2008 MERCEDES-BENZ R-CLASS MPV wheel

Lights
97tracted from the road and traffic conditions
and you could lose control of the vehicle as
a result of the seat moving. This could
cause an accident.
G
Risk of accident
Only adjust the steering wheel when the
vehicle is stationary and do not pull away
until the steering wheel adjustment mech-
anism is locked in position. You might oth-
erwise drive without the steering wheel
adjustment mechanism being locked in
position. As a result you could be distracted
from road and traffic conditions by an unex-
pected movement of the steering wheel
and thereby cause an accident.
The steerability of the vehicle is however
not affected.
X Check whether seat 3and the head
restraint are adjusted properly
(Y page 77).
Make sure that:
R you are as far away from the driver's front
airbag as possible
R you are sitting in a normal upright posi-
tion
R you can fasten the seat belt properly R
you have moved the backrest to an
almost vertical position
R you have set the seat angle so that your
thighs are gently supported
R you can depress the pedals properly
R you have adjusted the head restraint so
that the back of your head is supported
at eye level by the central area of the
head restraint
X Check whether steering wheel 1is adjus-
ted properly (Y page 88).
Make sure that:
R you can hold the steering wheel with your
arms slightly bent
R you can move your legs freely
R you can see all the displays in the instru-
ment cluster clearly
X Check whether you have fastened seat belt
2 properly (Y page 94).
It should:
R fit snugly across your body
R be routed across the middle of your
shoulder
R routed in your pelvic area across the hip
joints Lights
Light switch
For safety reasons, Mercedes-Benz recom-
mends that you drive with the lights switched
on even during the daytime. In some coun-
tries, daytime operation of headlamps varies
due to legal and voluntary requirements. In
these countries, the dipped-beam headlamps
are automatically switched on when the
engine is started.
i If you drive in countries in which traffic
drives on the opposite side of the road to
the country where the vehicle is registered,
oncoming traffic may be dazzled by the
asymmetrical dipped-beam headlamps.
Have the headlamps changed to symmet-
rical dipped beam when driving in these
countries. You can obtain information
about this from any Mercedes-Benz Service
Centre. Controls
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Lights
102 Position Load
2 All seats occupied and lug-
gage compartment loaded up
to the maximum permissible
rear axle load
3 Driver’s seat occupied and
luggage compartment loaded
up to the maximum permissi-
ble rear axle load
X
Turn thumbwheel 1to the position which
corresponds to the load in your vehicle. Headlamp cleaning system*
The headlamps are cleaned automatically if
the "Wipe with windscreen washer fluid" func-
tion is operated five times while the lights are
on and the engine is running. When you
switch off the ignition, the automatic head-
lamp cleaning system is reset and counting is
resumed from 0. Cornering light function* (vehicles
with bi-xenon headlamps*)
Specially designed headlamps light up the
area into which you are driving when turning
corners.
If you are driving at speeds below 40 km/h,
the cornering light function is activated either
by the turn signals or when the steering wheel
is turned. If you are driving at speeds above
40 km/h the cornering light function is deac-
tivated.
Activating X
Start the engine.
X Switch on the dipped-beam headlamps.
X Switch off the foglamps.
X Switch on the turn signal.
The cornering lamp on the same side as the
turn signal comes on, even if you turn the
steering wheel in the opposite direction
after indicating.
or
X Turn the steering wheel in the desired
direction.
When in a forwards gear: the cornering
lamp on the inside of the bend comes on. When in reverse gear: the cornering lamp
on the outside of the bend comes on.
Deactivating X
Turn the steering wheel back to the straight
ahead position.
The turn signal goes off. The cornering lamp
may remain lit for a short time.
or
X Switch off the turn signal.
The cornering lamp may remain lit for a
short time.
The cornering light will go out after a maxi-
mum of three minutes. Controls
* optional
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Driving and pa
rking 111
Starting the engine with the key X
To start a petrol engine: turn the key to
position 3in the ignition lock (Y page 76)
and release it.
The engine starts automatically.
X To start a diesel engine: turn the key to
position 2in the ignition lock (Y page 76).
The q preglow indicator lamp in the
instrument cluster lights up.
X When the qpreglow indicator lamp
goes out, turn the key to position
3 (Y page 76) and release it.
The engine starts automatically.
i You can start the engine without preglow
if the engine is warm.
Starting the engine with KE YLESS GO*G
Risk of injury
Your vehicle can be started using a valid
KEYLESS GO key*. For this reason, children
should never be left unsupervised in the
vehicle. Always take the KEYLESS GO
key* with you when leaving the vehicle,
even if you are only leaving it for a short
time. The KEYLESS GO button can be used to start
the vehicle without inserting the key in the
ignition lock.
1
KEYLESS GO button
X Depress the brake pedal.
The selector lever lock is released.
X Petrol engine: press KEYLESS GO button
1 once.
The engine starts automatically.
X Diesel engine: press KEYLESS GO button
1 once.
Preglow is activated and the engine starts
automatically.
i You can start the engine without preglow
if the engine is warm: X
Press and hold KEYLESS GO button
1 until the engine is running. Pulling away
! Warm up the engine quickly. Do not use
the engine's full performance until it has
reached operating temperature.
Only shift into reverse gear when the vehi-
cle is stationary.
Where possible, avoid spinning the drive
wheels when pulling away on slippery
roads. You could otherwise damage the
drive train.
i The vehicle locks centrally once you have
pulled away. The locking knobs in the doors
drop down.
You can open the doors from the inside at
any time.
You can also deactivate the automatic lock-
ing feature (Y page 134).
i It is only possible to move the selector
lever to the desired position if you depress
the brake pedal. Only then is the selector
lever lock released. Cont
rols
* optional
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Driving and pa
rking 112
X
Depress the brake pedal and hold it down.
X Pull the parking brake release handle to
release the parking brake.
X Move the selector lever to position Dor R.
i Wait until the shift process is completed
before pulling away.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Carefully depress the accelerator pedal.
i Upshifts take place at higher engine
speeds after a cold start. This helps the
catalytic converter to reach its operating
temperature more quickly. Hill start assist
Hill start assist helps you when pulling away
on uphill gradients of more than 5°. G
Risk of accident
Hill start assist is not a parking brake. It
does not prevent the vehicle from rolling
away.
When parking, always depress the parking
brake and set the automatic transmission
to P. X
To pull away on an uphill slope, release the
brake and depress the accelerator pedal.
The hill start assist continues to hold the
braking pressure for up to one second. This
allows you to pull away evenly without the
vehicle rolling back.
i The brake pedal remains in the depressed
position until the hill start assist releases
the braking pressure.
Hill start assist will not function if:
R you are pulling away on a downhill gradient
R the automatic transmission is in neutral N
R the parking brake is applied
R ESP ®
is deactivated due to a malfunction Parking
G
Risk of accident
Only remove the key from the ignition lock
when the vehicle is stationary as you can-
not steer the vehicle with the key removed.
Never leave children unsupervised in the
vehicle. They could release the parking
brake. This could lead to a serious or fatal
accident. G
Risk of fire
Make sure that the exhaust system does
not under any circumstances come into
contact with easily ignitable material such
as dry grass or petrol. The material could
otherwise ignite and set the vehicle on fire.
Parking brake 1
Release handle
2 Parking brake
X To apply: depress parking brake 2firmly.
The 3 warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up if the engine is running.
i On steep slopes, turn the front wheels
towards the kerb. Controls
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Transmission
113
X
To release: depress the brake pedal and
keep it depressed.
The selector lever lock is released.
X Pull release handle 1.
The 3 warning lamp in the instrument
cluster goes out. Switching off the engine
G
Risk of accident
If the engine is not running, there is no
power assistance for the steering and
brakes. Steering and braking then takes
much more effort.
As a result, you might lose control of the
vehicle, cause an accident and injure your-
self and others.
Do not switch off the engine while driving.
X Move the selector lever to P.
Using the key
X Turn the key to position 0(Y page 76) in
the ignition lock and remove it.
The immobiliser is activated.
i If you switch off the engine using the key
and then remove the key or open one of the front doors, the automatic transmission will
shift to park position P.
Using KEYLESS GO*
X Press and hold the KEYLESS GO button
(Y page 76).
The engine stops and all the indicator
lamps in the instrument cluster go out
(Y page 26).
i If you use the KEYLESS GO button to
switch off the engine, the automatic trans-
mission shifts to N. If you then open the
driver's or front-passenger door, the auto-
matic transmission shifts to P. Transmission
Notes on the transmission
G
Risk of accident
The movement of the pedals must not be
impaired in any way. Do not keep any
objects in the driver's footwell. Make sure
that floormats or carpets are correctly
secured and that there is sufficient clear-
ance for the pedals. G
Risk of accident
Do not change down for additional engine
braking on a slippery road surface. This
could cause the drive wheels to lose their
grip and the vehicle could skid. This could
cause you to lose control of your vehicle
and cause an accident. Controls
* optional
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Transmission
114 Automatic transmission
! Warm up the engine quickly. Do not use
the engine's full performance until it has
reached operating temperature.
Only shift the automatic transmission to R
or Pwhen the vehicle is stationary.
Where possible, avoid spinning the drive
wheels when pulling away on slippery
roads. You could otherwise damage the
drive train.
The DIRECT SELECT selector lever is on the
right of the steering column. Gearshift pattern
P
Park position with selector lever lock
N To select neutral
R To select reverse gear
D To select drive i
The DIRECT SELECT selector lever always
returns to its original position. The current
transmission position P,N, R, or Dappears
in the transmission position display
(Y page 115).
Shifting to neutral N X
Push the DIRECT SELECT selector lever up
or down to the first point of resistance.
Engaging reverse gear R X
Push the DIRECT SELECT selector lever up
past the first point of resistance.
Shifting to transmission position D X
Push the DIRECT SELECT selector lever
down past the first point of resistance.
Engaging park position P X
Push the DIRECT SELECT selector lever in
the direction of the arrow P.
i Depress the brake and push the DIRECT
SELECT selector lever up or down to disen-
gage park position.
If you want to switch from the park position
directly to reverse gear, depress the brake and push the DIRECT SELECT selector lever
up past the first point of resistance.
If you want to switch from the park position
directly to the transmission position,
depress the brake and push the DIRECT
SELECT selector lever down past the first
point of resistance.
! If the engine speed is too high, do not shift
the automatic transmission directly from
D to R, from Rto Dor directly to P. The
automatic transmission could otherwise be
damaged.
Changing gears The automatic transmission shifts into indi-
vidual gears automatically. This automatic
gearshifting behaviour is determined by:
R
the transmission position D(Y page 115)
with shift ranges 6,5,4,3,2and
1 (Y page 115)
R the selected drive program (S/C)
(Y page 116)
R the position of the accelerator pedal
(Y page 117)
R the road speed
In transmission position D(Y page 117), you
can influence the gearshifts made by the Controls
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Transmission
115
automatic transmission by using the DIRECT
SELECT steering wheel gearshift buttons to:
R restrict the shift range
R change gear yourself
Transmission display The current transmission position and drive
program appear in the display.
1
Current transmission position
! If the transmission display is not working,
you should pull away carefully to check
whether the desired gear is selected. Ide-
ally, you should select transmission posi-
tion Dand drive program Sor C. Do not
restrict the shift range. Transmission positions ì Park position
Prevents the vehicle from rolling
away when stopped. Only select
P
when your vehicle is stationary.
If you switch off the engine using
the key and then remove the key or
open one of the front doors, the
automatic transmission will auto-
matically shift to park position P.
If you switch off the engine using
the KEYLESS GO button* and open
the driver's door, the automatic
transmission will automatically
shift to park position P. í Reverse gear
Only shift the automatic transmis-
sion to
Rwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary. ë Neutral
Do not shift the automatic trans-
mission to
Nwhile you are driving.
The automatic transmission could
otherwise be damaged.
If you switch off the engine using
the key or the KEYLESS GO but-
ton*, the automatic transmission
will automatically shift to neutral
N.
If ESP ®
is deactivated or faulty,
only shift the automatic transmis-
sion to Nif the vehicle is in danger
of skidding, e.g. on icy roads. ê Drive
The automatic transmission
changes gear automatically. All
forward gears are available.
Shift ranges
In transmission position
D, you can use the
DIRECT SELECT steering wheel gearshift but-
tons (Y page 117) to restrict or derestrict the
shift range for the automatic transmission.
i If the maximum engine speed for the shift
range is reached and you continue to accel-
erate, the automatic transmission shifts up Controls
* optional
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Transmission
116in order to prevent the engine from over-
revving, even if the shift range is restricted. Driving situation
è The braking effect of the engine can
be used in this position.
ç To use the braking effect of the
engine on downhill gradients and
for driving:
R
on steep mountain roads
R in mountainous terrain
R in arduous conditions æ To use the braking effect of the
engine on extremely steep downhill
gradients and long downhill
stretches
Restricting the shift range
X
Press the left-hand button on the steering
wheel (Y page 117).
The set shift range appears in the multi-
function display. Derestricting the shift range
X
Press the right-hand button on the steering
wheel (Y page 117).
The set shift range appears in the multi-
function display.
Automatic gearshift program You can select either gearshift program
Cor
S.
The program selector button is located on the
centre console. 1
Program selector button C
Comfort For comfort mode
S
Sport For all normal driving con-
ditions !
Only press program selector button 1
when the selector lever is in position P,N
or D. 1
Current gearshift program
i If gearshift program Cor Sis selected, the
automatic transmission remains in the
selected gearshift program if you start the
engine again.
i All models with diesel engines:
To reduce the demand placed on the torque
converter, the vehicle pulls away in first
gear regardless of the gearshift program
selected.
X Press program selector button 1repeat-
edly until the letter (C/S)for the desired
gearshift program appears in the multi-
function display.
Comfort mode Cis characterised by the fol-
lowing: Controls
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