2003 MERCEDES-BENZ SL55AMG garage

Contents
Retractable hardtop........................... 159
Opening and closing the retractable
hardtop ........................................ 159
Driving systems ................................. 168
Cruise control .............................. 168
Distronic* .................................... 171
Active Body Control (ABC) ........... 183
Parktronic system* ...................... 186
Useful features .................................. 190
Interior storage spaces ................ 190
Ashtray......................................... 196
Cigarette lighter ........................... 197
Heated steering wheel* (Canada
only–model SL 500) ..................... 197
Easy-Pack load assist in the trunk 198
Electrical outlet ............................ 199
Telephone* .................................. 199
Tele Aid ........................................ 200
Garage door opener ..................... 208Operation......................................... 213
The first 1000 miles (1500 km) ......... 214
Driving instructions............................ 215
Drive sensibly – save fuel............. 215
Drinking and driving ..................... 215Pedals ........................................... 215
Power assistance .......................... 216
Brakes........................................... 216
Driving off ..................................... 218
Parking.......................................... 218
Tires .............................................. 219
Hydroplaning................................. 219
Tire traction .................................. 220
Tire speed rating ........................... 220
Winter driving instructions ............ 221
Standing water.............................. 222
Passenger compartment ............... 222
Driving abroad .............................. 222
Control and operation of radio trans-
mitters .......................................... 222
Catalytic converter........................ 223
Emission control ........................... 224
Coolant temperature..................... 224
At the gas station ............................... 225
Check regularly and before a
long trip ........................................ 226Engine compartment .......................... 227
Hood ............................................. 227
Engine oil ...................................... 228
Transmission fluid level ................ 230
Oil level in the ABC system ........... 230
Coolant ......................................... 230
Battery .......................................... 232
Windshield washer system and
headlamp cleaning system ........... 233
Tires and wheels ................................ 234
Important guidelines ..................... 234
Life of tires ................................... 235
Direction of rotation ..................... 235
Checking tire inflation pressure .... 235
Rotating wheels ............................ 238
Winter driving ..................................... 239
Winter tires ................................... 239
Block heater (Canada only) ........... 240
Snow chains ................................. 240
Maintenance ...................................... 241
Clearing the service indicator ....... 241
Service term exceeded ................. 241
Calling up the service indicator .... 242
Resetting the service indicator ..... 242
Vehicle care ....................................... 243
Cleaning and care of the vehicle ... 243

25 At a glance
Overhead control panel
Overhead control panel
Item
Page
1
Left reading lamp on/off
106
2
Temperature sensor for
automatic climate control
147
3
Right reading lamp on/off
106
4
Interior lighting control
106
5
Hands-free microphone
for Tele Aid (emergency
call system), telephone*
and voice control system*
(see separate operating
instructions)
199
6
Rear view mirror
35,
145
7
Garage door opener
208
8
Tele Aid (emergency call
system) button
200

39 Getting started
Driving


Do not fasten a seat belt around a per-
son and another object at the same
time.


Check your seat belt during travel to
ensure that it is properly positioned.


Ensure that the seat belt is always fit-
ted snugly. You should avoid wearing
bulky clothing, such as winter coats,
when traveling in the vehicle.
Starting the engine
Gearshift pattern for automatic
transmissionP Park position with selector lever lock
R Reverse gear
N Neutral
D Drive position
More information can be found in the
“Controls in detail” section (
page 137).

Make sure that the gear selector lever
is set to P.
Warning!
G
Do not pass belts over sharp edges. They
could tear.
Do not allow the belt to get caught in the
door or in the seat adjustment mechanism.
This could damage the belt.
Never attempt to make modifications to
seat belts. This could impair the effective-
ness of the belts.
Damaged seat belts or belts that were highly
stressed in an accident must be replaced by
an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!
G
Inhalation of exhaust gas is hazardous to
your health. All exhaust gas contains carbon
monoxide, and inhaling it can cause uncon-
sciousness and lead to death.
Do not run the engine in confined areas
(such as a garage) which are not properly
ventilated. If you think that exhaust gas
fumes are entering the vehicle while driving,
have the cause determined and corrected
immediately. If you must drive under these
conditions, drive with at least one window
fully open.

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.

208 Controls in detailUseful features
Stolen vehicle tracking services
In the event your vehicle was stolen:
Report the incident to the police
The police will issue a numbered inci-
dent report.

Pass this number on to the
Mercedes-Benz Response Center along
with your password issued to you when
you subscribed to the service.
The Response Center will then attempt
to covertly contact the vehicle’s Tele
Aid system. Once the vehicle is locat-
ed, the Response Center will contact
the local law enforcement and you. The
vehicle’s location will only be provided
to law enforcement.
Garage door opener
The built-in remote control is capable of
operating up to three separately controlled
objects.
You can program the signal transmitter
keys.Remote control integrated into the inside
rear view mirror1Indicator lamp
2Hand-held remote control trans-
mitter
3, 4, 5Signal transmitter key
iThe remote door unlock feature is avail-
able if the relevant cellular phone net-
work is available.
The SOS button will flash and the mes-
sage “Emergency call Call connected”
will appear in the multifunction display
to indicate receipt of the door unlock
command.
Once the vehicle is unlocked, a Re-
sponse Center specialist will attempt
to establish voice contact with the ve-
hicle occupants.
If the trunk button was pressed for
more than 20 seconds before door un-
lock authorization was received by the
Response Center, you must wait
15 minutes before pressing the trunk
button again.

209 Controls in detail
Useful features
Programming or reprogramming the in-
tegrated remote control
Turn key in starter switch to position2.

Hold the end of the hand-held transmit-
ter of the device you wish to train
approximately 2 to 5 inches (5 cm to
12 cm) away from the surface of the in-tegrated remote control located on the
inside rear view mirror, keeping the in-
dicator lamp in view.

Using both hands, simultaneously
press the hand-held transmitter button
and the desired integrated remote con-
trol button. Do not release the buttons.
The indicator lamp on the integrated
remote control will flash, first slowly
and then rapidly. The rapid flashing
lamp indicates successful program-
ming of the new frequency signal.

When the indicator lamp flashes rapid-
ly, release both buttons.

To program the remaining two buttons,
repeat the steps.
Warning!
G
When programming a garage door opener,
the door moves up or down.
When programming or operating the remote
control, make sure there is no possibility of
anyone being injured by the moving door.iCertain types of garage door openers
are incompatible with the integrated
opener. If you should experience diffi-
culties with programming the transmit-
ter, contact your authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center, or call
Mercedes-Benz Customer Assistance
Center (in the USA only) at
1-800-FOR-MERCedes, or Customer
Service (in Canada) at
1-800-387-0100.
iFor operation in the USA only: This de-
vice complies with Part 15 of the
FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the
following two conditions:

This device may not cause harmful
interference, and


this device must accept any inter-
ference received, including interfer-
ence that may cause undesired
operation.
Any unauthorized modification to this
device could void the user’s authority
to operate the equipment.
iIf, after repeated attempts, you do not
successfully program the integrated re-
mote control device to learn the signal
of the hand-held transmitter, the ga-
rage door opener could be equipped
with the “rolling code feature”.

210 Controls in detailUseful featuresRolling code programming
To train a garage door opener (or other roll-
ing code devices) with the rolling code fea-
ture, follow these instructions after
completing the “Programming” portion of
this text. (A second person may make the
following training procedures quicker and
easier.)
Locate training button on the garage
door opener motor head unit.
Exact location and color of the button may
vary by garage door opener brand. If there
is difficulty locating the transmitting but-
ton, refer to garage door opener Opera-
tor’s Manual.

Press “training” button on the garage
door opener motor head unit.
The “training light” is activated.
You have 30 seconds time to initiate the
following step.

Firmly press and release the pro-
grammed integrated remote control
transmit button.

Press and release same button a sec-
ond time to complete the training pro-
cess.
Some garage door openers may require
you to do this procedure a third time to
complete the training.

Confirm the garage door operation by
pressing the programmed button on
the integrated remote control transmit-
ter.Canadian programming
During programming, your hand-held
transmitter may automatically stop trans-
mitting.

Continue to press and hold the inte-
grated remote control transmitter but-
ton (refer to step two through four in
the “Programming” portion) while you
press and re-press (“cycle”) your
hand-held transmitter every two sec-
onds until the frequency signal has
been learned.
Upon successful training, the indicator
lamp will flash slowly and then rapidly
after several seconds.

224 OperationDriving instructionsEmission control
Certain systems of the engine serve to
keep the toxic components of the exhaust
gases within permissible limits required by
law.
These systems, of course, will function
properly only when maintained strictly ac-
cording to factory specifications. Any ad-
justments on the engine should therefore
be carried out only by qualified
Mercedes-Benz Center authorized techni-
cians. Engine adjustments should not be
altered in any way. Moreover, the specified
service jobs must be carried out regularly
according to Mercedes-Benz servicing re-
quirements. For details refer to the Service
Booklet.
Coolant temperature
During severe operating conditions and
stop-and-go city traffic, the coolant tem-
perature may rise close to approx. 266°F
(130°C).
The engine should not be operated with
the coolant temperature over 248°F
(120°C). Doing so may cause serious en-
gine damage which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
Inhalation of exhaust gas is hazardous to
your health. All exhaust gas contains carbon
monoxide, and inhaling it can cause uncon-
sciousness and lead to death.
Do not run the engine in confined areas
(such as a garage) which are not properly
ventilated. If you think that exhaust gas
fumes are entering the vehicle while driving,
have the cause determined and corrected
immediately. If you must drive under these
conditions, drive only with at least one win-
dow fully open at all times.
Warning!
G


Driving when your engine is badly over-
heated can cause some fluids, which
may have leaked into the engine com-
partment, to catch fire. You could be se-
riously burned.


Steam from an overheated engine can
cause serious burns and can occur just
by opening the engine hood. Stay away
f r o m t h e e n g i n e i f y o u s e e o r h e a r s t e a m
coming from it. Turn off the engine, get
out of the vehicle and do not stand near
the vehicle until it cools down.