may be show
ninthe instrument cluster
(Y page1 70).
i Only use wheels with the recommended
tire sizes. Only then willE SP®
function
properly.
Characteristics of ESP ®ESP
®
is activated automatically when the
engine is started.
If ESP ®
intervenes, the 0089ESP®
warning
lamp flashes in the instrument cluster.
If ESP ®
intervenes:
X Do not deactivate ESP ®
under any circum-
stances.
X Only depress the accelerator peda lasfar as
necessary when pulling away.
X Adapt yourd riving style to suitt he prevail-
ing road and weather conditions.
Deactivating/activating ESP ®Important safety notes
i Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (Y page54).
You can select between the following states
of ESP ®
:
R ESP ®
is activated.
R SPORT handling mode is activated.
R ESP ®
is deactivated. G
WARNING
When SPORT handling mode is activated,
there is agreater risk of skidding and acci-
dents.
Only activate SPORT handling mode in the sit- uations described in the following. G
WARNING
If you deactivate ESP ®
,E SP ®
no longer sta-
bilizes the vehicle. There is an increase drisk
of skidding and an accident. Only deactivate ESP
®
in the situations descri-
bed in the following.
In the following situations, it may be better to activate SPORT handling mode or deactivate
ESP ®
:
R when using snow chains
R in deep snow
R on sand or gravel
R when driving on designated road swhen the
vehicle's own oversteering and understeer-
ing characteristics are desired
Driving in SPORT handling mode or without
ESP ®
requires an extremely qualified and
experienced driver.
i Activate ESP ®
as soon as the situations
described above no longer apply.E SP®
will
otherwise not be abletos tabilize the vehi-
cle if the vehicl estarts to skid or awheel
starts to spin.
! Avoid spinning the driven wheels for an
extended perio dwith ESP ®
deactivated.
You could otherwise damage the drivetrain.
Deactivating/activating ESP ® X
To activate SPORT handlin gmode:
briefl ypress button 0043.
The 0074 handling mode warning lamp in
the instrument cluster lights up. The 56
Driving safety systemsSafety
SPORT handling mode
SPORT handling mode
message appears
in the multifunction display.
X To deactivate SPORT handling mode:
briefly press button 0043.
The 0074 handling mode warning lamp in
the instrument cluster goes out. ESP ®
is
activated.
X To deactivate ESP ®
:press button 0043.
The 00BB ESP®
OFF warning lamp in the
instrument cluster lights up. The 00E5OFFOFF
message appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
X To activate ESP ®
:when SPORT handling
mode is activated or ESP ®
is deactivated,
press button 0043.
The 00BB ESP®
OFF warning lamp in the
instrument cluster goes out. The 00E5ONON
message appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
Characteristics of activated SPORT han-
dling mode
SPORT handling mode raises the intervention threshold for stabilizing the vehicle. This
allows for asportier driving style on desig-
nated race circuits and may in certain situa-
tions improve the traction in comparison with
ESP ®
.
If SPORT handling mode is activated and one or more wheels start to spin, the 0089warn-
ing lamp in the instrument cluster flashes.
ESP ®
only stabilizes the vehicle to alimited
degree.
When SPORT handling mode is activated:
R ESP ®
only improves driving stability to a
limited degree.
R traction control is still activated.
R ESP ®
still provides support when you brake
firmly.
R engine torque is only restricted to alimited
degree, and the drive wheels are able to
spin. The spinning wheels produce acut-
ting effect for better traction. Characteristics when ESP
®
is deactivated
If ESP ®
is deactivated and one or more wheels
start to spin, the 0089warning lamp in the
instrument cluster does not flash. In such sit-
uations, ESP ®
will not stabilize the vehicle.
If you deactivate ESP ®
:
R ESP ®
no longer improves driving stability.
R engine torque is no longer limited and the
drive wheels are able to spin. The spinning
of the wheels results in acutting action for
better traction.
R traction control is still activated.
R ESP ®
still provides support when you brake
firmly. EBD (electronic brake force distribu-
tion)
i Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (Y page 54).
EBD monitors and controls the brake pres-
sure on the rear wheels to improve driving
stability while braking. G
WARNING
If EBD has malfunctioned, the rear wheels can still lock, e.g. under full braking. This
increases the risk of skidding and an accident.
You should therefore adapty our driving style
to the different handling characteristics. Have the brake system checked at aqualified spe-
cialist workshop.
Observe information regarding indicator and
warning lamps (Y page 192) as well as dis-
play messages (Y page 166). ADAPTIVE BRAKE
i Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (Y page 54).
ADAPTIVE BRAKE enhances braking safety
and offers increased braking comfort.Ina ddi-
tion to the braking function, ADAPTIVE BRAKE Driving safety systems
57Safety Z
X
Turn the mechanical key counter-clockwise
to position 0049.
The door is locked.
X Turn the mechanical key back and remove
it.
X Check that both doors are locked.
i If you lock the vehicle as described above,
the fuel filler flap is not locked. The anti-
theft alarm system is not armed.
Roadster X
Open the driver's door.
X Close the front-passenger door and the
trunk lid.
X Press the lockin gbutton (Y page 70).
X Check that the lockin gknobisint he lower
position on the front-passenger door. Press the lockin gknobd own by hand, if neces-
sary.
X Close the driver's door.
X Take the mechanical key out of the Smart-
Key (Y page 64).
X Insert the mechanical key into the lock of
the driver's door as far as it will go. X
Turn the mechanical key clockwise as far as
it will go to position 0047.
X Turn the mechanical key back and remove
it.
X Make sure that the doors and the trunk lid
are locked.
X Insert the mechanical key into the Smart-
Key. i
If you lock the vehicle as described above,
the fuel filler flap is not locked. The anti-
theft alarm system is not armed. Trunk
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
Combustion engines emit poisonous exhaust
gases such as carbon monoxide. Exhaust
gases can enter the vehicle interior if the
trunk lid is open when the engine is running,
especially if the vehicle is in motion .There is a
risk of poisoning.
Always switch off the engine before opening
the trunk lid. Never drive with the trunk lid
open. G
WARNING
When leaving the vehicle, alway sremove the
SmartKey from the ignition lock. Always take
the SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle.
Do not leave children unsupervised in the
vehicle, even if they are secured in achild
restraint system, and do not give them access to an unlocked vehicle. Achild's unsupervised
access to avehicle could result in an accident
and/or serious personal injury. They could:
R injure themselves on vehicle parts
R be seriously or fatally injured by extreme
heat or cold
R injure themselves or have an accident with
vehicle equipment that may still be in oper-
ation even after the SmartKey has been
removed from the ignition ,such as the seat
adjustment, steerin gwheel adjustmen tor
memory function.
If children open adoor, they could cause
severe or even fatal injury to other persons; if they get out of the vehicle, they could injure
themselves when doing so or be seriously or
even fatally injured by any passing traffic.
Do not expose the child restraint system to
direct sunlight. The child restraint system's
metal parts, for example, could become very 72
TrunkOpening and closing
X
Select key position 2with the Start/Stop
button (Y page 119).
X To open: press corresponding switch 0043
or 0044.
X To close: pull corresponding switch 0043
or 0044.
i If yo
upress the switch beyond the point of
resistance, an automatic opening/closing
process is started in the corresponding
direction. Yo ucan stop automatic opera-
tion by operating the switch again.
i Yo
uc an continu etooperate the sid ewin-
dow safteryou switch off the engine. This
function is available for up to fiv eminutes
or unti lthe driver' sorfront-passenger door
is opened. Opening and closin
gall side windows
(Roadster)
Usin gthe SmartKey G
WARNING
While opening the sid ewindows, bod yparts
could become trappe dbetween the sid ewin-
dow and the doo rframe as the sid ewindow
moves. There is ariskofi njury.
Make sure tha tnobody touches the sid ewin-
dow during the opening procedure .Ifsome-
bod ybecome strapped, release the switch or
pull the switch to close the sid ewindow again. G
WARNING
While closing the sid ewindows, bod yparts in
the closing are acould become trapped. There
is ar iskofi njury.
Whe nclosing make sure tha tnoparts of the
bod yare in the closing area. If somebody
become strapped, release the switch or press
the switch to ope nthe sid ewindow again. If the soft top is closed
,you can us ethe
SmartKey to simultaneously ope norclose all
of the sid ewindows:
X Make sure tha tthe soft top is closed
(Y page 79).
X Point the tip of the SmartKey at the driver's
doo rhandle.
X To ope nall side windows: press the0036
button on the SmartKey unti lthe sid ewin-
dow sare fully opened.
X To interrupt the opening procedure:
release the 0036button.
X To clos eall side windows: press the
0037 button on the SmartKey unti lthe side
window sare fully closed.
X To interrupt the closin gprocedure:
release the 0037button. Convenience opening (Coupe)
G
WARNING
While opening the sid ewindows, bod yparts
could become trappe dbetween the sid ewin-
dow and the doo rframe as the sid ewindow
moves. There is ariskofi njury.
Make sure tha tnobody touches the sid ewin-
dow during the opening procedure .Ifsome-
bod ybecome strapped, release the switch or
pull the switch to close the sid ewindow again.
Yo uc an ventilate the vehicl ebefore yo ustart
driving .Todos o, openthe sid ewindow susing
the SmartKey.
i The SmartKey mus
tbec lose to the driv-
er' sd oorh andle.
X Point the tip of the SmartKey at the driver's
doo rhandle.
X Unlock the vehicl ebypressing the 0036
button.
X Press and hol dthe 0036 button unti lthe
sid ew indow sare in the desired position.
X To interrupt convenience opening:
release the 0036button. 76
Side windowsOpening and closing
Problems with the side windows
G
WARNING
If you close aside window again immediately after it has been blocked or reset, the side window
closes with increased or maximum force. The reversing feature is then not active. Parts of the
body could be trapped in the closing area in the process. This poses an increased risk of injury or even fatal injury.
Make sure that no parts of the body are in the closing area. To stop the closing process, releasethe switch or push the switch again to reopen the side window. Problem
Possible causes/consequences and
0050 0050Solutions As
ide window will not
close. Objectsp
revent it from closing.
X Remove the objects.
X Close the side window. As
ide window will not
close. You cannot see the cause.
If
as ide window is obstructed during closing and reopens again
slightly:
X Immediately after the window blocks, pull the corresponding
switch again until the side window has closed.
The side window is closed with increased force.
If as ide window is obstructed again during closing and reopens
again slightly:
X Immediately after the window blocks, pull the corresponding
switch again until the side window has closed.
The side window is closed without the anti-entrapment feature. Soft top (Roadster)
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
If you do not lock the closed soft top, it may
open during ajourney. This could cause you to
lose control of the vehicle. There is arisk of an
accident.
Only drive with the soft top fully open or
locked closed. G
WARNING
If you do not fully open/close the soft top, the soft-top hydraulics depressurize after ashort
time. This causes the soft top to lower unex- pectedly and may cause you or others to be
trapped. There is arisk of injury.
Always open or close the soft top completely.
You can open or close the soft top:
R if the vehicle is stationary or
R if the speed does not exceed 30 mph
(50 km/h)
If there is astrongh ead wind, it may not be
possible to close the soft top fully. In order to close the soft top fully, reduce speed or stop.
For safety reasons, Mercedes-Benz recom-
mends that you only open or close the soft top
when the vehicle is stationary. 78
Soft top (Roadster)Opening and closing
Crash-responsive EASY-EXIT feature
If th
ecrash-responsiv eEASY-EXIT feature is
triggered in an accident, th esteering column
will mov eupwards when th edriver' sdoor is
opened. This occur sirrespective of th eposi-
tio noft heSmartKey in th eignition lock. This
makes it easier to exit th evehicle and rescue
th eo ccupants.
The crash-responsiv eEASY-EXIT feature is
only operational if th eEASY-EXIT/ENTRY fea-
tur eisa ctivated in th eon-board computer. Mirrors
Rear-view mirror
X
Anti-glar emode: flickanti-glare switch 0043
forwards or back. Exterior mirrors
Adjusting th eexterior mirrors G
WARNING
You coul dlose control of your vehicle if you do
th ef ollowin gwhile driving:
R adjust th edriver' sseat ,head restraint,
steering wheel or mirrors
R fasten th eseat belt
Ther eisar iskofana ccident.
Adjust th edriver' sseat ,head restraint ,steer-
ing wheel and mirror and fasten your seat belt before starting th eengine. G
WARNING
The exterior mirror on th efront-pa ssenger
side reduces th esizeoft heimage .Visible
object sare actually closer than they appear.
This mean sthaty ou coul dmisjudge th edis-
tance from road user straveling behind, e.g.
when changing lane .Ther eisar iskofana cci-
dent.
For this reason ,always mak esure of the
actual distanc efromt heroad user straveling
behin dbyg lancingovery our shoulder.
The convex exterior mirror sprovide alarger
fiel dofv ision.
The exterior mirror sare heated automatically
if th erear window defroste risswitched on
and th eoutside temperatur eislow. Mirror
heating last supto10m inutes.
i You can also heat up th
eexteri or mirrors
manually by switching on th erear window
defroster. X
Select ke yposition 1or 2wit hthe Start/
Stop button.
X Press button 0043for th eleft-hand exterior
mirror or button 0044for th eright-han dexte-
rior mirror.
The indicator lamp in th ecorres ponding
butto nlight supinr ed.
The indicator lamp goes out again after
som etime. You can adjust th eselected
mirror usin gadjustmen tbutton 0087as long
as th eindicator lamp is lit.
X Press adjustmen tbutton 0087up, down ,orto
th el eft or righ tuntil you have adjusted the
exterior mirror to th edesired position. You 90
MirrorsSeats, steerin
gwheel and mirrors
engage revers
egear. You can stor ethis posi-
tion. X
Select key position 2with the Start/Stop
button.
X Press button 0044for the exterior mirror on
the front-passenger side.
X Engage revers egear.
The exterior mirror on the front-passenger
side moves to the preset parkin gposition.
X Use adjustment button 0087to adjust the
exterior mirror to aposition that allows you
to see the rear wheel and the curb.
The parkin gposition is stored.
i If you shift the transmission to another
position ,the exterior mirror on the front-
passenger side return stothe driving posi-
tion.
Calling up astored parking position set-
ting X
Select key position 2with the Start/Stop
button.
X Adjust the exterior mirror on the front-
passenger side with the correspondin gbut-
ton (Y page 90).
X Engage revers egear.
The exterior mirror on the front-passenger
side moves to the stored parkin gposition. The exterior mirror on the front-passenger
side moves back to its original position:
R as soon as you exceed aspeed of 6mph
(10 km/h)
R about ten seconds after you have disen-
gaged revers egear
R if you press button 0043for the exterior mir-
ror on the driver's side Memor
yfunction Storing settings
G
WARNING
If you use the memory function on the driver's side while driving, you could lose control of
the vehicle as aresult of the adjustments
being made. There is arisk of an accident.
Only use the memory function on the driver's
side when the vehicle is stationary. G
WARNING
When the memory function adjusts the seat or steering wheel, you and other vehicle occu-
pants –particularly children –could become
trapped. There is arisk of injury.
While the memory function is makin gadjust-
ments, make sure that no one has any body
parts in the sweep of the seat or steering
wheel. If somebody becomes trapped, imme-
diately release the memory function position
button .The adjustment process is stopped. G
WARNING
Children could become trapped if they acti-
vate the memory function ,particularly when
unattended. There is arisk of injury.
When leaving the vehicle, alway stake the
SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave children unsupervised in the vehicle.
With the memory function ,you can stor eup
to three differen tsettings, e.g. for three dif-
feren tpeople. 92
Memor
yfunctionSeats, steering wheel and mirrors
causes of poo
rvisibility du etothe weather
conditions such as spray. There is ariskofan
accident.
In such situations, turn the light switch to
0058.
The automatic headlamp feature is only an
aid. The driver is responsibl efor the vehicle's
lighting at al ltimes.
0058 is the favored light switch setting. The
light setting is automaticall yselected accord-
ing to the brightnes softhe ambient light
(exception: poo rvisibility du etoweathe rcon-
ditions such as fog, snow or spray):
R SmartKey in position 1in the ignition lock:
the parking lamps are switched on or off
automaticall ydepending on the brightness
of the ambient light.
R With the engine running: if yo uhavea cti-
vate dthe daytime running lamps function
via the on-board computer, the daytime
running lamps or the low-bea mheadlamps
and parking lamps are switched on or off
automaticall ydepending on the brightness
of the ambient light.
Onl yfor Canada:
The daytime running lamps improve the visi-
bility of your vehicle during the day. The day- time running lamps function is required by law
in Canada. It cannot therefore be deactivated.
Whe nthe engine is running and the vehicle is
stationary: if yo umove the selector lever from
ad rive position to P,the daytime running
lamps/low-bea mheadlamp sgooutafter
three minutes.
Whe nthe engine is running, the vehicle is
stationar yand in bright ambient light: if you
turn the light switch to 0060,the daytime
running lamps and parking lamps switch on.
If the engine is running and yo uturn the light
switch to 0058,the manual settings take
precedence over the daytime running lamps.
USA only:
The daytime running lamps improve the visi-
bility of your vehicle during the day. To do this,
the daytime running lamps function mus tbeswitched on using the on-board computer
(Y
page 158).
If the engine is running and yo uturn the light
switch to 0060or0058,t he manual settings
take precedence over the daytime running
lamps.
i In the USA, the daytime running lamps are
deactivated upon delivery from the factory.
X To switc honautomati cheadlamp
mode: turn the light switch to 0058.
Low-beam headlamps
Even if the light senso rdoesn ot detect that it
is dark, the parking lamps and low-beam
headlamp sswitch on whe nthe ignition is
switched on and the light switch is set to the 0058 position. Thi sisaparticularly useful
function in the event of rai nand fog.
X To switc honthe low-beam headlamps:
turn the SmartKey in the ignition lock to
position 2or star tthe engine.
X Turn the light switch to 0058.
The green 0058indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster lights up.
Parking lamps ! If the battery ha
sbeene xcessivel ydis-
charged ,the parking lamps or standing
lamps are automaticall yswitched off to
enabl ethe next engine start. Alway spark
your vehicle safel yand sufficiently lit
according to lega lstandards. Avoi dthe
continuou suseof the 0060parking lamps
for several hours. If possible ,switch on the
0064 right or the 0063left standing lamp.
X To switc hon:turn the light switch to 0060.
Standing lamps
Switching on the standing lamps ensures the corresponding sid eofthe vehicle is illumi-
nated. Exterio
rlighting
97Lights and windshieldw ipers Z