2005 MERCEDES-BENZ CLK500 CABRIOLET open hood

ContentsSoft top .............................................. 244
Opening and closing the soft top . 244
Driving systems ................................. 255
Cruise control............................... 255
Parktronic system
(Parking assist)* ........................... 260
Loading .............................................. 264
Ski sack* ...................................... 264
Loading instructions ..................... 268
Useful features .................................. 269
Storage compartments................. 269
Ashtrays ....................................... 273
Cigarette lighter ........................... 274
Electrical outlet in the
rear passenger compartment ....... 275
Floormats* ................................... 275
Telephone*................................... 276
Tele Aid ........................................ 277
Garage door opener ..................... 284
Operation......................................... 289
The first 1 000 miles (1 500 km)......... 290
Driving instructions............................ 291
Drive sensibly – save fuel ............. 291
Drinking and driving ..................... 291
Pedals .......................................... 291
Power assistance ......................... 291
Brakes .......................................... 292
Driving off .................................... 294
Parking ......................................... 294
Tires ............................................. 295
Hydroplaning ................................ 295
Tire traction.................................. 296
Tire speed rating .......................... 296
Winter driving instructions ........... 297
Standing water ............................. 298
Passenger compartment .............. 299
Driving abroad.............................. 299
Control and operation
of radio transmitters .................... 299
Catalytic converter ....................... 300
Emission control .......................... 300
Coolant temperature .................... 301At the gas station .............................. 302
Refueling ...................................... 302
Check regularly and
before a long trip ......................... 304
Engine compartment ......................... 305
Hood ............................................ 305
Engine oil ..................................... 306
Transmission fluid level ................ 309
Coolant ........................................ 310
Battery ......................................... 311
Windshield washer system and
headlamp cleaning system*......... 312
Tires and wheels................................ 313
Important guidelines .................... 313
Tire care and maintenance........... 314
Direction of rotation..................... 316
Loading the vehicle ...................... 316
Recommended
tire inflation pressure ................... 322
Checking tire inflation pressure ... 324
Tire labeling ................................. 326
Load identification ....................... 330
DOT, Tire Identification Number
(TIN) ............................................. 330
Maximum tire load ....................... 332
Maximum tire inflation pressure .. 332

57 Getting started
Parking and locking

Press the seat belt release button
(page 45).
Allow the retractor to completely re-
wind the seat belt by guiding the latch
plate.

After exiting the vehicle, press the lock
button‹ on the SmartKey
(page 32).
With the hood, trunk and both doors
closed, all turn signal lamps flash three
times. The locking knobs in the doors
move down. The anti-theft alarm sys-
tem is armed.For more information, see “Locking and
unlocking” (
page 94).
Turning off the engine with
KEYLESS-GO*

Place the gear selector lever inP.

Press the KEYLESS-GO start/stop but-
ton to shut off the engine.
With the driver's door closed, the start-
er switch is now in position1. With the
driver’s door opened, the starter switch
is set to position0, same as SmartKey
removed from starter switch
(page 34).

Press the seat belt release button
(page 45).
Allow the retractor to completely re-
wind the seat belt by guiding the latch
plate.
iWith the SmartKey removed and the
driver’s door open, a warning sounds if
the vehicle’s exterior lamps are not
switched off.Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure there is no
possibility of someone getting caught in a
door during closing.
iOpening a door causes the windows on
that side of the car to open slightly.
They will return to the up position when
the door is closed.Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take it
with you, and lock the vehicle. Do not leave
children unattended in the vehicle, or with
access to an unlocked vehicle. Unsuper-
vised use of vehicle equipment may cause
an accident and/or serious personal injury.


58 Getting startedParking and locking
1Lock button on the door handle

After exiting the vehicle, press lock
button1 on the door handle or on the
trunk lid.
With the hood, trunk and both doors
closed, all turn signal lamps flash three
times. The locking knobs in the doors
move down. The anti-theft alarm sys-
tem is armed.
For more information, see “Locking and
unlocking” (
page 94).
!If you hear a warning signal you have
either

forgotten to switch off the vehicle’s
exterior lamps before opening the
driver’s door, or


tried to turn off the engine while the
gear selector lever is not inP.
Turn off the lights or place the gear se-
lector lever inP.
iOpening a door causes the windows on
that side of the car to open slightly.
They will return to the up position when
the door is closed.
Warning!
G
To prevent possible personal injury, always
keep hands and fingers away from the door
openings when closing the doors. Be espe-
cially careful when small children are
around.
Before closing doors, make sure there is no
possibility of someone getting caught in a
door during closing.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it 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.


89 Safety and Security
Anti-theft systems
Anti-theft systems
Immobilizer
The immobilizer prevents unauthorized
persons from starting your vehicle.
Activating

With the SmartKey: Removing the
SmartKey from the starter switch acti-
vates the immobilizer.


With KEYLESS-GO*: Turning off the en-
gine by means of the start/stop button
on the gear selector lever activates the
immobilizer.
Deactivating


With the SmartKey: Inserting the
SmartKey in the starter switch deacti-
vates the immobilizer.


With KEYLESS-GO*: Starting the en-
gine by means of the start/stop button
on the gear selector lever deactivates
the immobilizer.
Anti-theft alarm system
Once the alarm system has been armed, a
visual and audible alarm is triggered when
someone opens

a door


the trunk


the hood.
The alarm system will also be triggered
when


someone attempts to raise the vehicle
(page 91)


opening the vehicle with the
mechanical key.
iIn case the engine cannot be started
(yet the vehicle’s battery is charged),
the system is not operational. Contact
an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
or call 1-800-FOR-MERCedes (in the
USA), or 1-800-387-0100 (in Canada).
iThe alarm will stay on, even if the
activating element (a door, for
example) is immediately closed.

90 Safety and SecurityAnti-theft systemsArming the alarm system
The indicator lamp is in the switch for the
tow-away alarm in the center console.
1Indicator lamp

Lock the vehicle with the SmartKey or
KEYLESS-GO*.
The turn signal lamps flash three times
to indicate that the alarm system is
activated. Indicator lamp1 begins to
flash after approximately 30 seconds
after arming the alarm system.Disarming the alarm system

Unlock the vehicle with the SmartKey
or KEYLESS-GO*.
The turn signal lamps flash once to
indicate that the alarm system is disarmed.
iIf the alarm stays on for more than
30 seconds, a call to the Response
Center is initiated automatically by the
Tele Aid system (
page 277) provided
Tele Aid service was subscribed to and
properly activated, and that necessary
cellular service and GPS coverage are
available.
iIf the turn signal lamps do not flash
three times, one of the following
elements may not be properly closed:

a door


the trunk lid


the hood
Close the respective element and lock
the vehicle again.
iThe alarm system will rearm automati-
cally after approximately 40 seconds if
no door or the trunk lid was opened.

96 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingFactory setting
Global unlocking
Press buttonŒ.
All turn signal lamps flash once. The
locking knobs in the doors move up.
The anti-theft alarm system is
disarmed.
The vehicle will lock again automatically
and rearm the anti-theft alarm system
within approximately 40 seconds of
unlocking if:


neither door nor trunk is opened


the SmartKey is not inserted in the
starter switch


the central locking switch is not
activatedGlobal locking

Press button‹.
With the hood, trunk and both doors
closed, all turn signal lamps flash three
times. The locking knobs in the doors
move down. The anti-theft alarm sys-
tem is armed.
Selective setting
If you frequently travel alone, you may wish
to reprogram the SmartKey so that
pressingŒ only unlocks the driver’s
door and the fuel filler flap.

Press and hold buttonsŒ and‹
simultaneously for about five seconds
until battery check lamp5 flashes
twice.
The SmartKey will then function as follows:Unlocking driver’s door and fuel filler
flap

Press buttonΠonce.
All turn signal lamps flash once. The
locking knob in the driver’s door moves
up. The anti-theft alarm system is
disarmed.
Global unlocking

Press buttonΠtwice.
All turn signal lamps flash once. The
locking knobs in the doors move up.
The anti-theft alarm system is
disarmed.

104 Controls in detailLocking and unlockingGlobal locking using the lock button at
trunk lid
1Lock button at trunk lid
Press the lock button 1 at trunk lid.With the hood, trunk and both doors
closed, all turn signal lamps flash three
times. The locking knobs in the doors
move down. The anti-theft alarm sys-
tem is armed.
Unlocking and opening the trunk lid
A minimum height clearance of 5.41 ft
(1.65 m) is required to open the trunk lid.
The handle is located in the rear license
plate recess.1Handle

Pull on handle1.
The trunk opens.
or

Press and hold button Š until the
trunk unlocks and begins to open.
iTo prevent a possible inadvertent
lockout, the trunk lid will open
automatically if a SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO* is recognized inside the
vehicle or in the trunk.
iYou can also lock the vehicle using the
lock button at outside door handle
(page 58).
!The trunk lid swings open upwards au-
tomatically. Always make sure there is
sufficient overhead clearance.

131 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Coolant temperature indicator
The coolant temperature indicator is on
the right side in the instrument cluster
(page 24).
During severe operating conditions, e.g.
stop-and-go traffic, the coolant tempera-
ture may rise close to 120°C.
The engine should not be operated with
the coolant temperature above 120°C.
Doing so may cause serious engine
damage which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Trip odometer
Make sure you are viewing the stan-
dard display in the multifunction dis-
play (
page 138).

If it is not displayed, press buttonè
orÿ on the multifunction steering
wheel repeatedly until the standard dis-
play appears (
page 134).

Press and hold the reset button on the
instrument cluster (
page 130) until
the trip odometer is reset.
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 hood. Stay away from
the engine if you see or hear steam com-
ing from it.
Turn off the engine, get out of the vehicle
and do not stand near the vehicle until the
engine has cooled down.
iExcessive coolant temperature triggers
a warning in the multifunction display
(page 377) and the red coolant warn-
ing lamp in the instrument cluster
comes on (
page 357).