2012 MERCEDES-BENZ SL ROADSTER key

Switching off the engine
Important safety notes G
WARNING
The automatic transmission switches to neu-
tral position Nwhen you switch off the engine.
The vehicle may roll away. There is a risk of an
accident.
After switching off the engine, always switch
to parking position P. Prevent the parked vehi-
cle from rolling away by applying the parking
brake.
Vehicles with automatic transmission X
Vehicles with a key: move the transmis-
sion to position P.
X Turn the key to position 0in the ignition
lock and remove it.
The immobiliser is activated.
X Vehicles with KEYLESS-GO: press the
Start/Stop button (Y page 155).
The engine stops and all the indicator
lamps in the instrument cluster go out.
When the driver's door is closed, this cor-
responds to key position 1. When the driv-
er's door is open, this corresponds to key
position 0(Y page 155).
i The engine can be switched off while the
vehicle is in motion by pressing and holding the Start/Stop button for about three sec-
onds. This function operates independently
of the ECO start/stop automatic engine
switch-off function. Electric parking brake
General notes G
WARNING
If you leave children unattended in the vehi-
cle, they may be able to set the vehicle in
motion if, for example, they:
R release the parking brake
R shift the automatic transmission out of park
position P
R start the engine
In addition, they may operate vehicle equip-
ment and become trapped. There is a risk of
an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, always take the key
with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave
children unattended in the vehicle.
The function of the electric parking brake is
dependent on the on-board voltage. If the on-
board voltage is low or if there is a malfunc-
tion in the system, it may not be possible to
apply the released parking brake.
X If this is the case, only park the vehicle on
level ground and secure it to prevent it roll-
ing away.
X Shift the automatic transmission to posi-
tion P.
It may not be possible to release an applied
parking brake, if the on-board voltage is low
or if there is a malfunction in the system.
Contact a qualified specialist workshop.
i The electric parking brake carries out a
function check at regular intervals when
the engine is switched off. Noises that
occur are normal. 176
ParkingDriving and parking

Applying and releasing manually
X
To apply: push handle :.
When the electric parking brake is applied, the red !indicator lamp lights up in the
instrument cluster.
i The electric parking brake can also be
applied when the key is removed.
X To release: pull handle:.
The red !indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster goes out.
i The electric parking brake can only be
released:
R when the key is in position 1in the igni-
tion lock or
R the ignition was switched on using the
Start/Stop button
Applying automatically The electric parking brake is applied auto-
matically:
R if DISTRONIC PLUS brings the vehicle to a
standstill or
R if the HOLD function is keeping the vehicle
stationary
In addition, at least one of the following con-
ditions must be fulfilled:
R the engine is switched off, unless it is auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
R the driver's seat belt is not inserted in the
belt buckle and the driver's door is open.
R the vehicle is stationary for a lengthy
period. The red
!indicator lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up.
i The electric parking brake is not automat-
ically applied if the engine is switched off by
the ECO start/stop function.
Releasing automatically The electric parking brake is released auto-
matically when all of the following conditions
are fulfilled:
R the engine is running.
R the transmission is in position Dor R.
R the driver's seat belt is fastened.
R you depress the accelerator pedal.
If the transmission is in position R, the boot lid
must be closed.
If your seat belt is not fastened, the following conditions must be fulfilled to automatically
release the electric parking brake:
R the driver's door is closed.
R you have shifted out of Por you have pre-
viously driven faster than 3 km/h.
Ensure that you do not depress the acceler-
ator pedal unintentionally. Otherwise the
parking brake will be released and the vehicle will start to move.
Emergency braking The vehicle can also be braked during an
emergency by using the electric parking
brake.
X While driving, push handle :of the electric
parking brake.
i The vehicle is braked for as long as the
handle of the electric parking brake is
pressed. The longer the electric parking
brake handle is depressed, the greater the braking force. Parking
177Driving and pa rking Z

i
After using it several times in short suc-
cession, RACE START will be unavailable
until a certain distance has been driven. Adaptive Damping System
General notes The adjustable suspension system adapts to
the particular driving conditions. Adjustment
depends on your individual selection, i.e.
sporty or comfortable. Your selection
remains stored even if you remove the key
from the ignition lock.
Selecting sports tuning X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X If indicator lamp ;
; is not lit: press but-
ton :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. You have selec-
ted the suspension for a sporty driving
style.
The message SPORT
SPORT appears in the multi-
function display.
The firmer setting of the suspension tuning in
sports mode ensures even better contact
with the road. Select this mode if you want to experience direct contact with the road sur-
face when employing a sporty driving style,
e.g. on winding country roads. Selecting comfort tuning
X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X If indicator lamp ; ;is not lit: press but-
ton :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. You have selec-
ted the suspension for a comfortable driv-
ing style.
The message COMFORT COMFORTappears in the mul-
tifunction display.
In comfort mode, the driving characteristics
of your vehicle are more comfortable. Select
this mode if you prefer a more comfortable
driving style. Active Body Control (except AMG
vehicles)
Vehicle level General notes
In order to reduce fuel consumption and
improve the driving dynamics, the vehicle is
lowered as its speed increases. With the
SPORT suspension setting, it is lowered by up
to 13 mm, with COMFORT by up to 5 mm. As the speed is reduced, the vehicle is raised to
the set vehicle height.
Select the "Normal" setting for normal road
surfaces and "Raised" for driving with snow
chains or on particularly poor road surfaces.
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the key from the ignition lock. Driving systems
199Driving and parking Z

Important safety notes
G
WARNING
The vehicle is slightly lowered if you:
R have selected the SPORT suspension tun-
ing at normal level and
R switch off the engine
Persons in the vicinity of the wheel arch or the underbody may thus become trapped. There
is a risk of injury.
Make sure that nobody is in the vicinity of thewheel arch or the underbody when you switch
off the engine.
! When the engine is switched off, the vehi-
cle is lowered if SPORT suspension tuning
has been selected at the normal level. The
vehicle is automatically lowered by approx- imately 10 mm. Make sure when parking
that you position your vehicle so that it
does not make contact with the kerb as the
vehicle is lowered. Your vehicle could oth-
erwise be damaged.
Setting the raised level X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X Make sure that a speed of 120 km/h is not
exceeded.
X If indicator lamp ;
; is not lit: press but-
ton :.
If the engine has been switched off by the
ECO start/stop function, it is now restar-
ted. Indicator lamp
;lights up. The vehicle
height is adjusted to raised level.
Setting the normal level X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X If indicator lamp ; ;is lit: press but-
ton :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. The vehicle is
adjusted to normal level.
The "Raised level" setting is cancelled if you:
R are driving faster than approximately
120 km/h.
R drive for approximately three minutes at a
speed over 80 km/h.
Suspension setting General notes
The electronically controlled ABC suspension
system features improved driving dynamics
and ride comfort.
The ABC suspension system is tuned individ-
ually to each wheel and depends on:
R the road surface condition, e.g. bumps
R the vehicle load
R your individual selection of the sporty or
comfortable button
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the key from the ignition lock. 200
Driving systemsDriving and pa
rking

Selecting sporty tuning
X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X If indicator lamp ;
; is not lit: press but-
ton :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. You have selec-
ted the suspension setting for a sporty driv- ing style.
The ABC Active Body Control SPORT ABC Active Body Control SPORT
message appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
The firmer suspension setting in Sport mode
ensures even better contact with the road.
Select this mode if you prefer a firmer sus-
pension setting.
Selecting comfort setting X
Make sure that the engine is running or that
it has been switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
X If indicator lamp ; ;is not lit: press but-
ton :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. You have selec-
ted the suspension setting for a comforta-
ble driving style.
The ABC ABC Active
Active Body
BodyControl
Control COMFORT
COMFORT
message appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
In Comfort mode, the driving characteristics
of your vehicle are more comfortable. Select
this mode if you prefer a more comfortable
driving style.
Driving conditions menu in the
COMAND display You can display some driving systems and
additional information in the COMAND dis-
play.
X Make sure that the key is in position 2in the
ignition lock.
X Make sure COMAND Online is switched on
(Y page 298).
X Press button :.
The corresponding displays appear in the
COMAND display. Driving systems
201Driving and parking Z

warning display for the front area is located
on the dashboard above the centre air vents.
The warning display for the rear area is loca-
ted on the cover behind the seats in the rear
compartment.
The warning display for each side of the vehi- cle is divided into five yellow and two red seg-ments. PARKTRONIC is operational if yellow
segments showing operational readiness =
light up.
The selected transmission position and the
direction in which the vehicle is rolling deter-
mine which warning display is active when the engine is running. Transmission
position Warning display
D
Front area activated
R,
Nor the vehicle
is rolling back-
wards Rear and front areas
activated
P
No areas activated
One or more segments light up as the vehicle
approaches an obstacle, depending on the
vehicle's distance from the obstacle.
R Front area: following the sixth segment,
you will hear an intermittent warning tone.
From the seventh segment, you will hear a
continuous warning tone for approximately two seconds. This indicates that you have
now reached the minimum distance.
R Rear area: from the first segment onwards,
you will hear an intermittent warning tone.
The interval gets shorter after each seg-
ment. At the seventh segment, you will hear a continuous warning tone for approx-
imately two seconds. This indicates that
you have now reached the minimum dis-
tance. Deactivating/activating PARKTRONIC
:
Indicator lamp
; To deactivate/activate PARKTRONIC
If indicator lamp :lights up, PARKTRONIC is
deactivated. Active Park Assist is then also
deactivated.
i PARKTRONIC is automatically activated
when you turn the key to position 2in the
ignition lock. 206
Driving systemsDriving and parking

Activating/deactivating the reversing
camera X
To activate: make sure that the key is in
position 2in the ignition lock.
X Make sure that the function "show revers-
ing camera display" is selected in COMAND Online (Y page 322).
X Engage reverse gear.
The area behind the vehicle is shown with
guide lines in the COMAND display.
To deactivate: the reversing camera deacti-
vates if you shift the transmission to Por after
driving forwards a short distance.
Displays in the COMAND display The reversing camera may show a distorted
view of obstacles or show them incorrectly or
not at all. Obstacles are not shown by the
reversing camera in the following locations:
R very close to the rear bumper
R under the rear bumper
R in the area immediately above the tailgate
handle
! Objects not at ground level may appear to
be further away than they actually are, e.g.:
R the bumper of a parked vehicle
R the drawbar of a trailer
R the ball coupling of a trailer tow hitch
R the rear section of an HGV
R a slanted post
Use the guidelines only for orientation.
Approach objects no further than the bot-
tom-most guideline. :
White guide line without turning the steer-
ing wheel, vehicle width including the
exterior mirrors (static)
; Yellow guide line at a distance of approx-
imately 4.0 mfrom the rear of the vehicle
= Red guide line for the vehicle width includ-
ing the exterior mirrors, for current steer- ing wheel angle (dynamic)
? Yellow lane marking the course the tyres
will take at the current steering wheel
angle (dynamic) A
Yellow guide line at a distance of approx-
imately 1.0 mfrom the rear of the vehicle
B Vehicle centre axis (marker assistance)
C Bumper
D Red guide line at a distance of approx-
imately 0.25 mfrom the rear of the vehicle
The guide lines are shown when the trans-
mission is in position R.
The distance specifications only apply to
objects that are at ground level. 212
Driving systemsDriving and parking

If a course-correcting brake application
occurs, red warning lamp :flashes in the
exterior mirror and a dual warning tone
sounds. In addition, display ;appears in the
multifunction display.
If Active Blind Spot Assist detects a risk of a
side impact in the monitoring range, a course- correcting brake application is carried out.
This is designed to help you avoid a collision.
The course-correcting brake application is
available in the speed range between
30 km/h and 200 km/h.
Either a very slight course-correcting brake
application, or none at all, may occur if:
R there are vehicles or obstacles, e.g. crash
barriers, on both sides of your vehicle
R a vehicle approaches too closely on the
side
R you have adopted a sporty driving style with
high cornering speeds
R you clearly brake or accelerate
R a driving safety system intervenes, such as
ESP ®
or PRE-SAFE ®
Brake R
ESP ®
is deactivated.
R a loss of tyre pressure or a defective tyre is
detected
Activating Active Blind Spot Assist X
Make sure that the radar sensor system
(Y page 242) and Active Blind Spot Assist
(Y page 238) are activated in the on-board
computer.
X Turn the key to position 2in the ignition
lock.
Warning lamps :in the exterior mirrors
light up red for approximately 1.5 seconds
and then turn yellow.
Active Lane Keeping Assist General notes
Active Lane Keeping Assist monitors the area
in front of your vehicle by means of camera :
at the top of the windscreen. Active Lane
Keeping Assist detects lane markings on the
road and warns you before you leave your
lane unintentionally. If you do not react to the warning, a lane-correcting application of the Driving systems
223Driving and parking Z