2005 MERCEDES-BENZ G55AMG Owner's Manual

153 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Accelerator position
Your driving style influences the transmis-
sion’s shifting behavior:
Less throttle Earlier upshifting
More throttle Later upshifting
Kickdown
Use kickdown when you want maximum
acceleration.
Press the accelerator past the point of
resistance.
The transmission shifts into a lower
gear.

Ease on the accelerator when you have
reached the desired speed.
The transmission shifts up again.Emergency operation (Limp Home
Mode)
If vehicle acceleration worsens or the
transmission no longer shifts, the trans-
mission is most likely operating in limp
home (emergency operation) mode. In this
mode, only 2nd gear and reverse gear can
be activated.
Stop the vehicle.

Move gear selector lever toP.

Turn off the engine.

Wait at least ten seconds before re-
starting.

Restart the engine.

Move gear selector lever to positionD
(for second gear) orR.

Have the transmission checked at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center as soon as possible.

154 Controls in detailTransfer caseFor more information on off-road driving,
see “Off-road driving” (
page 223).
Gear range
Switching transfer case
The switch is located in the center console.
1Transfer case indicator
2Gear range indicator
Transfer case indicator1 in the multi-
function display shows the gear position of
the transfer case.Switching from HIGH to LOW

Press upper half (“LOW”) of the trans-
fer case switch.
Once the shift is complete, gear
position
L is displayed in the transfer
case indicator.

Put gear selector in D.
H
HIGHRoad position
L
LOWOff-road position
This position is intended for driv-
ing off-road and step gradients.
The transmission will not upshift
automatically to the next higher
gear range when driving at the
rpm limit.The transfer case supports the
engine’s driving force (approx. 1/2speed). Output is therefore
increased.
N
NeutralNo power is transmitted from the
engine to the drive axle.
!The shift procedure can only be per-
formed when:

The engine is running.


The gear selector lever for the auto-
matic transmission is in positionN.


The vehicle is not at standstill.


The vehicle speed does not exceed
25 mph (40 km/h).
iIf the shift procedure does not take
place press upper half (“LOW”) of the
transfer case switch again.

155 Controls in detail
Transfer case
Switching from LOW to HIGH
Press lower half (“HIGH”) of the trans-
fer case switch.
Once the shift is complete, gear
position
H is displayed in the transfer
case indicator.

Put gear selector in D.Messages in the multifunction display
If a shift was not completed and the multi-
function display shows one of the following
messages:


TC SHIFT CONDITIONS NOT FULFILLEDThe shift did not take place. At least
one shift condition was not met.

Repeat the shift procedure.


TC IN NEUTRAL The shift did not take place. The trans-
fer case is in neutral. The gear
position
N is displayed in transfer case
indicator1.

Repeat the shift procedure.


TC SHIFT – CANCELLEDThe shift did not take place.

Repeat the shift procedure.


TRANSFER CASE – VISIT WORKSHOP!There may be a malfunction in the
system.

Repeat the shift procedure.

If the shift procedure still does not take
place, have the vehicle checked at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center as soon as possible.
For more information, see “Practical hints”
section (
page 319).
!The shift procedure can only be per-
formed when:

The engine is running.


The gear selector lever for the auto-
matic transmission is in positionN.


The vehicle is not at standstill.


The vehicle speed does not exceed
40 mph (70 km/h).
iIf the shift procedure does not take
place press lower half (“HIGH”) of the
transfer case switch again.
Warning!
G
If TC is in neutral, transmission positionP
will not hold vehicle. The parking brake must
be applied to hold vehicle in place.
iIf the SmartKey is in starter switch
position0 or1, an alarm will sound if
the transfer case is in positionN and
the driver’s door is opened.
Engage transfer case to gear position
HIGH or LOW.

156 Controls in detailDifferential locksFor more information on off-road driving,
see “Off-road driving” (
page 223).
Differential locks improve the vehicle’s
tractive power off-road. Switch on differen-
tial locks:


for off-road driving


to turn the ABS off during off-road driv-
ing


for driving through water


when driving on deep snow and icy or
fouled surfaces!Do not engage the front axle differen-
tial lock when driving around tight cor-
ners. This restricts steering ability.
!When driving off-road, apply only mod-
erate pressure to the accelerator pedal
if the differential locks are switched on.
When running on a (single-axle) dyna-
mometer – no matter how briefly – you
must:

raise the non-driven axle
or


disconnect its drive shaft
and


engage the transfer differential lock
Otherwise the transfer case can be
damaged, which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
Never drive on pavement with differential
locks engaged.
Steering control will be strongly affected
with the differential locks activated.
The ABS, BAS, and ESP are switched off au-
tomatically when the transfer case differen-
tial lock is activated.

157 Controls in detail
Differential locks
A few words about differentials and differential locks
When a vehicle negotiates a turn, wheels
on the outside of the curve must travel far-
ther and rotate faster than the inside
wheels. The differential, the operation of a
set of gears that allows the powered
wheels in a vehicle to turn at different
speeds, makes this essential function pos-
sible.
The drawback is that the differential also
sends most of the engine’s power to the
wheel with the least load or strain on it. For
example, if one of a vehicle’s powered
wheels sits on a patch of snow and spins
because there is no traction, all of the en-
gine’s power will go to that wheel because
the power will take the path of least resis-
tance. Meanwhile, the opposite wheel, sit-
ting on dry pavement where it could get
enough grip to start the vehicle moving,
sits idle because it receives no power.The Electronic Traction System (ETS) ad-
dresses this problem and provides for
good control and steering ability by auto-
matically slowing the slipping wheel and
thus increasing the power to the other
non-slipping drive wheels to get the vehicle
moving. The ESP and ETS in this vehicle
feature such intelligent limited-slip differ-
ential technology, ideally suited for
on-road and light off-road driving. Transfer
case position LOW (
page 154) also en-
hances off-road driving capabilities
(
page 223).
More extreme off-road conditions may call
for another solution, engaging a differen-
tial lock or preventing the differential from
operating altogether. As part of its stan-
dard equipment, this vehicle comes with
three differential locks: front, transfer case
(center) and rear. Each can be engaged
simply by pushing dashboard-mounted
buttons in sequential order (center, rear,
front) (
page 158). When the transfer
case (center) differential is locked, half of
the engine’s power is automatically distrib-
uted to the front wheels and half to the rear wheels. When the rear differential is
locked, power going to the rear wheels is
equally distributed, so that both rear
wheels turn at the same speed and torque.
When the front differential is locked, all
four wheels now turn with equal power and
torque. Please be aware that engaging the
differential locks will significantly reduce
the steering ability of the vehicle.
For your safety and the safety of others
and to prevent damage to the vehicle, the
differential locks must not be engaged
when driving on paved roads. It is impor-
tant to understand that during
on-road/paved driving, differentials are
absolutely necessary for providing the es-
sential control and steering ability of the
vehicle. The differential locks, therefore,
must not be engaged when driving on
paved roads and should only be used to
the extent necessary to negotiate off-road
conditions which cannot be handled by the
systems (automatic 4-ETS, the ESP, manu-
al switch position “LOW” of transfer case)
this vehicle comes equipped with.

158 Controls in detailDifferential locksSwitching differential locks on and off
The switch is located in the center console.
1Transfer case (center) differential lock
2Rear axle differential lock
3Front differential lock
4Engagement indicator lamps (yellow)
5Function indicator lamps (red)Switching differential locks on Transfer case differential lock

Press switch1.
The yellow engagement indicator
lamp4 for the transfer case differen-
tial lock comes on.
The ESP warning lampv comes on.
When the differential lock engagement
operation has been completed, the red
function indicator lamp5 comes on.
The message
ABS NOT AVAILABLE -
DIFFERENTIAL LOCKED
appears in the
multifunction display.
The ESP warning lampv and the
ABS- warning lamp in the instru-
ment cluster come on.
iThe differential locks can only be
switched on in the sequence 1,
2,3.
!To avoid damage to the transfer case
and differential locks:

Engage differential locks only at low
speed (walking speed, not more
than 5 mph).


Do not engage differential locks if
the driving wheels are spinning due
to lack of traction.


Do not engage on paved roads.

159 Controls in detail
Differential locks
Once the transfer case differential lock
is switched on, you can now, if needed,

switch on rear axle differential
lock2
or


switch on rear axle differential lock
and front differential lock2
and3.
Rear axle differential lock

Press switch2.
The yellow engagement indicator
lamp4 comes on first, followed by the
red function indicator lamp5.
The rear axle differential lock is
switched on.Front differential lock

Press switch 3.
The yellow engagement indicator
lamp4 comes on first, followed by the
red function indicator lamp5.
The front differential lock is switched
on.
Switching differential locks off
There are two different methods to disen-
gage differential locks:


You can switch the differential locks off
in reverse order (3, 2,1).


To switch off all differential locks at the
same time:
Press switch1.
The yellow engagement indicator
lamps4 go out first. The red func-
tion indicator lamps5 go out
when the switching process has
been carried out in the differential.To activate the ESP, BAS and ABS systems,
drive again for three seconds using a con-
stant driving style.
All messages in the multifunction display
disappear. The ESP warning lampv
and the ABS- warning lamp in the in-
strument cluster go out.
iIf the function lamps do not go out
when the differential locks are disen-
gaged, bring vehicle to a stop and then
continue driving. Changing the vehicle
load can help to disengage locks. Warning!
G
Always remember to disengage the differen-
tial locks when returning to drive on paved
roads, see “A few words about differentials
and differential locks” (
page 157).

160 Controls in detailGood visibilityFor information on windshield wipers, see
“Windshield wipers” (
page 53) and for
setting the exterior rear view mirrors, see
“Mirrors” (
page 41).
Rear view mirror
Auto-dimming mirrors
The reflection brightness of the exterior
rear view mirrors and the interior rear view
mirror will respond automatically to glare
when

ignition is switched on, and


incoming light from headlamps falls on
the sensor in the interior rear view
mirror
The interior rear view mirror will not react if


reverse gear is engaged


the interior lighting is turned on
Warning!
G
The auto-dimming function does not react if
incoming light is not aimed directly at sen-
sors in the interior rear view mirror.
The interior rear view mirror and the exterior
rear view mirrors do not react, for example,
if the cargo compartment is fully loaded.
Glare can endanger you and others.
Warning!
G
In the case of an accident, liquid electrolyte
may escape from the mirror housing if the
mirror glass breaks.
Electrolyte has an irritating effect. Do not al-
low the liquid to come into contact with
eyes, skin, clothing, or the respiratory sys-
tem. In case it does, immediately flush af-
fected area with water, and seek medical
help if necessary.!Electrolyte drops coming into contact
with the vehicle paint finish can be
completely removed only while in the
liquid state by applying plenty of water.