2008 MERCEDES-BENZ SLK350 ESP

158 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Effect
ëNeutral
No power is transmitted from the
engine to the drive axle. When
the brakes are released, the
vehicle can be moved freely
(pushed or towed).
To avoid damage to the trans-
mission, never engage neutral
positionN while driving.
If the ESP
® is deactivated or
malfunctioning:
Move gear selector lever to neu-
tral positionN only if the vehicle
is in danger of skidding, e.g. on
icy roads.
êDrive
The transmission shifts
automatically. All forward gears
are available.
!Coasting the vehicle, or driving for any other
reason with gear selector lever in neutral
positionN can result in transmission damage
that is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.
Warning!G
Getting out of your vehicle with the gear
selector lever not fully engaged in park
positionP is dangerous. Also, park
positionP alone is not intended to or capa-
ble of preventing your vehicle from moving,
possibly hitting people or objects.
Always set the parking brake in addition to
shifting to park positionP (
page 59).
When parked on an incline, turn the front
wheels towards the road curb.
Do not park this vehicle in areas where com-
bustible materials such as grass, hay or
leaves can come into contact with the hot
exhaust system, as these materials could be
ignited and cause a vehicle fire.
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey 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. Children
could move the gear selector lever from
park positionP, which could result in an
accident and/or serious personal injury.

167 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
Downshifting
Briefly press the gear selector lever to
the left in theD-direction.
or
Briefly pull left shift paddle1
(
page 164).
The transmission shifts to the next
lower gear.Kickdown
Using the kickdown when driving in the
manual program modeM is not possible.
Deactivating manual shift program
Press the program mode selector
switch (
page 165) repeatedly
until
CorS appears in the multifunction
display.
or
Restart the engine.
The transmission will go to the
automatic program mode (C orS).
The manual program modeM is not
stored.Emergency operation
(Limp-Home Mode)
If vehicle acceleration becomes less
responsive or sluggish or the transmission
no longer shifts, the transmission is most
likely operating in limp-home (emergency
operation) mode. In this mode only second
gear and reverse gear can be selected.
Stop the vehicle in a safe location.
Move the gear selector lever to park
positionP.
Turn off the engine.
Wait at least 10 seconds before
restarting.
Restart the engine.
Move the gear selector lever to
positionD (for second gear) or
positionR.
Have the transmission checked at an
authorized Mercedes-Benz Center as
soon as possible.
Warning!G
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift
in order to obtain braking action. This could
result in drive wheel slip and reduced
vehicle control. Your vehicle’s ABS will not
prevent this type of loss of control.
iWhen you brake or stop, the transmission
shifts down to a gear from which you can easily
accelerate or take off.

168 Controls in detail
Good visibility
For information on the windshield wipers,
see “Windshield wipers” (
page 56).
Headlamp cleaning system*
The headlamps will automatically be
cleaned with a high-pressure water jet
when you have

switched on the headlamps
and

operated the windshield wipers with
windshield washer fluid five times
When you switch off headlamps, the
counter resets.
For information on filling up the washer
reservoir, see “Windshield washer system
and headlamp cleaning system*”
(
page 301).
Rear view mirrors
For more information on setting the rear
view mirrors, see “Mirrors” (
page 46).
Interior rear view mirror, antiglare
position
Tilt the mirror to the antiglare night
position by moving the lever towards
the windshield.
The interior rear view mirror is dimmed.Auto-dimming rear view mirrors*
The reflection brightness of the exterior
rear view mirrors and the interior rear view
mirror will respond automatically to glare
when

ignition is switched on
and

incoming light from headlamps falls on
the sensor in the interior rear view
mirror
The rear view mirrors will not react if

reverse gearR is engaged

interior lighting is switched on

171 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Switching off
Press the rear window defroster
switchF again in the control panel
of the climate control or the automatic
climate control*.
The indicator lamp on the rear window
defroster switchF goes out.
!If the rear window defroster switches off too
soon and the indicator lamp starts flashing, this
means that too many electrical consumers are
operating simultaneously and there is insuffi-
cient voltage in the battery. The system
responds automatically by deactivating the rear
window defroster.
As soon as the battery has sufficient voltage, the
rear window defroster automatically turns itself
back on.

179 Controls in detail
Climate control
Air recirculation mode with
convenience closing or opening featureConvenience closing
Press and hold button, until the
windows are closed or have reached
the desired position.
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on. The air recirculation mode is
activated.Convenience openingPress and hold button, until the
windows are opened or have reached
the desired position.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out. The air recirculation mode is
deactivated.
Warning!G
Never operate the side windows if there is
the possibility of anyone being harmed by
the closing procedure.
When using the air recirculation mode with
convenience closing feature, should the up-
ward movement of a window be blocked by
some obstruction including but not limited
to arms, hands, fingers, etc., the automatic
reversal feature will not operate.
In the event that the closing procedure caus-
es potential danger, the closing of the door
windows can be immediately halted by
releasing the,button or by pressing
the respective power window switch.
The closing of the rear side windows can be
immediately halted by releasing the
,button.
iThe closing of the windows can be immedi-
ately halted by releasing button,.iThe opening of the windows can be immedi-
ately halted by releasing button,.
A window will only return to its previous position
if it has not been moved to another position
using the respective window switch after it was
closed with button,.
A window that has been moved will remain in its
current position if button, i s u s e d t o r e o p e n
the remaining windows.

187 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Increasing
Press temperature button(s) 4
and/or6 (
page 184) until the
desired temperature appears in the
control panel displaye (
page 184).
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Decreasing
Press temperature button(s) b
and/orc (
page 184) until the
desired temperature appears in the
control panel displaye (
page 184).
The automatic climate control system
will correspondingly adjust the interior
air temperature.
Adjusting air distribution
Use air distribution control 8
(
page 184) to adjust the air distribution.
The following symbols are found on the
control:
Turn air distribution control8
(
page 184) to the desired position.
The indicator lamp on the buttonU
(
page 184) goes out.
The automatic air distribution is
switched off. The air distribution is
controlled according to the selected
control setting.
SymbolFunction
aDirects air through the
center and side air vents
ZDirects air to the wind-
shield and through the side
air vents
bDirects air into the entire
vehicle interior
YDirects air to the footwells
and through the side air
vents
iYou can also turn the control to a position
between two symbols.

188 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Opening the cockpit air vent and center
air vents
Center air vents
Turn thumbwheels 4and b
(
page 182) to the first stop.
Center air vents 3,5,a andcare
open.
Turn thumbwheels4 andb
(
page 182) upward all the way.
Only center air vents3andc are
open.
Cockpit air vent (depending on vehicle
production date)
Turn thumbwheel 2 (page 182)
upward all the way.
Cockpit air vent1 is open.Closing the cockpit air vent and center
air vents
Center air vents
Turn thumbwheels4andb
(
page 182) downward.
Center air vents 3,5,a andc are
closed.
Cockpit air vent (depending on vehicle
production date)
Turn thumbwheels2 (page 182)
downward.
Cockpit air vent1 is closed.
Opening and closing side air vents
Turn thumbwheels8andd
(
page 182) in the corresponding
direction.
Side air vents7ande are open or
closed.
Adjusting air volume
Use buttonU (
page 184) for auto-
matic mode or air volume control1
(
page 184) to adjust air volume
manually.
Eleven blower speeds are available.
Turn air volume control1
(
page 184) to the desired position.
The indicator lamp on buttonU
(
page 184) goes out.
The automatic operation of air volume
switches off.

190 Controls in detail
Automatic climate control*
Air recirculation mode
Switch to air recirculation mode to prevent
unpleasant odors from entering the vehicle
from the outside (e.g. before driving
through a tunnel). This setting cuts off the
intake of outside air and recirculates the
air in the interior.
Activating
Press button, (page 184).
The indicator lamp on the button
comes on.Deactivating
Press button, (page 184) again.
The indicator lamp on the button goes
out.Air recirculation mode with
convenience closing or opening featureWarning!G
Fogged windows impair visibility, endanger-
ing you and others. If the windows begin to
fog on the inside, switching off the air
recirculation mode immediately should clear
interior window fogging. If interior window
fogging persists, make sure the air
conditioning (
page 180) is activated, or
press buttonP.
iThe air recirculation mode activates auto-
matically at high outside temperatures.
The indicator lamp on button, is not lit when
the air recirculation mode is automatically
switched on.
A quantity of outside air is added after
approximately 30 minutes.
iThe air recirculation mode is deactivated
automatically:

after 5 minutes if the outside temperature is
below approximately 41°F (5°C)

after 5 minutes if the air conditioning is
turned off (
page 191)

after 30 minutes if the outside temperature
is above approximately 41°F (5°C)
Warning!G
Never operate the side windows if there is
the possibility of anyone being harmed by
the closing procedure.
When using the air recirculation mode with
convenience closing feature, should the up-
ward movement of a window be blocked by
some obstruction including but not limited
to arms, hands, fingers, etc., the automatic
reversal feature will not operate.
In the event that the closing procedure
causes potential danger, the closing of the
door windows can be immediately halted by
releasing the, button or by pressing the
respective power window switch.
The closing of the rear side windows can be
immediately halted by releasing the
,button.