2008 MERCEDES-BENZ B-CLASS HATCHBACK ESP

Driving
tips 184 the braking distance and can lead to the
brakes failing completely.
If the brakes have been used only moderately,
you should occasionally test their effective-
ness. To do this, brake more firmly from a
higher speed. This improves the grip of the
brakes.
Wet roads If driving in heavy rain for a prolonged period
of time without braking, there may be a
delayed reaction from the brakes, when brak-
ing for the first time. You must brake harder.
You must therefore maintain a greater dis-
tance from the vehicle in front.
Brake firmly after driving on a wet road. This
way the brake discs will become warm, drying
more quickly, which will protect them against
corrosion.
Limited braking performance on salted
roads G
Risk of accident
The layer of salt on the brake discs and the
brake pads/linings may cause a delay in
the braking effect, resulting in a signifi- cantly longer braking distance, which could
lead to an accident.
To avoid this danger, you should:
R
occasionally brake carefully, without put-
ting other road users at risk, when you
are driving on salted roads. This helps to
remove any salt that may have started to
build up on the brake discs and the brake
pads/linings.
R maintain a greater distance to the vehicle
ahead and drive with particular care.
R carefully apply the brakes at the end of a
trip and immediately after commencing a
new trip, so that salt residues are
removed from the brake disc.
New brake pads/linings For safety reasons, Mercedes-Benz recom-
mends that you only have brake pads/linings
fitted to your vehicle which have been
approved for Mercedes-Benz vehicles or
which correspond to an equivalent quality
standard. Brake pads/linings which have not
been approved for Mercedes-Benz vehicles or
which are not of an equivalent quality could
affect your vehicle's operating safety. G
Risk of accident
New brake pads/linings only reach their
optimum braking effect after several hun-
dred kilometres of driving. Before this opti-
mum braking effect is reached, you should
compensate for the reduced braking effect
by applying greater pressure when braking.
This also applies after the brake discs or the
brake pads/linings have been replaced. Tyre grip
G
Risk of accident
While the vehicle can be fully controlled at
a certain speed on dry roads, you must
reduce your speed on wet or icy roads to
achieve the same road safety. Otherwise,
you could cause an accident.
Pay particular attention to the road condi-
tions at temperatures around freezing
point.
If ice has formed on the road surface (e.g.
from fog), a thin film of water rapidly forms
on the ice when you brake, considerably
reducing tyre grip. Drive with particular
care in such weather conditions. Operation
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Service
191
specialist workshop, e.g. a Mercedes-Benz
Service Centre.
X To switch the switched power supply on
or off: turn the key in the ignition lock to
position 2or 0, respectively. Trailer with 7-pin connector
If your trailer has a 7-pin connector, you can
connect it to the 13-pin socket on the ball
coupling using an adapter or, if necessary, an
adapter cable. Both of these can be obtained
at a qualified specialist workshop, e.g. at a
Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.
Fitting the adapter 1
Connector with lug
2 Socket with groove X
Fold down socket .
X Open the socket cover.
X Insert the connector with lug 1into
groove 2on the socket and turn the con-
nector clockwise to the stop.
X Make the cover engage.
X If you are using an adapter cable, secure
the cable to the trailer with cable ties.
! Make sure that there is sufficient cable
play so that the cable cannot become
detached when cornering. Service
ASSYST PLUS service interval display
The ASSYST PLUS service indicator informs
you of the next service due date. The multi-
function display shows the service due date:
Service A due in ..days
Service A due in .. km
Service A due now Next service due (example)
The letter indicates how much time the work-
shop will require to carry out the service work.
The letters displayed range from
Afor a short
service duration to Hfor a long service dura-
tion.
The ASSYST PLUS service interval indicator
does not take into account any periods of Operation
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Care
193H
Environmental note
Dispose of empty packaging, cleaning
cloths and polishing wads in an environ-
mentally responsible manner.
! Do not affix to painted surfaces or plastic
surfaces:
R stickers
R films
R magnetic plates
R scented oil bottles or similar items
Otherwise, you could damage the paint fin-
ish or plastic.
! Clean the water drainage channels of the
windscreen and the rear window at regular
intervals. Under certain circumstances,
deposits such as leaves, petals and pollen
may prevent water from draining away
leading to corrosion damage. Vehicle care
! Do not park the vehicle for a long period
of time directly after cleaning, especially if
the wheels have just been cleaned with a
wheel cleaner. Wheel cleaners could cause
rapid corrosion of the brake discs and
brake pads/linings. After cleaning, park
the vehicle when it is at normal operating
temperature.
Automatic car wash You can wash the vehicle in an automatic car
wash from the beginning.
!
Do not use a touch-free automatic car
wash that uses chemical agents to wash
the vehicle.
Preferably use automatic car washes with
high-pressure jets for pre-washing.
If the vehicle is very dirty, pre-wash it before
cleaning it in an automatic car wash.
X Remove the radio/telephone aerial.
! If you do not remove the radio/telephone
aerial, the automatic car wash may damage
it or the vehicle.
! Make sure that the automatic car wash is
suitable for the size of the vehicle. Fold in the exterior mirrors before the vehicle is
washed. There is otherwise a risk of dam-
age to the exterior mirrors.
! Make sure that the side windows are com-
pletely closed, that the ventilation/heater
blower is turned off and that the wind-
screen wiper switch is set to 0. Otherwise,
the rain sensor may be activated, triggering
unintended wiper movements. This could
cause damage to the vehicle.
After using an automatic car wash, wipe off
wax and drying agents from the windscreen
and the wiper blades. This will prevent smears
and reduce wiping noises caused by residue
on the windscreen.
High-pressure cleaners G
Risk of accident
Do not use high-pressure cleaners with cir-
cular-jet nozzles (dirt grinders) to clean
your vehicle, in particular the tyres. Other-
wise, you could damage the tyres and
cause an accident.
! Observe the instructions issued by the
equipment manufacturer concerning the
distance to be maintained between the Operation
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Care
194nozzle of the high-pressure cleaner and the
vehicle (at least 30 cm).
Move the high-pressure cleaner nozzle
around when cleaning your vehicle.
Do not aim directly at any of the following:
R tyres
R door joint
R electrical components
R battery
R connectors
R lights
R seals
R trim elements
Damaged seals or electrical components
can lead to failures or leaks.
Cleaning the wiper blades and the out-
side of the windscreen G
Risk of injury
Before cleaning the windscreen or wiper
blades, turn the key in the ignition to 0.
Otherwise, the windscreen wipers may
move and injure you. X
Turn the key to position 1(Y page 62) in
the ignition lock.
X Set the windscreen wipers to position
I(Y page 82) on the combination switch.
X Turn the key to position 0(Y page 62) or
remove it when the wiper arms are vertical.
! Only fold the windscreen wipers away
from the windscreen when vertical. Other-
wise, you will damage the bonnet.
X Fold the wiper arms away from the wind-
screen.
X Wipe the windscreen and wiper blades with
a damp, lint-free cloth (e.g. a microfibre
cloth) and cleaning agent.
X Fold the wiper arms back on to the wind-
screen before the ignition is switched on.
! Do not clean the wiper blades too often
as this will result in damage to the surface
coating, leading to wiper noise.
Cleaning the windows !
Do not use dry cloths, abrasive products,
solvents or cleaning agents containing sol-
vents to clean the inside of the windows.
Clean the insides of the windows with a
damp cloth or commercially-available glass cleaner. Avoid touching the inside of the
rear windscreen and the side windows with
hard objects, e.g. ice scrapers or rings. You
could otherwise cause damage to the win-
dows, rear window heating or aerial on the
rear window.
i Anti-glare film retrofitted to the insides of
the windows could interfere with radio or
mobile phone reception, especially if it is
conductive or metal-coated film. Informa-
tion about anti-glare film can be obtained
from any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre.
Cleaning the headlamps X
Clean the plastic lenses of the headlamps
with a damp sponge.
! Only use washer fluid which is suitable
for plastic lenses. Unsuitable washer fluid
could damage the plastic lenses of the
headlamps.
Do not use the following:
R dry cloths
R abrasive cleaning agents
R solvents
R cleaning agents containing solvent Operation
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Care
197
X
Lightly oil or grease positions 1to5 and
the ball coupling recess of the vehicle after
cleaning.
X Treat the lock with an oil that is acid and
resin-free.
X Check that the vehicle's trailer coupling is
working properly.
! Observe the note on care provided by the
trailer manufacturer.
i Maintenance of the ball coupling and
trailer coupling can also be performed by
any Mercedes-Benz Service Centre. H
Environmental note
Dispose of oily and greasy cloths in an envi-
ronmentally-responsible manner. Operation
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Display
messages 202 Spare
wheel*/"Minispare" emer-
gency spare wheel*
X Open the luggage compartment floor
(Y page 153).
Vehicles with ECO Start-Stop function* 1
Ball coupling
2 Ball coupling stowage well
X Remove ball coupling stowage well 2and
ball coupling 1. Vehicles without ECO Start-Stop func-
tion* 1
Retaining screw
2 Spare wheel/"Minispare" emergency
spare wheel
All vehicles X
Turn retaining screw 1anti-clockwise.
i Vehicles with a subwoofer mounted in the
emergency spare wheel:
you must observe the information labels on
the subwoofer when removing it.
X Remove spare wheel/"Minispare" emer-
gency spare wheel 2. Display messages
Notes
The on-board computer shows warnings or
malfunctions in the multi-function display.
Certain display messages are accompanied
by a warning tone or a continuous tone.
The multi-function display shows high-priority
display messages in red. In the following
tables, these display messages are printed in
red.
Please respond in accordance with the dis-
play messages and follow the additional
notes in this Owner's Manual. G
Risk of accident
No further messages can be displayed if the
instrument cluster and/or the multi-func-
tion display fails.
This means that you will not see information
about the driving situation, such as the
speed, outside temperature, warning/indi-
cator lamps, display messages or system
failures. The vehicle's handling character-
istics may be affected. Adjust your driving
style and speed accordingly.
Immediately consult a qualified specialist
workshop which has the necessary special-
ist knowledge and tools to carry out the Practical advice
* optional
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Display
messages 204 Display messages Possible cause/consequence Possible solution
120 km/h Maximum speed
exceeded The maximum speed has been excee-
ded
26
. X
Drive slower. ABS ABS, ESP unavaila-
ble See Owner's
Manual
G
Risk of accident
ABS (Anti-lock Brake System) and ESP ®
(Electronic Stability Program) are tempo-
rarily unavailable. The self-diagnosis is, for
example, not yet complete.
The following systems are also unavaila-
ble:
R BAS (Brake Assist)
R the steering assistant STEER CONTROL
R hill start assist
R the tyre pressure loss warning system
The brake system continues to function
normally, but without the functions listed
above. X
Carefully drive a short, lightly curving stretch
of road at a speed above 20 km/h.
If the display message disappears, ABS and
ESP ®
are available again. 26
Only for certain countries. Practical advi
ce
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Display
messages 205Display messages Possible cause/consequence Possible solution
G
Risk of accident
ABS and ESP ®
are temporarily unavailable
due to undervoltage. The battery is, for
example, not being charged.
The following systems are also unavaila-
ble:
R BAS
R the steering assistant STEER CONTROL
R hill start assist
R the tyre pressure loss warning system
The brake system continues to function
normally, but without the functions listed
above. X
Drive on carefully.
X Visit a qualified specialist workshop immedi-
ately.
X Observe the additional messages in the multi-
function display (Y page 202). Practical advi
ce
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