Page 166 of 481

165 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Steering wheel gearshift control one-touch gearshifting
The steering wheel gearshift control pro-
vides an alternative method for changing
the gears manually and limiting or extend-
ing the gear range for automatic shifting
with the gear selector lever in positionD
and driving in the automatic program
modeC orS.Steering wheel gearshift control*
SLK 280, SLK 350
The steering wheel gearshift buttons are
located to the left and right of the steering
wheel.
1Button, inside: downshift
2Button, outside: upshift
iTo avoid overrevving the engine when
downshifting with steering wheel
gearshift buttons, the transmission will
not shift to a lower gear if the engine’s
max. speed would be exceeded.!Allow engine to warm up under low
load use. Do not place full load on the
engine until the operating temperature
has been reached.
Shift into reverse gearR or parking
positionP only when the vehicle is
stopped.
Avoid spinning of a drive wheel for an
extended period when driving off on
slippery road surfaces. This may cause
serious damage to the drivetrain which
is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.
Page 167 of 481
166 Controls in detailAutomatic transmission*
Downshifting
Briefly press the inside1 of one of the
buttons on the steering wheel.
The transmission will shift to the next
lower gear as permitted by the shift
program. This action simultaneously limits
the gear range of the transmission
(
page 160).Upshifting
Briefly press the outside2 of one of
the buttons on the steering wheel.
The transmission will shift to the next
higher gear as permitted by the shift
program. This action simultaneously
extends the gear range of the transmis-
sion.
iYou cannot shift with the steering
wheel gearshift buttons when the gear
selector lever is in positionP,N orR.
The last selected program
mode (CorS) is switched on when the
engine is restarted.
Warning!
G
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift
in order to obtain braking action. This could
result in drive wheel slip and reduced
vehicle control. Your vehicle’s ABS will not
prevent this type of loss of control.
Page 168 of 481

167 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Canceling gear range limit
Press and hold the outside2 of one of
the buttons on the steering wheel
until
D reappears in the multifunction
display.
The transmission will shift from the current
gear range directly to gear rangeD.
Shifting into optimal gear range
Press and hold the inside1 of one of
the buttons on the steering wheel.
The transmission will automatically select
the gear range suited for optimal
acceleration and deceleration. This will
involve shifting down one or more gears.Steering wheel gearshift control
SLK 55 AMG
The steering wheel gearshift buttons are
located to the left and right of the steering
wheel.
1Left button: downshift
2Right button: upshiftThe following instructions describe opera-
tion of the steering wheel gearshift control
when driving in the automatic program
modeC orS.
For instructions on operating the steering
wheel gearshift control and gear selector
lever in the manual program modeM, see
“Manual shift program SLK 55 AMG”
(
page 169).iYou cannot shift with the steering
wheel gearshift buttons when the gear
selector lever is in positionP,N orR.
The last selected program
mode (CorS) is switched on when the
engine is restarted in the automatic
program mode.
Page 207 of 481
206 Controls in detailAudio systemButton and soft key operation
In these instructions, the alphanumeric
keypad (right side of radio panel) and the
function buttons (left side of radio panel)
are referred to as “buttons”. The four keys
below the display panel are referred to as
“soft keys”.
Operation
Switching the unit on/off
Switching on
Turn the SmartKey in the starter switch
to position1 or2 (
page 36).
If the audio system was on as you
removed the SmartKey from the starter
switch, the audio system will
automatically come back on as you
turn the SmartKey to position1 or2.
or
Press
D
button.
!Do not press directly in the display
face. Otherwise, the display will be
damaged.
iIf the radio is switched on without the
SmartKey in the starter switch, it will
automatically switch off again after
approximately 30 minutes.
If your vehicle is equipped with a
telephone, the display may prompt you
to enter your PIN (GSM network) or
code (TDMA or CDMA network).
Page 212 of 481

211 Controls in detail
Audio system
Direct frequency input
Select desired waveband.
Press * button.
Enter desired frequency with
buttons1to R.Manual tuning
Select desired waveband.
PressGorHbutton for approx.
3 seconds.
Press button repeatedly until desired
frequency has been reached.
Step-by-step station tuning takes place
in ascending or descending order. Each
time the button is pressed, the radio
tunes further by 0.2 MHz. During
manual tuning, the radio is muted.
Automatic seek tuning
Select desired waveband.
PressGorHbutton briefly.
The radio will tune to the next highest
or next lowest receivable frequency.Scan search
Starting scan search
Select desired waveband.
Press
SC soft key.
SC will appear in the display. The
radio briefly (approximately
8 seconds) tunes in all receivable
stations on the waveband selected.
Ending scan search
Press
SC soft key orGorH.
The station last played will be
selected and
SC disappears from
the display.
iYou can only enter frequencies within
the respective waveband.
If a button is not pressed within
4 seconds, the radio will return to the
last station tuned.
iIf no station is received after two
consecutive scans of the complete
frequency range, then the scan stops
at the frequency from which it began.
Page 213 of 481

212 Controls in detailAudio systemStation memory
You can store ten AM and ten FM stations
in the memory.
Storing stations
Tune in desired station.
Press and hold desired station
button1 to R until a brief
signal tone is heard.
The frequency is stored on the
selected station button.
Calling up stations
Press desired station button1
to R briefly.Autostore – automatic station memory
The Autostore memory function provides
an additional memory level. The station
memory for manually stored stations is not
overwritten.
Calling up Autostore memory level and
storing stations
Press
AS soft key briefly.
The radio switches to the Autostore
memory level.
AS and
SEARCH
appear in the display and the radio
finds the ten stations with the
strongest signals. These stations
are stored on the station
buttons1 to R in order of
signal strength.
Calling up stations
Press desired station button1
to R.
Leaving the Autostore memory level
Press
FM or
AM
soft key briefly.
Interrupting radio mode
The radio mode is interrupted by an
incoming call on the telephone*
(
page 235).
Mute on
PressFbutton.
The radio mode is interrupted and MUTED
appears in the display.
Mute off
PressFbutton.
The radio mode is again active.
Page 214 of 481
213 Controls in detail
Audio system
Weather band
Press
WB soft key.
The weather band station last received
is tuned in.
Selecting a weather band station
directly
Select desired weather band station
with buttons 1 to 7.
If a station cannot be tuned in, a search
is automatically started.Search
PressGorHbutton to tune in
the next receivable weather band
station.Scan search
Starting scan search
Press
SC soft key.
SC will appear in the display. The
radio briefly (approximately
8 seconds) tunes in all receivable
weather band stations.
Ending scan search
Press
SC soft key orGorH.
The weather band station last
played will be selected and
SC
disappears from the display.
iIf no weather band station is received
after three consecutive scans of the
complete frequency range, then the
scan stops at the channel with which it
began and
NO WB FOUND
appears in the
display.
If this happens, switch back to
standard radio mode.
Page 224 of 481

223 Controls in detail
Audio system
Operational readiness of CD changer*
If a CD changer has been installed in the
vehicle, it can be operated from the front
control panel of the audio system.
The CD changer is located in the glove box.
1CD loading slot
2Magazine slot button
A magazine is integrated into the CD
changer as a fixed element. It holds a max-
imum of six CDs.
The CD changer features six magazine slot
buttons2 for controlling the loading pro-
cedure.A light-emitting diode in the buttons shows
the status of the corresponding magazine
slot.
CD loading slot1 is above buttons2
and is used to load CDs.Loading the CD magazine
Loading single CDs
Open the glove box.
1CD loading slot
2Magazine slot button
LEDsno LED is lit
Magazine slot is
empty.
green LED flashes
CD can be loaded.
red LED is lit
Magazine slot is in
use.
red LED flashes
CD is being ejected.
iIf a CD has been inserted incorrectly or
cannot be read,
WRONG CD0
will appear
in the display.
Loading one or more CDs interrupts the
CD playback.