2008 MERCEDES-BENZ SL550 light

176 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Stopping
When you stop briefly, e.g. at traffic lights:
Leave the transmission in gear.
Hold the vehicle with the brake.
When you stop for a longer period of time
with the engine idling and/or on a hill:
Set the parking brake.
Move the gear selector lever to park
positionP.Maneuvering
When you maneuver in tight areas,
e.g. when pulling into a parking space:
Control the vehicle speed by gradually
releasing the brakes.
Accelerate gently.
Never abruptly step on the accelerator.
Working on the vehicle
Gear ranges
With the gear selector lever in drive
positionD and driving in program modeC
orS, you can select a gear range for the
automatic transmission to operate within.
Gear selector lever (
page 179):
You can limit the gear range by pressing
the gear selector lever to the left (D-), and
reverse the gear range limit by pressing
the gear selector lever to the right (D+).
Steering wheel gearshift control*
(
page 180):
You can limit the gear range by pulling the
left gearshift paddle on the steering wheel
gearshift control, and reverse the gear
range limit by pulling the right gearshift
paddle on the steering wheel gearshift
control.Warning!G
When working on the vehicle, set the
parking brake and move gear selector lever
to park positionP. Otherwise the vehicle
could roll away.

185 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Good visibility
For information on windshield wipers, see
“Windshield wipers” (
page 58).
Headlamp cleaning system
The headlamp cleaning button is located
on the left side of the dashboard.
1Headlamp cleaning button
Switch on the ignition (page 40).
Press button1.
The headlamps are cleaned with a
high-pressure water jet.
For information on filling up the washer
reservoir, see “Windshield washer system
and headlamp cleaning system”
(
page 289).
Rear view mirrors
For information on setting the rear view
mirrors, see “Mirrors” (
page 49).
Auto-dimming rear view mirrors
The reflection brightness of the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side and
the interior rear view mirror will respond
automatically to glare when

the ignition is switched on
and

incoming light from headlamps falls on
the sensor in the interior rear view mir-
ror.
The interior rear view mirror will not react if

reverse gear is engaged

the interior lighting is switched on
iThe headlamps will automatically be
cleaned when you have

switched on the headlamps
and

operated the windshield wipers with wind-
shield washer fluid fifteen times
When you switch off the ignition, the counter
resets.

186 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Sun visors
The sun visors protect you from sun glare
while driving.
1Mounting
2Vanity mirror cover
3Vanity mirror lamp
4Holder for gas cards
Glare through the windshield
Make sure the sun visor is properly
engaged in mounting 1.
Swing the respective sun visor down.
When you do not experience glare any-
more, swing the sun visor up.
Warning!G
The auto-dimming function does not react if
incoming light is not aimed directly at sen-
sors in the interior rear view mirror.
The interior rear view mirror and the exterior
rear view mirror on the driver’s side do not
react, for example, if the wind screen is in-
stalled.
Light hitting the mirror(s) at certain angles
(incident light) could blind you. As a result,
you may not be able to observe traffic con-
ditions and could cause an accident.
Warning!G
Exercise care when using the passen-
ger-side exterior rear view mirror. The mirror
surface is convex (outwardly curved surface
for a wider field of view). Objects in mirror
are closer than they appear. Check your in-
terior rear view mirror or glance over your
shoulder before changing lanes.
Warning!G
Do not use the driver’s-side vanity mirror
while driving.
Keep the vanity mirrors in the sun visors
closed while vehicle is in motion. Reflected
glare can endanger you and others.

192 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Reactivating
Press button ´ (page 190).
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.
The previous settings are in effect
again.
or
Turn one of the temperature controls
on the automatic climate control panel
(
page 190).
The indicator lamp on button ´
goes out.Operating the automatic climate
control system in automatic mode
Air distribution and air volume can be
adjusted automatically by the automatic
climate control system. You can also ad-
just the settings for air distribution and air
volume manually.Air distribution in automatic mode
You can separately adjust the air distribu-
tion for each side of the passenger com-
partment.
Activating
Press control button1 or 5
(
page 190).
The control button is engaged.
TheU symbol on the control button
comes on. Air distribution for the re-
spective side of the passenger com-
partment is adjusted automatically.
Deactivating
Press control button 1 or 5
(
page 190) once more.
The control button sticks up slightly.
The U symbol on the control button
goes out. Automatic air distribution for
the respective side of the passenger
compartment is switched off. Adjust
the air distribution manually
(
page 194).
iWhen operating the automatic climate
control system in automatic mode, you will only
rarely need to adjust the temperature, air volume
and air distribution.
In automatic mode, cooling with dehumidify is
switched on. This function can be switched off if
necessary (
page 190).

193 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Air volume in automatic mode
The air volume settings are the same for
the entire passenger compartment.
Activating
Press control button 9 (page 190).
The control button is engaged.
TheU symbol on the control button
comes on.
Deactivating
Press control button 9 (page 190)
once more.
The control button sticks up slightly.
The U symbol on the control button
goes out. Adjust the air volume manu-
ally (
page 195).
Setting the temperature
Use temperature controls6 andb
(
page 190) to separately adjust the air
temperature on each side of the passenger
compartment. You should raise or lower
the temperature setting in small incre-
ments, preferably starting at 72°F (22°C).
The automatic climate control will adjust
to the set temperature as fast as possible.
Increasing
Turn temperature control6
and/orb (
page 190) slightly
clockwise.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.Decreasing
Turn temperature control6
and/orb (
page 190) slightly
counterclockwise.
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.

194 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Adjusting air distribution
Use air distribution controls1 and5
(
page 190) to separately adjust the air
distribution on each side of the passenger
compartment. The following symbols are
found on the controls:
Press control button 1 or 5
(
page 190) until the control button
sticks up slightly and the U symbol
on the control button is out.
Automatic air distribution for the
respective side of the passenger
compartment is switched off.
Turn control button to the desired
symbol.
The air distribution is adjusted
according to the chosen setting.
Opening the center air vents
Turn thumbwheel 7 (page 188)
upward to the first stop.
Center air vents 2 and 4
(
page 188) are open.
Opening the cockpit air vent and center
air vents
Turn thumbwheel 7 (page 188) up-
ward all the way.
Cockpit air vent 3 and center
air vents2 and 4 (
page 188)
are open.Closing the cockpit air vent and center
air vents
Turn thumbwheel 7 (page 188)
downward.
Cockpit air vent 3 and center
air vents2 and 4 (
page 188)
are closed.
Opening the side air vents
Turn thumbwheel 6 and 8
(
page 188) upward.
The corresponding side air vent is
open.
Closing the side air vents
Turn thumbwheel 6 and 8
(
page 188) upward.
The corresponding side air vent is
closed.
SymbolFunction
hDirects air through the cen-
ter and side air vents
jDirects air to the windows
VDirects air into the entire
vehicle interior
kDirects air to the footwells
iYou can also turn the air distribution control
to a position between two symbols.
iThe air vents are continuously variable.

195 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control
Adjusting air volume
Use air volume control9 (
page 190) for
both automatic (
page 192) and manual
air volume adjustment. Nine blower
speeds are available.
Press control button9 (page 190).
The control button sticks up slightly.
The U symbol on the control button
goes out. Automatic air volume control
is switched off. The air volume is ad-
justed corresponding to the set blower
speed.
Maximum cooling MAXCOOL
If the left and right air distribution controls
as well as the airflow volume control are
set to U and there is a high need for
cooling, MAXCOOL is activated.
“MAX COOL” appears on the temperature
controls 6 and b (
page 190).
This provides the fastest possible cooling
of the vehicle interior (when retractable
hardtop is closed).
Automatic climate control panel with
MAXCOOL activated
Front defroster
You can use this setting to defrost the
windshield, for example if it is iced up.
You can also defog the windshield and the
side windows.
iKeep this setting selected only until the
windshield or the side windows are clear again.

201 Controls in detail
Power windows
Power windows
Opening and closing the windows
The windows are opened and closed elec-
trically. The switches for all the windows
are on the driver’s door. The switch for the
passenger side windows is on the passen-
ger door.
1Left door and rear side windows
2Right door and rear side windows
Switch on the ignition (page 40).
Warning!G
When closing the windows, make sure that
there is no danger of anyone being injured
by the closing procedure.
The closing of the door windows can be im-
mediately halted by releasing the switch or,
if the switch was pulled past the resistance
point and released, by either pressing or
pulling the respective switch.
The closing of the rear side windows can be
immediately halted by releasing the switch.
If a door window encounters an obstruction
that blocks its path in a circumstance where
you pulled the switch past the resistance
point and released it to close the door win-
dow, the automatic reversal function will
stop the door window and open it slightly.
If the door window encounters an obstruc-
tion that blocks its path in a circumstance
where you are closing the door window by
pulling and holding the switch, by pressing
and holding button ‹on the SmartKey,
by pressing and holding the lock button
(vehicles with KEYLESS-GO*) on an outside
door handle, by pressing and holding the re-
tractable hardtop switch, or by pressing and holding button,on the automatic
climate control panel, the automatic
reversal function will not operate.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it with you, and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children
unattended in the vehicle, or with access to
an unlocked vehicle. A child’s unsupervised
access to a vehicle could result in an
accident and/or serious personal injury.
iDepending on the current position, the win-
dows may also open or close when the air recir-
culation button, on the control panel of the
automatic climate control (
page 196) is
pressed and held.
iAfter switching off the ignition (page 40)
or removing the SmartKey from the starter
switch, the windows can be operated

until you open a door

for at least 5 minutes if no door was opened