2012 MERCEDES-BENZ M-Class automatic transmission

Assis
tance men u(on-boa rd
comp uter) .......................................... 232
ASS YST PLUS
see ASSYST PLUSserviceinterva l
dis pla y
ATA (Anti-Theft Alarm syste m)
Activating/d eactivating ................... 68
Function ...........................................68
Swi tching offthe alarm .................... 68
ATTENTIO NASSIST
Act ivating/deact ivating................. 232
Displ aymessa ge............................ 258
Function/notes ............................. 194
Audio menu(on-bo ardcomputer) ....229
Audio system
see sepa rateoperating instructio ns
Authori zedMerce des-Be nzCenter
see Qualified speci alist worksh op
AUTO lights
Displ aymessa ge............................ 253
see Ligh ts
Automatic headlampmode.............. 110
Automatic transmission
Cha nging gear............................... 146
DIRECT SELECT lever..................... 144
Displ aymessa ge............................ 265
Driving tips.................................... 147
Emergency runningmode.............. 149
Kickdow n....................................... 147
Prob lem(malfunction) ................... 149
Pul ling away ................................... 141
Shift range s................................... 147
Starting theengine ........................ 140
Steering wheelpad dleshifte rs...... 147
Trai lertowi ng................................. 147
Transmi ssionposition display ........145
Transm issionposi tions .................. 146
Automatic transmission
emerge ncymode ............................ ...149 B
Back
support
see Lumb arsup port
Backup lamp
Displ aymessa ge............................ 252
Bag hook............................................ 288Ball
couplin g
Install ing........................................ 214
Rem oving ....................................... 218
Storing ........................................... 218
BAS (Brake AssistSyste m)................. 61
Basic settings
see Settings
BAS PLUS(Brake AssistSyste m
PLU S).................................................... 62
Battery (SmartKe y)
Che cking .............. ............................ 76
Importa ntsafe tynotes .................... 75
Rep lacing ......................................... 76
Battery (vehicle)
Cha rging ........................................ 340
Displ aymessa ge............................ 256
Importa ntsafe tynotes .................. 338
Ju mp starting ................................. 341
Belt
see Seat belts
Blin dSpot Assist
Activa ting/d eactiva ting................. 232
Notes/fu nction.............................. 198
Trai lertowi ng................................. 200
see Active BlindSpotAssist
BlueTE C(D EF ).................................... 387
Brake AssistSyste m
see BAS (Brake AssistSystem)
Brake fluid
Displ aymessa ge............................ 244
Notes ............................................. 389
Brake fluidlevel................................ 316
Brake lamps
Cha nging bulbs.............................. 117
Displ aymessa ge............................ 251
Brakes
ABS .................................................. 61
BAS .................................................. 61
BAS PLUS ........................................ 62
Brake fluid(notes) ......................... 389
Displ aymessa ge............................ 239
Driving tips.................................... 159
Importa ntsafe tynotes .................. 159
Mai ntenance .................................. 160
Warni nglamp ....... ..................... ..... 271 In
dex
5

Useful
information
i This
Operat or'sManual describesall
models andallstan dard andoption al
equipment ofyour vehicle available atthe
time ofpublication ofthe Operat or's
Manual. Country-specificdiffer encesare
possible. Pleasenotethat your vehicle may
not beequipped withallfeature s
descr ibed. Thisalso applies tosafet y-
related systemsand func tions. i
Please
readtheinfor mation onqualified
specialist workshops(Ypage 25). Br
eaking-in notes The
first 1000 miles (1500 km)
The more youlook after theengin ewhen itis
new, themore satisfiedyou willbewith its
perfor mancein the future.
R Driv eat varying vehiclespeeds andengin e
speeds forthe first 1000miles (1500km)
for this reason .
R Avo idovers trainingthe vehicle duringthis
period, e.g.drivin gat full throttle.
R Change gearingood time, atthe latest
when thetach omet erneedle is⅔o fthe
way tothe red area inthe tachomet er
displa y.
R Do not manually shifttoalower gearto
brake thevehicle.
R Only select shiftranges 3,2or 1when
driving slowly,e.g. inmountainous terrain.
Aft er1000 miles(1500 km),you can increase
the engine speedgraduall yand bring the
vehicle uptofull speed. i
You
should alsoobserve thesenoteson
runnin gin ifthe engine orparts ofthe drive
train onyour vehicle havebeen replaced. i
Always
observe therespect ivespeed
restr iction s. Driving
Import
antsafety notes G
WARNIN
G Make
sureabsolutely noobject sare
obstruct ingthe pedals' rangeofmovemen t.
Keep thedriver's footwell clearofall
obstacles. Ifthere areany floormats or
carpets inthe footwell, makesurethepedals
still have sufficient clearance.
During sudden drivingorbraking maneuvers
the object scould getcaught between the
pedals. Youcould thennolonger brakeor
accelerate. Thiscould leadtoaccident sand
injury. G
WARNIN
G On
slippery roadsurfaces, neverdownshift in
order toobtain braking action.Thiscould
result indrive wheel slipand reduced vehicle
cont rol.Your vehicle's ABSwillnotprevent
this type ofloss ofcont rol. G
WARNIN
G It
is dangerous toshift theautomatic
transm issionoutofparking position Por
neutral position Nifthe engine speedis
higher thanidlespeed. Ifyour footisnot firmly
on the brake pedal, thevehicle could
accelerate quicklyforward orinreverse. You
could losecontrolofthe vehicle andhit
someone orsomethin g.Only shiftintogear
when theengine isidling normally andwhen
your right footisfirmly onthe brake pedal.
! Warm upthe engine quickly. Donot use
the engine's fullperformanc euntil ithas
reached operating temperature.
Only shifttheautomatic transmission to
the desired driveposition whenthevehicle
is station ary.
Where possible, avoidspinnin gthe drive
wheels whenpulling awayonslippery
roads. Youcould otherwise damagethe
drive train. 138
DrivingDriving and parking

Aut
oma tic trans mission Imp
ortant safety notes G
WAR
NING It
is dan gerous toshif tthe automatic
transmission outofparking position Por
neutral position Nifthe engine speedis
higher thanidlespeed. Ifyour footisnot firmly
on the brake pedal, thevehicle could
accelerate quicklyforward orinreverse. You
could losecontrolofthe vehicle andhit
someone orsomething. Onlyshiftintogear
when theengine isidling normally andwhen
your right footisfirmly onthe brake pedal. G
WARNING Keep
inmind thatturning offthe engine alone
only willshift theautomatic transmission into
neutral position Nautomatically .
Always shifttheautomatic transmission into
park position Pbefore turning offthe engine.
Otherwise thevehicle couldrollaway which
could result inan accident and/orserious
personal injury. DIREC
TSELECT lever
Over view oftrans mis sion positions The
DIRECT SELECT leve rison the right ofthe
steering column. P
Park position withparking lock
R Reverse gear
N Neutral
D Drive i
The
DIRECT SELECTlever alwaysreturns
to its original position. Thecurrent
transmission positionP,R, Nor Dappea rs
in the transmission positiondisplay
(Y page 145)inthe multifunction display.
Engagin gpar kposit ionP X
Push theDI RECT SELECT lever inthe
direc tiono farrow P. i
The
automatic transmissi onshifts
au tomatical lyinto park position Pifyou
open thedrive r'sdoor when thevehicl eis
stationary ordrivi ngatvery lowspee d,and
the transmissi onisin posi tion Dor R.
! Ifthe engine speedis too high orthe
vehicl eis moving, donot shift the
au tomatic transmissi ondire ctly from Dto
R, from Rto Dor dire ctly toP.T he
automatic transmission couldotherwise be
damaged.
Engaging parkposit ionPau tom atically Park
positionPis autom atically engaged if:
R you switchoff theeng ineusin gth e
Sm artKey and remove theSm artKey, orif
you switchoff theeng ineusin gth eSt art /
St op butt onand open oneof thefron t
door s.
R theHOL Dfun ction (Ypage 179)or
DI STRO NICPLUS(Y page 169)brak es
your vehicle untilit is statio naryand atleast
on eof thefollo wing condition sis fulf illed:
- there isasyst emmalf unction.
- there isasev ere uphill ordown hillslope .
The electric park ingbrak eis then also
applied.
Engag ingreversegear R !
Onlyshif tthe automatic transmission to
R when thevehicle isstationary. 144
Automat
ictransmissionDriving and parking

X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leveruppast the
first point ofresistan ce.
Shift ingtoneutr alN X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leverupordown
to the first point ofresistan ce.
If the engine hasbeen switched off,the
automatic transmission automatic ally
switches toN.
Rema ininginneutr alN
If the automatic transmission isto remain in
neutr alN, e.g. forwashing thevehicle incar
washes withatowing device, pleaseobserve
the following instruct ions: G
WARN
ING When
leaving theSmart Keyinthe start er
switch, donot leave children unattended in
the vehicle. Itis possible forchildren toswitch
on the ignition whichcouldresult in
unsupervised useofvehicle equipment.
Unsuperv iseduseofvehicle equipment could
result inan accident and/orserious personal
injury.
Using theSma rtKey:
R make surethattheignition isswitched on.
R when thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedalandkeep itdepressed.
R shift toneutr alN.
R release thebrake pedal.
R ifapplied, releasetheelectr icparking
brake.
R switch offthe ignition andleave the
Smart Keyinthe ignition lock.
Using KEYLESS-GO:
R make surethattheignition isswitched on.
R when thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedalandkeep itdepressed.
R engage parkposition P. R
release thebrake pedal.
R remove theStart/ Stop button fromthe
ignition lock.
R insert theSmart Keyinto theignition lock.
R switch onthe ignition .
R depress thebrake pedalandkeep it
depressed.
R shift toneutr alN.
R release thebrake pedal.
R ifapplied, releasetheelectr icparking
brake.
R switch offthe ignition andleave the
Smart Keyinthe ignition lock.
Shift ingtotransmission positionD X
When thevehicle isstat ionary, depress the
brake pedal.
X Push theDIRE CTSELECT leverdown past
the first point ofresistan ce. Tr
ansmission positiondisplay
The curren ttransmis sionposition isshow nin
the multifu nctio ndisplay. :
Tran smiss ionposit ion
The arrows inthe transm ission position
display showhowandintowhich
tr ansm ission positionsyoucan chan geusing
the DIRECT SELECT lever .
! Ifthe transm ission positiondisplay inthe
mult ifunc tiondisplay isnot work ing,you
should pullaway carefully tochec kwhether
the desired transmission positionis
engaged. Selecttransmission positionD.
Do not restrict theshift range. Automat
ictransmission
145Driving and parking Z

Trans
mission pos ition s B
Park
position
Do not shiftthe transmi ssion into
po sitio nP(Y page 155) unless the
veh icleis sta tionar y.The parking
lo ck sho uld not beused asabra ke
wh en parking .In additio nto
eng aging the parking lock, you
mu stalwa ysapplythe electri c
pa rking braketosec urethe
veh icle.
If the vehicleelectro nicsare
ma lfunctio ning,the transmi ssion
ma ybe locked inpo sitio nP. Hav e
the vehicleelectro nicschecked at
a qu alifi ed speci alistw orkshop,
e.g. anauthorized Mercedes-B enz
Center, immediately.
The automatic transmission shifts
to Pautomatically ifyou:
R remove theSmart Key
R switch offthe engine wheninR
or Dand open oneofthe front
doors C
Reverse
gear
Only shiftthetrans mission toR
when thevehicle isstation ary. A
Neut
ral
Do not shift thetrans mission toN
while driving. Otherwise, the
automatic transmission couldbe
damaged.
No power istrans mittedfrom the
engine tothe drive wheels.
Releasi ngthe brakes willallow you
to move thevehicle freely,e.g.to
push itor tow it.
If ESP ®
is deactivated orfaulty:
only shift thetrans mission to
position Nifthe vehicle isin danger
of skidding, e.g.onicy roads.
If you switch offthe engine using
the Smart Keyorthe Start /Stop
button ,the automatic transmission
shifts toneutral Nautomatically.
! Rolling inneutral Ncan damage
the drive train. 7
Drive
The
automatic transmission
changes gearautomatically. All
forward gearsareavaila ble. Changing
gear
The automatic transmission shiftstothe
individual gearsautomatically whenitis in
trans mission position D.Thisautomatic
gearshifting behaviorisdetermined by:
R apossible limitation ofthe shift range
R the position ofthe accelerator pedal
R the road speed 146
Automat
ictransmissionDriving and parking

Dri
vin gtips
Kickd own Use
kick down formax imum acceler ation .
X Ve hic les forUSA: fullydepr essthe
acc eler ator peda l.
The trans mis sions hifts toalower gear
depending onthe engine speed.
X Vehicles forCanada: depressthe
accelerator pedalbeyond thepressure
point.
The transmission shiftstoalower gear
depending onthe engine speed.
Rocking thevehicle free Rocking
thevehicle freebyshifting backand
forth between transmission positionsDand
R can help tofree avehicle thathasbecome
stuck inmud orsnow. Theengine
management systemofthe vehicle limits
shifting backandforth between transmission
positions Dand Rto amaximum speedof
5 mph (9km/h). Toshift back andforth
between transmission positionsDand R,
move theselector leverupand down beyond
the pressure point.
Working onthe vehicle G
WARNING When
working onthe vehicle, engagethe
electronic parkingbrakeandshift the
automatic transmission intopark position P.
Otherwise thevehicle couldrollaway which
could result inan accident and/orserious
personal injury.
Tra iler towing X
Drive inthe middle ofthe engine speed
range onuphill gradients.
X Depending onthe uphill ordownhill
gradient, shiftdown intoshift range 3or
2(Y page 147), evenifcruise controlor
DIS TRONIC PLUSareswitched on. Steering
wheelpaddleshifters You
canrestrict orderestrict theshift range
by using thesteering wheelpaddle
shifters :and ;(Y page147). i
You
canonly change gearwiththe
steering wheelpaddle shifters whenthe
transmission isin position D. Shift
ranges
Introduction In
transmission positionD,you can usethe
steering wheelpaddle shiftertorestrict or
derestrict theshift range forthe automatic
transmission (Ypage 147).
The shift range selected isshown inthe
multifunction display.The automatic
transmission shiftsonlyasfar asthe selected
gear. Driving
situations =
You
canusetheengine's braking
effect . Automat
ictransmission
147Driving and parking Z

5
To
use thebraking effectofthe
engine ondownhill gradients and
for driving:
R on steep mountain roads
R in mountain ousterrain
R in arduous conditions 4
To
use thebraking effectofthe
engine onextr emely steepdownhill
gradients andonlong downhill
stret ches Restr
icting theshift range X
Pull theleft- hand steerin gwheel paddle
shifter.
The automatic transmission shiftsdown
one gear andrestrict sthe shift range tothe
relevant gear. i
If
the engine exceeds themaximum
engine speedwhenshifting down,the
automatic transmission protectsagainst
engine damage bynot shifting down. i
If
the maximum enginespeedforthe shift
range isreached andyoucont inue to
accelerate, theautomatic transmission
shifts up,even ifthe shift range is
restrict ed.This prevents theengine from
overrevving.
Derestricting theshift range X
Pull theright-hand steeringwheelpaddle
shifter.
The shift range isderestrict ed.
Clearing theshift range restriction X
Pull and hold theright-hand steeringwheel
paddle shifteruntilDis shown againinthe
multifunction display.
The automatic transmission shiftsfromthe
current shiftrange directly toD.
or X
Use theDIRECT SELECT lever toshift the
transmission toposition D.
The automatic transmission shiftsfromthe
current shiftrange directly toD.
Selec tingtheideal shiftrange X
Pull theleft-hand steeringwheelpaddle
shifter andhold itin position.
The automatic transmission shiftstothe
gear which allowsoptimum acceleration
and deceleration. Todo this, theautomatic
transmission shiftsdownoneormore
gears. 148
Automat
ictransmissionDriving and parking

Closing
theDEF filler capand fuel filler
fla p X
Plac eDE Ffiller cap;onthe filler neckand
tur nit clo ckwi se.
X To closethe fuel fillerf lap, press itin the
direc tionofarrow :.
X Dr ive ataspeed above10mph (16km/h) .
The Chec
kAddi tive SeeOperator's Manu
al mess
agedisappears after
approx imatelyone minute. i
If
the Chec
kAddi tive See Oper
ator'sManu al mess
agecontinues
to be shown inthe mult ifunc tiondisplay,
you need toadd moreDE F. Par
king Imp
ortant safety notes G
WARN
ING Do
not park thisvehic lein areas where
com bustib lemat erials cancom eint ocon tact
with thehot exhaust system. Donot park the
vehic leon dry grass landorharve stedgrain
fields. Combust iblematerials, suchasgrass ,
hay orleaves couldbeignit edbythe hot
exh aust systemand cause avehic lefire . Unin
tended vehic lemov emen tcan cause
serio usperso nalinjury ordamage tothe
vehic leor the vehic ledrive train. Toreduc e
such risks,always dothe followin gbefor e
tur nin goff the engineand leavin gthe vehic le:
R keep yourright footonthe brak epedal.
R apply theelect ricpark ingbrak e.
R shift theautom atictransm ission intopark
posit ionP.
R slowly release thebrak epedal.
R when parkedon anincline, always turnthe
front wheels towards theroad curb.
R turn theSmartKey inthe ignition lockto
position 0and remove theSmartKey from
the ignition lock,orpress theKEYLES S-GO
Start /Stopbutton.
R take theSmartKey withyouand lock the
vehicle whenleaving. Switching
offthe engine
Import antsafety notes G
WARNING Never
switch offthe engine whilethevehicle
is in motion.
There isno brake boostforthe service brake
if the engine isnot running. Ifthe ignition is
switched off,there isalso nopower
assistance forthe steering.
You willrequire considerably moreeffort to
steer andbrake andyoucould therefore lose
cont rolofthe vehicle andcause anaccident. G
WARNING Keep
inmind thatturning offthe engine alone
only willshift theautomatic transmission into
neutral position Nautomatically .
Always shifttheautomatic transmission into
park position Pbefore turning offthe engine.
Otherwise thevehicle couldrollaway which
could result inan accident and/orserious
personal injury. Park
ing
155Driving and parking Z