depress the brake pedal. Only then can the
parking lock be deactivated.
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): if you do not depress the brake pedal,
the DIRECT SELECT lever can still be moved
but the parking lock remains engaged.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: if you do not
depress the brake pedal, the selector lever
can still be moved but the parking lock
remains engaged.
Vehicles with automatic transmission: at
transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò20 †, you can only shift out of position Pinto
another transmission position when the
engine is running.
i Vehicles with automatic transmis-
sion: upshifts take place at higher engine
speeds after a cold start. This helps the
catalytic converter to reach its operating
temperature more quickly.
Vehicles with automatic transmission:
information on automatically releasing the
electric parking brake (Y page 193).
Pulling away with a trailer To ensure that you do not roll backwards
when pulling away on an uphill slope, apply
the electric parking brake.
X Press and hold handle :.
The electric parking brake continues to
brake and prevent the vehicle from rolling
backwards. The red
!indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster remains lit.
X Depress the accelerator pedal.
X As soon as the vehicle/trailer combination
is held by the driving force of the engine,
release lever :.
the electric parking brake is released
The red !indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster goes out.
For further information on the electric parking
brake, see (Y page 193).
Hill start assist Hill start assist helps you when pulling away
forwards or in reverse on an uphill gradient. It
holds the vehicle for a short time after you
have removed your foot from the brake pedal.
This gives you enough time to move your foot from the brake pedal to the accelerator pedal and depress it before the vehicle begins to
roll. G
WARNING
After a while, hill start assist no longer holds
the vehicle and it may roll away. There is a risk of an accident and injury.
Therefore, quickly move your foot from the
brake pedal to the accelerator pedal. Never
leave the vehicle when it is held by hill start
assist.
Hill start assist is not active if:
R you are pulling away on a level road or a
downhill gradient
R on vehicles with automatic transmission,
the transmission is in position N
R the electric parking brake is applied
R ESP ®
is malfunctioning
Further information on holding the vehicle
stationary on uphill gradients (Y page 182). Driving
169Driving and parking Z
The ECO start/stop function switches off the
engine automatically at low speeds.
X Brake the vehicle.
X Shift to neutral N(Y page 176) (follow
gearshift instruction :to shift into neutral
N, if necessary).
X Release the clutch pedal.
The engine is switched off automatically.
Vehicles with automatic transmission
If the vehicle is braked to a standstill with the transmission in Dor N, the ECO start/stop
function switches off the engine automati-
cally.
The HOLD function can be activated if the
engine has been switched off automatically. It
is then not necessary to continue applying the brakes during the automatic stop phase.
When you depress the accelerator pedal, the
engine starts automatically and the braking
effect of the HOLD function is deactivated.
Automatic engine start General notes
The engine is started automatically if:
R
you switch off the ECO start/stop function
by pressing the ECO button
R you engage reverse gear R
R you unfasten your seat belt or open the
driver's door
R the vehicle starts to roll
R the brake system requires this
R the temperature in the vehicle interior devi-
ates from the set range
R the system detects moisture on the wind-
screen when the air-conditioning system is
switched on
R the battery's charge status is too low
Vehicles with manual transmission
! Only engage gear when the clutch pedal is
depressed. The engine is started automatically if you:
R depress the clutch pedal fully
R depress the accelerator pedal
Vehicles with automatic transmission
The engine is started automatically if you: R release the brake pedal in transmission
position Dor Nwhen the HOLD function is
not active
R depress the accelerator pedal
R move the transmission out of position P
Shifting the transmission to position Pdoes
not start the engine.
If you shift the transmission from Rto D, the
ECO start/stop function is available again
once the èECO symbol reappears in
green in the multifunction display.
Switching the ECO start/stop function
off/on X
To deactivate: press ECO button :.
Indicator lamp ;and the èECO sym-
bol in the multifunction display go out.
X To activate: press ECO button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up.
If all conditions for automatic engine
switch-off (Y page 170) are fulfilled, the
è ECO symbol is shown in green in the
multifunction display.
If the conditions for automatic engine
switch-off (Y page 170) are not all fulfilled,
the è ECO symbol is shown in yellow in
the multifunction display. If this is the case, Driving
171Driving and parking Z
You can also change gear yourself using the
steering wheel gearshift paddles. Further
information on the manual drive program
(Y page 185). Manual transmission
Gear lever
! Only engage gear when the clutch pedal is
depressed.
! When shifting to
5thand 6thgear, you
must press the shift lever to the right. Oth-
erwise, you could shift unintentionally into
3rd or4th gear and damage the engine or
transmission.
If you shift down at too high a speed (trans-
mission braking), this can cause the engine to overrev, leading to engine damage.
Do not use the clutch bite point to keep the
vehicle stationary on uphill gradients.
There is otherwise a risk of damaging the
clutch.
! On long and steep downhill gradients,
especially if the vehicle is laden or towing a
trailer, you must shift into gear 1, 2or3in
good time. This uses the engine's braking
effect. This relieves the load on the brake
system and prevents the brakes from over- heating and wearing too quickly. k
Reverse gear
1 -6
Forward gears Shifting to neutral N
X
Depress the clutch pedal fully.
X Shift the gear lever to position N:. Engaging reverse gear
! Only shift into reverse gear
Rwhen the
vehicle is stationary. Otherwise, you could
damage the transmission.
X Pull the gear lever up, push it to the left and
then pull it back.
The ECO start/stop function is not available
when reverse gear is engaged. Further infor-
mation on the ECO start/stop function
(Y page 170). Gearshift recommendation
The gearshift recommendations assist you in
adopting an economical driving style. The rec- ommended gear is shown in the multifunction
display.
X Shift gear according to gearshift recom-
mendation :when shown in the multi-
function display of the instrument cluster. 176
Manual transmissionDriving and parking
Drive programs
Drive program C (Comfort) Drive program
Cis characterised by the fol-
lowing:
R the vehicle delivers comfortable, economi-
cal driving characteristics.
R the vehicle having improved driving stabil-
ity, for example on slippery road surfaces.
Drive program S (Sport) Drive program
Sis characterised by the fol-
lowing:
R sporty engine settings.
Drive program I (Individual) In drive program
Ithe following properties of
the drive program can be selected:
R the drive (engine and transmission man-
agement)
R the suspension (vehicles with damping sys-
tem)
R the steering
R the availability of the ECO start/stop func-
tion
R the climate control
Information about configuring drive program I
with COMAND Online or Audio 20 can be
found in the Digital Owner's Manual.
Drive program E (Economy) Drive program
Eis characterised by the fol-
lowing:
R the vehicle exhibits comfortable, economi-
cal driving characteristics.
R the vehicle having improved driving stabil-
ity, for example on slippery road surfaces.
R the performance of the air-conditioning and
heating systems is reduced. Automatic transmission
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
If the engine speed is above the idling speed
and you engage transmission position Dor R,
the vehicle could pull away suddenly. There is a risk of an accident.
When engaging transmission position Dor R,
always firmly depress the brake pedal and do not simultaneously accelerate. 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. DIRECT SELECT lever
Overview of transmission positions j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): the DIRECT SELECT lever is on the right
of the steering column. Automatic transmission
177Driving and parking Z
For information on the selector lever in
Mercedes-AMG vehicles (Y page 180).
The DIRECT SELECT lever always returns to
its original position. The current transmission position P,R, Nor Dappears in the transmis-
sion position display in the multifunction dis-
play (Y page 178).
Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display The current transmission position and drive
program appear in the multifunction display.
:
Transmission position
; Gear
= Drive program display
The arrows in the transmission position dis-
play show how and into which transmission
positions you can shift using the DIRECT
SELECT lever.
If the transmission position display in the mul-
tifunction display is not working, you should
pull away carefully to check whether the
desired transmission position is engaged.
Ideally, you should select transmission posi-
tion Dand drive program Eor S.
Engaging park position P !
If the engine speed is too high, do not shift
the automatic transmission directly from D
to R, from Rto Dor directly to P. Otherwise,
the automatic transmission could be dam-
aged. j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive
X Push the DIRECT SELECT lever in the direc-
tion of arrow P.
Transmission position display Pis shown in
the multifunction display.
When you have engaged park position P,
make sure that the transmission position dis-
play shows Pin the multifunction display.
You can only engage park position Pwhen the
vehicle is stationary.
Depressing the brake and pushing the
DIRECT SELECT lever up or down disengages the parking lock. The transmission is in neu-
tral N.
At transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò20 †, you can only shift out of park position
P into another transmission position when
the engine is running.
In order to shift from park position Pdirectly
into Ror D:
R depress the brake pedal and
R push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
past the first point of resistance 178
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking
Engaging park position P automatically
Park position
Pis automatically engaged if:
R you switch off the engine using the key and
remove the key
R you switch off the engine using the key or
using the Start/Stop button and open the
driver's door or front-passenger door
R you open the driver's door when the vehicle
is stationary or when driving at a very low
speed and the transmission is in position D
or R
Under certain conditions, the automatic
transmission shifts automatically to transmis-
sion position Pif the HOLD function or
DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Observe the
information on the HOLD function
(Y page 212) and on DISTRONIC PLUS
(Y page 207).
Engaging reverse gear R !
Only shift the automatic transmission to
R
when the vehicle is stationary.
X If the transmission is in position Dor N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up past the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up past the first point of
resistance.
The ECO start/stop function is not available
when reverse gear is engaged. Further infor-
mation on the ECO start/stop function
(Y page 170). Shifting to neutral N G
WARNING
If children are left unsupervised in the vehicle, they can:
R open doors and endanger other persons or
road users
R climb out and be injured by the traffic
R operate vehicle equipment and, for exam-
ple, trap themselves.
Children could also set the vehicle in motion, for example by:
R releasing the parking brake
R shifting the automatic transmission out of
park position P
R starting the engine.
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. Always
keep the key out of reach of children.
X If the transmission is in position Dor R:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
to the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up or down to the first point of
resistance.
If you switch the engine off with the trans-
mission in position Ror D, the automatic
transmission shifts to Nautomatically.
With the key: if you then open the driver's
door or the front-passenger door or remove
the key from the ignition, the automatic trans- mission shifts to Pautomatically.
With the Start/Stop button: if you then
open the driver's door or the front-passenger
door, the automatic transmission shifts to P
automatically.
If you want the automatic transmission to
remain in neutral N, e.g. when having the
vehicle cleaned in an automatic car wash with a towing system: Automatic transmission
179Driving and parking Z
With the key:
X Switch the ignition on.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Shift to neutral N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parking brake.
X Switch off the ignition and leave the key in
the ignition lock.
With the Start/Stop button:
X Remove the Start/Stop button from the
ignition lock.
X Insert the key into the ignition lock.
X Switch the ignition on.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Shift to neutral N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parking brake.
X Switch off the ignition and leave the key in
the ignition lock.
Engaging drive position D X
If the transmission is in position Ror N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever down past
the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever down past the first point of
resistance. Selector lever (Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles)
Overview of transmission positions j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive
Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display The current transmission position and drive
program appear in the multifunction display. :
Transmission position display
; Drive program display
If the transmission position display in the mul-
tifunction display is not working, you should
pull away carefully to check whether the
desired transmission position is engaged.
Ideally, you should select transmission posi-
tion Dand drive program Cor S. 180
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking
Engaging park position P
X
When the vehicle is stationary, press but-
ton :. Transmission positions
B Park position
This prevents the vehicle from roll-
ing away when stopped.
Only shift the transmission into
position Pwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary (Y page 178). The parking
lock should not be used as a brake when parking. In order to secure
the vehicle, always apply the elec-
tric parking brake in addition to the
parking lock.
In the event of a malfunction of the vehicle's electronics, the transmis-
sion may lock in position P. Have
the vehicle electronics checked
immediately at a qualified special-
ist workshop.
Park position Pis automatically
engaged if:
R you switch off the engine using
the key and remove the key
R you switch off the engine using
the key or using the Start/Stop
button and open the driver's
door or front-passenger door
R you open the driver's door when
the vehicle is stationary or when
driving at a very low speed and
the transmission is in position D
or R C Reverse gear
Only shift the transmission into
position Rwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary. Automatic transmission
181Driving and parking Z