Mercedes Special Options

• Luxury car manufacturer Mercedes Benz makes cars featuring style and comfort. In 2011 models, they offer several options to make driving their cars more comfortable or efficient. These include media systems, transmissions, sunroofs and style features. Innovative safety and driving style features, such as parking sensors and adaptive cruise control, are also available as options.

Keyless Go

• "Keyless Go" is an option that allows a driver to start her car without removing the Smartkey from her pocket, simply by pressing a button.

Comfort

• Heated front seats are an option in some Mercedes cars, with three levels of heating. The heater cleverly dials down to the lowest setting after a few minutes of warming, to avoid overheating the passenger.

  Drive Dynamic multi-contour driver seat with massage has adjustable supports for back and sides, and also has a massage function.

  Automatic dual-zone climate control is an option on cars such as the SLK.

Multimedia

• The optional iPod integration kit is mounted in the glove box and allows iPods to be played through the car speaker system and operated through steering wheel controls.

  The Logic 7(R) Harmon/Kardon surround system offered as an option on Mercedes C-Class cars uses 12 speakers including a subwoofer and provides 450 watts of power.

  The option of a split-view front entertainment system, found on the S-class cars, allows the front passenger to view a DVD, for example, while the driver views the radio or navigation system on the same screen, but from his perspective.

  For sport utility vehicles, there is an option of a rear seat entertainment system with two LCD monitors embedded in the front headrests.

Style

• The E-Class sedans can be outfitted with a panoramic sunroof that gives both front seat and rear seat passengers a sky view.

  The 18-inch alloy wheels offered as an option on cars such as the C300 sedan have five spokes and are exclusive to Mercedes. As the cars get more expensive, such as the S-Class sedans, 19- and 20-inch alloys become an option, with up to 10 spokes.

  For cars such as the CLS550C, buyers can also get illuminated steel door sills to add a bit of extra character to the car when the doors are opened.

Driving Adaptations

• As an option on some cars such as the C300 sedan, Mercedes offers a seven-speed automatic transmission. According to Mercedes Benz, the transmission adjusts to the driver's driving style and compensates for a smoother and quicker ride.

  Models including the CLS550C come with an option of a Distronic adaptive cruise control system that uses radar to adjust your speed to maintain a safe following distance.

Parktronic

• The Parktronic parking guidance system available on some cars uses radar and ultrasonic sensors to not only identify parking spaces of an appropriate size to the driver, but to guide her into the space.

Safety

• A rear-view camera is another option. When a driver shifts into reverse, this camera displays a view of what's behind the car on a screen mounted on the dashboard.

  Nightview Assist Plus is an infrared system that can detect people and objects at nighttime outside of the car's low beam illumination area. The detected forms appear on a black-and-white screen on the dashboard and the system highlights people when the car is 300 feet away.

  Side air bags for rear-seat passengers are another option, for extra safety value, on cars such as the E-class sedans.

  The SUV range provides an option that senses vehicles in the blind spot and issues a warning if the driver indicates an impending move into that lane.

Practicalities

• A trailer hitch is an option for SUVs to enhance towing capability.