
Cru
isecont rollever :
Toact ivat eor inc reas espee d
; Toact ivat eor reduc espee d
= Todeac tivate cruise control
? Toact ivat eat thecur ren tspeed/last
stor edspeed
When youactiv atecruise control,the stor ed
speed isshown inthe multifun ction display
for five secon ds.Inthe multifun ction display,
the segmen tsbetween thestor edspeed and
the maximum speedlightup.
Activat ionconditions To
activ atecruise control,all ofthe following
activ ation condition smust befulfilled:
R your vehicle mustnotbesecured bythe
elect ricparkin gbrake.
R you aredrivin gfaster than20mph
(30 km/ h).
R ES P®
must beactiv e,but not interven ing.
R the tran smission mustbeinposition D.
R DS Rmust bedeactiv ated.
Activat ingcruise control You
canadopt thecurren tspeed ifyou are
drivin gfaster than20mph (30km/ h). X
Ac celerat ethe vehicle tothe desired
speed.
X Brief lypress thecruise controllever
up : ordown ;.
X Remove yourfootfrom theacceler ator
pedal.
Cruise controlis activ ated. Thevehicle
automatic allymaint ainsthestor edspeed. i
Cruise
controlmay beunable tomaint ain
the stor edspeed onuphill gradient s.The
stor edspeed isresumed whenthegradient
evens out.Cruise controlm aint ains the
st ore dspee don down hillgrad ientsby
auto maticall yapplyin gth ebrak es.
Activ ating with thecur ren tor last
st ored speed G
WAR
NING The
setspee dstore din mem oryshould only
be set again ifpre vailin groad condi tions and
legal speedlimit sper mit.Possible
acceleration ordeceleration differences
arising fromreturn ingtothe preset speed
could cause anaccident and/orserious injury
to you and others.
X Briefly pullthecruise controllever towards
you ?.
X Remove yourfootfrom theaccelerator
pedal.
The first time cruise controlisactivated, it
stores thecurrent speedorregulates the
speed ofthe vehicle tothe previously
stored speed.
Setting aspee d G
WARNI
NG Kee
pin mind thatitm aytak eabrie fmoment
until thevehicle hasmade thenecessary
adjustmen ts.
Inc rease ordecrease thesetvehicle speedto
a value thattheprevailing roadcondit ionsand
legal speed limitspermit. Otherwise, sudden
and unexpect edacceleration ordeceleration 168
Driving
systemsDriving and parking

or
predict thecurvature andlane layou torthe
movement ofpreceding vehicles.The
DISTRONIC PLUScanonly apply amaximum
of 40% ofthe vehicle's brakingpower.
The DISTRONIC PLUSmaynotdetect narrow
vehicles possibly drivinginfront ofyou, such
as motorc yclesandvehicles drivinginan
offset formation.
It is the driver's responsibility atall times to
be attent ivetothe road, weather andtraffic
conditions .Addition ally,thedriver must
provide thesteer ing,brakin gand other driving
inputs necessary toremain incon trol ofthe
vehicle.
High- frequenc ysources suchastoll stat ions,
speed measuring systemsetc.can caus eth e
DI STRO NICPLUSsyst emtotempor arily
ceas efun ction ing. G
WAR
NING The
DISTRO NICPLUScan nottak eroad and
tr aff iccon dition sint oacc oun t.On lyuse the
DI STRO NICPLUSifth eroad, weatherand
tr aff iccon dition smak eit advis abletotravel
at acon stant spee d. G
WAR
NING Use
oftheDI STRO NICPLUScan be
dang erouson slippe ryroads .Rapid chang es
in tiretract ion can result inwheel spinand
loss ofcon trol.
The DISTRO NICPLUSdoes notfun ction in
adver sesigh tand dista nce cond itions. Donot
us ethe DISTR ONICPLUSdurin gco nd ition sof
fog ,heav yrain ,sn ow orslee t. G
WAR
NING The
DIST RONI CPLU Scan nottak eweat her
co nd ition sint oacc oun t.Swit choff the
DI ST RONI CPLU Sor do notswit chiton if:
R road sare slipp eryorcover edwithsn ow or
ice .The wheels couldlosetractionwhile
braking oraccelerating, andthevehicle
could skid.
R the DISTRONIC PLUSsystem sensorcovers
are dirty orvisibili tyisdiminished dueto snow,
rainorfog, forexample. Thedistance
cont rolsystem functionality couldbe
impaired.
Always payattent iontosurrounding traffic
conditions evenwhile theDISTRONIC PLUSis
switched on.Otherwise, youmay notbeable
to recognize dangerous situationsuntilitis
too late. Thiscould cause anaccident inwhich
you and/or otherscouldbeinjured. G
WARNING The
"Resu me"funct ionshould onlybe
operated ifthe driver isfully aware ofthe
previously setspeed andwishes toresume
this particular presetspeed. G
WARNING Your
undivided attentiontostreet andtraffic
conditions isnecessary atall times whether
DISTRONIC PLUSisactive ornot.
The useofDISTRONIC PLUScanbe
dangerous onwinding roadsorinheavy traffic
because conditions donot allow safedriving
at aconst antspeed.
DISTRONIC PLUSdoesnotreact tostationary
object son the road (forexample, avehicle
stopped intraffic oran abandoned vehicle).
DISTRONIC PLUSlikewise doesnotreact to
oncomin gvehicles.
Deactivate DISTRONIC PLUS:
R when changing tothe right lane, ifthe
vehicles inthe left lane aredriving slower
R when driving intoafilter laneoran
expressway exit
R in complex drivingsituations, forexample
in const ruction sitesonanexpressway
In these situations DISTRONIC PLUSwill
maintain thesetspeed ifit is not deactivated.
DISTRONIC PLUSisintended onlyfor
maintaining aset speed andaset distance
from theobject smoving infront ofthe
vehicle. 170
Driving
systemsDriving and parking

you
determ ine by thepos ition ofthe
acc eler ator pedal .
Act ivating when drivin gto war dsa
st at iona ryveh icle
If th eveh iclein fron to fyou isstation ary,you
can only activate DISTRONIC PLUSonceyour
vehicle isstation aryaswell.
X Briefly pullthecruise controllever towards
you ?,orbriefly pressup: ordown ;.
DIS TRONIC PLUSisselected. i
DIS
TRONIC PLUScanonly beactivated at
under 20mph (30km/ h)ifav ehicle infron t
has been detec ted.Therefor e,the
DIS TRONIC PLUSdistanc edisplay inthe
inst rument clustershouldbeactivat ed
(Y page 232).
X Keep thecruise control lever pressed
up : ordown ;until thedesired speed
is set. i
You
canusethecruise control lever toset
the stor edspeed andthecontrol onthe
cruise control lever toset the specified
minimum distance(Y page 176).
Activating atthe curr entspeed/last
stored speed G
WARN
ING The
setspeed storedinmemory shouldonly
be set again ifprevailing roadconditions and
legal speed limitspermit .Possible
acceleration ordeceleration differences
arising fromreturn ingtothe preset speed
could cause anaccident and/orserious injury
to you and others.
X Briefly pullthecruise controllever towards
you ?.
X Remove yourfootfrom theaccelerator
pedal.
DIS TRONIC PLUSisactivated. Thefirst
time itis activated, thecurrent speedis
stored. Otherwise, itsets thevehicle cruise
speed tothe previously storedvalue. Display
whenDISTRONIC PLUSis
activat ed DIS
TRONIC PLUSdisplay sin the speedometer
When DISTRONIC PLUSisactivated, oneor
two segment s; inthe setspeed rangelight
up. i
For
design reasons, thespeed display ed
in the speedometer maydiffer slightly from
the speed setforDIS TRONIC PLUS.
If DIS TRONIC PLUSdetect savehicle infron t,
segmen ts; between speedofthe vehicle in
fron t: and storedspeed =light up. Dist
ance display withDISTRONIC PLUSactivat ed
in the multifunc tiondisplay
: DISTRONIC PLUSactivat ed
; Own vehicle
= Specif iedminimum distanceto the
vehicle infron t;adjustable
? Vehicle infron t,ifdetec ted
You canselect thedistanc edisplay inthe
Ass istanc emen u(Y page 232)of the on-
board computer . Driving
systems
173Driving and parking Z

X
Sel ect the Dis
tanceDisplay functi
on
us ing the on-bo ardcomp uter
(Y page 232) . i
Yo
uwi llsee thestore dspe edfor abou t
fiv eseco ndswhen youacti vate DISTR ONIC
PLU S.
Dri vin gwi th DISTRONI CPL US Pul
ling awa y
X Ifthe vehic lein fron tpulls away: remove
you rfoot from thebrake pedal.
X Briefly pullthecruise controllever
(Y page 172)towards you.
or
X Acc elerate briefly.
Your vehicle pullsaway andadapts its
speed tothat ofthe vehicle infront .
Driving G
WARNIN
G If
you depress thebrake, DISTRONIC PLUSis
deactivated unlessyourvehicle isstation ary.
DIS TRONIC PLUSthennolonger brakes your
vehicle. Insuch cases, controlthe distance
from vehicles travelling infront withthebrake
alone. Youcould otherwise causeanaccident
and thereby injureyourself andothers. The
driver remains fullyresponsible forthe
vehicle's distancefromother vehicles, the
speed beingdriven andforbraking ingood
time.
If there isno vehicle infront ,DIS TRONIC
PLUS operates inthe same wayascruise
cont rol.
If DIS TRONIC PLUSdetect sthat thevehicle
in front hasslowed down,itbrakes your
vehicle. Inthis way, thedistance youhave
selected ismaintained.
If DIS TRONIC PLUSdetect sthat thevehicle
in front hasincreased speed,itincreases your
driving speed,butonly uptothe speed you
have stored. Changing
lanes
If you wish tochange tothe passing lane(in
count rieswith right- hand traffic ,the passing
lane isthe left- hand lane), DISTRONIC PLUS
supports youif:
R you aredriving fasterthan40mph
(60 km/ h).
R DIS TRONIC PLUSismaintainin gthe
distance toavehicle infront .
R you switch onthe appropriate turnsignals.
R DIS TRONIC PLUSdoesnotdetect adanger
of collision.
If these condit ionsaremet, yourvehicle is
accelerated. Acceleration willbeinter rupted
if changing lanestakes toolong orifthe
distance between yourvehicle andthe
vehicle infront becomes toosmall. G
WARNIN
G DIS
TRONIC PLUSandActiveBlind SpotAssist
are only aidsdesigned toassist driving.
They donot relieve youofthe responsibility
of paying attention.Thedriver remains fully
responsible forthe vehicle's distancefrom
other vehicles, thevehicle's speedandfor
braking ingood time. Always payatten tionto
traffic conditionsandyour surroundings.
Otherwise, youmay failtorecogn izedangers
in time, cause anaccident andinjure yourself
and others.
Vehicles withCOMAND i
The
following functionisnot operational
in all count ries.
DIS TRONIC PLUSusesadditional information
from yournavigation systemsothat itcan
react appropriately tocert aintraffic
situations. Thisisthe case if,while following
a vehicle, DISTRONIC PLUSisactive andyou:
R approach ordrive through atraffic circle
R approach aTinter section
R turn offatafreeway exit
Even ifthe vehicle infront leaves the
detect ionrange, DISTRONIC PLUS
temporarily maintainsthecurrent driving 174
Driving
systemsDriving and parking

speed
anddoes notaccelerate. Thisisbased
on the current mapdata inthe navigation
system. Example:
trafficcircle
The current speedismaintained:
R approximately 10seconds beforethe
traffic circle/T intersect ionand for
approximately 1.5seconds whendriving on
the traffic circle
R approximately 12seconds beforereaching
a freeway exitand approximately
4s econ dsafter thefreeway exit
Aft erwards, thevehicle accelerat esback to
the setspeed youspecified.
Stopp ing G
WARN
ING Never
getout ofthe vehicle whenDISTRONIC
PLUS isactivat ed.
DIS TRONIC PLUSmustalsonever be
operated, activatedordeactivat edbya
passenger orfrom outside thevehicle.
DIS TRONIC PLUSdoesnotreplace the
electr icparkin gbrake andmust notbeused
for parkin g.
The DISTRONIC PLUSbrakin geffec tis
canc eled andthevehicle canstart movin gif:
R DIS TRONIC PLUSisdeactivat edusing the
cruise control lever.
R you accelerat e.
R there isamalfunct ioninthe system oran
inte rruption inthe power supply, e.g.
batter yfailure. R
the electr icalsystem inthe engin e
compart ment,the batter yor the fuses are
tampered with.
R the batter yis discon nected.
If you wish toleave thevehicle orpark it,
deactivat eDIS TRONIC PLUSandsecure the
vehicle against rollingaway.
If DIS TRONIC PLUSdetectsthat thevehicle
in fron tisstopping, itbrakes yourvehicle until
it is stationary.
Once yourvehicle isstationary, itremains
stationary andyoudonot need todepress the
brake. i
Aft
eratime, theelectric parking brake
secures thevehicle andrelieves theservice
brake. i
Depending
onthe specified minimum
distance, yourvehicle willcome toa
standstill atasufficient distancebehindthe
vehicle infront .The specified minimum
distance isset using thecont rolonthe
cruise controllever.
The electric parking brakeautomatically
secures thevehicle ifDIS TRONIC PLUSis
activated and:
R the driver's doorisopen andthedriver's
seat beltisunfastened.
R the engine isswitched off.
R asystem malfunction occurs.
R the power supply isnot sufficient.
On steep uphillordownhill inclinesorifthere
is amalfunction, thetransmission mayalso
automatically beshifted intoposition P.
Setting aspee d G
WARNI
NG Kee
pin mind thatitm aytak eabrie fmoment
until thevehicle hasmade thenecessary
adjustmen ts.
Inc rease ordecrease thesetvehicle speedto
a value thattheprevailing roadcondit ionsand
legal speed limitspermit. Otherwise, sudden Driving
systems
175Driving and parking
Z

There
areseveral waystodeactivate
DIS TRONIC PLUS:
X Briefly pressthecruise controllever
forwards :.
or
X Brake, unless thevehicle isstation ary.
When youdeactivate DISTRONIC PLUS,the DISTRONIC
PLUSOff message
isshown in
the multifunct iondisplay forapproximately
five seconds. i
The
lastspeed stored remains storeduntil
you switch offthe engine. i
DIS
TRONIC PLUSisnot deactivated ifyou
depress theaccelerator pedal.Ifyou
accelerate toovert ake,DISTRONIC PLUS
adjusts thevehicle's speedtothe last
speed stored afteryouhave finished
overt aking.
DIS TRONIC PLUSisautomatically
deactivated if:
R you engage theelectric parking brakeorif
the vehicle isautomatically securedwith
the electric parking brake
R you aredriving slowerthan
15 mph (25km/ h)and there isno vehicle
in fron t,or ifthe vehicle infron tisno longer
detected
R ESP ®
interven esoryou deactivate ESP®
.
R the transmission isin the P,Ror Nposition.
R you switch offthe radar sensor system
(Y page 236).
R you pull thecruise controllever towards
you inorder topull awayand the front- pa
sse nge rdoor orone ofthe rear doors is
open.
R you activate DSR.
R the vehicle hasskidded.
If DIS TRONIC PLUSisdeactivated, youwill
hear awarning tone.The DISTRONIC
PLUS Off message
isshown inthe multifunct ion
display forapproximately fiveseconds.
You canselect thedistance displayinthe
Assist ancemenu (Ypage 232)ofthe on-
board computer. Distan
cedisplay whenDISTRONIC PLUSis
deactivated
: Vehicle infront ,if detect ed
; Distan ceindicator, currentdistance to
the vehicle infront
= Specified minimum distancetothe
vehicle infront ;adjustable
? Own vehicle
X Select the Distance
Display funct
ion
using theon-board computer
(Y page 232).
Tips fordriving withDISTRONIC PLUS Import
antsafety notes G
WARNIN
G The
DISTRONIC PLUSworks tomaintain the
speed selected bythe driver unless amoving
obstacle proceeding directlyaheadofitin the
same travel direction isdetect ed(e.g.
following anothervehicleaheadofyou atyour
set distance). Driving
systems
177Driving and parking
Z

This
means that:
R Your vehicle canpass another vehicleafter
you have changed lanes.
R While inasharp turnorifthe preceding
vehicle isin asharp turn,theDISTRONIC
PLUS could losesight ofthe preceding
vehicle. Yourvehicle couldthenaccelerate
to the previously selectedspeed.
The DISTRONIC PLUSregulates onlythe
distance between yourvehicle andthose
directly aheadofit. Itmay notregister
station aryobject sin the road, e.g.:
R astopped vehicleinatraff icjam
R adisabled vehicle
R an oncom ingvehicle
The driver mustalway sbe alert, observe all
traff icand inter cede asrequired bymeans of
steerin gor braking thevehicle. G
WARNIN
G The
DISTRONIC PLUSshould notbeused in
snowy oricy road condit ions.
The following contains description sof cert ain
road andtrafficcondit ionsinwhich youmust
be particularly attentive.Insuch situations,
brake ifnecessary. DISTRONIC PLUSisthen
deactivated.
Cornering, goingintoandcoming outofa
bend The
ability ofDIS TRONIC PLUStodetect
vehicles whencornering islimited. Your
vehicle maybrake unexpect edlyorlate. Vehicles
traveling onadiffer entline DI
STRON ICPLUS maynotdetec tvehic les
tr aveling onadiffer entline. Thedistan ceto
the vehic lein fron twillbe too shor t.
Oth ervehicles changinglanes DI
STRON ICPLUS hasnotdete cted the
vehic lecut tingin yet. Thedistanceto this
vehic lewill betoo shor t.
Na rrow vehicles DI
STRON ICPLUS hasnotyetdete cted the
vehic lein fro nton the edge ofthe road, 178
Driving
systemsDriving and parking

i
If
depres singthebrake pedalthe first
time does notactivate theHOLD function,
wait briefly andthen tryagain. G
WARNING The
vehicle's brakesareappli edwhen the
HOLD functionisactivated. Forthis reason,
deactivate theHOLD functionifthe vehicle is
to be set inmotion byother means (e.g.ina
car wash orby towing).
Deactivating theHOLD function The
HOLD functionisdeactivated
automatically if:
R you accelerate andthetransmission isin
position Dor R.
R the transmission isin position P.
R you apply thebrakes againwithacertain
amount ofpressure until HOLD disappe
ars
from themultifunction display.
R you secure thevehicle usingtheelectric
parking brake.
R you activate DISTRONIC PLUS. i
Aft
eratime, theelectric parking brake
secures thevehicle andrelieves theservice
brake. G
WARNING Never
getout ofthe vehicle whentheHOLD
funct ionisactivated.
The HOLD functionmust never beoperated
or deactivated byapassenger orfrom outside
the vehicle.
The HOLD functiondoes notreplace the
electric parking brakeandmust notbeused
for parking.
The braking effectofthe HOLD functionis
canceled andthevehicle couldrollaway if:
R the HOLD functionisdeactivated by
depressing theaccelerator pedalorthe
brake pedal.
R there isamalfunction inthe system oran
interruption inthe power supply,e.g.
battery failure. R
the electrical systeminthe engine
compartmen t,the battery orthe fuses are
tampered with.
R the battery isdisconnec ted.
The electric parking brakeautomatically
secures thevehicle ifthe HOLD functionis
activated and:
R the driver's doorisopen andthedriver's
seat beltisunfastened.
R the engine isswitched off.
R asystem malfunction occurs.
R the power supply isnot sufficient.
On steep uphillordownhill inclinesorifthere
is amalfunction, thetransmission mayalso
automatically beshifted intoposition P. AIRMATIC
package
General notes AIRMATIC
enablesasuspension tuning
settin gto be selected andregulates the
damping behaviorandlevel ofyour vehicle.
The system comprises aminimum oftwo
componen ts:ADS (Adaptive Damping
System) (Ypage 180)andlevel control
(Y page 181). Yourvehicle mayalsobe
equipp edwith theActive Curve System
(Y page 181).
Observe thenotes ondriving withatrailer
(Y page 210).
ADS (Adaptive DampingSystem) General
notes
ADS adapts thedamping characterist icsto
the current operating anddriving situation.
This depends on:
R your driving style
R the road surface condition s
R the ADS settin g
R the vehicle levelsettin g
Your selection remainsstoredevenifyou
remove theSmartK eyfrom theignition lock. 180
Driving
systemsDriving and parking