Page 197 of 498

195 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)
Depending on production date, your vehi-
cle is equipped with either automatic
climate control panel design A or B.Automatic climate control panel design A
Automatic climate control panel design B
Item
1
Left side air vent, adjustable
2
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for center air vents
3
Right side air vent, adjustable
4
Automatic climate control panel
5
Right center air vent, adjustable
6
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for right side center air vent
7
Thumbwheel for air volume control
for left side center air vent
8
Left center air vent, adjustableiFor draft-free ventilation, move the slid-
ers for the center air vents1, 3, 5,
8 to the middle position.
Item
1
Left side air distribution control
2
Defrosting
3
Temperature control, left, raising
4
Display
5
Air volume control, raising
6
Temperature control, right, raising
7
Rear window defroster
8
Right side air distribution control
9
Charcoal filter
a
AC cooling on/off (AC
OFF
or A/C)
Residual heat/ventilation
b
Temperature control, right, lowering
c
Air volume control, lowering
d
Temperature control, left, lowering
e
Air recirculation
f
Automatic climate control on/off
(complete system)
g
Air distribution and air volume
(automatic mode)
Page 198 of 498

196 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)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
enters the passenger compartment
through the air distribution system.
The air conditioning will not engage (no
cooling) if the modeAC
OFF
is activated or
A/C is deactivated (
page 204).
Warning
G
When operating the automatic climate
control, the air that enters the passenger
compartment through the air vents in the
footwell can be very hot or very cold
(depending on the set temperature). This
may cause burns or frostbite on unprotected
skin in the immediate area of the air vents.
Always keep sufficient distance between
unprotected parts of the body and the foot-
well air vents. If necessary change the air
flow using the air distribution controls to
direct the air away from the footwell air
vents (
page 198).
Warning!
G
Follow the recommended settings for
heating and cooling given on the following
pages. Otherwise the windows could fog up,
impairing visibility and endangering you and
others.
iSevere conditions (e.g. strong air
pollution) may require replacement of
the filter before its scheduled interval.
A clogged filter will reduce the air
volume to the interior.
If the vehicle interior is hot, ventilate
the interior before driving off, see
“Opening (Summer opening feature)”
(page 253).
Keep the air intake grille in front of the
windshield free of snow and debris.
Do not obstruct air flow by placing
objects on the air flow-through exhaust
slots below the rear window.
Page 199 of 498

197 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)
Deactivating the automatic climate control system
Deactivating
It is possible to deactivate the automatic
climate control system.
Press button´ (
page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button´
comes on.
The automatic climate control system
is deactivatedReactivating
Press button´ (
page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button´
goes out.
The automatic climate control system
is reactivated
Setting the temperature
Use temperature controls3 andd for
the left side or6 andb for the right side
(page 195) to separately adjust the air
temperature on each side of the passenger
compartment. You should raise or lower
the temperature setting in small incre-
ments, preferably starting at 72°F (22°C).
iWhen the air conditioning is switched
off, the outside air supply and circula-
tion are also switched off. Only choose
this setting for a short time. Otherwise
the windows could fog up.
iWhen operating the automatic climate
control system in automatic mode, you
will only rarely need to adjust the
temperature, air volume and air
distribution.
Page 200 of 498

198 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)Display1Temperature, left
2Blower speed
3Temperature, right
Increasing
Push temperature control3
and/or6 (
page 195).
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Decreasing
Push temperature controlb
and/ord (
page 195).
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Adjusting air distribution
Use the buttonU for automatic mode
or air distribution controls1 and8
(page 195) to separately adjust the air
distribution on each side of the passenger
compartment. The following symbols are
found on the controls:Adjusting manually
Turn air distribution control1 or8
(page 195) to the desired symbol.
The indicator lamp on the buttonU
goes out.
The automatic air distribution is
switched off. The air distribution is
controlled according to the selected
control setting.
Adjusting automatically
Press buttonU (
page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
The air volume is controlled automati-
cally for the entire vehicle, and the air
distribution is controlled automatically
for each separate half of the vehicle.
Symbol
Function
Z
Directs air to the windshield
and the side defroster vents
b
Directs air into the entire
vehicle interior
Y
Directs air to the footwells
a
Directs air through the center,
side and rear passenger
compartment air vents
Page 201 of 498
199 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)
Windshield fogged on the outside
Switch the windshield wipers on
(page 52).
Switch to manual mode.
Turn air distribution control1 or8
toa orY (
page 195).
Adjusting air volume
Use buttonU for automatic mode or air
volume controls orQ
(page 195) to adjust air volume
manually.
Adjusting manually
Seven blower speeds are available.
Press air volume control orQ
(page 195) until the requested
blower speed is attained.
The indicator lamp on the buttonU
goes out.
The automatic air distribution remains
switched on.Adjusting automatically
Press buttonU (
page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
The air volume is controlled automati-
cally for the entire vehicle, and the air
distribution is controlled automatically
for each separate half of the vehicle.
Page 202 of 498
200 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)Defrosting
Activating
Press buttonP or0
(page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
The air conditioning switches automatical-
ly to the following functions:
maximum blowing and heating
power
air flows onto the windshield and
the front side windows
the air recirculation mode is
switched offDeactivating
Press buttonP or0
(page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. Defrosting is turned off.
The previous settings are once again in
effect.
Maximum cooling MAXCOOL
If the left and right air distribution controls
as well as the airflow volume control are
set toU (
page 195) and there is a
high need for cooling, the display
“MAXCOOL” appears.
This provides the fastest possible cooling
of the vehicle interior (when side windows
and tilt/sliding sunroof* are closed).
iThese settings should only be selected
for a short time.
Page 203 of 498

201 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)
Air 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 195).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.
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.
Window fogging may impair visibility and
endanger you and others.
iIf you keep button, pressed, the
side windows and tilt/sliding sunroof*
will close.Warning
G
Never operate the side windows and the
tilt/sliding sunroof* if there is the possibility
of anyone being harmed by the closing
procedure.
In the event that the procedure causes po-
tential danger, the closing of the side win-
dows can be immediately halted by
releasing the, button or by pressing or
pulling the respective window switch. The
closing of the tilt/sliding sunroof* can be
immediately halted by releasing the,
button or by moving the tilt/sliding sunroof*
switch in the overhead control panel in any
direction.
iThe 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 (charcoal filter must be
activated for the air recirculation
mode to be activated automatically)
The indicator lamp on the, button
is not lit when the air recirculation
mode is automatically switched on.
After approx. 30 minutes, outside air is
added to the air inside the vehicle.
If you have turned off the air
conditioning (
page 204) or the out-
side temperature is below 41°F (5°C),
the air recirculation mode will not
switch on automatically.
Page 204 of 498

202 Controls in detailAutomatic climate control (CLK 500/CLK 55 AMG)Deactivating
Press button, (
page 195).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
The air recirculation mode is deactivated
automatically:
after five minutes if the outside
temperature is below
approximately 41°F (5 °C)
after five minutes if the air conditioning
is turned off
after 30 minutes if the outside
temperature 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.
Charcoal filter
An activated charcoal filter markedly
reduces bad odors and removes pollutants
from air entering the passenger compart-
ment. The charcoal filter can be activated
or deactivated.
The system switches automatically to the
air recirculation mode, if the
carbon monoxide (CO)
or
nitrogen oxide (NO
X)
concentration of the outside air increases
beyond a predetermined level.
iIf you keep button, pressed, the
side windows and tilt/sliding sunroof*
will return to their previous position.
iThe automatic air recirculation mode
does not function if theAC
OFF
(indica-
tor lamp on button° illuminated)
mode is activated orA/C (indicator
lamp on button2 not lit) mode is
deactivated, or if the outside tempera-
ture has fallen below 41°F (5°C).