2003 MERCEDES-BENZ SL500 Turn Indicator

98 Controls in detailSeatsVehicles with seat ventilation*
The switch is located on the door. The red
indicator lamps on the switch show the
heater level selected:
1Seat heater switch
Make sure the ignition is switched on.
All the lamps in the instrument cluster
light up.Switching on the seat heater

Press upper switch position1 twice.
A red indicator lamp on the switch
lights up.
Switching off the seat heater

Press upper switch position1 again.
Rapid seat heating

Press upper switch position1 once.
Both indicator lamps on the switch light
up. Switching off rapid seat heating mode

Press upper switch position1 twice.
Seat heater off
No indicator lamp on
Level 1
One indicator lamp on
Level 2
Two indicator lamps on
iThe seat heater will be automatically
switched off after approximately
30 minutes. iThe system switches over to normal
heating mode after approximately five
minutes. Only the right-hand indicator
lamp remains lit.
!If one or both of the lamps on the seat
heater switch are blinking, there is in-
sufficient voltage available since too
many electrical consumers are turned
on. The seat heater switches off auto-
matically.
The seat heater will switch back on
again automatically as soon as suffi-
cient voltage is available.

104 Controls in detailLightingUSA only:
The high beam headlamps can also be ac-
tivated when driving with the daytime run-
ning lamp mode activated and the exterior
lamp switch in position
M
.
To activate the daytime running lamp
mode, see “Setting daytime running lamp
mode (USA only)” (
page 124).
Locator lighting and night security
illumination
Locator lighting and night security illumi-
nation are described in the control system
section, see “Setting locator lighting”
(
page 125) and "Exterior lamps delayed
switch-off" (
page 125).Switching on front fog lamps

Make sure that the low beam head-
lamps are switched on.

Pull out exterior lamp switch to first
stop.
The green indicator lamp
‡
in the
lamp switch lights up.
Switching on rear fog lamp

Make sure that the low beam head-
lamps are switched on.

Pull out exterior lamp switch to second
stop.
The yellow indicator lamp
†
in the
lamp switch lights up.
Combination switch
The combination switch is located on the
left side of the steering column.
1High beam
2High beam flasher
Switching on high beams
Turn the exterior lamp switch to
B

or to
U
(page 102).

Push the combination switch in
direction1.
The high beam symbol in the tachome-
ter will light up.
iSee notes on the exterior lamp switch
(page 102).

150 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlAdjusting the temperature for center
and side air vents
When outside temperatures are low, you
can manually raise the air temperature for
the center and side air vents. The
controls3 are located between the center
air vents (
page 147).
Turning on warm air

Press the left button (red).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up. Warm air will enter from the center
and side air vents.
Turning off warm air

Press the left button (red).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. The air from the outlets will return
to the temperature set in the system.Turning on cooler air

Press the right button (blue).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up. Cooler air will enter from the center
and side air vents.
Turning off cooler air

Press the right button (blue).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. The air from the outlets will return
to the temperature set in the system.
Adjusting air volume
Use the air volume control10
(page 148) for both automatic and man-
ual air volume adjustment.
Adjusting manually

Press the control knob.
The
U
light on the control knob
goes out. You can now select one of
nine air volume settings.
Adjusting automatically

Press the control knob.
The
U
light on the control knob
comes on. The airflow is adjusted auto-
matically.

151 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Adjusting air distribution
Use the air distribution controls2 and6
(page 148) to separately adjust the air
distribution on each side of the passenger
compartment. The following symbols are
found on the controls:
Adjusting manually

Press the control knob.
The
U
light on the control knob
goes out. The air distribution can be ad-
justed manually.Adjusting automatically

Press the control knob.
The
U
light on the control knob
comes on. The air distribution is adjust-
ed automatically.
Windshield fogged on the outside

Switch the windshield wipers on.

Turn the air distribution control to
h

or
k
.
Maximum cooling MAXCOOL
If the left and right air distribution controls
as well as the airflow volume control are
set to
U
and there is a high need for
cooling, the display MAXCOOL lights up on
the left and right temperature controls.
This provides the fastest possible cooling
of the vehicle interior (when retractable
hardtop is closed).
Defrosting
Activating
Press button
P
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.
Deactivating

Press button
P
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. Defrosting is turned off.
Symbol
Function
h
Directs air through the cen-
ter air vents
j
Directs air to the windows
V
Directs air into the entire
vehicle interior
k
Directs air to the footwells
iThese settings should only be selected
for a short time.

152 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlAir recirculation mode
Switch to air recirculation mode to prevent
unpleasant odors from entering the vehicle
from the outside. This setting cuts off the
intake of outside air and recirculates the
air in the passenger compartment.
Activating
Press button
,
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.Deactivating

Press button
,
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.The air recirculation mode is deactivated
automatically


after five minutes if the outside temper-
ature is below approximately 41°F
(5 °C)


after five minutes if the air conditioner
is turned off


after 30 minutes if the outside temper-
ature is above approximately 41°F
(5 °C)
At outside temperatures above 79°F
(26 °C) the system will not automatically
switch back to outside air. A quantity of
outside air is added after approximately
30 minutes.
Warning!
G
When the outside temperature is below
41°F (5°C), only switch to air recirculation
mode for short periods to prevent window
fogging.
iIf you keep button
,
pressed, the
side windows will close.
The air recirculation mode is activated
automatically


at high outside temperatures


if the concentration of carbon mon-
oxide and nitrogen oxide in the out-
side air increases, for example in a
tunnel
If you have turned off the air condition-
er (page 155) or the outside
temperature is below 41°F (5°C), the
air recirculation mode will not switch
on automatically.
iIf you keep button
,
pressed, the
side windows will return to their previ-
ous position.

153 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Rear window defroster
The rear window defroster uses a large
amount of power. To keep the battery
drain to a minimum, switch off the defrost-
er as soon as the rear window is clear. The
defroster is automatically deactivated af-
ter approximately 6 to 17 minutes of oper-
ation depending on the outside
temperature.
Activating
Press button
F
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the button lights
up.Deactivating

Press button
F
(page 148) again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
Warning!
G
Any accumulation of snow and ice should be
removed from the rear window before driv-
ing. Visibility could otherwise be impaired,
endangering you and others.!The rear window defroster cannot be
switched on when the retractable hard-
top is open. The indicator lamp will
start blinking if the hardtop is open.

Close the retractable hardtop.
The rear window defroster can again be
turned on.
!If the rear window defroster switches
off too soon and the indicator lamp
starts blinking, this means that too
many electrical consumers are operat-
ing simultaneously and there is insuffi-
cient voltage in the battery. The system
responds automatically by deactivating
the rear window defroster.
As soon as the battery has sufficient
voltage, the rear window defroster au-
tomatically turns itself back on.

154 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlResidual heat and ventilation
With the engine switched off, it is possible
to continue to heat or ventilate the interior
for up to 30 minutes. This feature makes
use of the residual heat produced by the
engine.
Activating
Turn the key in the starter switch to
position1 o r r e m ov e i t f r o m t h e s t a r t e r
switch.

Press button
T
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on button
T

comes on.Deactivating

Press button
T
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on button
T

goes out.
The residual heat is automatically turned
off:


when the ignition is switched on


after about 30 minutes


if the battery voltage dropsDeactivating the automatic climate
control system
Deactivating
It is possible to completely deactivate the
automatic climate control system. 
Press button
M
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on button
M

comes on.
iHow long the system will provide heat-
ing depends on the coolant tempera-
ture and the temperature set by the
operator. The blower will run at speed
setting1 regardless of the air distribu-
tion control setting.
iThis setting is only recommended when
the retractable hardtop is open.

155 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Reactivating
There are several ways to reactivate the
automatic climate control system:
Press any button on the automatic cli-
mate control panel (
page 148).
The indicator lamp on button
M

switches off.
or

Turn one of the control knobs on the
automatic climate control.
The indicator lamp on button
M

switches off.
Air conditioning
The air conditioning is operational while
the engine is running and cools the interior
air to the temperature set by the operator.
Deactivating
It is possible to deactivate the air condi-
tioning (cooling) function of the automatic
climate control system. The air in the vehi-
cle will then no longer be cooled or dehu-
midified.
Press button AC
OFF
(page 148).
The indicator lamp on the
buttonAC
OFF
lights up.Activating
Moist air can fog up the windows. You can
dehumidify the air with the air condition-
ing.

Press AC
OFF
again (
page 148).
The indicator lamp on the
buttonAC
OFF
goes out.
The air conditioning uses the refrigerant
R134A. This refrigerant is free of CFCs
which are harmful to the ozone layer.
iCondensation may drip out from under-
neath the vehicle. This is normal and
not an indication of a malfunction.
!If the AC
OFF
button on the automatic
climate control panel starts to blink,
this indicates that the air conditioning
is losing refrigerant. The compressor
has turned itself off. The air condition-
ing cannot be turned on again.


Have the air conditioner checked at
the nearest authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.