2004 MERCEDES-BENZ CLK55AMG CABRIOLET brakes

ContentsLoading .............................................. 245
Ski sack* ...................................... 245
Loading instructions ..................... 249
Useful features .................................. 250
Interior storage spaces ................ 250
Ashtrays ....................................... 253
Cigarette lighter ........................... 254
Floormats* ................................... 255
Telephone*................................... 256
Tele Aid* ...................................... 257
Garage door opener ..................... 265
Operation......................................... 271
The first 1 000 miles (1 500 km)......... 272
Driving instructions............................ 273
Drive sensibly – save fuel ............. 273
Drinking and driving ..................... 273
Pedals .......................................... 273
Power assistance ......................... 273
Brakes .......................................... 274
Driving off .................................... 275
Parking ......................................... 275
Tires ............................................. 276
Hydroplaning ................................ 277
Tire traction.................................. 277
Tire speed rating .......................... 278
Winter driving instructions ........... 279
Standing water ............................. 280
Passenger compartment .............. 280
Driving abroad.............................. 280
Control and operation
of radio transmitters .................... 281
Catalytic converter ....................... 281
Emission control .......................... 282
Coolant temperature .................... 283At the gas station .............................. 284
Refueling ...................................... 284
Check regularly and
before a long trip ......................... 286
Engine compartment ......................... 287
Hood ............................................ 287
Engine oil ..................................... 288
Transmission fluid level ................ 291
Coolant ........................................ 292
Battery ......................................... 294
Windshield washer system and
headlamp cleaning system*......... 295
Tires and wheels................................ 296
Important guidelines .................... 297
Life of tires................................... 297
Direction of rotation..................... 297
Checking tire inflation pressure ... 298
Rotating wheels ........................... 299
Winter driving .................................... 300
Winter tires .................................. 300
Block heater*............................... 301
Snow chains................................. 301

78 Safety and SecurityDriving safety systemsEmergency brake maneuver
Keep continuous full pressure on the
brake pedal.
For more information, see “Practical hints”
(
page 311).
BAS
The Brake Assist System (BAS) operates in
emergency situations. If you apply the
brakes very quickly, the BAS automatically
provides full brake boost, thereby poten-
tially reducing the braking distance. Apply
continuous full braking pressure until the
emergency braking situation is over. The
ABS will prevent the wheels from locking.
When you release the brake pedal, the
brakes function again as normal. The BAS
is then deactivated.
For more information, see “Practical hints”
(page 311).
Warning!
G
The ABS cannot prevent the natural laws of
physics from acting on the vehicle, nor can
it increase braking or steering efficiency be-
yond that afforded by the condition of the
vehicle brakes and tires or the traction. The
ABS cannot prevent accidents, including
those resulting from excessive speed in
turns, following another vehicle too closely,
or hydroplaning. Only a safe, attentive, and
skillful driver can prevent accidents. The ca-
pabilities of an ABS equipped vehicle must
never be exploited in a reckless or danger-
ous manner which could jeopardize the us-
er’s safety or the safety of others.
Warning!
G
The BAS cannot prevent the natural laws of
physics from acting on the vehicle, nor can
it increase braking efficiency beyond that af-
forded by the condition of the vehicle brakes
and tires or the traction. The BAS cannot
prevent accidents, including those resulting
from excessive speed in turns, following an-
other vehicle too closely, or hydroplaning.
Only a safe, attentive, and skillful driver can
prevent accidents. The capabilities of a BAS
equipped vehicle must never be exploited in
a reckless or dangerous manner which
could jeopardize the user’s safety or the
safety of others.

79 Safety and Security
Driving safety systems
ESP
The Electronic Stability Program (ESP)
monitors the vehicle's traction (force of
adhesive friction between the tires and the
road surface) and handling.
The ESP recognizes when a wheel is spin-
ning or if the vehicle starts to skid. By ap-
plying brakes to the appropriate wheel and
by limiting engine output, the ESP works to
stabilize the vehicle. The ESP is especially
useful while driving off and on wet or slip-
pery road surfaces.
The ESP warning lamp v in the instru-
ment cluster flashes when the ESP is en-
gaged.
The warning lamp v in the instrument
cluster comes on when you turn the
SmartKey in the starter switch to
position2 or press the KEYLESS-GO*
start/stop button twice. It goes out when
the engine is running.
Warning!
G
Never switch off the ESP when you see the
ESP warning lamp v flashing in the in-
strument cluster. In this case, proceed as
follows:

While driving off, apply as little throttle
as possible.


While driving, ease upon the accelera-
tor.


Adapt your speed and driving style to
the prevailing road conditions.
Failure to observe these guidelines could
cause the vehicle to skid.
The ESP cannot prevent accidents resulting
from excessive speed.
Warning!
G
The ESP cannot prevent the natural laws of
physics from acting on the vehicle, nor can
it increase the traction afforded. The ESP
cannot prevent accidents, including those
resulting from excessive speed in turns or
hydroplaning. Only a safe, attentive, and
skillful driver can prevent accidents. The ca-
pabilities of an ESP equipped vehicle must
never be exploited in a reckless or danger-
ous manner which could jeopardize the us-
er’s safety or the safety of others.iDistronic* is switched off when ESP is
activated.

81 Safety and Security
Driving safety systems
Traction control brakes a spinning wheel
even when the ESP is deactivated.
The ESP always operates when you are
braking, even when it has been deactivat-
ed.Switching on the ESP

Press lower half2 of the ESP switch
until the ESP warning lamp v in the
instrument cluster goes out.
You are now again in normal driving
mode.
!Avoid spinning of a drive wheel for an
extended period with the ESP switched
off. This may cause serious damage to
the drivetrain which is not covered by
the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.Warning!
G
When the ESP warning lamp
v
is
illuminated continuously, the ESP is
switched off.
Adapt your speed and driving to the prevail-
ing road conditions and to the non-operating
status of the ESP.

160 Controls in detailAutomatic transmissionGear selector lever position
Effect
ì
Park position
Gear selector lever position
when the vehicle is parked. Place
gear selector lever in positionP
only when vehicle is stopped.
The park position is not intended
to serve as a brake when the
vehicle is parked. Rather, the
driver should always set the
parking brake in addition to
placing the gear selector lever in
positionP to secure the vehicle.
EffectThe SmartKey can only be
removed from the starter switch
with the gear selector lever in
positionP. With the SmartKey
removed, the gear selector lever
is locked in positionP.
If the vehicle’s electrical system
is malfunctioning, the gear
selector lever could remain
locked in positionP
(page 352).
í
Reverse gear
Place gear selector lever in
positionR only when vehicle is
stopped.
Effect
ë
Neutral
No power is transmitted from the
engine to the drive axle. When
the brakes are released, the
vehicle can be moved freely
(pushed or towed).
To avoid damage to the trans-
mission, never engageN while
driving.
If the ESP is deactivated or
malfunctioning:
Move gear selector lever toN
only if the vehicle is in danger of
skidding, e.g. on icy roads.
ê
Drive
The transmission shifts
automatically. All five forward
gears are available.

232 Controls in detailDriving systems
Distronic menu in the control system
In the Distronic menu you see the current
settings for Distronic. What appears in the
display depends on whether Distronic and
the distance warning function are turned
on or off.
Press buttonè orÿ repeatedly
until you see one of the following dis-
plays.
Warning!
G
An intermittent warning sounds and the
Distronic warning lamp in the instrument
cluster is illuminated if the Distronic system
calculates that the distance to the vehicle
ahead and your vehicle’s current speed indi-
cate that Distronic will not be capable of
slowing the vehicle sufficiently to maintain
the preset following distance, which creates
a danger of a collision.
Immediately brake the vehicle to increase
the distance to the vehicle in front of you.
The warning sound is intended as a final cau-
tion that you have not interceded with your
own braking inputs to avoid a potentially
dangerous situation. Do not wait for the op-
eration of the warning signal to intercede
with your own braking, as that will result in
potentially dangerous emergency braking
which will not always result in an impact be-
ing avoided.
Tailgating increases the risk of an accident.
Warning!
G
Distronic brakes your vehicle with a maxi-
mum of 6.5 ft/s
2 (2 m/s
2). This corre-
sponds to about 20% of the maximum
deceleration ability of your vehicle.
Distronic brakes the vehicle in an effort to
restore the preset distance or to maintain
the speed. The brake pedal is automatically
applied as this happens which results in the
brake pedal moving.
Keep driver’s foot area clear at all times, in-
cluding the area under the brake pedal. Ob-
jects stored in this area may impair pedal
movement which could interfere with the
braking ability of the Distronic system.
Do not place your foot under the brake pedal
– your foot could become caught.

236 Controls in detailDriving systemsDeactivating Distronic
There are several ways to deactivate the
Distronic system:
Briefly tip cruise control lever in the di-
rection of arrow3 (
page 233).
or

Step on the brake pedal.
Distronic will be deactivated. The last
speed set will be stored into memory.Distronic deactivates automatically when


you set the parking brake


you drive slower than 25 mph
(40 km/h)


the ESP is active (
page 79) or you de-
activate the ESP


you move the gear selector lever into
positionN.
A si gnal wi ll s ound. T he
Distronic off

message appears in the multifunction
display for approximately five seconds.Setting the following distance in
Distronic
You can set the specified following dis-
tance for Distronic by varying the time set-
ting between 1.0 and 2.0 seconds. Using
this time setting and the current speed of
your vehicle, Distronic calculates and sets
the required following distance to the vehi-
cle ahead. The set distance will be shown
in the multifunction display field.
The thumbwheel for making the time set-
ting is located on the lower section of the
center console.
iThe following message will appear in
the multifunction display for approxi-
mately five seconds:
Distronic off
.
The last stored speed is deleted when
you turn off the engine.
Warning!
G
Distronic switches off and releases the
brakes when the vehicle decelerates below
the minimum speed of approximately
25 mph ( 40 km / h) by operation of the sys-
tem. At that time the driver must apply the
brakes in order to reduce vehicle speed fur-
ther or bring it to a stop.
Warning!
G
It is up to the driver to exercise discretion to
select the appropriate setting given road
conditions, traffic, driver’s preferred driving
style and applicable laws and driving recom-
mendations for safe following distance.

237 Controls in detail
Driving systems
1Distance warning function on/off
switch
2Control lamp
3Thumbwheel for setting distance
Increasing distance
Increasing the distance setting causes Dis-
tronic to maintain a greater following dis-
tance to the vehicle ahead.
Turn thumbwheel3 towards¯.Decreasing distance
Decreasing the distance setting causes
Distronic to maintain a shorter following
distance to the vehicle ahead.

Turn thumbwheel3 towards®.
Distance warning function
When Distronic is deactivated, this func-
tion will continue to warn you when recog-
nizing a stationary obstacle or a slower
vehicle moving in the vehicle’s path and
the danger of a collision exists:


The distance warning lampl in the
instrument cluster comes on


An intermittent warning sounds.
If these warnings are issued, you must
brake manually to maintain a safe distance
and avoid a collision with the vehicle
ahead.
When pressing the brake pedal, the warn-
ing sound stops. The warning sound also
stops when the distance to the vehicle ahead is sufficient again without applying
the brake pedal. In this case the distance
warning lamp also extinguishes.
Warning!
G
If the distance warning lampl in the in-
strument cluster comes on while driving
and/or an intermittent warning sounds, im-
mediate attention on the part of the driver is
required.
As required by the traffic situation, apply the
brakes and navigate around a possible ob-
stacle. However, do not drive by relying on
the distance warning function, as this will re-
sult in an emergency braking application.
Especially depending on road surface condi-
tions and driver reaction, this will not always
enable you to avoid a collision.iComplex driving situations are not al-
ways fully recognized by Distronic. This
could result in wrong or missing dis-
tance warnings.