2008 Mercedes CL-Class Owner's Manual - Page 45

Safety and Security Occupant safety i Air bags are designed to deploy only in certain frontal impacts (front air bags, driver-side knee bag), and in side impacts (side impact and window curtain air bags) which exceed preset thresholds, and in certain rollovers (window curtain air bags). 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 air bags to provide their supplemental protection. In case of other types of impacts and impacts below air bag deployment thresholds, air bags will not deploy. The driver and passenger 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 air bags in order to avoid wearing your seat belt. It is important to your safety and that of your passengers that you replace deployed air bags and repair any malfunctioning air bags to make sure the vehicle will continue to provide supplemental crash protection for occupants. Safety guidelines for the seat belt, emergency tensioning device and air bag Warning! G Damaged seat belts or seat belts that were highly stressed in an accident must be replaced and their anchoring points must also be checked. Only use seat belts installed or supplied by an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center. Air bags and pyrotechnic Emergency Tensioning Devices (ETDs) are designed to function on a one-time-only basis. An air bag or ETD that is deployed must be replaced. PRE-SAFE® has electrically operated reversible pre-tensioners in addition to the pyrotechnic ETDs. Air bags and Emergency Tensioning Devices (ETDs) contain Perchlorate material, which may require special handling and regard for the environment. Check with your local government's disposal guidelines. California residents, see http://www.dtsc.ca.gov/HazardousWa ste/Perchlorate/index.cfm. Do not pass seat belts over sharp edges. They could tear. Do not make any modification that could change the effectiveness 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. 44