor in the airbag control unit evaluates important physical data, such as duration, direction and rate of vehicle deceleration or acceleration.
Deployment of the driver’s airbag depends on various factors, such as: force of the initial deceleration or acceleration and duration/direction of deceleration or acceleration.
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the distribution of forces during the collision
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the collision angle
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the deformation characteristics of the vehicle
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the characteristics of the object with which the vehicle has collided, e.g. the other vehicle
Factors which can only be seen and measured after the impact are not decisive for the deployment of an airbag, nor do they provide an indication of it.
It is possible for the vehicle to be substantially deformed without the driver’s airbag being deployed, e.g. if only relatively easily deformable vehicle parts are affected by the collision and the required deceleration threshold is not reached. On the other hand, airbags may be deployed even though the vehicle only displays minor deformation, if, for example, rigid vehicle parts such as the longitudinal member are affected by the impact and vehicle deceleration exceeds the predetermined threshold.
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The driver's airbag is not deployed in all types of accident. The SRS is controlled through a complex system of sensors and evaluation logic.
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Belt tensioners
In an impact, the belt tensioner tightens the belt to pull it close to the body.
will be shown in the display.
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The seat belt tensioner cannot compensate for the seat position being incorrect or for a seat belt being worn incorrectly.
The belt tensioner does not pull the driver back against the backrest.
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If the vehicle key has been turned to the drive position more in the ignition, the belt tensioners will be triggered:
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if the restraint systems are operational
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for the driver’s side belt, if engaged in its buckle
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in the event of head-on and rear-end impacts if the vehicle decelerates or accelerates rapidly in a longitudinal direction in the initial stages of the impact
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If the belt tensioner is triggered, you will hear a bang and some fine powder may be released. This bang will not damage your hearing and the powder does not constitute a health hazard. will be shown in the display.
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If a belt tensioner has been triggered, have it replaced 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.
All work relevant to safety or on safety-related systems must be carried out at a qualified specialist workshop.
Observe the safety regulations for the disposal of belt tensioners. These regulations can be obtained from any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.
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Airbag system
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To reduce the risk of serious or even fatal injuries in the event of an accident with a high rate of deceleration, e.g. due to an airbag deploying within milliseconds or sudden braking, you should observe the following points:
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The driver must select a seat position which allows them to wear their seat belt correctly and which is as far back from the airbag as possible. The seat position must allow the driver to drive the vehicle safely. The driver’s arms should be slightly bent when holding the steering wheel. The distance from the driver’s seat to the pedals must be such that the driver is able to depress them fully.
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Vehicle occupants should wear their seat belts correctly at all times and the backrest should be adjusted as close to the vertical as possible. The head restraint should support the back of the head at about eye level.
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Position the co-driver’s seat as far to the rear as possible, especially if children are sitting on this seat and are secured in a child restraint system on it.
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Do not lean forwards, e.g. over the padded boss of the steering wheel, especially while the vehicle is in motion.
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Do not put your feet on the dashboard.
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Only hold the steering wheel by the rim. This allows the airbag to inflate fully. If you hold the inner part of the steering wheel you could injure yourself when the airbag inflates.
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Do not lean on the doors from the inside.
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Do not place any objects on the airbag or between the airbag and the driver.
Due to the high speed of airbag deployment, it is not possible to rule out entirely the risk of injuries caused by the airbag deploying.
Observe the safety regulations for the disposal of airbag units. The regulations can be obtained from any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.
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Airbag deployment
The driver’s airbag inflates in milliseconds.
will be shown in the display.
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If the driver's airbag is triggered, you will hear a bang and some fine powder may be released. This bang will not damage your hearing and the powder does not constitute a health hazard.
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The inflated driver’s airbag slows and reduces the movement of the driver.
The driver’s airbag is designed in such a way that it releases hot gas when the driver makes contact with the inflated airbag. This reduces the forces acting on the head and chest of the driver. The driver’s airbag is therefore deflated after the accident.
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Immediately after the driver's airbag has been triggered, the airbag parts are hot. Touching these parts may cause you to suffer burns.
After the driver's airbag has been triggered, you need to have it replaced 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.
All work relevant to safety or on safety-related systems must be carried out at a qualified specialist workshop.
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When an airbag is inflated, a small amount of powder is released. This powder is not hazardous to health and does not indicate that there is a fire in the vehicle. The powder could cause short-term breathing difficulties in people with asthma or breathing problems. To prevent these breathing difficulties, you should either leave the vehicle immediately if this is possible without danger or open the window to let in some fresh air.
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Driver's airbag
The driver’s airbag is intended to reduce the risk of injury to the driver’s head and chest.
If the system determines that airbag deployment can offer additional protection to that provided by the seat belt, the driver's airbag is triggered. Factors include the force of the initial deceleration or acceleration, duration and direction of acceleration or deceleration.
The driver's airbag is located in the steering wheel. It inflates in front of the steering wheel.
Children in the vehicle
If a child is travelling in the vehicle, secure the child using a universal type child restraint system suitable for the child's age and size. Make sure that the child’s seat belt is fastened correctly at all times while the vehicle is in motion.
You can obtain child seats and information about the correct child restraint system from any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.
Example of a sticker on the child seat
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Do not leave children unsupervised in the vehicle even if they are secured in a child restraint system. They could:
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injure themselves on parts of the vehicle
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open the doors and thereby injure themselves and others. Or they could get out of the vehicle, injuring themselves in doing so or they could be injured by a passing vehicle
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be seriously or even fatally injured by prolonged exposure to intense heat or cold
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sustain serious injuries if they were to fall out of the cab, due to its height from the ground
Do not expose the child restraint system to direct sunlight, as this could cause, for example, metal parts of the child restraint system to become very hot. Touching these parts could cause skin burns.
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To reduce the risk of serious or even fatal injuries to children in the event of an accident, braking or a sudden change in direction, please observe the following:
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Always secure children less than 1.50 m tall or under twelve years of age in a special child restraint system on the co-driver’s seat, since they cannot wear the seat belts correctly.
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Do not secure children less than twelve years of age on the co-driver’s seat, unless the child is secured in a child restraint system installed on this seat.
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Do not allow a child to travel sitting on the lap of a vehicle occupant. It would not be possible to restrain a child as a result of the forces acting in the event of an accident, braking or sudden changes in direction. The child would be thrown against the vehicle interior and would be seriously or even fatally injured.
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All vehicle occupants must wear their seat belt correctly at all times.
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If you use a forward-facing child restraint system without automatic child seat recognition on the co-driver's seat, you must move the co-driver's seat to its rearmost position.
A child seat system that has been fitted incorrectly could come loose in the event of an accident, braking or a sudden change in direction and the child and other vehicle occupants could be seriously or even fatally injured.
For this reason, do not place objects (e.g. a cushion) underneath the child restraint system. The entire base of the child restraint system must be in contact with the seat cushion at all times.
Observe the installation instructions issued by the child restraint system manufacturer when fitting the child restraint system.
A child restraint system must not be used without the genuine cover designed for it. Only replace damaged covers with genuine covers.
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A child secured in a child restraint system could be seriously or even fatally injured in the event of an accident, braking or a sudden change of direction if the child restraint system or its mountings have been damaged or subjected to a load in an accident.
For this reason, have restraint systems and their mountings that have been damaged or subjected to a load in an accident checked immediately and replaced, if necessary, at a qualified specialist workshop which has the necessary specialist knowledge and tools for the work required.
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you use a Mercedes-Benz Service Centre for this purpose. All work relevant to safety or on safety-related systems must be carried out at a qualified specialist workshop.
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