2011 MERCEDES-BENZ SLK55AMG steering

Vehicle equipment ..............................
56
Locking and unlocking .......................56
Starter switch positions ..................... 61
Seats .................................................... 62
Multifunction steering wheel .............66
Mirrors ................................................. 68
Memory function ................................. 70
Lighting ................................................ 70
Wipers .................................................. 76
Power windows ................................... 78
Driving and parking ............................ 79
Manual transmission .......................... 84
Automatic transmission ..................... 85
Instrument cluster ..............................92
Control system .................................... 93
Audio system .................................... 112
Driving systems ................................ 159
Climate control system ....................162
Rear window defroster ..................... 170
Retractable hardtop .........................170
Loading and storing ..........................174
Useful features ................................. 176 55Controls in detail
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driving, refer to “Lamps in instrument cluster”
(Y page 256).
If the SmartKey is left in starter switch
position 0 for an extended period of time, it
can
no longer be turned in the starter switch.
In this case, the steering is locked. To unlock,
remove SmartKey from the starter switch and
reinsert.
The steering is locked when the SmartKey is
removed from the starter switch.
X Always remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch when the engine is not in
operation.
This

will help to prevent accelerated vehicle
battery discharge or a completely
discharged vehicle battery.
If the SmartKey cannot be turned in the
starter
switch, the vehicle battery may not be
sufficiently charged.
X Check the vehicle battery and charge it if
necessary ( Y page 283).
or
X Get a jump start (Y page 283). Seats
Safety notes
G
Warning!
In order to avoid possible loss of vehicle
control
the following must be done before the
vehicle is put into motion:
R seat adjustment
R head restraint adjustment
R steering wheel adjustment
R rear view mirror adjustment
R fastening of seat belts G
Warning!
Do not adjust the driver’s seat while driving.
Adjusting the seat while driving could cause
the driver to lose control of the vehicle. Never ride in a moving vehicle with the seat
backrest

in an excessively reclined position as
this can be dangerous. You could slide under
the seat belt in a collision. If you slide under
it, the seat belt would apply force at the
abdomen or neck. That could cause serious
or fatal injuries. The seat backrest and seat
belts provide the best restraint when the
wearer is in a position that is as upright as
possible and seat belts are properly
positioned on the body. G
Warning!
Your seat must be adjusted so that you can
correctly fasten your seat belt.
Observe the following points:
R Adjust

the seat backrest until your arms are
slightly angled when holding the steering
wheel.
R Adjust the seat to a comfortable seating
position that still allows you to reach the
accelerator/brake pedal safely. The
position should be as far back as possible
with the driver still able to operate the
controls properly.
R Adjust the head restraint so that it is as
close to the head as possible. The center of
the head restraint must support the back of
the head at eye level.
R Never place hands under the seat or near
any moving parts while a seat is being
adjusted.
Failure to do so could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury. G
Warning!
Children 12 years old and under must be
seated and properly secured in an
appropriately sized infant restraint, toddler
restraint, or booster seat recommended for
the

size and weight of the child. For additional
information, see section “Children in the
vehicle”.
A child’s risk of serious or fatal injuries is
significantly increased if the child restraints 62
Seats
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are not properly secured in the vehicle and/
or the child is not properly secured in the child
restraint.
G
Warning!
For your protection, drive only with properly
positioned head restraints.
Adjust the head restraint so that it is as close
to the head as possible and the center of the
head restraint supports the back of the head
at eye level. This will reduce the potential for
injury to the head and neck in the event of an
accident or similar situation.
Do not drive the vehicle without the seat head
restraints. Head restraints are intended to
help reduce injuries during an accident. Seat adjustment
The seats can be adjusted either manually or
electrically, depending on the vehicle’s
equipment.
! When moving the seats, make sure there
are no items in the footwell or behind the
seats. Otherwise, you could damage the
seats and/or the items.
Manual seat adjustment X
Seat fore and aft adjustment: Pull
handle :.
X Slide the seat to the desired position.
X Allow handle : to reengage with an
audible click. X
Check for proper engagement before
driving.
X Seat height: Pull or push handle ; up or
down and adjust the seat height until your
legs are lightly supported.
X Seat backrest tilt: Pull handle = and
adjust the seat backrest until your arms are
slightly angled when holding the steering
wheel.
X Release handle = when the desired seat
backrest tilt is reached.
When you hear an audible click, the seat
backrest is again fixed into place.
Power seats G
Warning!
The power seats can be operated at any time.
Therefore, 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.
i Vehicles without memory function:
The seats can be adjusted within 5 minutes
after either front door has been opened.
The counter resets each time
R you open or close a front door
R you insert the SmartKey into the starter
switch
R you remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch
R you switch the ignition on or off
Just like in vehicles with memory function,
the power seats can be operated at any
time when the ignition is switched on.
i The memory function (Y page 70) lets
you store the settings for the seat position
together with the settings for the steering
wheel (electrical) and exterior rear view
mirrors. Seats
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The AIRSCARF neck-level heating will switch
back on again automatically as soon as
sufficient voltage is available.
Multifunction steering wheel
Safety notes
G
Warning!
Do not adjust the steering wheel while driving.
Adjusting the steering wheel while driving, or
driving without the steering wheel adjustment
feature locked could cause the driver to lose
control of the vehicle.
The electrical steering wheel adjustment
feature can be operated at any time.
Therefore, 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.
Make sure
R you can reach the steering wheel with your
arms slightly bent at the elbows
R you can move your legs freely
R all displays (including malfunction and
indicator lamps) on the instrument cluster
are clearly visible Steering wheel adjustment, manual
:
Release handle
; Adjusting steering wheel, up or down
= Adjusting steering wheel, in or out
X Unlocking: Pull release handle : out to
its stop limit.
X Move steering wheel to the desired
position.
X Locking: Push release handle : back to
its original position.
X Make sure the steering wheel is securely
locked by trying to move it up and down as
well as in and out before driving off. Steering wheel adjustment, electrical
X
Adjusting steering wheel in or out: Move
stalk in direction of arrows :.
X Adjusting steering wheel up or down:
Move stalk in direction of arrows ;.
i The memory function (Y page 70) lets
you store the settings for the steering 66
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wheel together with the settings for the
seat position and the exterior rear view
mirrors.
Easy-entry/exit feature
This feature allows the driver an easier entry
into and exit from the vehicle. When entering
and exiting the vehicle, the steering wheel is
in its uppermost position.
The easy-entry/exit feature can be activated
or deactivated in the Convenience submenu
of the control system (Y page 108). G
Warning!
You must make sure no one can become
trapped or injured by the moving steering
wheel when the easy-entry/exit feature is
activated.
To stop steering wheel movement do one of
the following:
R Move steering wheel adjustment stalk.
R Press one of the memory position buttons.
R Press memory button M.
Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Children could open the driver’s door and
unintentionally activate the easy-entry/exit
feature, which could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
With the easy-entry/exit feature activated,
the steering wheel will return to its last set
position when you close the driver’s door with
the ignition switched on. The steering wheel
will also return to its last set position when
you insert the SmartKey into the starter
switch.
i The last set steering wheel position is
stored when the ignition is switched off or
the position is stored in memory
(Y page 70).
With the easy-entry/exit feature activated,
the steering wheel tilts upwards when you
remove the SmartKey from the starter switch. The steering wheel also tilts upwards when
you open the driver’s door with the SmartKey
in starter switch position
0 or 1.
i When the current position for the steering
wheel is in the uppermost tilt position, the
steering wheel will no longer be able to
move upward when the easy-entry/exit
feature is activated.
The adjustment procedure is briefly
interrupted when the engine is started. G
Warning!
Let the system complete the adjustment
procedure before setting the vehicle in
motion. All steering wheel adjustment must
be completed before setting the vehicle in
motion. Driving off with the steering wheel
still adjusting could cause the driver to lose
control of the vehicle.
Crash-responsive exit aid When you open the driver’s door after an
accident has occurred, the steering column
moves up. The position of the SmartKey in the
starter switch is insignificant. This function
facilitates exiting as well as rescue of vehicle
occupants.
The crash-responsive exit aid can only be
triggered when the easy-entry/exit feature is
activated via the control system.
Heated steering wheel
The steering wheel heating warms up the
leather area of the steering wheel. Multifunction steering wheel
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X
Switch on the ignition.
X Switching on: Turn switch at the tip of the
stalk in direction of arrow :.
Indicator lamp ; comes on.
i The steering wheel heating may be
suspended temporarily. However, indicator
lamp ; remains on. The steering wheel
heating is suspended when the
temperature of the vehicle interior is above
86‡ (30†). It is also suspended when the
temperature of the steering wheel is above
95‡ (35†).
When these conditions do not apply
anymore, steering wheel heating
continues.
X Switching off: Turn switch at the tip of
stalk in direction of arrow =.
Indicator lamp ; goes out.
i Indicator lamp ; flashes or goes out in
case of power surge or undervoltage or if
the steering wheel heating malfunctions.
i The steering wheel heating switches off
automatically when you remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch.
For more information on the steering wheel,
see “Multifunction steering wheel”
(Y page 94). Mirrors
Notes
Adjust the interior and exterior rear view
mirrors before driving so that you have a good
view of the road and traffic conditions. Interior rear view mirror
X Adjust the interior rear view mirror
manually. Interior rear view mirror, antiglare
position
X
Tilt the mirror to the antiglare position by
moving lever towards the windshield.
The interior rear view mirror is dimmed. Exterior rear view mirrors
G
Warning!
Exercise care when using the passenger-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 interior
rear view mirror and glance over your
shoulder before changing lanes. X
Switch on the ignition.
X Press button : for the driver’s side
exterior rear view mirror or button = for 68
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Calling up the parking position
X
Switch on the ignition.
X Press button ;, to select the passenger-
side exterior rear view mirror.
X Shift the automatic transmission into
reverse gear R (manual transmission to
reverse gear).
The passenger-side exterior rear view
mirror moves to the stored parking
position.
The passenger-side exterior rear view mirror
returns to its previously stored driving
position
R 10 seconds after you have put the gear
selector lever out of reverse gear R (manual
transmission out of reverse)
R immediately once your vehicle exceeds a
speed of approximately 6 mph (10 km/h)
R immediately when you press button : to
select the driver’s side exterior rear view
mirror Memory function
Notes
With the memory function you can store up
to three different configurations per front
seat.
Each memory position button on the driver’s
side can store all of the following settings:
R Seat position
R Steering wheel position
R Exterior rear view mirrors’ position G
Warning!
Do not activate the memory function while
driving. Activating the memory function while
driving could cause the driver to lose control
of the vehicle.
Each memory position button on the
passenger side can store the setting of the
seat position. Storing positions into memory
X Adjust the seats.
X On the driver’s side, also adjust the
steering wheel and exterior rear view
mirrors to the desired positions.
X Press memory button M once and within
3 seconds press memory position button
1, 2 or 3.
When the settings are stored to the
selected position, an acknowledgement
signal sounds. Recalling positions from memory
X Press and hold desired memory position
button 1, 2 or 3 until the seat has moved
to the stored position completely. On the
driver’s side, also wait for the steering
wheel and exterior rear view mirrors to
move to the stored position.
i Releasing the memory position button
stops movement to the stored positions
immediately. Lighting
Notes
i If you drive in countries with left-hand
driving, you must have the headlamps
modified for symmetrical low beams. 70
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Relevant information can be obtained at
any authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
i Vehicles equipped with active Bi-Xenon
headlamps:
The active Bi-Xenon headlamps increase
usable illumination over conventional
headlamps because they follow the
curvature of the road ahead. The beams of
the active Bi-Xenon headlamps shift to
either side according to the vehicle’s
steering angle and speed. Exterior lamp switch
1 W
Standing lamps, left
2 X Standing lamps, right
3 $ Off
Daytime running lamp mode
4 Ã Automatic headlamp mode
Daytime running lamp mode
5 T Parking lamps (also tail lamps,
license plate lamps, side marker
lamps and instrument panel lamps)
6 L Low-beam headlamps or high-beam
headlamps
7 N Front fog lamps
8 R Rear fog lamp
i If you hear a warning signal you have
forgotten to switch off the low-beam
headlamps or the parking lamps before
opening the driver’s door. In addition, the message
Switch Off
Lights appears in the multifunction
display.
Switch off the low-beam headlamps or the
parking lamps.
If the message Switch off lights or
remove key appears in the multifunction
display remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch or switch off the headlamps.
! Failure to switch off the exterior lamps
when leaving the vehicle may result in a
discharged battery.
Low-beam headlamps The low-beam headlamps can be switched on
and off with the exterior lamp switch.
X
Switching on: Turn the exterior lamp
switch to position L.
The following lamps come on:
R Low-beam headlamps
R Tail lamps
R Parking lamps
R License plate lamps
R Side marker lamps
R Instrument panel lamps
R Green indicator lamp T in the exterior
lamp switch
X Switching off: Turn the exterior lamp
switch to position $.
Automatic headlamp mode The following lamps come on and go out
automatically depending on the brightness of
the ambient light:
R
Low-beam headlamps
R Tail lamps
R Parking lamps
R License plate lamps
R Side marker lamps Lighting
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