2003 MERCEDES-BENZ SL500 door locks

80 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingIn the “Controls in detail” section you will
find detailed information on how to oper-
ate the equipment installed on your vehi-
cle. if you are already familiar with the
basic functions of your vehicle, this section
will be of particular interest to you.
To quickly familiarize yourself with the ba-
sic functions of the vehicle, refer to the
“Getting started” section of this manual.
The corresponding page numbers are giv-
en at the beginning of each segment.
Locking and unlockingKeys
Your vehicle comes supplied with two
SmartKeys with remote controls and a re-
movable mechanical key. The locking tabs
for the mechanical key portion of the two
keys are a different color to help distin-
guish each key unit.
The remote control key provides an ex-
tended operating range. To prevent theft,
however, it is advisable to only unlock the
vehicle when you are in close proximity to
it.
The key centrally locks and unlocks:

the doors


the trunk lid


the glove box


the storage space under the armrest


the storage compartment in the rear


the fuel filler flap
SmartKey with remote controls1‹
Lock button
2
Š
Unlock button for the trunk lid
3Mechanical key locking tab
4
Œ
Unlock button
5Battery check lamp
6
Â
Panic button (
page 67)
iYou can also open and close the re-
tractable hardtop using the key
(page 163).

81 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Factory setting
Global unlocking
Press button
Œ
.
All turn signals blink once. The locking
knobs in the doors move up.
The vehicle will lock again automatically
within approximately 40 seconds of un-
locking if neither door nor trunk is opened.
Global locking

Press button
‹
.
All turn signals blink three times. The lock-
ing knobs in the doors move down.Individual setting
If you frequently travel alone, you may wish
to reprogram the key so that
pressing
Œ
only unlocks the driver’s
door, interior lockable storage compart-
ments and the fuel filler flap.

Press and hold buttons
Œ
and
‹

simultaneously for about six seconds
until the battery check lamp5 blinks
twice.
The key will then function as follows:
Unlocking driver’s door

Press button
Œ
once.
Global unlocking

Press button
Œ
twice.
Global locking

Press button
‹
.Restoring to factory setting

Press and hold buttons
Œ
and
‹

simultaneously for about six seconds
until the battery check lamp5 blinks
twice.
!To prevent possible malfunction, avoid
exposing the key to high levels of elec-
tromagnetic radiation.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the starter switch, take the KEY-
LESS-GO
* card (if so equipped) with you
and lock the vehicle. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. It is possible for chil-
dren to open a locked door from the inside,
which could result in an accident or serious
injury.

82 Controls in detailLocking and unlocking
Checking the batteries
Press button
‹
or
Œ
.
The battery check lamp5 lights up
briefly to indicate that the key batteries
are in order.Unlocking the trunk lid
You can unlock the trunk separately.

Press and hold button
Š
until trunk
unlocks.
!If you can no longer lock or unlock the
vehicle with the key, then either the
batteries in the electronics are dis-
charged or the key is malfunctioning.

Check the batteries in the key
(page 82) and replace them if
necessary (
page 293).
or


Use the mechanical key to unlock
the doors (
page 290) and trunk
(
page 291) as required. Lock the
vehicle using the mechanical key
(page 292).
If the key is malfunctioning, contact an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
!If the battery check lamp5 does not
light up briefly during check then the
key batteries are discharged.

Change the batteries (
page 293).
You can obtain the required batteries
at any authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter.
iIf the vehicle was previously centrally
locked, the trunk lid will lock automati-
cally when closed. The turn signals will
flash three times to confirm locking.

84 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingSeparately unlocking the trunk
Turn the key completely to the left to
position1.
You can now open the trunk.
Loss of SmartKey or mechanical key
If you lose a SmartKey or mechanical key,
you should do the following:

Have the SmartKey deactivated by an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.

Report the loss of the SmartKey or the
mechanical key immediately to your
car insurance company.

If necessary have the mechanical lock
replaced.
Your authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
will be glad to supply you with a replace-
ment.
KEYLESS-GO card*
Specially equipped vehicles come with two
KEYLESS-GO cards. On these vehicles, the
validity of the KEYLESS-GO card is
checked every time you grasp a door
handle.
If the card is valid, your vehicle unlocks

the doors


the trunk lid


the glove box


the storage space under the armrest


the storage compartment in the rear


the fuel filler flap
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the starter switch, take the KEY-
LESS-GO
* card (if so equipped) with you
and lock the vehicle. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of
vehicle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
!To prevent possible malfunction, avoid
exposing the KEYLESS-GO* card to
high levels of electromagnetic radia-
tion.

86 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingFactory setting
Global unlocking
Grasp the door handle.
The vehicle will lock again automatically
within approximately 40 seconds of un-
locking if neither door nor trunk is opened.
Global locking

Press lock button at door handle
(page 50) or trunk (
page 88).Individual setting
If you frequently travel alone, you may wish
t o r e p r o g r a m t h e K E Y L E S S - G O c a r d s o t h a t
grasping a door handle only unlocks the
driver’s door, interior lockable storage
compartments and the fuel filler flap.
1Programming button
2“Driver’s door” symbol
3“Global unlock” symbol

Press and hold the programming
button1 until the “Driver’s door”
symbol2 lights up.
The KEYLESS-GO card will then func-
tion as follows:Unlocking the driver’s door

Grasp the driver’s handle.
Global unlocking

Grasp the door handle on the pas-
senger side.
Global locking

Press lock button at door handle or
trunk.
iThe vehicle could inadvertently unlock
if the KEYLESS-GO card is within 3 ft.
(1 m) of the vehicle and

the door handle is splashed with
water, or


you attempt to clean the door
handle.

88 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingUnlocking the trunk lid
The handle is located in the rear license
plate recess.
Pull on the handle and lift up the trunk
lid.
The vehicle unlocks the trunk lid only.Locking the vehicle
1Trunk lock button

Press the lock button at door
(page 49) or trunk.Closing the side windows

Press and hold lock button at door
(page 49) until the side windows are
closed.
iIf the vehicle was previously centrally
locked, the trunk lid will lock automati-
cally when closed. The turn signals will
flash three times to confirm locking.
To prevent a possible inadvertent lock-
out, the trunk lid will open automatical-
ly if a KEYLESS-GO card is recognized
inside the trunk.
Warning!
G
When closing the windows, be sure that
there is no danger of anyone being harmed
by the closing procedure.
If potential danger exists, proceed as fol-
lows:

Release the lock button.


Pull on the door handle and hold firmly.
The side windows will open for as long
as the door handle is held but the door
is not opened.

91 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Closing the trunk lid
1Handle
Lower trunk lid by pulling firmly on
handle1.
Automatic central locking
The doors and the trunk lid automatically
lock when the vehicle is set into motion.
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
You can deactivate the automatic locking
using the control system (
page 128).
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the trunk
opening when closing the trunk lid. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
iTo prevent an inadvertent lockout, do
not place the key in the trunk.
Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*: To pre-
vent a possible inadvertent lockout, the
trunk lid will open automatically if a
KEYLESS-GO card is recognized inside
the trunk.
When the hardtop is retracted, it must
be completely lowered in the trunk be-
fore the trunk lid can be closed
(page 199).
Warning!
G
Only drive with the trunk closed as, among
other dangers such as visibility blockage,
exhaust fumes may enter the vehicle interi-
or.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact ex-
ceeds a preset threshold.
The vehicle automatically locks when
the ignition is switched on and the
wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or
more. You could therefore lock yourself
out when the vehicle

is pushed


is on a test stand

92 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingLocking and unlocking from the inside
You can lock or unlock the vehicle from in-
side using the central locking switches.
This can be useful, for example, if you want
to unlock the passenger door from the in-
side or want to lock the vehicle before
starting to drive.
The switches are located above and be-
tween the center air vents of the air condi-
tioning.
Central locking switches1Locking
2Unlocking
Locking
Press central locking switch1.
If all the doors are closed, the vehicle
locks.
Unlocking

Press central locking switch2.
The vehicle unlocks.
iYou can open a locked door from inside
at any time. Open door only when con-
ditions are safe to do so.
If you have locked the vehicle with the
key or the KEYLESS-GO* card, the cen-
tral locking switches do not work.
iIf the vehicle was previously centrally
locked using the SmartKey or the
KEYLESS-GO* card, it will not unlock
using the central locking switch.Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the starter switch, take the KEY-
LESS-GO
* card (if so equipped) with you
and lock the vehicle. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of
vehicle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.