2015 MERCEDES-BENZ GLE SUV ESP

G
WARNING
DISTRONIC PLUS brakes your vehicle with up to 50% of the maximum possible deceleration.
If this deceleration is not sufficient,
DISTRONIC PLUS alerts you with a visual and
acoustic warning. There is a risk of an acci-
dent.
Apply the brakes yourself in these situations
and try to take evasive action.
! When DISTRONIC PLUS or the HOLD func-
tion is activated, the vehicle brakes automat- ically in certain situations.
To avoid damage to the vehicle, deactivate
DISTRONIC PLUS and the HOLD function in
the following or similar situations:
R when towing away
R in a car wash
If you fail to adapt your driving style, DISTRONIC PLUS can neither reduce the risk of an accident
nor override the laws of physics. DISTRONIC
PLUS cannot take road and weather conditions
or traffic conditions into account. DISTRONIC
PLUS is only an aid. You are responsible for the
distance to the vehicle in front, for vehicle
speed, for braking in good time and for staying in lane.
Do not use DISTRONIC PLUS:
R in road and traffic conditions which do not
allow you to maintain a constant speed, e.g. in
heavy traffic or on winding roads
R on smooth or slippery roads. Braking or accel-
erating can cause the drive wheels to lose
traction and the vehicle could then skid
R when there is poor visibility, e.g. due to fog,
heavy rain or snow
DISTRONIC PLUS may not detect narrow vehi-
cles driving in front, e.g. motorcycles, or vehi-
cles driving on a different line.
In particular, the detection of obstacles can be
impaired in the case of:
R dirt on the sensors or obscured sensors
R snow or heavy rain
R interference by other radar sources
R the possibility of strong radar reflections, for
example, in multi-storey car parks
If DISTRONIC PLUS no longer detects a vehicle
in front, it may unexpectedly accelerate to the
speed stored. This speed can:
R be too high for a filter lane or a slip road
R be so high in the right lane that you pass vehi-
cles driving on the left
R be so high in the left lane that you pass vehi-
cles driving on the right
If there is a change of drivers, advise the new
driver of the speed stored.
Cruise control lever :
To activate or increase speed
; To set the specified minimum distance
= LIM indicator lamp
? To activate at the current speed/last stored
speed
A To activate or reduce speed
B To switch between DISTRONIC PLUS and
variable SPEEDTRONIC
C To deactivate DISTRONIC PLUS
You can operate DISTRONIC PLUS and variable SPEEDTRONIC with the cruise control lever.
LIM indicator lamp =on the cruise control lever
indicates which function you have selected:
R LIM indicator lamp = =off: DISTRONIC PLUS
is selected
R LIM indicator lamp =
= on: variable SPEED-
TRONIC is selected
Selecting DISTRONIC PLUS X
Check whether LIM indicator lamp =is off.
If it is off, DISTRONIC PLUS is already selec-
ted.
If it is not, press the cruise control lever in the direction of arrow B.
LIM indicator lamp =in the cruise control
lever goes out. DISTRONIC PLUS is selected. 208
Driving systemsDriving and parking

Activating DISTRONIC PLUS
Activation conditions
To activate DISTRONIC PLUS, the following con- ditions must be fulfilled:
R the engine must be running. It may take up to
two minutes of driving before DISTRONIC
PLUS is ready for use.
R the electric parking brake must be released.
R ESP ®
must be switched on, but not interven-
ing.
R the transmission must be in position D.
R the driver's door must be closed when you
shift from Pto Dor your seat belt must be
fastened.
R the front-passenger door and the rear doors
must be closed.
R the Offroad Plus drive program must be deac-
tivated (vehicles with the Off-Road Engineer-
ing package).
R DSR must be deactivated.
R the vehicle must not be skidding.
R the DISTRONIC PLUS function must be selec-
ted (Y page 208).
Activating
X Briefly pull the cruise control lever towards
you ?, up :or down A.
DISTRONIC PLUS is activated.
X Remove your foot from the accelerator pedal.
Your vehicle adapts its speed to that of the
vehicle in front, but only up to the desired
stored speed.
i If you do not fully release the accelerator
pedal, the DISTRONIC PLUS inactive
DISTRONIC PLUS inactive mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display. The
set distance to a slower-moving vehicle in
front will then not be maintained. The position of the accelerator pedal will determine the
speed.
You can also activate DISTRONIC PLUS when
stationary. The lowest speed that can be set is
30 km/h.
X Briefly pull the cruise control lever towards
you ?, up :or down A.
DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Activating at the current speed/last
stored speed G
WARNING
If you call up a stored speed and this is dif-
ferent from the current speed, the vehicle
accelerates or brakes. If you do not know
what the stored speed is, the vehicle may
accelerate or brake unexpectedly. There is a
risk of an accident.
Take the traffic conditions into account
before calling up the stored speed. If you do
not know what the stored speed is, store the
desired speed again.
X Briefly pull the cruise control lever towards
you ?.
X Remove your foot from the accelerator pedal.
DISTRONIC PLUS is on and, when activated
for the first time, accepts the current speed or
it adjusts the vehicle's speed to the speed
stored.
Driving with DISTRONIC PLUS Pulling away and driving
X If you want to pull away with DISTRONIC
PLUS: remove your foot from the brake pedal.
X Briefly pull the cruise control lever towards
you ?.
or X Accelerate briefly.
Your vehicle pulls away and adapts its speed
to that of the vehicle in front. If no vehicle is
detected in front, your vehicle accelerates to the set speed.
The vehicle can also pull away when it is facing
an unidentified obstacle or is driving on a differ-
ent line from another vehicle. The vehicle then
brakes automatically.
If there is no vehicle in front, DISTRONIC PLUS
operates in the same way as cruise control.
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects that the vehicle in
front has slowed down, it brakes your vehicle. In
this way, the distance you have selected is main- tained.
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects a faster-moving
vehicle in front, it increases the driving speed.
However, the vehicle is only accelerated up to
the speed you have stored. Driving systems
209Driving and parking Z

Selecting the drive program
DISTRONIC PLUS supports a sporty driving style
if you have selected the SportorSport Plus
drive program (Y page 171). Acceleration
behind the vehicle in front or to the set speed is then noticeably more dynamic. If you have
selected the Comfortdrive program, the vehicle
accelerates more gently. This setting is recom-
mended in stop-start traffic.
Changing lanes If you change to the overtaking lane, DISTRONIC
PLUS supports you if:
R you are driving faster than 70 km/h
R you switch on the respective turn signal
R DISTRONIC PLUS does not detect a danger of
collision
If these conditions are met, your vehicle is accel- erated. Acceleration will be interrupted if chang-
ing lanes takes too long or if the distance
between your vehicle and the vehicle in front
becomes too small.
i Vehicles with COMAND Online:
when you
change lanes, DISTRONIC PLUS monitors the right lane in the case of left-side traffic or the
left lane in the case of right-side traffic.
Vehicles with Audio 20: when you change
lanes, DISTRONIC PLUS monitors the left lane on left-hand-drive vehicles or the right lane onright-hand-drive vehicles.
Vehicles with COMAND Online i
The following function is only available in
vehicles with the Driving Assistance Plus
package.
The function is not operational in all coun-
tries. DISTRONIC PLUS uses additional information
from your navigation system so that it can adapt
to certain traffic situations. This is the case if,
while following a vehicle, DISTRONIC PLUS is
active and you:
R approach or drive around a roundabout
R approach a T-junction
R turn off at a motorway exit
R approach a tollgate
Even if the vehicle in front leaves the detection
range, DISTRONIC PLUS temporarily maintains
the current driving speed and does not acceler- ate. This is based on the current map data in the
navigation system.
Afterwards, the vehicle accelerates back to the
set speed you specified.
The system takes into account the fact that
overtaking on the right is not permitted on
motorways or high-speed major roads at speeds
above 80 km/h. The driving speed is adjusted to the speed of the queue of vehicles in the adja-
cent lane to the left.
i Prevention of overtaking on the right applies
to countries where traffic drives on the right.
In countries where traffic drives on the left,
overtaking on the left is prevented accord-
ingly.
Stopping G
WARNING
When leaving the vehicle, even if it is braked
only by DISTRONIC PLUS, it could roll away if:
R there is a malfunction in the system or in
the voltage supply.
R DISTRONIC PLUS has been deactivated
with the cruise control lever, e.g. by a vehi- cle occupant or from outside the vehicle.
R the electrical system in the engine com-
partment, the battery or the fuses have
been tampered with.
R the battery is disconnected.
R the accelerator pedal has been depressed,
e.g. by a vehicle occupant.
There is a risk of an accident.
If you wish to exit the vehicle, always turn off
DISTRONIC PLUS and secure the vehicle
against rolling away. 210
Driving systemsDriving and parking

Deactivating DISTRONIC PLUS
There are several ways to deactivate
DISTRONIC PLUS:
X Briefly press the cruise control lever for-
wards :.
or X Brake, unless the vehicle is stationary.
or X Briefly press the cruise control lever in the
direction of arrow =.
Variable SPEEDTRONIC is selected. LIM indi-
cator lamp ;in the cruise control lever lights
up.
If you deactivate DISTRONIC PLUS, the DISTRONIC PLUS off
DISTRONIC PLUS off message appears in the
multifunction display for approximately five sec-
onds.
i The last speed stored remains stored until
you switch off the engine.
i DISTRONIC PLUS is not deactivated if you
depress the accelerator pedal. If you acceler- ate to overtake, DISTRONIC PLUS adjusts the
vehicle's speed to the last speed stored after
you have finished overtaking.
DISTRONIC PLUS is automatically deactivated
if: R you apply the electric parking brake or if the
vehicle is automatically secured with the elec-
tric parking brake
R you are driving slower than 25 km/h and
there is no vehicle in front, or if the vehicle in
front is no longer detected
R ESP ®
intervenes or you deactivate ESP ®
R the transmission is in the P,Ror Nposition
R you pull the cruise control lever towards you
in order to pull away and the front-passenger door or one of the rear doors is open R
you activate DSR
R you activate the Offroad Plus program (vehi-
cles with the Off-Road Engineering package)
R the vehicle has skidded
If DISTRONIC PLUS is deactivated, you will hear a warning tone. The DISTRONIC
DISTRONIC PLUS PLUSoff
offmes-
sage appears in the multifunction display for
approximately five seconds.
Displays in the instrument cluster Displays in the speedometer
Example: DISTRONIC PLUS displays in the speed-
ometer
When DISTRONIC PLUS is activated, one or two segments ;in the set speed range light up.
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects a vehicle in front,
segments ;between speed of the vehicle in
front =and stored speed :light up.
i For design reasons, the speed displayed in
the speedometer may differ slightly from the
speed set for DISTRONIC PLUS. 212
Driving syste
msDriving and parking

and right), only focusing on the vehicle in front if
detected lane markings are not present.
If these conditions are not present, Steering
Assist and Stop&Go Pilot cannot provide assis-
tance.
DISTRONIC PLUS must be active in order for the
function to be available.
Important safety notes If you fail to adapt your driving style, DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and Stop&Go Pilot
can neither reduce the risk of an accident nor
override the laws of physics. It cannot take into
account road, weather or traffic conditions.
DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and
Stop&Go Pilot is only an aid. You are responsible
for the distance to the vehicle in front, for vehi- cle speed, for braking in good time and for stay-
ing in lane.
DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and
Stop&Go Pilot does not detect road and traffic
conditions and does not detect all road users. If you are following a vehicle which is driving
towards the edge of the carriageway, your vehi-cle could come into contact with the kerb or
other road boundaries. Be particularly aware of
other road users, e.g. cyclists, that are directly
next to your vehicle.
Obstacles such as traffic pylons on the lane or
projecting out into the lane are not detected.
An inappropriate steering intervention, e.g. after
intentionally driving over a lane marking, can be
corrected at any time if you steer slightly in the opposite direction.
DISTRONIC PLUS with Steering Assist and
Stop&Go Pilot cannot continuously keep your
vehicle in lane. In some cases, the steering
intervention is not sufficient to bring the vehicle back to the lane. In such cases, you must steer
the vehicle yourself to ensure that it does not
leave the lane.
The support offered by the system may be
impaired if:
R there is poor visibility, e.g. due to insufficient
illumination of the road, or due to snow, rain,fog or spray
R there is glare, e.g. from oncoming traffic, the
sun or reflection from other vehicles (e.g. if
the road surface is wet)
R the windscreen is dirty, misted up, damaged
or covered, for instance by a sticker, in the
vicinity of the camera R
no or several, unclear lane markings are pres-
ent for one lane, e.g. in a construction area
R the lane markings are worn away, dark or cov-
ered up, e.g. by dirt or snow
R the distance to the vehicle in front is too small
and the lane markings thus cannot be detec-
ted
R the lane markings change quickly, e.g. lanes
branch off, cross one another or merge
R the road is narrow and winding
R there are highly variable shade conditions on
the road
The system is switched to passive and no longer assists you by performing steering interventions
if:
R you actively change lane
R you switch on the turn signal
R you take your hands off the steering wheel or
do not steer for a prolonged period of time
i After you have finished changing lanes,
Steering Assist and Stop&Go Pilot are auto-
matically active again.
Steering Assist and Stop&Go Pilot cannot pro-
vide assistance:
R on very sharp corners
R when towing a trailer
R a loss of tyre pressure or a defective tyre has
been detected and displayed
Pay attention also to the important safety notes
for DISTRONIC PLUS (Y page 207).
The steering interventions are carried out with a limited steering moment. The system requires
the driver to keep his hands on the steering
wheel and to steer himself.
If you do not steer yourself or if you take your
hands off the steering wheel for a prolonged
period of time, the system will first alert you with
a visual warning. A steering wheel symbol
appears in the multifunction display. If you have
still not started to steer and have not taken hold of the steering wheel after five seconds at the
latest, a warning tone also sounds to remind you
to take control of the vehicle. Steering Assist
and Stop&Go Pilot switch to passive mode.
DISTRONIC PLUS remains active. Driving systems
215Driving and parking Z

vehicle's speed is not adapted to the road
conditions. There is a risk of an accident.
Always adapt your speed and driving style to
the vehicle's driving characteristics and to the prevailing road and weather conditions.
! When driving on extremely rough terrain,
select a high vehicle level in good time. Make
sure there is always sufficient ground clear-
ance. You will otherwise damage the vehicle.
R SUVs overturn considerably more often than
other vehicle types.
If this vehicle is not driven in a safe manner, it can lead to an accident, to the vehicle over-
turning as well as serious or even fatal inju-
ries.
R In the event of an accident with the vehicle
overturning, passengers who are not wearing
their seat belt are considerably more likely to die than passengers wearing their seat belt.
You and all vehicle occupants should always
wear your seat belts.
Basic settings The extent to which the vehicle is raised or low-
ered depends on the basic setting selected.
Select:
R the Comfort orSport drive program for driv-
ing on normal roads
R the Offroad drive program for driving on eas-
ily negotiable off-road terrain
R the Offroad Plus drive program for off-road
driving
R Offroad level 1 for driving on easily negotiable
off-road terrain
R Offroad level 2 for driving on normal off-road
terrain
R Offroad level 3 for freeing the vehicle from
especially difficult off-road terrain at low
speeds
The individual vehicle levels differ from the nor- mal level as follows:
R –15 mm in the Sportdrive program
R +/–0 mm in the Comfortdrive program
R + 30 mm in the Offroaddrive program
R + 60 mm in the Offroad Plusdrive program
R + 30 mm in offroad level 1 R
+ 60 mm in offroad level 2
R + 90 mm in offroad level 3
Setting the vehicle level !
Make sure there is enough ground clear-
ance when the vehicle is being lowered. It
could otherwise hit the ground, damaging the
underbody. Setting the vehicle level using the selector
wheel
X Start the engine.
X Press selector wheel :.
Selector wheel :extends.
X To raise the vehicle: turn selector wheel :
clockwise ;.
The vehicle is raised.
X To lower the vehicle: turn selector wheel :
anti-clockwise ?.
The vehicle is lowered.
During the adjustment, the Lowering LoweringorVehi‐
Vehi‐
cle
cle rising
rising message appears in the multifunc-
tion display.
If you press the %ora button on the
multifunction steering wheel, the message will
disappear. Once normal level has been reached, all indicator lamps =go out.
The vehicle automatically selects normal level if
you:
R drive at speeds above 115 km/h or
R drive at speeds between 100 km/h and
115 km/h for approximately 20 seconds
The vehicle is lowered to low level if you are
travelling at higher speeds. Driving systems
217Driving and parking Z

Normal level
Setting the vehicle to normal level
X Start the engine.
X Press selector wheel :.
Selector wheel :extends.
X To lower the vehicle: turn selector wheel :
anti-clockwise ?.
The vehicle is lowered.
If one or more indicator lamps =are on:
X Turn selector wheel :anti-clockwise ?
until all indicator lamps =that are lit start to
flash.
The vehicle is lowered to normal level. As
soon as the next lowest level is reached, the
indicator lamp stops flashing and goes out.
Offroad levels General notes
Only select an offroad level if this is appropriate for road conditions. Otherwise, fuel consump-
tion may increase and handling performance
may be affected.
You can select the following:
R Offroad level 1 at speeds up to 100 km/h
R Offroad level 2 at speeds up to 65 km/h
R Offroad level 3 at speeds up to 20 km/h
If you select an offroad level when driving at too
high a speed, the Please reduce speed
Please reduce speed mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
Offroad level 3 is only suitable for driving on
extremely difficult off-road terrain under partic- ularly rough conditions.
R Adjust your driving style to the altered han-
dling characteristics.
R Do not drive faster than 20 km/h. Indicator lamps
=for the desired offroad level
flash:
R the lower indicator lamp flashes, offroad
level 1 is selected
R the lower and centre indicator lamps flash,
offroad level 2 is selected
R all three indicator lamps flash, offroad level 3
is selected
The vehicle is being adjusted to the offroad level
selected. As soon as an offroad level is reached,
the corresponding indicator lamp stops flashing and lights up constantly.
Raising the vehicle
Setting the vehicle level using the selector
wheel
X To raise the vehicle: turn selector wheel :
clockwise ;.
The vehicle is raised to offroad level 1 by
30 mm compared to the normal level.
During the adjustment, the Vehicle rising Vehicle rising
message, for example, appears in the multifunc-
tion display.
If you press the %ora button on the
multifunction steering wheel, the message will
disappear.
i Up to offroad level 2, you can hide the mes-
sages using the %ora button on the
multifunction steering wheel.
While the adjustment from offroad level 2 to off-
road level 3 is taking place, you will see a mes-
sage such as the following in the multifunction
display: Vehicle rising Max. speed
Vehicle rising Max. speed
20 km/h 20 km/h.
The Max. Max. speed
speed 20
20km/h
km/h message draws your
attention to the maximum speed permitted for
offroad level 3.
If you drive above 20 km/h at offroad level 3,
you will see the following message shown in red 218
Driving systemsDriving an
d parking

in the multifunction display:
Lowering Max.
Lowering Max.
speed 20 km/h
speed 20 km/h .
i You cannot clear these messages.
You also hear a warning tone. The vehicle is low- ered and offroad level 3 is cancelled.
If you continue to increase your speed, the red
message continues to be shown in the multi-
function display. The newly set level is not dis-
played until the vehicle has been set to a level
suitable for the current speed.
Lowering the vehicle If you drive faster than 20 km/h while the vehi-
cle is being lowered, you will see the following
message shown in white in the multifunction
display: Lowering Max. speed 20 km/h Lowering Max. speed 20 km/h .
The vehicle is lowered to offroad level 2.
You will see a message in the multifunction dis- play, for example: Lowering
Lowering .
Off-road level 2 is cancelled and the vehicle is
lowered to offroad level 1 if you:
R drive at speeds above 80 km/h or
R drive at speeds between 65 km/h and
80 km/h for longer than 20 seconds
Off-road level 1 is cancelled. Depending on the
vehicle's speed and the selected drive program,
the vehicle is automatically lowered to normal
level or low level if you:
R drive at speeds above 115 km/h or
R drive at speeds between 100 km/h and
115 km/h for longer than 20 seconds HOLD function
General notes The HOLD function can assist the driver in the
following situations:
R when pulling away, especially on steep slopes
R when manoeuvring on steep slopes
R when waiting in traffic
The vehicle is kept stationary without the driver
having to depress the brake pedal.
The braking effect is cancelled and the HOLD
function is deactivated when you depress the
accelerator pedal to pull away.
i Do not use the HOLD function when driving
off-road, on steep uphill or downhill gradients or on slippery or loose surfaces. The HOLD function cannot hold the vehicle on such sur-
faces.
Important safety notes G
WARNING
When leaving the vehicle, it can still roll away despite being braked by the HOLD function if:
R there is a malfunction in the system or in
the voltage supply
R the HOLD function is deactivated by the
accelerator pedal being depressed, e.g. by
a vehicle occupant
R the electrical system in the engine com-
partment, the battery or the fuses are tam-
pered with
R the battery is disconnected
There is a risk of an accident.
Before leaving the vehicle, always deactivate
the HOLD function and secure the vehicle
from rolling away.
! When DISTRONIC PLUS or the HOLD func-
tion is activated, the vehicle brakes automat- ically in certain situations.
To avoid damage to the vehicle, deactivate
DISTRONIC PLUS and the HOLD function in
the following or similar situations:
R when towing away
R in a car wash
Deactivating the HOLD function (Y page 220).
Activation conditions You can activate the HOLD function if:
R the vehicle is stationary
R the engine is running or if it has been auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/stop
function
R the driver's door is closed or if your seat belt
is fastened
R the electric parking brake is released
R the transmission is in position D,Ror N
R DISTRONIC PLUS is deactivated Driving systems
219Driving and parking Z