2003 MERCEDES-BENZ SL55AMG Owner's Manual

145 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Good visibility
Information on the windshield wipers
(page 44) and for setting the rear view
mirrors (
page 35) is found in the “Get-
ting started” section.
Rear view mirror
Automatic antiglare rear view mirror
The reflection brightness of the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side and
the inside rear view mirror will respond au-
tomatically to glare when

the ignition is switched on, and


incoming light from headlamps falls on
the sensor in the inside rear view mir-
ror.
The rear view mirror will not react if


reverse gear is engaged


the interior lighting is turned on
Warning!
G
The automatic antiglare function does not
react if incoming light is not aimed directly
at sensors in the inside rear view mirror.
The inside rear view mirror and the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side do not
react, for example, if the wind screen is in-
stalled.
Glare can endanger you and others.Warning!
G
Exercise care when using the passenger
side exterior rear view mirror. The mirror
surface is convex (outwardly curved surface
for a wider field of view). Objects in mirror
are closer than they appear. Check your in-
side rear view mirror or glance over your
shoulder before changing lanes.
Warning!
G
In the case of an accident liquid electrolyte
may escape from the mirror housing if the
mirror glass breaks.
Electrolyte has an irritating effect. Do not al-
low the liquid to come into contact with
eyes, skin, clothing, or respiratory system.
In case it does, immediately flush affected
area with water, and seek medical help if
necessary.!Electrolyte drops coming into contact
with the vehicle paint finish can be
completely removed only while in the
liquid state by applying plenty of water.

146 Controls in detailGood visibilityHeadlamp cleaning system
The switch is located on the left side of the
dashboard.
1Headlamp washer switch
Switch on ignition.

Press switch1.
Rear window defroster
For information on the rear window de-
froster (
page 153).
Sun visors
The sun visors protect you from sun glare
while driving.
Swing sun visors down when you expe-
rience glare.1Mounting
2Mirror cover
3Mirror lamp
4Holder for gas cards

To use mirror, lift up cover2.
Warning!
G
Do not use the vanity mirror while driving.
Keep the mirrors in the sun visors closed
while vehicle is in motion. Reflected glare
can endanger you and others.
iIf sunlight enters through a side win-
dow, disengage sun visor from
mounting1 and pivot to the side.
The mirror lamp3 will switch off.

147 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Automatic climate control

148 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control
Automatic climate control panel
Item
1
Center air vent, adjustable
2
Center air vent, fixed
3
Air temperature controls for cen-
ter and side air vents
4
Air volume control for center and
side air vents
5
Center air vent, adjustable
6
Side defroster vent
7
Side air vent, adjustable
8
Automatic climate control panel
iFor draft-free ventilation, move the slid-
ers for the center air vents to the mid-
dle position.
Item
1
Temperature control, left
2
Air distribution, left (automatic or
manual operation)
3
Defrosting
4
Air recirculation
5
Rear window defroster
6
Air distribution, right (automatic or
manual operation)
7
Temperature control, right
8
Automatic climate control on/off
(complete system)
9
Residual heat/ventilation
10
Air volume control (automatic, man-
ual)
11
AC cooling on/off

149 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
The automatic climate control is operation-
al whenever the engine is running. You can
operate the climate control system in ei-
ther the automatic or manual mode. The
system cools or heats the interior depend-
ing on the selected interior temperature
and the current outside temperature.
Nearly all dust particles, pollutants and
odors are filtered out before outside air en-
ters the passenger compartment through
the air distribution system.
Setting the temperature
Use the temperature controls1 and7 to
separately adjust the air temperature on
each side of the passenger compartment.
You should raise or lower the temperature
setting in small increments, preferably
starting at 72°F (22°C). Increasing

Turn the outer adjustment ring slightly
to the right.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Decreasing

Turn the outer adjustment ring slightly
to the left.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for heat-
ing and cooling given on the following pag-
es. Otherwise the windows could fog up,
impairing visibility and endangering you and
others.
iIf the vehicle interior is hot, ventilate
the interior before driving off.
Keep the air intake grille in front of the
windshield free of snow and debris.
When the retractable hardtop is closed,
do not obstruct air flow by placing ob-
jects on the air flow-through exhaust
slots below the rear window.
iWhen operating the climate control
system in automatic mode, you will
only rarely need to adjust the tempera-
ture, air volume and air distribution.

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.