71 Safety and Security
Driving safety systems
For more information, see “Practical hints”
section (
page 614) and (
page 622).
Warning!
G
Never switch off the ESP
® when you see the
ESP
® warning lamp v flashing in the in-
strument cluster. In this case proceed as fol-
lows:
While driving off, apply as little throttle
as possible.
While driving, ease up on the accelera-
tor.
Adapt your speed and driving style to
the prevailing road conditions.
Failure to observe these guidelines could
cause the vehicle to skid.
The ESP
® cannot prevent accidents result-
ing from excessive speed.
Warning!
G
The ESP
® cannot prevent the natural laws of
physics from acting on the vehicle, nor can
it increase the traction afforded. The ESP
®
cannot prevent accidents, including those
resulting from excessive speed in turns, or
hydroplaning. Only a safe, attentive, and
skillful driver can prevent accidents. The ca-
pabilities of an ESP
® equipped vehicle must
never be exploited in a reckless or danger-
ous manner which could jeopardize the us-
er’s safety or the safety of others.
i
DISTRONIC Plus* and cruise control are
switched off when the ESP
® engages.
i
The ESP
® will only function properly if you
use wheels of the recommended tire size
(
page 727).
!
Because the ESP
® operates automatically,
the engine and ignition must be shut off
(SmartKey in starter switch position0 or1 or
KEYLESS-GO start/stop button* in position0
or1) when
the electronic parking brake is being tested
on a brake test dynamometer
the vehicle is being towed with the
front/rear axle raised
Active braking action through the ESP
® may oth-
erwise seriously damage the brake system.
72 Safety and SecurityDriving safety systemsElectronic traction system
The electronic traction system is a compo-
nent of ESP
®.
The electronic traction system improves
the vehicle’s ability to utilize available trac-
tion, especially under slippery road condi-
tions by applying the brakes to a spinning
wheel.
When you switch off the ESP
®, the elec-
tronic traction system is still enabled.Switching off the ESP
®
(except CL 63 AMG)
To improve the vehicle’s traction, turn off
the ESP
® in driving situations where it
would be advantageous to have the drive
wheels spin and thus cut into surfaces for
better grip such as:
when driving with snow chains
in deep snow
in sand or gravelWhen you switch off the ESP
®
the ESP
® does not stabilize the vehicle
the engine output is not limited, which
allows the drive wheels to spin and
thus cut into surfaces for better grip
the electronic traction system will still
apply the brakes to a spinning wheel
the ESP
® continues to operate when
you are braking
you cannot activate the cruise control
or the DISTRONIC Plus*
Warning!
G
If you are driving too fast, the electronic
traction system cannot reduce the risk of an
accident.
The electronic traction system cannot pre-
vent the natural laws of physics from acting
on the vehicle.
Warning!
G
The ESP
® should not be switched off during
normal driving other than in the circum-
stances described below. Disabling of the
system will reduce vehicle stability in stan-
dard driving maneuvers.
Warning!
G
Switch on the ESP
® immediately if the afore-
mentioned circumstances do not apply any-
more. Otherwise the ESP
® will not stabilize
the vehicle when it is starting to skid or a
wheel is spinning.
73 Safety and Security
Driving safety systems
1ESP
® off/on
Press ESP
® switch1 until the ESP
®
warning lampv in the instrument
cluster comes on.
The ESP
® is switched off.Switching off the ESP
®
(CL 63 AMG only)
i
When the ESP
® is switched off and one or
more drive wheels are spinning, the ESP
® warn-
ing lampv in the instrument cluster flashes.
However, the ESP
® will then not stabilize the
vehicle.
Warning!
G
When the ESP
® warning lampv is illumi-
nated continuously, the ESP
® is switched
off.
Adapt your speed and driving to the prevail-
ing road conditions and to the non-operating
status of the ESP
®.
!
Avoid spinning of a drive wheel for an
extended period with the ESP
® switched off. This
may cause serious damage to the drivetrain
which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.
Warning!
G
The ESP
® should not be switched off during
normal driving. Disabling of the system will
result in the following:
no restriction to engine torque
loss of system supported traction
control
“ESP® OFF” is designed for driving on closed
tracks when the natural oversteer and un-
dersteer characteristics are desired and re-
quires a highly skilled and experienced
driver able to handle these critical driving
situations.
You could lose control of your vehicle and
cause an accident.
Please be aware of these limits when you
switch off the ESP
®.
Do not switch off the ESP
® when a spare
wheel is mounted.
74 Safety and SecurityDriving safety systemsWhen you switch off the ESP
®
the ESP
® does not stabilize the vehicle
the engine output is not limited, which
allows the drive wheels to spin and
thus cut into surfaces for better grip
the traction control will still apply the
brakes to a spinning wheel
the ESP
® operates while you are
braking
you cannot activate the cruise control
or the Distronic*
the cruise control or Distronic* switch
off if currently activated1ESP
® off/on
With the engine running, press ESP
®
switch1 until the ESP
® warning
lampv in the instrument cluster
comes on.
The ESP
® is switched off.
Switching on the ESP
®
Press ESP
® switch1.
The ESP
® warning lampv in the in-
strument cluster goes out.
You are now again in normal driving
mode with the ESP
® switched on.
i
When the ESP
® is switched off and one or
more drive wheels are spinning, the ESP
® warn-
ing lamp v in the instrument cluster flashes.
However, the ESP
® will then not stabilize the
vehicle.
Warning!
G
When the ESP
® warning lamp v is
illuminated continuously, the ESP
® is
switched off or is not operational due to a
malfunction. Vehicle stability in standard
driving maneuvers reduces.
Adapt your speed and driving to the prevail-
ing road conditions and to the non-operating
status of the ESP
®.
!
Avoid spinning of a drive wheel for an ex-
tended period with the ESP
® switched off. This
may cause serious damage to the drivetrain
which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.
85 Control systems
COMAND introduction
Instrument cluster multifunction
display
This section describes features and con-
trols via the COMAND controller, display
and shortcut buttons only.
Please refer to the “Instrument cluster
control system” section of this manual
(page 282) for function descriptions and
operation of the instrument cluster multi-
function display and multifunction steering
wheel buttons as they relate to COMAND
features described in this section.Adjusting COMAND display
illumination
1Knob
Brightening illumination: Turn
knob1 clockwise.
Dimming illumination: Turn knob1
counterclockwise.Swiveling COMAND display
1Button for swiveling display to the left
2Button for swiveling display to the right
You can swivel the COMAND display to the
left or right. The buttons are on the
right-hand side of the instrument cluster.
i
The layout of the menus may vary depending
on your vehicle’s equipment. This manual shows
the menus for a fully equipped vehicle.
94 Control systemsCOMAND introductionMain menus of COMAND
Sound
Muting: Press the F shortcut but-
ton in the center console (
page 84).
The sound of the current audio source
is switched on or is muted.Switching off navigation announce-
ments entirely
Canceling navigation message:
Briefly press F shortcut button dur-
ing an announcement.
Switching off navigation messages:
Press and hold F during an an-
nouncement until the announcement is
switched off.
You will see the message “The driving
instructions have been muted.” for a
short while.Adjusting volume
1Thumbwheel
Adjusting: Turn, thumbwheel.
The volume of the currently selected
audio source changes.
i
The components and operating principles of
COMAND can be found on (
page 83).
i
When the sound is muted, you will see the
symbol
F
in the status line. When you
change the audio source, the sound is automati-
cally switched on. You will be able to hear an-
nouncements from the navigation system even
when the sound is muted.
i
The announcements remain switched off
even if you start a new route guidance or if
COMAND is switched off/on with theo but-
ton.
If you switch COMAND off by removing the
SmartKey from the starter switch and then
switch the ignition back on after more than
3 minutes, the announcements are automatical-
ly switched back on.
95 Control systems
COMAND introduction
Volume of navigation announcements
You can adjust the volume of the naviga-
tion announcements independently from
the volume of the respective audio source.
During a navigation announcement:
turn thumbwheel,
or
pressæ or ç on the multifunc-
tion steering wheel.
Adjusting volume for telephone calls
In hands-free mode, you can adjust the vol-
ume of a telephone call while the call is
currently active.
During a telephone call:
turn thumbwheel,
or
pressæ or ç on the multifunc-
tion steering wheel.Selecting sound settings
You can select different sound settings for
each individual audio source. The respec-
tive sound menu can be found via the sub-
menu for which you wish to make settings.
Example:
“Audio” “Audio” “FM/AM Radio”
“Sound” Adjusting treble or bass
Select “Sound” “Treble” or “Bass”.
The setting last selected is indicated by
an outlined bar.
Adjusting treble and bass1Setting last selected
2Current setting
Changing setting: Slide rmq or
rotateymz until desired treble or bass
setting is reached.
Exiting menu: Press n, L or
slideomp.
The setting is saved.
138 Control systemsCOMAND telephone*Operating options
When the mobile phone is inserted in the
cradle, you can operate the telephone us-
ing the following devices:
mobile phone keypad
COMAND telephone keypad
buttonss andt on the multi-
function steering wheel (
page 283)
Voice Control (
page 308)
Bluetooth
® headset (
page 153)Please note that these functions are only
available with Mercedes-Benz approved
mobile phones. Please contact an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center for informa-
tion on features available for your mobile
phone of choice.
You can control other functions of the mo-
bile phone via the COMAND, instrument
cluster control system (
page 294) or
Voice Control.
The descriptions in this section assume
that the mobile phone is inserted in the
cradle. Exceptions to this are clearly
stated.Unless otherwise indicated, the descrip-
tions and illustrations in this section refer
to COMAND and the telephone keypad.
Operation using the mobile phone and
Bluetooth
® headset is described in the re-
spective separate Operating Instructions.
Caller ID
COMAND can display the telephone num-
ber and the name of the caller, e.g. for an
incoming call and also in other menus or
displays.
For the telephone number to be displayed,
the caller must transmit their telephone
number.
This is also the case for name displays. For
this, the telephone number and the name
of the caller must also be saved in the mo-
bile phone book.
i
The components and operating principles of
COMAND can be found on (
page 83) and
(
page 92).
i
Various mobile phone cradles can be in-
stalled in the front center armrest, see separate
installation instructions for the mobile phone
cradle. These mobile phone cradles can be ob-
tained from an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter. For more information about telephone
(
page 519).
i
In order for the functions described in this
section to work correctly, the Bluetooth
® head-
set must be linked to COMAND (
page 176).
Please make sure any Bluetooth
® headset linked
with the mobile phone is switched off or that the
headset is linked with COMAND before you in-
sert the mobile phone in the cradle (page 519)
and use the telephone functions with COMAND.