2011 MERCEDES-BENZ E-CLASS SALOON automatic transmission

Automatic engine start
The engine is started automatically if:
R
the ECO start/stop function is deactivated
by pressing the ECO button.
R the drive program is switched to S,S+ or
M (AMG vehicles).
R the vehicle starts to roll.
R the brake system requires this.
R the system detects moisture on the wind-
scree nwhen the air-conditioning system is
switched on.
R the battery's charge status is too low.
R the driver's seat belt is removed or the driv-
er's door is opened.
R you steer the vehicle (except AMG vehi-
cles).
Vehicles with manual transmission
The engine is started automatically if you:
R depress the clutch pedal
R depress the accelerator pedal.
! Only engage gear when the clutch pedal
is depressed.
Vehicles with automatic transmission
The engine is started automatically if you:
R release the brakes when in transmission
position Dor N, unless the HOLD function
is activated or
R engage reverse gear Ror
R depress the accelerator pedal.
i Shifting the transmission to position P
does not start the engine. Deactivating/activating the ECO start/
stop function Example: ECO button
i
If indicator lamp ;is off, the ECO start/
stop function has been deactivated man-
ually or as the result of a malfunction. The
engine will then not be switched off auto-
matically when the vehicle stops.
i The ECO start/stop function is activated
every time you restart the engine, and the
automatic transmission switches into auto-
matic drive program E(AMG vehicles: drive
program C).
Deactivating (except for AMG vehicles)
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;on button :and the
¤ symbol in the multifunction display go
out.
Deactivating (AMG vehicles)
X Press button :in drive program C.
or
X Switch to drive program S,S+ orM
(Y page 168).
Indicator lamp ;on button :and the
¤ symbol in the multifunction display go
out.
The Stop/Start active or
Stop/Start inactive message in the AMG menu in the
multifunction display goes out. 160
DrivingDriving and parking

Activating (excep
tfor AMG vehicles)
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. If all conditions
for automatic engine switch-off
(Y page 159) are fulfilled, the ¤symbol
is shown in gree ninthe multifunction dis-
play.
If not all conditions for automatic engine
switch-off (Y page 159) are fulfilled, the
¤ symbol is shown in yellow in the mul-
tifunction display. If this is the case, the
ECO start/stop function is not available.
Activating (AMG vehicles)
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. If drive pro-
gram S,S+ orMis active, the automatic
transmission switches to drive program C.
If all conditions for automatic engine
switch-off (Y page 159) are fulfilled, the
¤ symbol is shown in green in the mul-
tifunction display. In addition, the Stop/Start active message is shown in the
AMG menu in the multifunction display.
If not all conditions have been fulfilled for
automatic engine switch-off (Y page 159),
the Stop/Start inactive message is
shown in the AMG menu of the multifunc-
tion display and the ¤symbol is shown
in yellow. If this is the case, the ECO start/
stop function is not available. Driving
161Driving and parking Z

!
When shifting between 5thand 6thgear,
you should always push the gear lever all
the way to the right. Otherwise, you could
shift unintentionally into 3rdor4th gear
and damage the transmission.
If you shift down at too high a speed (trans-
mission braking), this can cause the engine
to overrev, leading to engine damage.
Do not use the clutch bite point to keep the
vehicle stationary on uphill gradients.
There is otherwise a risk of damaging the
clutch.
! On long and steep downhill gradients,
especially if the vehicle is ladenort owing
a trailer, you must shift into gear 1, 2or3
in good time. This uses the engine's braking
effect .This relieves the load on the brake
system and prevents the brakes from over-
heating and wearing too quickly. Shifting to neutral N
X
Depress the clutch pedal fully.
X Move the gear lever to position N:. Neutral N with ECO start/stop func-
tion activated
In neutral N, the engine is switched off if the
vehicle speed is below a certain threshold and
the clutch pedal is not depressed.
For further information on the ECO start/stop
function, see (Y page 158). Engaging reverse gear
! Only shift into reverse gear Rwhen the
vehicle is stationary. Otherwise, you could
damage the transmission.
i The ECO start/stop function is not avail-
able when reverse gear is engaged.
For further information on the ECO start/
stop function, see (Y page 158).
X Move the gear lever firmly to the left
beyond the point of resistance and then
forwards. Shift recommendation
The gearshift recommendations assist you in
adopting an economical driving style. The rec-
ommended gear is shown in the multifunction
display. X
Shift gear according to gearshift recom-
mendation :shown in the multifunction
display of the instrumentc luster. Automatic transmission
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
The movemen tofthe pedals must not be
impaired in any way.D o not keep any objects
in the driver's footwell. Make sure that floor-
mats or carpets are correctly secured and
that there is sufficient clearance for the ped-
als. 164
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking

Do not place several floormats on top of one
another.
G
WARNING
Do not change down for additional engine
braking on a slippery roa dsurface. 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. Selector lever
Overview of transmission positions Selector leve
rinstandar dvehicles
j Park position with selecto rlever lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive Selector lever in AMG vehicles with P button
j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear i
Neutral
h Drive
Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display Transmission position display and drive program
display (example)
:
Transmission position display
; Drive program display
The curren ttransmission position and drive
progra mappear in the multifunction display. DIRECT SELECT lever
Overview of transmission positions The DIRECT SELECT lever is on the right of the
steering column.
P
Park position with parking lock
R Reverse gear
N Neutral
D Drive
i The DIRECT SELECT lever always returns
to its original position .The current trans-
mission position P,R, Nor Dappears in the
transmission position display
(Y page 165) in the multifunction display. Automatic transmission
165Driving and parking Z

Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display
The current transmission positio
nand drive
progra mappear in the multifunction display. :
Transmission position display
; Drive program display
i The arrows in the transmission position
display show how and into which transmis-
sion positions you can change using the
DIRECT SELECT lever.
! If the transmission position display in the
multifunction display is not working, you
should pull away carefully to chec kwhether
the desired transmission position is
engaged. Ideally, you should select trans-
mission position Dand drive program Eor
S. Do not restrict the shift range.
Engaging parkp osition PX
Push the DIRECT SELECT lever in the direc-
tion of arrow P.
i The automatic transmission shifts auto-
matically into park position Pif you open
the driver's door when the vehicle is sta-
tionary or driving at very low speed, and the
transmission is in position Dor R.T his func-
tion depends on the date of manufacture of
your vehicle.
i If you depress the brake pedal and push
the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down, the
parking lock is disengaged and the trans-
mission shifts to neutral N.
If you want to shift from park position P
directly to Ror D, depress the brake and
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or 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. Other-
wise, the automatic transmission could be
damaged.
Engaging reverse gear R !
Only shift the automatic transmission to
R when the vehicle is stationary.
i The ECO start/stop function is not avail-
able when reverse gear is engaged.
For further information on the ECO start/
stop function, see (Y page 158).
X Push the DIRECT SELECT lever up past the
first point of resistance.
Neutral N with ECO start/stop function
activated The ECO start/stop function switches the
engine off automatically if the vehicle is
braked to a standstill when in neutral
Nand
the brake is still depressed.
For further information on the ECO start/stop
function, see (Y page 158).
Shifting to neutral N X
Push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
to the first point of resistance.
Drive position D with ECO start/stop
function activated The ECO start/stop function switches the
engine off automatically if the vehicle is
braked to a standstill when in transmission
position
Dand the brake is still depressed.
For further information on the ECO start/stop
function, see (Y page 158).
Engaging drive position D X
Push the DIRECT SELECT lever down past
the first point of resistance. 166
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking

Transmission positions
B
Park position
This prevents the vehicle fro
mroll-
ing away when stopped. Do not
shift the transmission into position
P(Y page 176) unless the vehicle
is stationary.
Standard vehicles with aselec-
tor lever: you can only remove the
key if the transmission is in posi-
tion P. If the key is removed from
the ignitio nlock, the selector lever
is locked.
Vehicles with aDIRECT SELECT
lever: the automatic transmission
shifts to Pautomatically if you:
R remove the key
R switch off the engine when in R
or Dand open one of the front
doors C
Reverse gear
Only shif
tthe transmission to R
when the vehicle is stationary. A
Neutral
Do not shift the transmission to
N
while driving. Otherwise, the auto-
matic transmission could be dam-
aged.
Releasing the brakes will allow you
to move the vehicle freely, e.g. to
push it or tow it.
If ESP ®
is deactivated or faulty:
only shift the transmission to posi-
tion Nif the vehicle is in danger of
skidding, e.g. on icy roads.
Vehicles with aDIRECT SELECT
lever: if you switch off th eengine
using the key or the Start/Stop
button, the automatic transmission
shifts to neutral Nautomatically.
! Rolling in neutral Ncan lead to
damage to the transmission. 7
Drive
The automatic transmission
changes gear automatically. All
forward gears are available. Changing gear
The automatic transmission shifts to the indi-
vidual gears automatically when it is in trans-
mission position D.This automatic gearshift-
ing behaviouri s determined by:
R a shift range restriction, if selected
R the selected drive program
E/S, E/S/M or, on AMG vehicles,
C/S/S+/M (Ypage 168)
R the position of the accelerator pedal
R the road speed Automatic transmission
167Driving and parking Z

Driving tips
Accelerator pedal position Your style of driving influences how the auto-
matic transmissio
nshifts gear:
R little throttle: early upshifts
R more throttle: late upshifts
AMG vehicles When shifting down, the double-clutch func-
tion is active regardless of the currently selec-
ted drive program. The double-clutch function
reduces load change reactions and is condu-
cive to a sporty driving style. The sound gen-
erated by the double-clutchf
unction depends
on the drive program selected.
Kickdown Use kickdown for maximum acceleration.
X
Depress the accelerato rpedal beyond the
pressure point.
The transmission shifts to a lower gear
depending on the engine speed.
X Ease off the accelerator pedal once the
desired speed is reached.
The automatic transmission shifts back up.
Trailer towing X
Drive in the middle of the engine speed
range on uphill gradients.
X Shift down to shift range 3or
2(Y page 169) depending on the uphill or
downhill gradient, even if cruise control,
DISTRONIC PLUS or SPEEDTRONIC is acti-
vated. Program selector button
General notes The program selector button allows you to
choose between differen tdriving character-
istics. Example
:program selector button E
Economy Comfortable, economical
driving
S
Sport Sporty driving style
M
Manual Manual gearshifting
i
For further information on the automatic
drive program, see (Y page 169).
X Press progra mselecto rbutton :repeat-
edly until the lette rfor the desired gearshift
program appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
i The automatic transmission switches to
automatic drive program Eeach time the
engine is started.
AMG vehicles Drive program selector with manual drive program
C
Controlled
Efficiency Comfortable, economical
driving
S
Sport Sporty driving style168
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking

S+
SportPlus Extremely sporty driving
style
M
Manual Manual gearshifting
RS
RACE
START Optimal vehicle accelera-
tion from a standstill
i
For further information on the automatic
drive program, see (Y page 169).
X Turn drive program selector :until the
desired drive program appears in the mul-
tifunction display in the speedometer.
The drive program indicator on drive pro-
gram selector :lights up in red.
i The automatic transmission switches to
automatic drive program Ceach time the
engine is started.
i RScannot be selected during normal driv-
ing. For further information on RACE
START, see (Y page 196). Steering wheel gearshift paddles
:
Left-hand steering wheel gearshift paddle
; Right-hand steering wheel gearshift pad-
dle
In the automatic drive program, you can
restrict or derestrict the shift range by using
the steering wheel gearshift paddles or the
selector lever (Y page 169).
In the manual drive program, you can change
gear using the steering wheel gearshift pad-
dles or the selector lever (Y page 170).i
You can only change gear with the steer-
ing wheel gearshift paddles when the trans-
mission is in position D. Automatic drive program
Drive program E(drive program Con AMG
vehicles) is characterised by the following:
R comfort-oriented engine settings.
R optimal fuel consumption resulting from
the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner.
R the vehicle pulling away more gently in
forward and reverse gears, unless the
accelerator pedal is depressed fully.
R increased sensitivity. This improves driving
stability on slippery road surfaces, for
example.
R the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner. This results in the vehicle being
driven at lower engine speeds and the
wheels being less likely to spin.
Drive program S(or, in the case of AMG vehi-
cles, drive programs Sand S+) is character-
ised by the following:
R sporty engine and automatic transmission
settings
R the vehicle pulling away in first gear
R the automatic transmission shifting up
later
R as a result of the later automatic transmis-
sion shift points, the fuel consumption pos-
sibly being higher Shift ranges
Introduction i
OnAMG vehicles andvehicles with
steering wheel gearshift paddles, you
can restrict or derestrict the shift range
using the steering wheel gearshift paddles.
On standard vehicles with aselector
lever , you can also restric torderestrict the
shift range using the selector lever. Automatic transmission
169Driving and parking Z