2004 MERCEDES-BENZ SL500 door lock

96 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 55) or trunk (
page 98).Selective setting
If you frequently travel alone, you may wish
to reprogram the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO so that grasping a door han-
dle only unlocks the driver’s door, interior
lockable storage compartments and the
fuel filler flap.

Press and hold buttons Œ and ‹
simultaneously for about six seconds
until battery check lamp5
(page 90) flashes twice.
The SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO will
then function as follows:
Unlocking the driver’s door

Grasp the driver’s door handle.
Global unlocking

Grasp the door handle on the passen-
ger side.
Global locking

Press lock button at door handle or
trunk lid.Restoring to factory setting

Press and hold buttons Œ and ‹
simultaneously for about six seconds
until battery check lamp5
(page 93) flashes twice.
iThe vehicle could inadvertently unlock
if the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO 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
!If you can no longer lock or unlock the
vehicle with the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO, then the battery in the
SmartKey is discharged, the SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO is malfunctioning or
the vehicle battery is drained.

Check the battery in the SmartKey
with KEYLESS-GO (
page 92) and
replace it if necessary
(
page 328).


Use the mechanical key to unlock
the doors (
page 325).

97 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Unlocking the trunk lid
The handle is located above the rear li-
cense plate recess.
1Handle
Pull on handle 1.
The vehicle unlocks the trunk lid only.
or

Press and hold button Š on the
SmartKey until the trunk unlocks.


Have the vehicle batteries and their
connections checked
(page 358).


Use the mechanical key to lock or
unlock the doors (
page 327).
If the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is
malfunctioning, contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.
iIf the vehicle was previously centrally
locked, the trunk lid will lock automati-
cally when closed (
page 102). 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 SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is
recognized inside the trunk.

98 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingLocking the vehicle
1Trunk lock button
Press trunk lock button 1 or the lock
button on the door handle (
page 55).Checking the battery

Press button ‹ or Œ.
Battery check lamp5 (
page 93)
comes on briefly to indicate that the
SmartKey batteries are in order.Loss of SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
If you lose your SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO, you should do the following:

Have the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
deactivated by an authorized Mer-
cedes-Benz Center.

Report the loss of the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO or the mechanical key to
your car insurance company immedi-
ately.

Have the mechanical lock replaced if
necessary.
Your authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
will be glad to supply you with a replace-
ment.
!If battery check lamp5 (
page 93)
does not come on briefly during check,
then the SmartKey battery is dis-
charged.


Replace the battery (
page 328).
You can obtain the required battery at
any authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.

99 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Opening the doors from the inside
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
1Locking knob
2Inside door handle
Pull on door handle2.
If door was locked, locking knob1 will
move up.
Opening the trunk
Opening the trunk from the outside
A minimum height clearance of
6.2 ft (1.88 m) is required to open the
trunk lid.
The handle is located above the rear li-
cense plate recess.
1Handle 
Pull on handle 1 and lift the trunk lid.
iIf you open a door, the side windows on
that side of the vehicle will lower slight-
ly. The windows close again when you
close the door.iIf the vehicle has previously been
locked from the outside with the
SmartKey, opening a door from the in-
side will trigger the anti-theft alarm sys-
tem.
To cancel the alarm, do one of the fol-
lowing:

Press button Œ or ‹on the
SmartKey.


Insert the SmartKey in the starter
switch.


Press the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop
button (
page 44).


Grasp the outside door handle (ve-
hicles with KEYLESS-GO* only)

100 Controls in detailLocking and unlocking
The trunk can also be opened using

the SmartKey, see “Locking and un-
locking” (
page 90)


the remote trunk lid release switch, see
“Opening the trunk from the inside”
(page 100)


the trunk lid emergency release button,
see “Trunk lid emergency release”
(page 102)Opening the trunk from the inside
You can open the trunk from the inside if
the vehicle is stationary and the retract-
able hardtop is fully opened or closed.
A minimum height clearance of
6.2 ft (1.88 m) is required to open the
trunk lid.
The switch is located on the driver’s door.
1Remote trunk lid release switch
2Indicator lamp
!Always make sure that there is suffi-
cient overhead clearance.iIf the trunk lid does not open, the entire
vehicle is still locked globally
(page 90).
To facilitate trunk loading and unload-
ing when the hardtop is retracted, you
can raise the hardtop from its storage
position in the trunk using the load as-
sist feature (
page 221). You may also
unhook the luggage cover.
Remember to resecure the luggage
cover after loading/unloading the
trunk. Otherwise you will not be able to
lower the retractable hardtop.

103 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Illumination of the emergency release but-
ton:

The button will flash for 30 minutes af-
ter opening the trunk.


The button will flash for 60 minutes af-
ter closing the trunk.
Separately locking the trunk
iThe emergency release button does
not open the trunk lid if the vehicle bat-
tery is discharged or disconnected.
iIf the emergency release button is
pressed and the vehicle was centrally
locked, the exterior lamps will flash and
the alarm will sound as the trunk lid
opens.
To cancel the alarm, do one of the fol-
lowing:
With the SmartKey

Insert the SmartKey in the starter
switch.


Press buttonŒ or‹ on the
SmartKey.
With KEYLESS-GO*


Grasp the outside door handle.


Press the KEYLESS-GO* start/stop
button.
iYour vehicle may be equipped with a
function permitting the separate lock-
ing and unlocking of the trunk using the
mechanical key. If present, this feature
can permit you to deny any unautho-
rized person access to the trunk by
locking the trunk separately and leav-
ing the SmartKey less the mechanical
key with the vehicle.
To verify the presence of this feature,
use the mechanical key to lock the
trunk an then attempt to open the
trunk by pulling on the trunk lid handle
after the vehicle has been centrally un-
locked with the SmartKey.

105 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Automatic central locking
The doors and the trunk lid lock automati-
cally 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 146).
Locking 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 central locking switch does not lock or
unlock the fuel filler flap.The switches are located above and be-
tween the center air vents of the air condi-
tioning.
Central locking switches1Locking
2Unlocking
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact ex-
ceeds a preset threshold.
The vehicle locks automatically 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
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
* with you and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
Warning!
G
You can open a locked door from inside at
any time. Open door only when conditions
are safe to do so.

106 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingLocking
Press central locking switch1.
If all the doors are closed, the vehicle
locks.
Unlocking

Press central locking switch2.
The vehicle unlocks.
iIf the vehicle was previously centrally
locked using the SmartKey or the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*, it will
not unlock using the central locking
switch.
If the vehicle was previously locked
with the central locking switch

while in the global remote control
mode, the complete vehicle is un-
locked when a door is opened from
the inside


while in the selective remote con-
trol mode, only the door opened
from the inside is unlocked