2003 MERCEDES-BENZ E500 Owner's Manual

305 Practical hints
What to do if …
2
Brake wear
Visit workshop!
The brake pads have reached their wear
limit.

Brake pad thickness must be visually
inspected at the intervals specified in
the Service Booklet.

Have the brake pads replaced as
soon as possible.
T
Brake malfunction
Stop vehicle
The SBC brake system is in the limp-home
(emergency operation) mode. Consider-
ably greater brake pedal force is required
and the stopping distance is increased.
Do not exceed a speed of 55 mph
(90 km/h).

Do not drive any further.

Significantly greater force must be
applied to the brake pedal.

Call for roadside assistance.
Except Canada:;Canada only:3
Reduced braking effect
Start engine!
Increased braking dis-
tance
Start engine!
The battery has insufficient voltage and
cannot supply sufficient power to the SBC
brake system.

Start the engine.
The message disappears when suffi-
cient voltage is available
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution

306 Practical hintsWhat to do if …Except Canada:;Canada only:3
Reduced braking effect
Visit workshop!
Increased braking dis-
tance
Visit workshop!
The SBC brake system is in the limp-home
(emergency operation) mode. Consider-
able brake pedal force is required and the
stopping distance is increased.

Continue driving with added caution.

Adjust driving to be consistent with
reduced braking responsiveness.
Brake fluid
Visit workshop!
There is insufficient brake fluid in the reser-
voir.

Risk of accident! Stop the vehicle
and notify an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center. Do not add
brake fluid! This will not solve the
problem.
Except Canada:;Canada only:3
Service brake
Visit workshop!
There are malfunctions, but the SBC brake
system is operating normally.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution

307 Practical hints
What to do if …
Except Canada:;Canada only:3
Brakes overheated!
Drive carefully!
The brake system is overheated due to an
excessive load on the brakes.

Relieve the load on the brake sys-
tem.

Drive more smoothly and think
ahead to avoid unnecessary braking.

When driving down slopes, shift into
a lower gear to use the engine’s brak-
ing power (
page 153).

Cautiously continue driving so that
the air stream will cool down the
brakes.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
Warning!
G
Driving while these messages are displayed
can result in an accident. Have your brake
system checked immediately.
If there is a malfunction in the SBC brake
system, we recommend that the vehicle be
transported with all wheels off the ground
using flatbed or appropriate wheel lift/dolly
equipment. A tow bar must be used if cir-
cumstances do not permit the use of the
recommended towing methods and the ve-
hicle requires towing with all four wheels on
the ground. Towing the vehicle with all four
wheels on the ground is only permissible for
distances up to 30 miles (50 km) and at a
speed not to exceed 30 mph (50 km/h). For
more information, refer to "Towing the vehi-
cle" (
page 348).
If the SBC brake system enters its
limp-home (emergency operation) mode,
the driver must apply significantly greater
brake pedal pressure and depress the pedal
much further than normal to obtain braking
effect. If necessary, apply full pressure to
the brake pedal. Brakes are only applied to
the front wheels. Stopping distance is in-
creased!
Low brake fluid in the reservoir may cause
the braking system to fail!
Don’t add brake fluid before checking the
brake system. Overfilling the brake fluid

308 Practical hintsWhat to do if …reservoir can result in spilling brake fluid on
hot engine parts and the brake fluid catch-
ing fire. You can be seriously burned.iIf you find that the brake fluid in the
brake fluid reservoir has fallen to the
minimum mark or below, have the
brake system checked for brake pad
thickness and leaks.!Brake pad thickness must be visually
inspected at the intervals specified in
the Service Booklet.

309 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
F
Key
Check battery!
The batteries in the KEYLESS-GO*
key are discharged.

Change the batteries (
page 328).
Key
not recognized!
The KEYLESS-GO* key is not recog-
nized while the engine is running be-
cause

the card is not in the vehicle


there is strong radio-frequency
interference

Stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do
so.

Search for the card or continue to operate
the vehicle with the key.
Otherwise the vehicle cannot be centrally
locked nor can the engine be started again
after the engine is stopped.
The KEYLESS-GO* key is momen-
tarily not recognized.

Change the position of the card in the vehi-
cle.

Operate the vehicle with the key if neces-
sary.
ì
Function
Not available!
This display appears if button ì
or í on the multifunction steer-
ing wheel is pressed and the vehicle
is not equipped with a telephone.

310 Practical hintsWhat to do if …F
Key recognized
in vehicle!
A KEYLESS-GO* key left in the vehi-
cle was recognized while locking the
vehicle from the outside.

Take the key out of the vehicle.
Key
Visit workshop!
The KEYLESS-GO* system is mal-
functioning.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
as soon as possible.
Key
do not forget key
This display appears (for a maximum
of 60 seconds) if the driver’s door is
opened with the engine shut off and
no key in the starter switch.
This message is only a reminder.

Insert key in the starter switch.
_
Entry position
Do not drive!
Seat, mirrors and steering wheel
have not yet moved to their preset
driving positions.

Wait until the seat, mirrors and steering
wheel have moved to their driving positions.
The message disappears.
Except Canada:;Canada only:!
Release park. brake!
You are driving with the parking
brake set.

Release the parking brake (
page 45).
<
Visit workshop!
The seat belt system is malfunction-
ing.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
as soon as possible.
Ê
Trunk open!
This message will appear whenever
the trunk lid is open.

Close the trunk lid.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution

311 Practical hints
What to do if …
W
Washer fluid
Check level
The fluid level has dropped to about 1/3 of total reservoir capacity.

Add washer fluid (
page 267).
B
Coolant
Check level
The coolant level is too low.

Add coolant (
page 264).

If you have to add coolant frequently, have
the cooling system checked by an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Ï
Coolant
Visit workshop!
The cooling fan for the coolant is
malfunctioning.

Observe the coolant temperature display.

Have the fan replaced as soon as possible.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
Warning!
G
Do not spill antifreeze on hot engine parts.
Antifreeze contains ethylene glycol which
may burn if it comes into contact with hot
engine parts. You can be seriously burned.
!Do not ignore the low engine coolant
level warning. Extended driving with
the message and symbol displayed
may cause serious engine damage not
covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.
Do not drive without sufficient amount
of coolant in the cooling system. The
engine will overheat causing major en-
gine damage.

312 Practical hintsWhat to do if …Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
Ï
Coolant
Stop, engine off!
The coolant is too hot.
The poly-V-belt could be broken.

Stop the vehicle.

Only start the engine again after the mes-
sage disappears. You could otherwise dam-
age the engine.

Stop immediately and check the
poly-V-belt.
If it is broken, do not drive any further.
Notify an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
If it is in order, drive immediately to the
nearest authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter.
Warning!
G
Driving when your engine is badly overheat-
ed can cause some fluids which may have
leaked into the engine compartment to
catch fire. You could be seriously burned.
Steam from an overheated engine can cause
serious burns and can occur just by opening
the engine hood. Stay away from the engine
if you see or hear steam coming from it.
Turn off the engine, get out of the vehicle
and do not stand near the vehicle until it
cools down. The engine should not be oper-
ated with the coolant temperature above
266°F (130°C). Doing so may cause serious
engine damage which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.