2008 DODGE SPRINTER Owners Manual

71 Safety
Driving safety systems
2
BrakingIf ABS intervenes during braking, you will
feel the steering wheel vibrate gently
and the brake pedal pulsate.
If ABS intervenes: \1
Continue to depress the brake pedal
firmly until the braking situation is
over.
For full brake application:
\1
Depress the brake pedal with maxi-
mum force.Brake Assist operates in emergency
braking situations. If you depress the
brake pedal quickly, BAS automatically
increases the brake pressure, thereby
reducing the stopping distance.
\1
Keep the brake pedal firmly de-
pressed until the emergency braking
situation is over.
ABS prevents the wheels from lock-
ing.
When you release the brake pedal, the
brakes will work as normal again. BAS is
deactivated.
Warning
G
Always adapt your driving style to the pre-
vailing road and weather conditions, and
maintain an adequately safe distance
from other road users as well as any ob-
stacles on the road.
If ABS malfunctions, the wheels could
lock when you brake. This means that the
steerability of the vehicle is restricted
during braking and the stopping distance
may increase. If ABS is deactivated due to
a malfunction, BAS is also deactivated.
Brake Assist (BAS)
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72 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
Vehicles without steering wheel but-
tons:
There is a malfunction if the
k
indi-
cator lamp is permanently lit while the
engine is running (
\2
page 73).ESP
® monitors driving stability and de-
tects a tendency of the vehicle to under-
steer or oversteer (skidding) in good
time. ESP
® stabilizes the vehicle by
braking individual wheels, limiting the
engine power output, and greatly assists
y o u w h e n d r i v i n g o n w e t o r s l i p p e r y r o a d
surfaces. ESP
® also stabilizes the vehi-
cle when braking.
When ESP
® intervenes, the
v
warn-
ing lamp in the speedometer flashes.
Warning
G
If BAS malfunctions, the brake system is
still available with the full brake boosting
effect. In an emergency braking situation,
however, the braking force will not be ad-
ditionally boosted automatically and the
stopping distance may increase.
Electronic Stability Program
(ESP
®)
Warning
G
Proceed as follows if the v warning
lamp in the speedometer flashes:
\4Do not deactivate ASR under any cir-
cumstances.
\4Only depress the accelerator pedal as
far as necessary when pulling away.
\4Adapt your driving style to suit the
prevailing road and weather condi-
tions.
Otherwise, the vehicle could begin to
skid.
ESP
® cannot reduce the risk of an acci-
dent if you drive too fast. ESP
® is unable
to override the laws of physics.
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73 Safety
Driving safety systems
2
There is a malfunction if the
#
indica-
tor lamp is permanently lit while the en-
gine is running (
\2
page 468).
If ESP
® malfunctions, engine power out-
put may be reduced.ASR improves traction for a sustained
period, i.e. the transfer of power from
the tires to the road surface, and thus
also improves the driving stability of the
vehicle. ASR assists you when pulling
away and accelerating, especially on
smooth and slippery surfaces.
ASR brakes individual drive wheels and
limits the engine torque to prevent the
drive wheels from spinning. When ASR
intervenes, the
v
indicator lamp in
the speedometer flashes.
!
CAUTION
Only operate the vehicle briefly (max-
imum of 10 seconds) on a brake dy-
namometer. The key must be turned
to position
1 in the ignition lock dur-
ing this time. You could damage the
drive train or the brake system.
!
CAUTION
Do not operate the vehicle on a roller
dynamometer (for example for per-
formance testing). If you wish to op-
erate the vehicle on a roller
dynamometer, please consult an au-
thorized Sprinter Dealer beforehand.
You could otherwise damage the
drive train or the brake system.
Acceleration skid control (ASR)
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74 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
If the road surface is not capable of pro-
viding sufficient traction, bearing in
mind the tires, load and gradient, it is
not be possible to pull away smoothly
even with ASR.
Vehicles without steering wheel but-
tons:
There is a malfunction if the
k
indi-
cator lamp is permanently lit while the
engine is running (
\2
page 73).
If ASR malfunctions, engine power out-
put may be reduced.
Activating/deactivating ASRASR is automatically activated as soon
as the engine is switched on.
It may be best to deactivate ASR in the
following situations:\4
if snow chains are being used
\4
in deep snow
\4
on sand or gravelIf you deactivate ASR:
\4
the engine’s torque is then no longer
limited and the drive wheels could
spin; the spinning wheels produce a
cutting effect for better traction
\4
traction control still intervenes by
braking if one drive wheel reaches its
grip limit, for example if the surface
under one side of the vehicle is slip-
pery. The wheel is then braked to in-
crease traction in this situation.
\4
ESP
® still intervenes to stabilize the
vehicle
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75 Safety
Driving safety systems
2
The ASR switch is located on the center
console.1To deactivate/activate ASR
\1To switch off:
press upper
section
1
of the switch.
The
v
warning lamp in the speed-
ometer lights up.
\1To switch on:
press upper
section
1
of the switch again.
The
v
warning lamp in the speed-
ometer goes out.
Warning
G
ESP
® remains active despite ASR having
been deactivated and carries out braking
interventions if this is necessary to im-
prove driving stability. Thev warning
lamp flashes.
If ASR is deactivated, there is an in-
creased risk that the brake system of your
vehicle could overheat and be damaged
when subjected to high loads for a long
period of time. A hot brake system also in-
creases the stopping distance.
For this reason, only deactivate ASR when
it is absolutely necessary.
N54.25-2916-31
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76 SafetyDriving safety systems
2
EBV monitors and regulates the brake
pressure at the rear wheels to improve
driving stability during braking.There is a malfunction if the
#
, k
,
-
and
6
indicator lamps are per-
manently lit while the engine is running
(
\2
page 462).
Electronic brake force distribution
(EBV)
Warning
G
If EBV malfunctions, the brake system is
still available with the full brake boosting
effect. However, the rear wheels may
lock, for example if the brakes are applied
with maximum force. You could then lose
control of the vehicle and cause an acci-
dent. Always adapt your driving style to
the change in handling characteristics.
Have the system checked at an autho-
rized Sprinter Dealer as soon as possible.
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77 Safety
Anti-theft systems
2
\3 Anti-theft systemsThe immobilizer prevents the vehicle
from being started without the correct
key.\1To switch on:
remove the key from
the ignition lock (
\2
page 111).
\1To switch off:
switch on the ignition
(
\2
page 111).A visual and audible alarm is triggered if
the alarm system is enabled and:
\4
a door is opened
\4
the hood is opened
Enabling the alarm system
\1
Close all the doors.
\1
Lock the vehicle using the
‹
but-
ton on the key (
\2
page 83).
The indicator lamp in the central
locking switch (
\2
page 104) flashes.
Deactivating the anti-theft alarm
system
\1
Unlock the vehicle using the
Œ

button on the key (
\2
page 83).
The indicator lamp
in the central
locking switch (
\2
page 104) goes
out.
Immobilizer
Anti-theft alarm system (ATA)*
iThe vehicle locks again automatical-
ly if you do not open a door within 40
seconds after unlocking the vehicle.
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78 SafetyAnti-theft systems
2
Switching off the alarm
\1
Insert the key into the ignition lock.
or
\1
Press the
Œ
button (
\2
page 83).
The alarm is switched off.A visual and audible alarm is triggered if
the inclination of the vehicle changes
while tow-away protection is enabled.
Enabling tow-away protectionTow-away protection is automatically
enabled approximately 20 seconds after
you lock the vehicle.Tow-away protection is automatically
deactivated when you unlock the vehi-
cle.
Deactivating the tow-away protec-
tion for transportationDeactivate tow-away protection if the
vehicle is transported or loaded onto an-
other vehicle. This will prevent false
alarms.
The button is located in the overhead
control panel.
iThe alarm system will be triggered if
the vehicle has been locked with the
key and is then unlocked from the in-
side.
Tow-away protection*iThe tow-away protection alarm is
triggered shortly before the wheel
leaves the ground if the vehicle is be-
ing jakked up on one side, for exam-
ple.
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