2012 MERCEDES-BENZ GL SUV change time

Sta
rting the engine
Impor tant safety notes G
WARNING
Combustion engines emi tpoisonous exhaust
gases such as carbon monoxide. Inhaling
these exhaust gases leads to poisoning. There
is ar isk of fatal injury. Therefore never leave
the engine running in enclosed spaces with-
out sufficient ventilation.
i Vehicles with apetrol engine: the cat-
alytic converter is preheate dfor up to
30second safter acold star t.The sound of
the engin emay change during this time.
Automatic transmission X
Shift the transmission to position
P(Y page 168).
The transmission position displ ay inthe
multifunction displa yshows
P(Y page 168).
i You can also star tthe engin ewhen the
transmission is in position N.
Sta rting procedur ewith the key X
To star tapetrol engine: turn the key to
position 3in the ignition lock
(Y page 159 )and releas eita ss oon as the
engin eisrunning.
X To star tadiesel engine: turn the key to
position 2in the ignition lock
(Y page 15 9).
The % preglow indicator lam pinthe
instrumen tcluster lights up.
X When the %preglow indicator lamp
goes out, tur nthe key to position
3(Y page 159) and release it as soon as the
engin eisrunning.
i You can start the engine without preglow
if the engine is warm. Usin
gKEYLESS-GO to star tthe en gine G
WARNING
Your vehicle can be started using avalid KEY-
LESS-GO key. For this reason, children should
never be left unsupervised in the vehicle.
Always take the key with you when leaving the
vehicle, even if you are only leaving it for a
short time.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X To star tapetrol engine: press the Start/
Stop button (Y page 159) once.
The engin estarts.
X To start adiesel engine: press the Start/
Stop button (Y page 159)once.
Preglow is activated and the engin estarts.
i The Start/Stop button can be used to
start the vehicle without insertin gthe key
int ot he ignition lock .The key must be in
the vehicle and the Star t/Stop butto nmust
be inserted in the ignition lock. This mode
for startin gthe engin eoperates independ-
ently of the ECO start /stop automatic
engine start function. Pulling away
Automatic transmission G
WARNING
If the engine speed is above the idling speed
and you engag etransmission position Dor
R,t he vehicle coul dpull away suddenly. There
is ar isk of an accident.
When engaging transmission position Dor R,
always firmly depress the brake pedal and do
not simultaneously accelerate.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Shift the transmission to position Dor
R(Y page 167). Driving
161Driving and parking Z

in effect achieved in the process reduces
the stoppin gdistanc ewhen drivin goff-
road. Th esteerabilit yofthe vehi cleisc on-
siderably redu cedift he wheels lock. Driving systems
Cruise cont
rol
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Do not change down for additional engine
braking on aslipper yroad surface. This could
cause the driv ewheels to lose their grip and
the vehi clec ould skid. G
WAR
NING
Cruise control cannot tak eaccount of road
and traffic conditions.
Alway spay attention to traffic conditions
even when cruis econtrol is activa ted.
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
WAR
NING
Do not use cruise control
R in traffic conditions that do not allow you to
drive at aconstan tspeed (e.g. heavy tra ffic
or winding roads). You may otherwise
cause an accident.
R on slippery roads. The drive wheels may
lose their grip when brakin goraccelerating
and the vehicle may skid.
R whe nther eisl ow visibility ,e.g. due to fog,
heavy rain or snow.
General notes Cruis
econtr ol maintains aconstan troad
speed for you. It brakes automatically in order
to avoid exceeding the set speed. On long and
steep downhil lgradients, especiall yifthe
vehicle is laden or towing atrailer, yo umust
select shift range 1,2or 3in good time. By doing so, you will make use of the braking
effec
tofthe engine. This relieves the load on
the brake system and prevents the brakes
from overheating and wearing too quickly.
Use cruise con trolonly if road and traffic con-
ditions make it appropriate to maintain a
steady speed for aprolonged period. Yo ucan
store any road spee dabove 30 km/h.
Cruise contro llever :
To activate or increase speed
; LIMi ndicato rlamp
= To activate at the current speed/last
stored speed
? To activate or reduce speed
A To switch between cruise control and var-
iable SPEEDTRONIC
B To deactivate cruise control
You can operate cruise control and variable
SPEEDTRONIC with the cruise control lever.
X To switch between variable SPEED-
TRONIC and cruise control: press the
cruise control lever in the direction of arrow
A.
LIM indicator lamp ;on the cruise control
lever indicates which function you have selec-
ted:
R LIM indicator lamp ; off:
cruise control
is selected.
R LIM indicator lamp ; on:
variable
SPEEDTRONIC is selected.
When you activate cruise control, the stored
spee diss hown in the multifunction display Driving systems
193Driving and parking Z

SPEEDTRONIC
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Never depress the brake peda lcontinuously
while the vehicle is in motion, e.g. never cause
the brakes to rub by applying constant slight
pedal pressure. This causes the brake system
to overheat, increases the brakin gdistance
and can lead to the brakes failing completely. G
WARNING
Do not change down for additional engine
braking on aslippery road surface. This could
cause the drive wheels to lose their grip and
the vehicle could skid. G
WARNING
SPEEDTRONI Cisonly an aid designe dto
assis tdriving. Yo uare responsibl efor the
vehicle' sspeed and for braking in good time. G
WARNING
If there is achange of drivers, advise the new
driver of the limit speed stored.
Only use variable SPE EDTRONI Cifyou will not
have to accelerate suddenl ytoaspeed above
that stored as the limit speed. You could oth-
erwise cause an accident.
You can only exceed the limit speed stored if
you deactivate variable SPE EDTRONIC:
R using the cruise control lever
R by depressin gthe accelerator pedal
beyon dthe pressure point (kickdown)
It is not possible to deactivate variable
SPE EDTRONI Cbybraking.
General notes SPE
EDTRONIC brakes automatically so that
you do not exceed the set speed. On long and
steep downhil lgradients ,especially if the
vehicle is laden or towing atrailer, yo umust
select shift range 1,2or 3in good time. By
doing so, you will make use of the braking
effect of the engine. This relieves the load on the brake system and prevent
sthe brakes
from overheating and wearing too quickly .If
you need additional braking, depres sthe
brake pedal repeatedly rather than con tinu-
ously.
You can set avariable or permanent limit
speed:
R variable for speedlimits, e.g. in built-up
areas
R permanent for long-term speed restric-
tions, e.g. when drivin gwith winter tyres
fitted (Y page 198)
i The speed indicated in the speedometer
may differ slightly from the limit speed
stored.
Variable SPEEDTRONIC Cruise control lever
:
To activate or increase speed
; LIMi ndicato rlamp
= To activate at the current speed/last
stored speed
? To activate or reduce speed
A To switch between cruise control or DIS-
TRONIC PLUS and variable SPEEDTRONIC
B To deactivate variable SPEEDTRONIC
With the cruise control lever, you can operate
cruise control or DISTRONIC PLUS and vari-
able SPEEDTRONIC.
X To switch between variable SPEED-
TRONIC and cruise control/DISTRONIC
PLUS: press the cruise control lever in the
direction of arrow A.196
Driving systemsDriving and parking

ah
igher speed or down ;for alower
speed.
Deactivatin gvariable SPEED TRONIC G
WARNING
It is no tpossible to deactivate variable Speed-
tronic by braking. There are several ways to deactivate variable
SPEEDTRONIC:
X Briefly press the cruise control lever for-
wards :.
or
X Briefly press the cruise control lever in the
direction of arrow =.
LI Mi ndicato rlamp ;in the cruise control
lever goes out. Variable SPEEDTRONIC is
deactivated.
Cruise control or DISTRONIC PLUS is selec-
ted.
Variable SPEEDTRONIC is automatically
deactivated if:
R you depress the accelerator pedal beyond
the pressure point (kickdown), but only if
your current spee ddoes not differ by more
than 20 km /h from the stored speed. You
will hear awarning tone if this is the case.
R you activate DSR.
R you activate off-road program 2(vehicles
wit hthe ON&OFFROAD package).
i The last speed stored is cleared when you
switch off the engine. Permanent SPEEDTRONIC
You can use the on-board computer to limit
the speed permanently to avalue between
16 0k m/ h(e.g .for dri ving on winter tyres) and
the maximum speed (Y page283).
Shortly before th estore dspeed is reached, it
appear sinthe multifunction display.
Permanent SPEEDTRONIC remain sactive,
even if variabl eSPEEDTRONI Cisdeactivated.
You can note xceed the sto redl imit speed,
even if you depress the accelerator pedal
beyond the pressure point (kickdown). DISTRONIC PLUS
Importan tsafety notes G
WARNING
Do not change down for additiona lengine
braking on aslippery road surface. This could
cause the drive wheels to lose their grip and
the vehicle could skid. G
WARNING
DISTRONIC PLU Siso nly an aid designe dto
assis tdriving. Th edrive rremain sfully respon-
sible for the vehicle's distance from other
vehicles, the vehicle's spee dand for braking
in goo dtime.
DISTRONIC PLU Sdoes not react in particular
to:
R pedestrians
R stationar yobstacles on the road, e.g. stop-
ped or parked vehicles
R oncoming and crossin gtraffic
DISTRONIC PLUS may not detect narrow vehi-
cle sdriving in front, e.g .motorcycles, or vehi-
cles driving on adifferen tline. Therefore,
always pay attention to traffic condition seven
when DISTRO NICP LUS is activated. Other-
wise ,you may fai ltorecognise danger sin
time, cause an accident and injure yourself
and others. 198
Drivin
gsystemsDrivin gand parking

X
Briefly pull the cruise contro llev er towards
you ;or press it up :or down =.
DISTRONIC PLU Sisselected.
X Press the cruise control lever repeatedly
up : or down =until the desired speed
is set.
X Remove your foot from the acc elerator
pedal.
You rvehicle adapts its speed to that of the
vehicle in front, but only up to the desired
stored speed.
If the vehicle in fron thas been detected and
is shown in the multifunction display, you can
also activat eDISTRONIC PLUS when driving
at speeds belo w30km/h. If th evehicle in
fron tisnol onger detected and displayed, for
example because it has changed lanes, DIS-
TRONIC PLU Sisd eactivated. You will hear a
warning tone if this is the case.
i If you do not fully release the accelerator
pedal, the DISTRONICPLUS inactive message appe
arsint he multifunction dis-
play. The set distance to aslower-moving
vehicle in front will then not be maintained.
You will be drivin gatthe speed you deter-
mine by the position of the accelerator
pedal.
Activating when driving towards asta-
tionary vehicle
X Briefl ypullt he cruis econtr ollever towards
you ;or press it up :or down =.
DISTRONIC PLUS is selected.
X Keep the cruis econtrol leve rpressed
up : or down =unti lthe desired speed
is set.
If the vehicle in front of you is stationary ,you
can only activate DISTRONIC PLU Sonce your
vehicl eisstationary as well.
i DISTRONIC PLUS can only be activated at
under 30 km/h if avehicle in front has been
detected. Therefore, the DISTRONIC PLUS
distance display in the instrumen tcluster
should be activated (Y page 277).i
You can use the cruise control lever to set
the stored speed and the control on the
cruise control lever to set the specified
minimum distance (Y page 204).
Activating at the current speed/last
stored speed G
WARNING
Only call up astored speed if you know what
that speed is and if it is suitable for the current
traffic and driving situation. You can other-
wise endanger yoursel forothers by uninten-
tionally triggering sudden acce leratio nor
braking. X
Briefly pull the cruise contro llever towards
you :.
X Remov eyour foot from the accelerator
pedal.
DI ST RONIC PLUS is activated. The first
time it is activated, the curren tspeed is
stored. Otherwise, it sets the vehicle cruise
speed to the previously stored value.
Driving with DISTRONIC PLUS Pulling awa
yand driving G
WAR
NING
If you depress the brake, DISTRONIC PLUS is
deactivated unles syour vehicle is stationary.
DI ST RONIC PLUS then no longe rbrake syour
vehicle. In such cases, contr ol thedistance
from vehicles travelling in fron twith the brake
alone. You could otherwise cause an accident
and thereby injure yourself and others. The
drive rremain sfully responsible for the vehi- Driving systems
201Drivingand pa rking
Z

cle's distance from oth
ervehicle s, the speed
bein gdrive nand for braking in goo dtime. X
If the vehicle in front pulls away: remove
your foot from the brake pedal.
X Briefly pull the cruise control lever towards
you ;or press it up :or down =.
or
X Accelerate briefly.
Your vehicle pulls away and adapts its
speed to that of the vehicle in front.
If there is no vehicle in front, DISTRONIC
PLUS operates in the same way as cruise
control.
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects that the vehicle
in fron thas slowed down, it brakes your vehi-
cle. In this way, the distanc eyou have selec-
ted is maintained.
If DI STRONIC PLUS detects afaster-moving
vehicle in front, it increases the driving speed.
However, the vehicle is only accelerated up
to the spee dyou have stored.
Changing lanes G
WARNING
DI ST RONIC PLUS and Active Blind Spot Assist
are only an aid designed to assist driving.
The ydon ot relieve you of the responsibility
of payin gattention. The driver remains fully
responsible for the vehicle's distance from
other vehicles, the vehicle's speed and for
braking in good time. Always pay attention to
traffic conditions and your surroundings. Oth-
erwise, you may fail to recognise dangers in time, cause an accident and injure yourself
and others.
If you change to the overtakin glane, DIS-
TRONIC PLUS supports you if:
R you are driving faster than 60 km/h.
R DISTRONIC PLUS is maintaining the dis-
tance to avehicle in front.
R you switc honthe respective tur nsignals.
R DISTRONIC PLU Sdoes not detec tadanger
of collision.
If these condition sare met, your vehicl eis
accelerated. Acceleration will be interrupted
if changing lanes takes too long or if the dis-
tance between your vehicle and the vehicle in
front becomes too small.
i When changing lanes, DISTRONIC PLUS
monitors the left lane for left-hand-drive
vehicles and the right lane for right-hand-
drive vehicles.
Vehicles with COMAND Online Example: roundabout
i
The following function is not operational
in all countries.
DISTRONIC PLUS uses additional information
from your navigation system so that it can
adapt to certain traffic situations. This is the
case if, while following avehicle, DI STRONIC
PLUS is active and you:
R approach or drive around aroundabout
R approach aT-junction
R turn off at amotorway exit 202
Driving systemsDriving and pa
rking

Other vehicles changing lane
DI
ST RONIC PLUS has not detected the vehi-
cle cutting in yet. The distance to this vehicle
will be too short.
Narrow vehicles DISTRONIC PLUS has not yet detected the
vehicle in fron tonthe edge of the carriage-
way, because of its narrow width. The dis-
tance to the vehicle in front will be too short.
Obstruction sand sta tionary vehicles DISTRONIC PLUS does not brake for obsta-
cles or stationary vehicles. If, for example, the detected vehicle turns
acorner and reveals
an obstacle or stationar yvehicle, DI STRONIC
PLUS will not brake for these.
Crossin gvehicles DISTRONIC PLUS may mistakenly detect
vehicles that are crossing your lane. Activat-
ing DISTRONIC PLUS at traffic lights with
crossing traffic, for example, could cause
your vehicle to pull away unintentionally.
Level control (vehicles with the
ON&OFFROAD package)
Important safety notes G
WARNING
Make sure that nobody is near the wheel arch
or vehicle underside when you make achange
to the vehicle level. Otherwise, you or others
ma ybet rapped. G
WARNING
Always select as lo wavehicle level as possi-
ble. If the vehicle level is high, the vehicle
centre of gravity shifts upwards. This increa-
ses the risk of the vehicle tippin gover.
Adapt you rdriving style to suit th evehicle
level. ESP ®
cannot reduc ethe risk of an acci-
dent if you drive too fast. ESP ®
cannot over-
rid ethe laws of physics.
! When driving on extremel yrough terrain,
select ahigh vehicle level in good time.
Make sure there is always sufficient ground Drivin
gsystems
207Drivingand pa rking Z

Active Curve System
The Active Curv
eSyste muses activ estabil-
isers to optimis eboth drivin gcomfort and
vehicle agility. Depending on the ADS mode
selected (Y page 212), the Active Curve Sys-
tem also changes the setting.
If you select ADS comfor tmode:
R rolling movemen tisr educed in the even tof
changing surface undul ations.
R the roll angle when cornering is reduced.
R the drivin gstyle is agile.
If you select ADS sport mode:
R the roll angle is reduced significantly.
R the driving style is even more agile.
Leve lcontrol Import
ants afety notes G
WARNING
Mak esure that nobody is near the wheel arch
or vehicle underside when you make achange
to the vehicle level. Otherwise, you or others
ma ybet rapped. G
WARNING
Always select as lo wavehicle level as possi-
ble. If the vehicle level is high, the vehicle
centre of gravity shifts upwards. This increa-
ses the risk of the vehicle tipping over.
Adapt your driving style to suit the vehicle
level. ESP ®
cannot reduc ethe risk of an acci-
dent if you drive too fast. ESP ®
cannot over-
rid ethe laws of physics.
! When driving on extremel yrough terrain,
select ahigh vehicle level in good time.
Make sure there is always sufficient ground
clearance. You will otherwise damage the
vehicle.
Genera lnotes
Further information abou t"Driving off-road"
(Y page 188).
Level control adapts the vehicle level auto-
matically to the current operating and driving situation. Thi
sresults in reduced fuel con-
sumption and improved handling.
If you select ADS comfor tmode
(Y page 212), the vehicle is lowered to high-
speed leve lasthe speed increases. As the
vehicle decelerates, the vehicle is raised back
up to highway level.
If you selec tADS sport mode (Y page 212),
the vehicle skip shighwa ylevel and lowers
directly to high-speed level dependin gonthe
basic setting (Y page 213).
Make changes to the vehicle level while the
vehicle is in motion. This enables the vehicle
to adjust to the new level as quickly as pos-
sible.
The vehicle level ma ychange visibly if you
par kthe vehicle and the outside temperature
changes. If the temperature drops, the vehi-
cle level lowers; with an increase in temper-
ature, the vehicle level rises.
If you unlock the vehicle or open adoor, the
vehicle begins to compensat efor load dis-
crepancies while still parked. However, for
significant leve lchanges, e.g. after the vehi-
cle has been stationary for along period, the
engin emust be running. For safety reasons,
the vehicle is only lowered when the doors are
closed .Lowering is interrupted if adoor is
opened; it con tinues once the doo rhas been
closed.
Basic settings
The extent to which the vehicle is raised or
lowered depends on the basic setting selec-
ted. Select raised level for off-road driving or
highway/high-speed level for normal roads.
The individua lvehicle levels differ from high-
way level as follows:
R highway level: +/ –0mm
R high-spee dlevel: –1 5mm
R raised level :+60 mm Driving systems
213Driving and parking Z