2003 MERCEDES-BENZ SL55AMG Owner's Manual

105 Controls in detail
Lighting
High beam flasher 
Pull the combination switch briefly in
direction2.
Hazard warning flasher
The hazard warning flasher can be activat-
ed with the ignition switched on or off. It is
activated automatically when an airbag is
deployed.
The switch is located above and between
the center air vents.
1Hazard warning flasher switchSwitching on the hazard warning
flasher

Press the hazard warning flasher
switch.
All the turn signals will blink.
Switching off the hazard warning
flasher

Press hazard warning flasher switch
again.iWith the hazard warning flasher acti-
vated and the combination switch set
for either left or right turn, only the re-
spective left or right turn signals will
operate.

106 Controls in detailLightingInterior lighting
1Left reading lamp
2Right reading lamp
3Interior lighting on/off
4Slide switch for interior lighting controlAutomatic control
Activating

Slide switch4 to the left.
Interior lamps are switched on in dark-
ness when you

unlock the vehicle


open a door


remove the key from the starter
switch


open the trunk
In addition, the entry/exit lamps in the
door trays will come on when you open
a door.
The interior lamps are switched off fol-
lowing an adjustable time delay
(
page 127).Deactivating

Slide switch4 to the right.
The interior lighting and the entry/exit
lamps remain switched off in darkness,
even when you

unlock the vehicle


open a door


remove the key from the starter
switch


open the trunk
iIf the door remains open, the interior
lamps switch off automatically after ap-
proximately five minutes.

107 Controls in detail
Lighting
Manual control
Switching lamps on
Press switch3.
The interior lighting switches on.
Switching lamps off

Press switch3 again.
The interior lighting switches off.
Courtesy lighting
For better orientation in the dark, courtesy
lamps will illuminate the interior of your ve-
hicle as follows:
With parking lamps switched on:

the door handles


the driver and passenger footwells
With key in starter switch position1:


the door handles


the center console
iThe setting selected for the interior
lighting is used for the trunk lighting as
well.
If you leave the trunk lid open for an ex-
tended period of time, the trunk light-
ing will switch off automatically after
approximately ten minutes.
iIf you turn the key in the starter switch
to position0 and switch off the exterior
headlamps, the door handle lamps will
remain lit for approximately five min-
utes.

108 Controls in detailInstrument cluster
Instrument clusterA full view illustration of the instrument
cluster can be found in the “At a glance”
section of this manual (
page 20).
The instrument cluster is activated when
you:


open a door


turn on the ignition


press the reset knob (
page 20)


switch on the exterior lamps
Only opening a door will activate the in-
strument cluster for approximately
30 seconds.
You can change the instrument cluster set-
tings in the Instrument cluster submenu of
the control system (
page 122).
Instrument cluster illumination
Use the reset knob to adjust the illumina-
tion brightness for the instrument cluster
and the switches on the center console.
To brighten illumination
Turn the reset knob in the instrument
cluster (
page 20) clockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
brighten.To dim illumination

Turn the reset knob in the instrument
cluster (
page 20) counterclockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
dim.
Coolant temperature gauge
Under normal driving conditions, the cool-
ant temperature may rise to 248°F
(120°C). The coolant temperature may
rise to 266°F (130°C) at high outside tem-
peratures or when driving in hilly terrain.
The engine should not be operated with
the coolant temperature above 266°F
(130°C). Doing so may cause serious en-
gine damage which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
iThe instrument cluster illumination is
dimmed or brightened to suit ambient
light conditions.

109 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Trip odometer
Make sure that you are viewing the trip
odometer display (
page 110).
Press the
j
or
k
button on the mul-
tifunction steering wheel repeatedly until
the trip odometer appears if it is not dis-
played.

Press and hold reset knob4
(page 20) until the trip odometer is
reset.
Tachometer
The red marking on the tachometer de-
notes excessive engine speed.
To help protect the engine, the fuel supply
is interrupted if the engine is operated
within the red marking.
SL 55 AMG
O n t h e S L 5 5 A M G , t h e r e i s n o r e d m a r k i n g
denoting excessive engine speed.
To help protect the engine, the fuel supply
is interrupted if the engine is operated at
an excessive speed.
Outside temperature indicator
When moving the vehicle into colder ambi-
ent temperatures (e.g. when leaving your
garage), you will notice a delay before the
lower temperature is displayed.
A delay also occurs when ambient temper-
atures rise. This prevents inaccurate tem-
perature indications caused by heat
radiated from the engine during idling or
slow driving.
!Avoid driving at excessive engine
speeds, as it may result in serious en-
gine damage that is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
The outside temperature indicator is not de-
signed to serve as an Ice-Warning Device
and is therefore unsuitable for that purpose.
Indicated temperatures just above the freez-
ing point do not guarantee that the road sur-
face is free of ice. The road may still be icy,
especially in wooded areas or on bridges.

110 Controls in detailControl system
Control systemThe control system is activated as soon as
the key in the starter switch is turned to
position1. The control system enables you
to

call up information about your vehicle


change vehicle settings
For example, you can use the control sys-
tem to find out when your vehicle is next
due for service, to set the language for
messages in the instrument cluster dis-
play, and much more.
The control system relays information to
the multifunction display.
Multifunction display
The multifunction display consists of the
display fields in the speedometer and the
tachometer. In its default state, the left
display field shows the trip and main
odometer, while the present outside tem-
perature appears in the right display field.
This default setting is referred to as the
standard display.
1Main odometer
2Trip odometer
3Current gear selector lever position
4Outside temperature
5Automatic transmission program mode
Warning!
G
A driver’s attention to the road and traffic
conditions must always be his /her primary
focus when driving.
For your safety and the safety of others, se-
lecting features through the multifunction
steering wheel should only be done by the
driver when traffic and road conditions per-
mit it to be done safely.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km / h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet (approximate-
ly 13.5 m) every second.

111 Controls in detail
Control system
Multifunction steering wheel
The displays in the multifunction display
and the settings in the control system are
controlled by the buttons on the multifunc-
tion steering wheel (
page 20).Pressing any of the buttons on the multi-
function steering wheel will alter what is
shown in the multifunction display.
The information available in the multifunc-
tion display is arranged in menus, each
containing a number of functions or sub-
menus.
The individual functions are then found
within the relevant menu (radio or CD op-
erations under
AUDIO
, for example). These
functions serve to call up relevant informa-
tion or to customize the settings for your
vehicle.
It is helpful to think of the menus, and the
functions within each menu, as being ar-
ranged in a circular pattern.


If you press button
è
or
ÿ
re-
peatedly, you will pass through each
menu one after the other.


If you press button
k
or
j
re-
peatedly, you will pass through each
function display, one after the other, in
the current menu.
1
Left multifunction display in the
speedometer
2
Right multifunction display in the
tachometerOperating the control system
3
Selecting the submenu or setting
the volumeç
down / to decrease
æ
up / to increase
4
Telephone*í
to take a call
ì
to end a call
5
Menu systemsè
for next menu
ÿ
for previous menu
6
Moving within a menuj
for next display
k
for previous display

112 Controls in detailControl systemIn the
Settings
menu, instead of functions
you will find a number of submenus for
calling up and changing settings. For in-
structions on using these submenus, see
the “Settings menu” section (
page 119).
The number of menus available in the sys-
tem depends on which optional equipment
is installed in your vehicle.The menus are described on the following
pages.