2007 MERCEDES-BENZ R320CDI ABS

347 Operation
Driving instructions
Driving instructions
Drive sensibly – save fuel
Fuel consumption, to a great extent,
depends on driving habits and operating
conditions.
To save fuel you should:

Keep tires at the recommended
inflation pressures.

Remove unnecessary loads.

Remove carriers when not in use.

Allow engine to warm up under low
load use.

Avoid frequent acceleration and
deceleration.

Have all maintenance work performed
at the intervals specified in the
Maintenance Booklet and as required
by the Maintenance System
(U.S. vehicles) or FSS PLUS (Canada
vehicles). Contact an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.Fuel consumption is also increased by
driving in cold weather, in stop-and-go
traffic, on short trips and in hilly area.
Drinking and driving
Pedals
Warning!G
Drinking and driving and/or taking drugs
and driving are a very dangerous combina-
tion. Even a small amount of alcohol or
drugs can affect your reflexes, perceptions
and judgment.
The possibility of a serious or even fatal
accident are greatly increased when you
drink or take drugs and drive.
Do not drink or take drugs and drive or allow
anyone to drive who has been drinking or
taking drugs.
Warning!G
Make sure that absolutely no objects are ob-
structing the pedal’s range of movement.
Keep the driver’s footwell clear of all obsta-
cles. If there are any floormats or carpets in
the footwell, make sure the pedals still have
sufficient clearance.
During sudden driving or braking maneu-
vers, the objects could get caught between
the pedals. You could then no longer brake
or accelerate. This could lead to accidents
and injury.

354 Operation
Driving instructions
R320 CDI, R350, R500
Your vehicle is factory equipped with
“H”-rated tires, which have a speed rating
of 130 mph (210 km/h).
An electronic speed limiter prevents your
vehicle from exceeding a speed of
130 mph (210 km/h).
R350, R500 (with Sport Package*)
R350, R500 (with AMG rims*)
Your vehicle is factory equipped with
“W”-rated tires, which have a speed rating
of 168 mph (270 km/h)
An electronic speed limiter prevents your
vehicle from exceeding a speed of
130 mph (210 km/h).R63AMG
Your vehicle is factory equipped with
“Y”-rated tires, which have a speed rating
of 186 mph (300 km/h).
An electronic speed limiter prevents your
vehicle from exceeding a speed of
155 mph (250 km/h).
R 63 AMG with increased top speed*
Your vehicle is factory equipped with
“Y”-rated tires, which have a speed rating
of 186 mph (300 km/h).
An electronic speed limiter prevents your
vehicle from exceeding a speed of
171 mph (275 km/h).Winter driving instructions
The most important rule for slippery or icy
roads is to drive sensibly and to avoid
abrupt acceleration, braking and steering
maneuvers. Do not use the cruise control
system under such conditions.
When the vehicle is in danger of skidding,
shift the automatic transmission to
positionN. Try to keep the vehicle under
control by corrective steering action.
iFor information on speed ratings for winter
tires, see “Winter tires” (
page 405).
For additional general information on tire speed
markings on the tire sidewall, see “Tire speed
rating” (
page 403).
iFor information on driving with snow chains,
see “Snow chains” (
page 406).
Warning!G
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift
in order to obtain braking action. This could
result in drive wheel slip and reduced vehi-
cle control. Your vehicle’s ABS will not pre-
vent this type of control loss.

395 Operation
Tires and wheels
All-season and winter tiresLoad identification
1Load identificationIn addition to tire load rating, special load
information may be molded into the tire
sidewall following the letter designating
the tire speed rating1 (
page 393).
No specification given: absence of any text
(like in above example) indicates a
standard load (SL) tire.
XL (Extra Load): designates an extra load
(or reinforced) tire.
Light Load: designates a light load tire.
C, D, E: designates load range associated
with the maximum load a tire can carry at
a specified pressure.
IndexSpeed rating
QM+S1
1or M+S. for winter tires
up to 100 mph (160 km/h)
TM+S1up to 118 mph (190 km/h)
HM+S1up to 130 mph (210 km/h)
VM+S1up to 149 mph (240 km/h)
iNot all M+S rated radial-ply tires provide
special winter performance. Make sure the tires
you use show M+S and the mountain/snowflake
marking.on the tire sidewall. These tires
meet specific snow traction performance re-
quirements of the Rubber Manufacturers Associ-
ation (RMA) and the Rubber Association of
Canada (RAC) and have been designed specifi-
cally for use in snow conditions.
iFor illustration purposes only. Actual data
on tires are specific to each vehicle and may vary
from data shown in above illustration.

405 Operation
Winter driving
Winter driving
Before the onset of winter, have your
vehicle winterized at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center. This
service includes:

Check of anticorrosion and antifreeze
concentration.

Addition of cleaning concentrate to the
water of the windshield and headlamp
cleaning system. Add MB Concentrate
“MB SummerFit” to a premixed wind-
shield washer solvent/antifreeze
which is formulated for temperatures
below freezing point (
page 546).

Battery test. Battery capacity drops
with decreasing ambient temperature.
A well charged battery helps to make
sure that the engine can be started
even at low ambient temperatures.

Tire change. Mercedes-Benz recom-
mends M+S rated radial-ply tires with a
minimum tread depth of approximately
1/6in (4 mm) on all four wheels for the
winter season.
Winter tires
Always use winter tires at temperatures
below 45°F (7°C) and whenever wintry
road conditions prevail. Not all M+S rated
radial-ply tires provide special winter
performance. Make sure the tires you use
show M+S and the mountain/snowflake
marking.on the tire sidewall. These
tires meet specific snow traction perfor-
mance requirements of the Rubber
Manufacturers Association (RMA) and the
Rubber Association of Canada (RAC) and
have been designed specifically for use in
snow conditions. Use of winter tires is the
only way to achieve the maximum effec-
tiveness of the ABS, ESP
®, 4-ETS, and EBP
in winter operation.
For safe handling, make sure all winter
tires mounted are of the same make and
have the same tread design.Always observe the speed rating of the
winter tires installed on your vehicle. If the
maximum speed for which your tires are
rated is below the speed rating of your
vehicle, you must place a notice to this
effect where it will be seen by the driver.
Such notices are available at your tire
dealer or any authorized Mercedes-Benz
Light Truck Center.
Warning!G
Winter tires with a tread depth under 1/6in (4 mm) must be replaced. They are no
longer suitable for winter operation.

420 Practical hints
What to do if …
Lamps in instrument clusterGeneral information:
If any of the following lamps in the instru-
ment cluster fails to come on during thebulb self-check when switching on the
ignition, have the respective bulb checked
and replaced if necessary.
ProblemPossible cause/consequenceSuggested solution
-The yellow ABS indicator lamp
comes on while the engine is
running.ABS has detected a malfunction and has
switched off. The BAS, ESP®, EBP, and 4-ETS
are also switched off (see messages in multi-
function display).
The brake system is still functioning normally
but without the ABS available.
If the ABS control unit is malfunctioning,
other systems such as the navigation
system* or the automatic transmission may
also be malfunctioning.
Continue driving with added caution.
Wheels may lock during hard braking,
reducing steering capability.
Read and observe messages in the
multifunction display (
page 433).
Have the system checked at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light
Truck Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions
increases the risk of an accident.
The charging voltage has fallen below
10 volts. The ABS has switched off.
The battery might not be charged sufficiently.When the voltage is above this value
again, the ABS is operational again and
the ABS indicator lamp should go out.
If the ABS indicator lamp does not go out:
Have the generator (alternator) and
the battery checked.

422 Practical hints
What to do if …
ProblemPossible cause/conse-
quenceSuggested solution
;(USA only)
3(Canada only)
-
v
The red brake warning lamp
comes on while driving. In
addition, the yellow ABS mal-
function indicator lamp, and
the yellow ESP
® warning lamp
come on and an acoustic warn-
ing sounds.
A malfunction in the Electronic
Brake Proportioning
(
page 105) was detected.
Have the system checked at an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions
increases the risk of an accident.

435 Practical hints
What to do if …
Text messages
Display messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
ABSinoperative
See Operator's ManualThe ABS has detected a malfunction
and has switched off.
The ESP
® and the BAS are also
deactivated.
The brake system is still functioning
normally but without the ABS avail-
able.
Continue driving with added caution.
Wheels may lock during hard braking,
reducing steering capability.
Have the system checked at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center as soon
as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions increases
the risk of an accident.
unavailable
See Operator’s ManualThe ABS was deactivated because of
insufficient power supply. The charg-
ing voltage has fallen below 10 volts.
The brake system is still functioning
normally but without the ABS
available.When the voltage is above this value again, the
ABS is operational again and the message in
the multifunction display should disappear.
If the message in the multifunction display
does not disappear:
Have the generator (alternator) and the
battery checked.

436 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display messagePossible cause/consequencePossible solution
ABSunavailable
See Operator’s ManualIf the yellow ESP® warning
lampv flashes while driving and
this message appears, the electron-
ic traction system has switched off
to prevent overheating of the drive
wheel brakes.As soon as the brakes have cooled off, the
electronic traction system switches on again.
The message in the multifunction display disap-
pears and the ESP
® warning lampv goes
out.
The self-diagnosis has not yet been
completed yet.The display will clear after driving a short
distance at a vehicle speed of above
12 mph (20 km/h).
Cruise
control and
SPEEDTRONIC

inoperativeThe cruise control is malfunctioning.Have cruise control checked by an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Light Truck
Center.
Cruise
control––– mphYou have attempted to set a
speed while driving below
20 mph (30 km/h).Accelerate to a speed exceeding
20 mph (30 km/h) and set the speed
(
page 266).
The ESP® is switched off.Switch on the ESP® (page 105).
The automatic transmission is set to
position P, R, or N.Set the automatic transmission to
positionD (
page 197).
The vehicle is secured with the
parking brake.Release the parking brake (page 57).