2003 Mercedes S-Class Owner's Manual - Page 59

Safety and Security Occupant safety result in serious injuries or death should the side airbag be activated. (2) Always sit upright, properly use the seat belts and use an appropriately sized infant or child restraint system for all children 12 years old or under. (3) Always wear seat belts properly. If you believe that, even with the use of these guidelines, it would be safer for your rear seat occupants to have both rear door mounted side airbags deactivated, then deactivation can be accomplished upon your written request to do so at your authorized Mercedes-Benz Center at an additional cost. Please contact your local authorized Mercedes-Benz Center or call our Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-FOR-MERCedes (1-800-367-6372) for details. i Airbags are designed to activate only in certain frontal impacts (front airbags), side impacts (side impact and head protection window curtain airbags) which exceed preset thresholds, and in certain rollovers (head protection window curtain airbags). Only during these events will they provide their supplemental protection. The driver and passengers should always wear their seat belts. Otherwise it is not possible for the airbags to provide their supplemental protection. In cases of other types of impacts and impacts below airbag deployment thresholds, the airbags will not be activated. The driver and passengers will then be protected to the extent possible by a properly fastened seat belt. A properly fastened seat belt is also needed to provide the best possible protection in a rollover. We caution you not to rely on the presence of the airbags in order to avoid wearing your seat belt. Your vehicle was originally equipped with airbags that are designed to activate in certain impacts exceeding a preset threshold to reduce the potential and severity of injury. It is important for your safety and that of your passenger that you replace deployed airbags and repair any malfunctioning airbags to ensure that the vehicle will continue to provide supplemental crash protection for occupants. 59