2003 MERCEDES-BENZ S430 4MATIC Owner's Manual

305 Practical hints
What to do if …?
During severe operating conditions and
stop-and-go city traffic, the coolant tem-
perature may rise close to 248°F (120°C).
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
Ï
COOLANT
STOP, ENGINE OFF!
The coolant is too hot.

Stop the vehicle and turn off the en-
gine.

Only start the engine again after the
message disappears. You could oth-
erwise damage the engine.
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 operated with
the coolant temperature above 248°F
(120°C). Doing so may cause serious
engine damage which is not covered by
the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.

306 Practical hintsWhat to do if …?Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
Ï
COOLANT
STOP, ENGINE OFF!
The poly-V-belt could be broken.

Stop immediately and check the
poly-V-belt.
If it is broken:

Do not continue to drive. Otherwise
the engine will overheat due to an in-
operative water pump which may re-
sult in damage to the engine. Notify
an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
If it is intact:

Do not continue to drive the vehicle
with this message displayed. Doing
so could result in serious engine
damage that is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Ï
COOLANT
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The cooling fan for the coolant is malfunc-
tioning.

Observe the coolant temperature
display.

Have the fan replaced as soon as
possible.

307 Practical hints
What to do if …?
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
G
DISPLAY MALFUNCTION
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The instrument cluster display is malfunc-
tioning.

Continue driving with added caution.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
DISTRONIC
EXTERNAL INTERFERENCE
REACTIVATE!
Distronic* is switched off and is temporari-
ly unavailable.

Try activating Distronic* again later.
CLEAN SENSOR!
SEE OPERATOR'S MAN.
Distronic* is switched off because the Dis-
tronic* cover in the radiator grille is dirty.

Clean the Distronic* cover in the ra-
diator grille (
page 285).

Restart the vehicle.
VISIT WORKSHOP!
Distronic* is malfunctioning or the display
is malfunctioning.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
J
DOOR OPEN!
You are attempting to drive with one or
more doors open.

Close the doors.
P
SHIFT
TO P
You have turned off the engine with the
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button and
opened the driver’s door.

Place the selector lever in positionP.
?
VISIT WORKSHOP!
There may be a malfunction in the:

Fuel injection system


Ignition system


Exhaust system


Fuel system

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.

308 Practical hintsWhat to do if …?Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
:
ENGINE OIL LEVEL
STOP, ENGINE OFF!
There is no oil in the engine. There is a dan-
ger of engine damage.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt
as soon as possible.

Turn off the engine.

Add engine oil.
ENGINE OIL LEVEL
REDUCE OIL LEVEL
You have added too much engine oil. There
is a risk of damaging the engine or the cat-
alytic converter.

Have oil siphoned. Observe all legal
requirements with respect to its dis-
posal.
ENGINE OIL
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The engine oil has dropped to a critical lev-
el.

Check the engine oil level
(page 264) and add oil as required.

If you must add engine oil frequently,
have the engine checked for possible
leaks.
There is water in the oil.

Have the oil checked.

309 Practical hints
What to do if …?
When the
ENGINE OIL LEVEL – CHECK LEV-
EL!
message appears while the engine is
running and at operating temperature, the
engine oil level has dropped to approxi-
mately the minimum mark on the dipstick.When this occurs, the warning will first
come on intermittently and then stay on if
the oil level drops further.
If no oil leaks are noted, continue to drive
to the nearest service station where the
engine oil should be topped to the “full”
mark on the dipstick with an approved oil.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
:
ENGINE OIL LEVEL
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The measuring system is malfunctioning.

Have the measuring system checked
by an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center.
ENGINE OIL LEVEL
CHECK LEVEL!
The engine oil level is too low.

Check the engine oil level
(page 264) and add oil as required.
!The engine oil level warnings should
not be ignored. Extended driving with
the symbol displayed could result in se-
rious engine damage that is not cov-
ered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.

310 Practical hintsWhat to do if …?Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
ESP
MALFUNCTION!
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The ESP has detected a malfunction and
switched off.
The ABS may still be operational.

Continue driving with added caution.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions in-
creases the risk of an accident.
DISPLAY MALFUNCTION
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The ESP or the ESP display is malfunction-
ing.

Continue driving with added caution.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions in-
creases the risk of an accident.
NOT AVAILABLE!
SEE OPER. MANUAL
The ESP was deactivated because the pow-
er supply has been interrupted. The ABS is
still operational.

With the vehicle stationary and the
engine running, turn the steering
wheel completely to the left and then
to the right to synchronize the ESP.
If the ESP message does not go out:

Continue driving with added caution.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions in-
creases the risk of an accident.

311 Practical hints
What to do if …?
PRE-SAFE
INACTIVE
VISIT WORKSHOP
If BAS or ESP malfunction messages are
displayed simultaneously, PRE-SAFE has
been deactivated as a result of these mal-
functions. All other occupant safety sys-
tems, such as the airbags, are still
available.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
PRE-SAFE itself has failed. All other occu-
pant safety systems, such as the airbags,
are still available.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz
Center as soon as possible.
A
RESERVE FUEL
The fuel level has dropped below the re-
serve mark.

Refuel at the next gas station
(page 261).
Y
HOOD OPEN!
You are driving with the hood open.

Close the hood (
page 264).
I
REMOVE KEY!
You have forgotten to remove the
SmartKey.

Remove the SmartKey from the igni-
tion.
REPLACE KEY!
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The batteries in the SmartKey are dead.

Change the batteries (
page 328).
AUTOM. LIGHT ON
REMOVE KEY!

Remove the SmartKey from the start-
er switch.
Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution

312 Practical hintsWhat to do if …?Display
Possible cause
Suggested solution
.
LIGHT SENSOR
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The lamp sensor is malfunctioning. The
headlamps switch on automatically.

In the control system, set lamp operation
to manual (
page 149).

Switch on headlamps using the exterior
lamp switch.
BRAKE LIGHT
VISIT WORKSHOP!
Brake lamp illumination is delayed or lamp
is permanently on.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter as soon as possible.
DISPLAY MALFUNCTION
VISIT WORKSHOP!
The display for the lamps or the system is
malfunctioning.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter as soon as possible.
TURN OFF LIGHTS!
Lamps have been turned on although the
SmartKey in the ignition is in position 0.

Turn off the headlamps
TURN SIG. MIRROR, L
CHECK LIGHT!

The left turn signal in the side mirror is
malfunctioning. This message will only ap-
pear if all light emitting diodes have
stopped working.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter as soon as possible.
TURN SIG. MIRROR, R
CHECK LIGHT!

The right turn signal in the side mirror is
malfunctioning. This message will only ap-
pear if all light emitting diodes have
stopped working.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter as soon as possible.
TURN SIG., LF
CHECK LIGHT!

BACK-UP LIGHT ON!

The left front turn signal lamp is malfunc-
tioning. A back-up bulb is being used.

Replace the bulb as soon as possible.