i
For design reasons, the speed displayed
in the speedometer may differ slightly from
the speed set for DISTRONIC PLUS.
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects avehicle in front,
the speedometer dial lights up between
speed of the vehicle in front :and stored
speed ;.
DISTRONIC PLUS displays in the
multifunction display General notes
You can select the distanc
edisplay in the
Assistance menu (Y page 347) of the on-
board computer.
Displa ywhen DISTRONIC PLUS is
deactivated
X Select the Distance Display function
using the on-board computer
(Y page 347).
When DISTRONIC PLUS is deactivated, you
will see the following in the multifunction
display: :
Symbol for activated PRE-SAFE ®
Brake
; Vehicle in front, if detected
= Distance indicator, current distance to
the vehicle in front
? Specified minimu mdistance to the
vehicle in front; adjustable
A Own vehicle Displa
ywhen DISTRONIC PLUS is
activated
X Select the Distance display function
using the on-board computer
(Y page 347).
You will see the stored speed for about five
seconds whe nyou activate DISTRONIC PLUS.
After this time, you will see the following in
the multifunction display while DISTRONIC
PLUS is activated: :
DISTRONIC PLUS activated
; Own vehicle
= Specified minimum distance to the
vehicle in front; adjustable
? Vehicle in front, if detected
Deactivating DISTRONIC PLUS There are several ways to deactivate
DISTRONIC PLUS:
X
Briefly press the cruise control lever
forwards :.
or
X Brake, unless the vehicle is stationary. Driving systems
305Driving and parking Z
The ability of DISTRONIC PLUS to detect
vehicles when cornering is limited. Your
vehicle may brake unexpectedly or late.
Vehicles traveling on adifferent line DISTRONIC PLUS may not detect vehicles
traveling on a different line. The distance to
the vehicle in fron twill be too short.
Other vehicles changing lane DISTRONIC PLUS has not detected the
vehicle cutting in yet. The distance to this
vehicle will be too short.
Narrow vehicles DISTRONIC PLUS has not yet detected the
vehicle in front on the edge of the road,
because of its narrow width
.The distance to
the vehicle in front will be too short.
Obstructions and stationary vehicles DISTRONIC PLUS does not brake for
obstacles or stationary vehicles. If, for
example, the detected vehicle turns a corner
and reveals an obstacle or stationary vehicle,
DISTRONIC PLUS will not brake for these.
Crossing vehicles
DISTRONIC PLUS may mistakenly detect
vehicles that are crossing your lane.
Activating DISTRONIC PLUS at traffic lights
with crossing traffic, for example, could cause
your vehicle to pull away unintentionally. Driving systems
307Driving and parking Z
AIRMATIC
Vehicle level Important safety notes
Your vehicle regulates its height
automatically. All-round level control ensures
the best possible suspension and constant
ground clearance, eve nwith a laden vehicle.
When you drive fast, the vehicle is lowered
automatically to improve driving safety and to
reduce fuel consumption.
The following vehicle levels are possible:
R Normal
R raised: the vehicle is raised by about
1.20 in (30 mm) when compared with the
normal level
R lowered: the vehicle is lowered by about
0.40 in (10 mm) when compared with the
normal level
The "Normal" and "Raised" vehicle levels can
be set manually.
The "Lowered" vehicle level is set
automatically at speeds over 60 mph
(100 km/h).
Setting the vehicle level
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 SmartKey from the ignition lock. G
WARNING
To help avoid personal injury, keep hands and
feet away fro mwheel housing area, and stay
away from under the vehicle when lowering
the vehicle chassis. Setting raised level
X
Start the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is not lit:
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. The vehicle
height is adjusted to raised level.
The Vehicle Rising message appears in
the display.
The "Raised level" setting is canceled if you:
R drive at speeds above 75 mph (120 km/h)
R drive for about three minutes at speeds
above 50 mph (80 km/h).
The "Raised level" remains active whe nyou
are not driving within these speed ranges.
Setting the normal level
X Start the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is lit:
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. The vehicle is
adjusted to normal level.
Suspension tuning General notes
The Adaptive Damping System (ADS)
automatically controls the calibration of the
dampers and springs. Driving systems
309Driving and parking Z
The damping is tuned individually to each
wheel and depends on:
R
your driving style, e.g. sporty
R the road surface condition, e.g. bumps
R your individual selection, i.e. sports or
comfort
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the SmartKey from the ignition lock. Sports tuning
The firmer suspension tunin
ginSport mode
ensures even better contact with the road.
Select this mode when employing a sporty
driving style, e.g. on winding country roads.
X If indicator lamp ; is not lit:
press
button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. Sports
suspension tuning is selected.
The AIRMATIC SPORT message appears in
the multifunction display.
Comfort tuning
In Comfort mode, the driving characteristics
of your vehicle are more comfortable.
Therefore, select this mode if you favor a
more comfortable driving style. Select
comfort mode also when driving fast on
straight roads, e.g. on straight stretches of
freeway.
X If indicator lamp ; is lit:
press
button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. Comfort tuning
is selected. The
AIRMATIC COMFORT message appears
in the multifunction display. Active Body Control (ABC)
Vehicle level Your vehicle automatically adjusts its ride
height to improve driving safety and reduce
fuel consumption.
Depending on the vehicle height that has
been set, the vehicle automatically adjusts its
height dependen
tonthe current speed. As
speed increases, the vehicle is lowered by up
to 0.4 in (10 mm). As the speed is reduced,
the vehicle is raised up to the set vehicle
height. G
WARNING
The vehicle is lowered when the engine is
switched off. Therefore, make sure that
nobody is in the vicinity of the wheel housing
or under the vehicle when you switch off the
engine. Otherwise, limbs could become
trapped.
! The vehicle is lowered when the engine is
switched off. When parking, position your
vehicle so that it does not make contact
with the curb as the vehicle is lowered. Your
vehicle could otherwise be damaged.
i For AMG vehicles: when the engine is
switched off, the vehicle is lowered by
approx. 0.2 in (5 mm).
Setting the vehicle level
Select the "Normal" setting for normal road
surfaces and "Raised" for driving with snow
chains or on particularly poor road surfaces. G
WARNING
To help avoid personal injury, keep hands and
feet away from wheel housing area, and stay
away from under the vehicle when lowering
the vehicle chassis.
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the SmartKey from the ignition lock. 310
Driving systemsDriving and parking
Setting raised level
X
Start the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is not lit:
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. The vehicle
height is adjusted to raised level.
Setting the normal level
X Start the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is lit:
X Press button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. The vehicle is
adjusted to normal level.
Suspension tuning The electronically controlled ABC suspension
system works continuously.T
his improves
driving safety and comfort.
The ABC suspension system is tuned
individually to each wheel and depends on:
R your driving style, e.g. sporty
R the road surface condition,e .g. bumps
R your individual selection, i.e .sports or
comfort
R the vehicle load
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the SmartKey from the ignition lock. Sports tuning
The firmer suspension tunin
ginSport mode
ensures even better contact with the road.
Select this mode when employing a sporty
driving style, e.g. on winding country roads.
X If indicator lamp ; is not lit:
press
button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. You have
selected the suspension for a sporty driving
style.
The ABC Active Body Control SPORT message appears in the multifunction
display.
Comfort tuning
In Comfort mode, the driving characteristics
of your vehicle are more comfortable.
Therefore, select this mode if you favor a
more comfortable driving style.
X If indicator lamp ; is lit:
press
button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. You have
selected the suspension for acomfortable
driving style.
The ABC Active Body Control COMFORT message appears in the
multifunction display. 4MATIC (permanent four-wheel drive)
4MATIC ensures that all four wheels are
permanently driven. Together with ESP ®
, it
improves the traction of your vehicle Driving systems
311Driving and parking Z
yellow segments showing operational
readiness
=ligh tup.
The selected transmission position
determines which warning display is active
when the engine is running. Transmission
position Warning display
D
Front area activated
R
Rear and front areas
activated
N
If the electric parking
brake is engaged: no
areas are activated
If the electric parking
brake is released:
rear and front areas
are activated
P
No areas activated
One or more segments light up as the vehicle
approaches an obstacle, dependin
gonthe
vehicle's distance from the obstacle.
When the first red segment lights up, you hear
an intermittent warning for about two
seconds. From the second red segment, you
hear a continuous warning. This indicates that
you have now reached the minimum distance.
Deactivating/activating PARKTRONIC :
To deactivate/activate PARKTRONIC
; Indicator lamp If indicator lamp
;lights up, PARKTRONIC is
deactivated.
i PARKTRONIC is automatically activated
when you turn the SmartKey to position 2
in the ignition lock. 314
Driving systemsDriving and parking
Problems with PARKTRONIC
Problem Possible causes/consequences and
M Solutions
Only the red segments
in the PARKTRONIC
warning displays are lit.
You also hear a warning
tone for approximately
two seconds.
PARKTRONIC is
deactivated after
approximately
20 seconds, and the
indicator lamp in the
PARKTRONIC button
lights up. PARKTRONIC has malfunctioned and has switched off.
X
If problems persist, have PARKTRONIC checked at a qualified
specialist workshop. Only the red segments
in the PARKTRONIC
warning displays are lit.
PARKTRONIC is
deactivated after
approximately
20 seconds. The PARKTRONIC sensors are dirty or there is interference.
X
Cleant he PARKTRONIC sensors (Y page 431).
X Switch the ignition back on. The problem may be caused by an external source of radio or
ultrasound waves.
X See if PARKTRONIC functions in a different location. Parking Guidance
Important safety notes Parking Guidance is an electronic parking aid
with ultrasound. Ultrasound is used to
measure the road on both sides of the vehicle.
As uitable parking space is indicated by the
parking symbol. You receive steering
instructions when parking .You may also use
PARKTRONIC (Y page 312). G
WARNING
Parking Guidance is merely an aid and may
display parking spaces that are not suitable
for parking, for example:
R no-parking areas
R parking spaces with unsuitable surfaces
(road surface) R
driveways
R entrances and exits
Parking Guidance detects and measures
potential parking spaces while driving past.
Changes to the parking space after this point
are not taken into account, for example if the
vehicle in front of or behind the parking space
changes position or objects in the parking
space are moved.
Even when using Parking Guidance, you are
still responsible for driving carefully. If you
rely on Parking Guidance alone, you could
cause an accident and injure yourself and
others.
Safety always remains your responsibility and
you must continue paying careful attention to
your immediate surroundings when parking
and maneuvering. Driving systems
315Driving and parking Z
Due to the nature of the system:
R
warnings may be issued in error when
driving close to crash barriers or similar
solid lane borders.
R the warning is canceled when driving for an
extended period next to long vehicles, such
as trucks.
Two Active Blind Spo tAssist radar sensors
are integrated into the front and rear bumpers
respectively. An additional radar sensor is
located behind the cover in the radiator grill.
Make sure that the sensors and areas around
them are free of dirt, ice or slush. The rear
sensors must not be covered, for example by
cycle racks or overhanging cargo. Following
a severe impact or in the event of damage to
the bumpers, have the function of the sensors
checked at a qualified specialist workshop.
Blind Spot Assist may otherwise not work
properly.
Indicator and warning display :
Yellow indicator lamp/red warning lamp
When Active Blind Spot Assist is activated,
indicator lamp :in the exterior mirrors lights
up yellow at speeds of up to 20 mph
(30 km/h). At speeds above 20 mph
(30 km/h), the indicator lamp goes out and
Active Blind Spot Assist is operational.
If a vehicle is detected within the blind spot
monitoring range at speeds above 20 mph
(30 km/h), warning lamp :on the
corresponding side lights up red. This warning
is always emitted when a vehicle enters the
blind spot monitoring range from behind or from the side. When you overtake a vehicle,
the warning only occurs if the difference in
speed is less than
7mph (12 km/h).
The yellow indicator lamp goes out if reverse
gear is engaged. In this event, Active Blind
Spot Assist is no longer active.
The brightness of the indicator/warning
lamps is adjusted automatically according to
the ambient light. G
WARNING
Active Blind Spot Assist is not active at speeds
below 20 mph (30km/h). The indicator lamps
in the exterior mirrors are yellow. Vehicles in
the monitoring range are then not indicated.
Always pay attention to traffic conditions and
your surroundings. Otherwise, you may fail to
recognize dangers in time, cause an accident
and injure yourself and others.
Visual and acoustic collision warning
If a vehicle is detected in the side monitoring
range and you switch on the respective turn
signals, you will receive a collision warning.
You will hear a double warnin gtone and red
warning lamp :flashes. If the turn signal
remains on, detected vehicles are indicated
by the flashing of red warning lamp :.There
are no further warning tones.
Course-correcting brake application
If Active Blind Spot Assist detects a risk of a
lateral collision in the monitoring range, a
course-correcting brake application is carried
out. This is meant to assist you in avoiding a
collision.
The course-correcting brake application is
available in the speed range between
20 mph (30 km/h) and 120 mph (200 km/h).
If a course-correcting brake application
occurs, red warning lamp :flashes in the
exterior mirror and the following is shown in
the multifunction display, for example: Driving systems
329Driving and parking Z