MBWorld.org Forums - Easy Entry/Exit Feature, A Frightening Option!

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Easy Entry/Exit Feature, A Frightening Option!

Has any owner of the W213 series MB sedan with the Easy Entry/Exit feature had any problems with this system? If so please let me know of your experience with it.
I purchased a 2019 E300-4matic back in September and from the day I took delivery this option on the car has never operated properly. Sometimes the steering wheel would move out of the way as it should, sometimes not, same thing with the seat cushion as well as the seat back. The dealer ordered a new module and it was replaced.
The new module hasn’t fixed the problem and after living with it for 2 months now, I just realized that this problem might be a safety defect after speaking with my States “Lemon Law” folks at the Dept of Consumer Affairs.
Anyone who is familiar with this option knows that when you shut off the car the following is supposed to happen, the steering wheel moves up and then towards the dashboard while the seat cushion moves back and the seat back moves rearwards as well. In my car the steering wheel doesn’t move while the seat cushion may or may not move rearwards but the troubling defect my car has is that my seat back which is normally in the 1 o’clock position doesn’t move backwards to the 2 o’clock position or even stay at the 1 o’clock but moves forward forcing the driver against the steering wheel and stops at about the 10 o’clock position.
I am an average sized man, 6’, 150 lbs. and I have a great deal of trouble getting out of the car and I have to reset the settings to get out, or; move the seat back backwards to the 1 o’clock position as well as doing the same thing to the seat cushion and the steering wheel. My first thought was what happens if I am in an accident in this car. Most people are aware if the airbag deploys it will usually leave the driver with lots of pain and bruising on the upper part of the torso, now take that known and add to that possibility that the driver’s seat back may well move forward during or after the collision possibly pinning the driver in the vehicle. If this action takes place during the micro seconds before impact it is absolutely possible the driver sitting in the driver’s seat could be propelled forward towards the steering wheel and the windshield, if that were to take place the surviability of the accident would be much lower than what one would normally expect.
Survivors of collisions who were the driver’s of the car are almost always bruised and banged up, couple that reality with your seat back moving you closer to the windshield and steering wheel and I believe your chances of dying become very real. After owning and driving MB cars for the past 25 years I find this defect the most unnerving reality I have ever had to deal with. Having been run over by an automobile as a very young child I swore that I would never make that kind of mistake during my driving days and I never have. Before I could afford to buy MB cars I drove SAAB’s as they were always considered very safe and affordable cars, so naturally when I could afford to buy MB cars I did some 25 years ago and now my safety is no longer assured in the car I’m driving. After buying roughly 40 MB’s over the last 25 years I’m hoping MB will do the right thing, either repair it or return my money. Only time will tell what kind of company MB really is. I will let all the members of this website know how this plays out. Again, if anyone that has a W213 has had any similar problems please let me know. Thanks for all responses.

No issues with my 2018 E300. The steering wheel moves up when exiting and returns to its preset position after entering. The seat does not move as it did in older models. IMO it is a safety feature to prevent injury to rear seat occupants.

In my 2018 E400S the steering wheel moves when I exit and enter car. It has always worked without exception. By design the seat does not move. When I took delivery of the car in Germany I was told this function had been removed due to liability issues in the litigation prone US market. Apparently there had been complaints about 'large bodied' people getting compressed when the seat was set for a normal sized diver. Its a pity because it is a nice feature.

My dealer told me to use the #3 seat memory setting as an alternative. I just manually moved the seat back a few inches and memorized that setting with the 3 button. Now when I get into the car I press the ! or 2 button to get the seat into that saved position and when I want to exit, I press the 3 button to move the seat back. Works great for me. I think my steering wheel does not always move up and away. Had the dealer look at it and seems to be working now on a 2018 E300, do not know what they did if anything.

lol so your dealership replaced a module thinking the seat actual moves back and forth or did I read this wrong? The seat in the US models do not go back and forth... wonder what on earth is it causing it to move forward???

I went to my owners manual to see what it says about easy entry exit and found the following. Are you following this precisely, as it could be user error? And when you type a lengthy post, please offer more separation between long run-on sentences/paragraphs. You made it incredibly difficult to read.

If the easy entry and exit feature is active, the steering wheel will move upwards and the driver's seat will move back in the following situations:

you switch the ignition off when the driver's door is open
you open the driver's door when the ignition is switched off
The steering wheel will move upwards only if it is not already as high as it will go

The driver's seat will move backwards only if it is not already in the rearmost position.

The steering wheel and the driver's seat will
move back to the last drive position in the following
cases:

you switch the power supply or the ignition on when the driver's door is closed
you close the driver's door when the ignition is switched on

Quote:

Originally Posted by rbrylaw (Post 7605487)

If the easy entry and exit feature is active, the steering wheel will move upwards and the driver's seat will move back in the following situations:

you switch the ignition off when the driver's door is open
you open the driver's door when the ignition is switched off
The steering wheel will move upwards only if it is not already as high as it will go

The driver's seat will move backwards only if it is not already in the rearmost position.
The steering wheel and the driver's seat will
move back to the last drive position in the following
cases:

What model/year/country is this for? Does your seat actually move? My owners manual (2018 E400S) only mentions the steering wheel, but the description in the printed manual for Vehicle/Vehicle Settings/Easy Entry/Exit does not exactly match what comes up in the command display when you go to this section in the car. The printed manual says select Steering Wheel Only or Off, while in the car the menu choice is Easy Entry/Exit with no sub menu. When you select by clicking the box next to the feature, the command screen shows both the steering wheel and seat highlighted in orange, suggesting that both should move, but as noted in an earlier post only the steering wheel moves. It seems like the feature has been coded out in the US, but some of the graphics have not been updated.

I believe the 2019's in the US reintroduced the driver's seat moving back as a part of easy entry/exit.

I can confirm that on my 2019 E450 Cab in the US, the seat and the steering wheel both move on the easy entry/exit. Other years, I have no idea.

Quote:

Originally Posted by teksurv (Post 7605562)

I believe the 2019's in the US reintroduced the driver's seat moving back as a part of easy entry/exit.

Teksurv:
You are correct, in the 2019 US models of the E class in the command panel the steering wheel and seat are highlighted implying that they are fully functional. In my case the seat module was replaced and yet the seat back moves from the 1 o’clock position to the 10 o’clock position, it is truly wierd. After being an MB customer for 25+ years and 40+ cars later I am already convinced they can’t fix it, my only question left is whether they’ll throw me under the bus or replace the car with a new one. TBD I guess. A big THANKS to all who responded!

Quote:

Originally Posted by teksurv (Post 7605562)

I believe the 2019's in the US reintroduced the driver's seat moving back as a part of easy entry/exit.

You are correct. For the 2019 model year it was brought back. I had originally posted thinking the OP had an earlier model, so I deleted that post and replaced it with what I wrote above.

I have that feature shut off on mine and don't miss it. On the previous generations, they used a small gear to move the wheel up and down. If you happen to put your weight on the steering wheel while you get in or out, it tends to break that gear if the wheel is in motion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by riamga (Post 7605382)

... that my seat back which is normally in the 1 o’clock position doesn’t move backwards to the 2 o’clock position or even stay at the 1 o’clock but moves forward forcing the driver against the steering wheel and stops at about the 10 o’clock position.

I have an European model built sep 2018 and my seat back does exactly the same, to my (big) surprise. The seat does not move backwards but tries to throw you out of the car by moving the back forwards. I'm curious, is there anyone who can report that the seat actually moves backwards with this feature? (as it should i.m.h.o.)

Quote:

Originally Posted by cetialpha5 (Post 7605724)

I can't imagine why anyone would do that. Of course you'd run the risk of breaking something when you apply weight to a mechanical wheel in motion in the opposite direction. Just wait until the wheel stops it's motion, then if you have to, use your hand/weight to get out of the car.

I'll be honest, I did not have that feature in my previous ATS Cadillac and really missed it. At my age, every little bit helps these creaking bones...lol.

Exactly, don't use the steering wheel to get out of the car. Use the overheard handle above the door/window. It is purposely designed to support weight.

I too have never used, nor even felt it would be beneficial for me to use the easy entry/exit system. But, for some people, especially those who have some degree of disability, I can see where it could be useful.

I love the easy entry/exit system. I drive in the Italian arms out mode with the wheel as perpendicular as possible. Raising the wheel a few inches makes a big difference with ingress/egress. I have used that overhead handle for decades. Grab it and swing through the door.

Quote:

Originally Posted by rustybear3 (Post 7605838)

Very common for it to break in the previous models. Lots of discussion on it in the previous models and in the C class so I guess enough people did it. I don't think it takes that much weight to break it. It's a small dog bone gear. Maybe they fixed it in the new model.

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...2004-e500.html

Quote:

Originally Posted by ua549 (Post 7606214)

Glad MB has reintroduced this feature. My 2018 moves the steering wheel only which is of no real help, so i use memory seat setting #3. This leads me to a question. Must you still press and hold the memory seat button? Seems redundant to have the seat move automatically in one circumstance yet require your control on another.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cao Black (Post 7606252)

Glad MB has reintroduced this feature. My 2018 moves the steering wheel only which is of no real help, so i use memory seat setting #3. This leads me to a question. Must you still press and hold the memory button? Seems redundant to have the seat move automatically in one circumstance yet require your control on another.

lf you're asking about the 2019, yes, you still hold the [I think you meant] preset button until the seat adjusts to where you set it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cao Black (Post 7606252)

Must you still press and hold the memory seat button?

In my 2019 (European) W213 you do not have to hold the button untill it has completed the motion.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haag (Post 7607196)

In my 2019 (European) W213 you do not have to hold the button untill it has completed the motion.

That’s a good question, I’ check it out as I never paid any attention to it butboff the cuff I would say yes.

I have to hold button until seat stops moving in 2018 E300

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haag (Post 7607196)

In my 2019 (European) W213 you do not have to hold the button untill it has completed the motion.

That would be a most welcome, and sensible change IMO.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Haag (Post 7605836)

My June '18 built in Germany also has the Easy Entry/Exit and works exactly as descibed in the manual ( rbrylaw's post )

On Exit
- Steering wheel moves up when engine is off and door is opened
- Seat slides back but the back incline remains the same ( maybe because my seat is inclined at ~ 1 or 2 O clock )

On Entry
- Both seat and steering wheel return to driving position when door is closed and engine started

My guess is the actuators in the OP's car all need to be re-calibrated. If the control system thinks the 10 O'clock position is the 1 or 2 O'clock position, then you will see this type of behavior. It would be worth asking the technicians to confirm they did re-calibration as simply replacing a module would not be enough.

There might even be a way to re-caibrate the seats yourself like moving the seats to the extreme positions and keeping the buttons pressed at the extreme positions for 20 seconds? Perhaps someone from MB on this forum can advise.