Driving sys
tems 140 Driving systems
Overview of driving systems
The vehicle's driving systems are described
on the following pages:
R Cruise control, Distronic* and Speedtronic,
which are used to control the speed of the
vehicle
R The rear axle level control*, which regu-
lates the vehicle level at the rear axle
R AIRMATIC package*, consisting of level
control* for individual adjustment of
ground clearance and ADS* (Adaptive
Damping System), for individual adjust-
ment of suspension tuning
R 4*MATIC (permanent four-wheel drive), for
optimum traction
R Parktronic*, which assists you in parking
and manoeuvring
R Reversing camera*, which assists you
when parking and manoeuvring
The ABS, BAS, ESP ®
, EBV vehicle safety sys-
tems and the distance warning system* are
described in the "Safety" section
(Y page 58). Cruise control
Cruise control maintains a constant road
speed for you. It brakes automatically in order
to avoid exceeding the set speed. On long and
steep downhill gradients, especially if the
vehicle is laden or towing a trailer, you must
select shift range 1,2or 3in good time. By
doing so you will make use of the braking
effect of the engine, which relieves the load
on the brake system and prevents the brakes
from overheating and wearing too quickly. 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.
Use cruise control only if road and traffic con-
ditions make it appropriate to maintain a
steady speed for a prolonged period. You can
store any road speed above 30 km/h. G
Risk of accident
Cruise control cannot take account of road
and traffic conditions.
Always pay attention to traffic conditions
even when cruise control is activated.
Cruise control is only an aid designed to
assist driving. You are responsible for the vehicle's speed and for braking in good
time.
G
Risk of accident
Do not use cruise control:
R in road and traffic conditions which do
not allow you to maintain a constant
speed (e.g. heavy traffic or winding
roads). You could otherwise cause an
accident.
R on slippery roads. Braking or accelerat-
ing could cause the drive wheels to lose
traction and the vehicle could then skid.
R when there is poor visibility, e.g. due to
fog, heavy rain or snow
Cruise control lever You can operate cruise control and variable
Speedtronic with the cruise control lever.
The LIM indicator lamp on the cruise control
lever indicates which system you have selec-
ted:
R
LIM indicator lamp off:
Cruise control is selected.
R LIM indicator lamp lit:
Variable Speedtronic is selected. Controls
* optional
251_AKB; 5; 7, en-GB
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Driving sys
tems 153begin a level change. You could otherwise
trap yourself or others.
G
Risk of accident
Adjust your driving style to the altered han-
dling characteristics. ESP ®
cannot reduce
the risk of an accident if you drive too fast.
ESP ®
cannot override the laws of physics.
! When driving in very poor road conditions,
select a high vehicle level in good time.
Make sure there is always sufficient ground
clearance to prevent damage to the vehi-
cle.
Basic settings
Select the raised level for very poor road con-
ditions (Y page 153) or the highway level for
normal road conditions (Y page 154).
The vehicle is automatically lowered to high-
speed level when you:
R drive faster than 140 km/h
R drive at a speed between 120 km/h and
140 km/h for approximately 20 seconds The individual vehicle levels are:
R
Raised level: 50 mm above highway level
R Highway level: +/- 0 mm
R High-speed level: 20 mm below highway
level
Raised level
Only select the raised level when this is appro-
priate for the road conditions. Otherwise, fuel
consumption increases and handling per-
formance is affected.
If you select the raised level at a speed above
40 km/h, the Level selection not per-
mitted message appears in the multi-func-
tion display. 1
Button
2 Indicator lamp X
Start the engine.
Indicator lamp 2is not lit:
X Press button 1.
Indicator lamp 2flashes. The vehicle rises
to the raised level.
While the adjustment is taking place, a mes-
sage appears in the multi-function display,
e.g. : Example display for vehicles with the AIRMATIC
package* and compass*
If you press the è,·,korj
button on the multi-function steering wheel,
the message will disappear.
Once the vehicle has reached the raised level,
indicator lamp 2remains lit. A message Controls
* optional
251_AKB; 5; 7, en-GB
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