
Fu
nction of BAS (Brake Assist Sy stem) &
WARNING Risk of an accident caused by
a malfunction in BAS (Brake Assi stSys‐
te m)
If BA S is malfunctioning, the braking dis tance
may increase in an emergency braking situa‐
tion. #
Dep ress the brake pedal with full force
in emer gency braking situations. ABS
pr eve nts the wheels from locking. BA
S suppo rts yo ur eme rgency braking situation
with additional brake forc e.
If yo u depress the brake pedal quickl y,BA S is
acti vated:
R BAS au tomatical lyboosts the brake pres‐
sure.
R BAS can sho rten the braking dis tance.
R ABS pr events the wheels from locking.
The brakes will function as usual once you
re lease the brake pedal. BAS is deactivated. Fu
nctions of ESP ®
(Electronic Stability Pro‐
gr am) &
WARNING Risk of skidding if ESP ®
is
malfunctioning
If ESP ®
is malfunctioning, ESP ®
cannot car ry
out vehicle stabilisation. In addition, other
driving saf ety sy stems are switched off. #
Drive on carefull y. #
Have ESP ®
ch ecked at a qualified spe‐
cialist workshop. &
WARNING Risk of skidding if ESP ®
is
deactivated
If yo u deactivate ESP ®
, ESP ®
cannot car ry
out vehicle stabilisation. #
ESP ®
should on lybe deactivated in the
fo llowing situations. ESP
®
monitors and impr oves driving stability and
traction, particular ly inthefo llowing situations:
R When pulling away on wet or slippe ryroads. R
When braking.
R Vehicles with trailer hitch: In trailer opera‐
tion from speeds of 65 km/h, if theve hicle/
trailer combination begins tosw ay from side
to side.
R Instro ng sidewinds when you are driving
fa ster than 80 km/h.
ESP ®
can stabilise theve hicle byinter vening in
th efo llowing ways:
R One or more wheels are braked.
R The engine output is adap ted according to
th e situation.
ESP ®
is deactivated if the ESP ®
OFF å warn‐
ing lamp lights up continuously in the instrument
clus ter:
R Driving stability will no lon ger be impr oved.
R Vehicles with trailer hitch: Stabilisation of
th eve hicle/trailer combination is no longer
active.
R Crosswind Assist is no longer active.
R The drive wheels could spin. Driving and parking
181

R
ETS/4ETS traction control is still active.
% Even when ESP ®
is deactivated, you are still
assis tedby ESP ®
when braking.
ESP ®
is inter vening if the ESP ®
÷ warning
lamp flashes in the instrument clus ter:
R Do not deacti vate ESP ®
.
R Only depress the accelera tor pedal as far as
is necessar y.
R Adapt your driving style to suit the cur rent
ro ad and weather conditions.
Deactivate ESP ®
in thefo llowing situations to
impr ovetraction:
R When using snow chains R
In deep sn ow
R On sand or gr avel
% Spinning the wheels results in a cutting
action which pr ovides better grip.
ESP ®
is deactivated if theå ESP®
OFF warn‐
ing lamp lights up continuously in the instrument
clus ter.
If th e ESP ®
÷ warning lamp lights up continu‐
ousl y,ESP ®
is not available due toa malfunction.
Obse rve any information which may be displa yed
in the instrument clus ter:
R Warning and indicator lamps (→ page 493)
R Display messages (→ page 437) ETS/4ETS (Electronic
Traction Sy stem)
ETS/4E TStraction control is pa rtof ESP ®
.
ETS/4ETS can impr ovetheve hicle's traction by
inter vening in thefo llowing ways:
R The drive wheels are braked individually if
they spin.
R More drive torque is transferred tothe wheel
or wheels with traction.
Influence of drive prog rams on ESP ®
The drive prog rams enable ESP ®
to adapt todif‐
fe re nt we ather and road conditions as well as
th e driver's prefer red driving style. You can
select the drive prog rams using theDY NA MIC
SELECT switch. 18 2
Driving and pa rking

Ac
tivating/deactivating ESP ®
(Electronic Sta‐
bility Prog ram) Multimedia sy
stem:
, Vehicle .
k Assistance .
ESP #
Activate Oor deacti vate ª the function.
ESP ®
is deactivated if the ESP ®
OFF å warn‐
ing lamp lights up continuously in the instrument
clus ter.
Obser vethe information on warning lamps and
display messages which may be shown in the
instrument clus ter. Fu
nctions of ESP ®
Crosswind Assist ESP
®
Crosswind Assist de tects sudden gu sts of
side wind and helps the driver tokeep theve hi‐
cle in the lane:
R ESP ®
Crosswind Assist is active at vehicle
speeds between 80 km/h and 200 km/h
when driving stra ight ahead or cornering
slight ly. R
The vehicle is stabilised bymeans of individ‐
ual brake application on one side. Fu
nctions of ESP ®
trailer stabilisation &
WARNING Risk of accident in poor road
and weather conditions
In poor road and weather conditions, the
trailer stabilisation cannot pr event lu rching of
th eve hicle/trailer combination. Trailers with
a high centre of grav ity may tip over before
ESP ®
de tects this. #
Alw ays adapt your driving style to suit
th e cur rent road and weather condi‐
tions. When driving with a trailer, ESP
®
can stabilise
yo ur vehicle if the trailer begins tosw ay from
side toside:
R ESP ®
trailer stabilisation is active abo ve
speeds of 65 km/h. R
Slight sw aying is reduced bymeans of a tar‐
ge ted, individual brake application on one
side.
R Intheeve nt of intense sw aying, the engine
output is also reduced and all wheels are
braked.
ESP ®
trailer stabilisation may be impaired or
may not function if:
R The trailer is not connec ted cor rectly or is
not de tected prope rly by theve hicle. Fu
nction of EBD (Electronic Brake forc e Dis‐
tribution) EBD is
characterised bythefo llowing:
R Monitoring and regulating the brake pressure
on there ar wheels.
R Impr oved driving stability when braking,
especially on bends. 184
Driving and pa rking

Fu
nction of Active Brake Assi st Ac
tive Brake Assi stconsi sts of:
R Distance warning function
R Autonomous braking function
R Situation-dependent braking assi stance
R Vehicles with the Driving Assistance
pa ckage: Evasi veSteering Assist
Ac tive Brake Assi stcan help youto minimise the
ri sk of a collision with vehicles or pedestrians or
to reduce the ef fects of su cha collision.
If Ac tive Brake Assi sthas de tected a risk of colli‐
sion, you will be warned visually and acousti‐
cally.
If yo u do not react tothe visual or acoustic warn‐
ing, autonomous braking can be initiated in criti‐
cal situations.
In especially critical situations, Active Brake
Assi stcan initia teautonomous braking direct ly.
In this case, the visual and acoustic warning
occurs simultaneously with the braking applica‐
tion. If
yo u apply the brake yourself in a critical situa‐
tion or apply the brake during autonomous brak‐
ing, situation-dependent braking assis tance
occu rs. This increases the brake pressure up to
maximum full-s top braking if necessar y.
If th e autonomous braking function or the situa‐
tion-dependent braking assis tance is trig gered,
additional pr eventive measures for occupant
pr otection (PRE-SAFE ®
) may also be initiated, if
th eve hicle is equipped with these. &
WARNING Risk of an accident caused by
limited de tection per form ance of Active
Brake Assi st
Ac tive Brake Assi stcannot al ways clearly
identify objects and compl extraf fic situa‐
tions.
In su chcases, Active Brake Assi stmight:
R give an unnecessa rywa rning or brake the
ve hicle
R not give a warning or not brake theve hi‐
cle. #
Alw ays pay careful attention tothe traf‐
fi c situation; do not rely on Active Brake
Assi stalone. #
Beready tobrake and take evasive
action if necessar y. Also obser
vethe sy stem limits of Active Brake
Assi st.
The individual subfunctions are available in
th efo llowing speed ranges:
Distance warning function
The dis tance warning function issues a warning
at speeds:
R From appr oximately 30 km/h, if over se veral
seconds the dis tance maintained totheve hi‐
cle tr avelling in front is insuf ficient forthe
driven speed. The dis tancewarning lamp
th en lights up in the instrument clus ter·.
R From appr oximately 7 km/h, if your vehicle
is critically close toave hicle or pedestrian.
An intermittent warning tone sounds and the
dis tance warning lamp lights up in the instru‐
ment clus ter·. Driving and parking
18 5

Cancelling a brake application of
Active
Brake Assi st
Yo u can cancel a brake application of Active
Brake Assi stat any time by:
R Dep ressing the accelera tor pedal fully.
R Releasing the brake pedal.
Ac tive Brake Assi stcancels the inter vention
when at least one of thefo llowing conditions is
fulfilled:
R You manoeuv retoavoid the obs tacle.
R The reis no longer a risk of collision.
R An obs tacle is no longer de tected in front of
yo ur vehicle.
Evasive Steering Assist
Evasive Steering Assist has thefo llowing charac‐
te rist ics:
R Can de tect stationary or crossing pedes‐
trians.
R Can assist the driver with additional steering
assis tance if it de tects a swerving manoeu‐
vre. R
Can be acti vatedby an abrupt steering mo ve‐
ment during a swerving manoeuvre.
R Can assi stduring swerving and stra ightening
of theve hicle.
R Can react from a speed of appr oximately
20 km/h up toa speed of appr oximately
70 km/h.
R You can pr eventthe assis tance at any time
by active steering. &
WARNING Risk of an accident despi te
Evasive Steering Assist
Evasive Steering Assist cann otalw ays clear ly
identify objects and complex traf fic situa‐
tions.
In addition, thesteering support of Evasive
St eering Assist is generally not su fficient to
av oid a collision.
In such cases Evasive Steering Assist can:
R give an unnecessary warning or pr ovide
assis tance
R not gi veawa rning or not pr ovide assis‐
ta nce #
Alw ays pay careful attention tothe traf‐
fi c situation; do not rely on Ev asive
St eering Assist alone. #
Beready tobrake and take evasive
action, if necessar y. #
Preve ntthe assis tance byactively steer‐
ing in non-critical driving situations. #
Drive at an appropriate speed if pedes‐
trians are close tothe path of your vehi‐
cle. Also obser
vethe sy stem limits of Evasive Steer‐
ing Assist.
Sy stem limits
Ac tive Brake Assi stmay be impaire d or may not
function in thefo llowing situations:
R In sno w,rain, fog, heavy spr ay, if there is
gl are, in direct sunlight or in great lyvarying
light conditions.
R Ifth e sensors are dirty, mis ted up, damaged
or co vered. 18 8
Driving and pa rking

Fu
nction of Adaptive Brake Lights Ad
aptive Brake Lights warnfollowing traf fic in an
emergency braking situation:
R byflashing brake lamps
R byactivating the hazard warning lights
Ad aptive Brake Lights ha vethefo llowing charac‐
te rist ics:
R Ifyo u brake sharply at a speed abo ve
50 km/h, or if braking is assi sted byBAS or
Ac tive Brake Assi st,th e brake lamps flash
ra pidl y.This pr ovides traf fic tr ave lling behind
yo u with an even more noticeable warning.
R Ifyo u brake sharply toast andstill from a
speed abo ve70 km/h, the hazard warning
lights are activated automatically once the
ve hicle is stationar y.The brake lamps light
up again cons tantly when you depress the
brake pedal. The hazard warning lights
switch off automatically when you drive
fast erthan 10 km/h. You can also swit choff
th e hazard warning lights using the hazard
wa rning button. The
vehicle is braked considerably when moving
fast erthan 50 km/h:
R Brake Assist Sy stem (BAS) and Active Brake
Assi stsupport you during braking.
R Brake Assist activates theAd aptive Brake
Lights.
R The brake lamps flash rapidl y. Cruise control and limiter
Fu
nction of cruise control
Cruise cont rol accelerates and brakes theve hi‐
cle automatically in order tomaintain a pr evi‐
ously stored speed.
If yo u accelerate toove rtake, forex ample, the
st ored speed is not dele ted. If youre mo veyour
fo ot from the accelera tor pedal af terov ertaking,
cruise control will resume speed regulation back
to thestored speed.
Yo u can operate cruise cont rol with the cruise
control le ver.
If yo ufa ilto adapt your driving style, cruise con‐
trol can neither reduce therisk of an accident
nor override the la wsof ph ysics. It cannot take into account
road, weather or traf fic conditions.
Cruise control is only an aid. You are responsible
fo rth e dis tance totheve hicle in front, forve hi‐
cle speed, for braking in good time and forst ay‐
ing in lane.
Sy stem limitations
Cruise control may be unable tomaintain the
st ored speed on uphill gradients. The stored
speed is resumed when the gradient evens out.
Do not use cruise control in thefo llowing situa‐
tions:
R in traf fic situations whi chrequ ire frequent
ch anges of speed, e.g. in heavy traf fic, on
winding roads
R on slippe ryroads. Accelerating can cause
th e drive wheels tolose traction and the
ve hicle could then skid
R when visibility is poor
Fu nction of the limi ter
The limiter restricts the speed of theve hicle. To
re duce the speed swiftly tothe set speed, the
limiter applies the brakes automatically. 19 0
Driving and pa rking

%
Onvehicles with a segment display in the
speedome ter,th e segments extending from
th e cur rent stored speed tothe end of the
scale light up. If you ha veactivated the per‐
manent limiter and a speed is stored, the
segments extending up tothestored speed
light up.
% Ifyo u per form a kickdown, theva riable lim‐
iter is swit ched topassive mode. The varia‐
ble limiter is operational again once the
speed drops below thestored speed.
% Ifyo u brake, deactivate ESP ®
or if ESP ®
inter venes, cruise control is deacti vated. The
va riable limiter is not deactivated.
When you swit choff theve hicle, the last
speed stored is cleared.
Pe rm anent limi ter
If yo u wish tolimit the speed permanently to a
specific value (e.g. for driving on winter tyres),
yo u can set this speed with the permanent lim‐
iter.
Yo u do this by limiting the speed toava lue
between 160 km/h and 240 km/h in the multi‐
media sy stem (→ page193). Shortly before
the set speed is reached, it
appears in the multifunction displa y.When you
confirm the message with %, display mes‐
sages no longer appear until you swit choff the
ve hicle. The speed will only be displa yed again
once theve hicle has been restar ted.
The permanent limiter does not switch topas‐
sive mode even du ring kickdown and the driven
speed remains below the set speed.
Setting the speed limit for winter tyres
Multimedia sy stem:
, Vehicle .
î Vehicle settings .
Win-
ter tyres limit #
Select the speed or deactivate the function. Distance Pilot DISTRONIC
Fu
nction of Distance Pilot DISTRONIC
Dis tance Pilot DISTRONIC:
R Maintains the set speed and accelerates or
decelerates theve hicle if the dis tance from
th eve hicle in front permits. R
Assists you in main taining the dis tance from
th eve hicle in front and can bring your vehi‐
cle toast andstill if necessar y.
R Brakes your vehicle with up to50 % of the
maximum possible braking po wer.If greater
decele ration pe rformance is requ ired, a vis‐
ual and acoustic warning is given and you
must then inter vene yourself.
R Vehicles with Driving Assistance Pack‐
age, Parking Pilot and COMAND Online:
When driving in stop-s tart traf fic, the driver is
suppor tedby an extended, au tomatic restart
in traf fic jams.
R Vehicles with Driving Assistance Pack‐
age: Responds in urban speed ranges tosta‐
tionary vehicles (e xcept bicycles, mo torcy‐
cles and pede strians) if conditions are suf fi‐
cient toenable de tection.
If yo ufa ilto adapt your driving style, Dis tance
Pilot DISTRONIC can nei ther reduce therisk of
an accident nor override the la wsof ph ysics.
Dis tance Pilot DISTRONIC cannot take into
account road, weather or traf fic conditions. Dis‐
ta nce Pilot DISTRONIC is only an aid. You are Driving and parking
19 3

Pulling
the cruise control le ver will set the dis‐
pla yed speed limit as the speed, pr ovided that:
R The Speed Limit Pilot has been activated in
the multimedia sy stem and
R Distance Pilot DISTRONIC has been acti va‐
te d.
If no speed limit is displa yed when the le ver is
operated, the speed set bythe driver is adop ted.
Drive prog ram
The DYNA MIC SELECT switch allo wsyouto
ch ange the driving style of Dis tance Pilot
DISTRONIC. Depending on which drive program
is selected, the driving characteristics can be
ge ared towa rds fuel econom y,comfort or
dynamic per form ance (→ page160).
Sy stem limits
Dis tance Pilot DISTRONIC is acti veinthe
0 km/h to200 km/h speed range.
Ve hicles with the Driving Assistance Pack‐
age: Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is acti veinthe
0 km/h to210 km/h speed range. The sy
stem may be impaired or may not function
in thefo llowing situations:
R In sno w,rain, fog, heavy spr ay, if there is
gl are, in direct sunlight or in great lyvarying
light conditions.
R Ifth e windscreen in the area of the camera is
dirty, mis ted up, damaged or co vered.
R Ifth era dar sensors are dirty or co vered.
Do not use Dis tance Pilot DISTRONIC in thefo l‐
lowing situations:
R Inroad and traf fic conditions whi chdo not
allow youto maintain a cons tant speed, e.g.
in heavy traf fic or on winding roads.
R On slippe ryroads. Braking or accelerating
can cause the drive wheels tolose traction
and theve hicle could then skid.
R When there is poor visibility, e.g. due tofog,
heavy rain or sno w.
R In multi-s torey car par ksor at tollst ations.
R Onroads with steep uphill or downhill gradi‐
ents. Ti
ps
Pa y particular attention in thefo llowing traf fic
situations. In such situations, brake if necessar y.
Dis tance Pilot DISTRONIC is then deactivated:
R When cornering, entering and exiting a bend.
R When not driving in the cent reofthe lane.
R When other vehicles are changing lane.
R Ifth ere are nar row vehicles.
R Ifth ere are obs tacles and stationary vehi‐
cles.
R Ifth ere are crossing vehicles, pedestrians,
mo torcyc lists or cyclists. Driving and parking
19 5