Make sure no one is underneath the vehicle or
in the immediate vicinity of the wheel arches
when the vehicle is being lowered.
If you unlock the vehicle or open a door, the
vehicle begins to compensate for load discrep-
ancies while still parked. However, for signifi-
cant level changes, such as after the vehicle has
been stationary for a long period, the engine
must be on. For safety reasons, the vehicle is
only lowered when the doors are closed. Low-
ering is interrupted if a door is opened, and it
continues once the door has been closed.
ADS and ADS PLUS (Adaptive Damping
System) General notes The Adaptive Damping System automatically
controls the calibration of the dampers. The
damping characteristics adapt to the current
operating and driving situation.
The damping is tuned individually to each wheel
and depends on: R
your driving style, e.g. sporty R
the road surface conditions R
the drive program selected R
the vehicle level setting
Selecting Comfort mode
In the Comfort drive program, the driving char-
acteristics of your vehicle are more comforta-
ble. Therefore, select this mode if you favor a
more comfortable driving style. Also select the
Comfort drive program when driving fast on
straight roads, e.g. on straight stretches of high-
way. X
Select the Comfort drive program using
DYNAMIC SELECT controller C .
The vehicle is adjusted to normal level.
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): in the Comfort drive program, the vehicle
is lowered by 0.6 in (15 mm) if you: R
drive at speeds above 70 mph (112 km/h) or R
drive at speeds between 60 mph (96 km/h)
and 70 mph (112 km/h) for longer than
20 seconds
The vehicle is raised again if you: R
drive at speeds below 25 mph (40 km/h) or R
drive at speeds between 25 mph (40 km/h)
and 40 mph (64 km/h) for longer than
20 seconds
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: in the Comfort drive
program, the vehicle is: R
lowered by 0.4 in (10 mm) if you drive at
speeds above 112 mph (180 km/h) R
raised again if you drive at speeds below
87 mph (140 km/h)
Selecting Sport mode
The firmer setting of the suspension tuning in
the Sport drive program ensures even better
contact with the road. Select this drive program
when employing a sporty driving style, e.g. on
winding country roads.
DSR is not available in the Sport drive program.
For further information on DSR, see
( Y
page 236). X
Select the Sport drive program using
DYNAMIC SELECT controller C .
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): the vehicle is lowered by 0.6 in (15 mm)
compared to the normal level.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: the vehicle
remains at the normal level.206
Driving systems
Driving and parking
Failure to operate this vehicle safely may
result in an accident, rollover of the vehicle,
and severe or fatal injury. R
In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is sig-
nificantly more likely to die than a person
wearing a seat belt.
You and all vehicle occupants should always
wear your seat belts.
General notes Only select raised level if this is appropriate for
the road conditions. Otherwise, fuel consump-
tion may increase and handling may be affected.
Make changes to the vehicle level while the
vehicle is in motion. This enables the vehicle to
adjust to the new level as quickly as possible.
The vehicle level may change visibly if you park
the vehicle and the outside temperature
changes. If the temperature drops, the vehicle
level is lower; with an increase in temperature,
the vehicle level rises.
If you unlock the vehicle or open a door, the
vehicle begins to compensate for load discrep-
ancies while still parked. However, for signifi-
cant level changes, such as after the vehicle has
been stationary for a long period, the engine
must be on. For safety reasons, the vehicle is
only lowered when the doors are closed. Low-
ering is interrupted if a door is opened, and it
continues once the door has been closed.
Vehicles with no trailer coupled: below a
speed of 40 mph (64 km/h), you can select
between the normal and raised vehicle level.
Select the normal vehicle level for normal road
su r
faces and the raised vehicle level 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.
If you try to select raised level at a speed above
40 mph (64 km/h), the Drive More Slowly
message appears in the multifunction display.
Vehicles with a trailer coupled: below a speed
of 19 mph (30 km/h), you can select between
the normal and raised vehicle level. Setting the raised vehicle level X
Start the engine.
If indicator lamp D is not lit:X
Press button C .
Indicator lamp D flashes while the vehicle is
being raised, and lights up continuously as
soon as the vehicle reaches the desired level.
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): the vehicle is lowered by 2.4 in (60 mm)
compared to the normal level.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: the vehicle is
raised by 2 in (50 mm) compared to the nor-
mal level.
The Vehicle Rising
message appears in the
multifunction display.
The message remains until the raised level is
reached.
If you press the 8 or v button on the
multifunction steering wheel, the message will
disappear.
The raised level setting is canceled if you: R
drive at speeds above 50 mph (80 km/h) (all
vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehicles) R
drive at speeds above 43 mph (70 km/h)
(Mercedes-AMG vehicles) R
drive between 40 mph (64 km/h) and 50 mph
(80 km/h) for approximately 20 seconds (all
vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehicles). R
drive at speeds between 40 mph (64 km/h)
and 43 mph (70 km/h) for approximately
20 seconds (Mercedes-AMG vehicles) R
drive at speeds above 19 mph (30 km/h) with
a trailer
The raised vehicle level remains saved when you
are not driving within these speed ranges.208
Driving systems
Driving and parking
Setting the normal vehicle level
! Make sure that there is enough ground
clearance when the vehicle is being lowered.
It could otherwise hit the ground, damaging
the underbody.
X
Start the engine.
If indicator lamp D is lit:X
Press button C .
Indicator lamp D flashes while the vehicle is
being lowered, and goes out as soon as the
desired vehicle level is reached.
Vehicles with no trailer coupled: the vehi-
cle is adjusted to the height of the selected
drive program ( Y
page 152).
Vehicles with a trailer coupled: the vehicle
is adjusted to normal level regardless of the
drive program selected ( Y
page 152). The
vehicle remains at the normal level, even if the
drive program is changed.
During the adjustment, the Lowering mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
If you press the 8 or v button on the
multifunction steering wheel, the message will
disappear.
AMG adaptive sport suspension sys-
tem
General notes
i AMG adaptive sport suspension system is
available for Mercedes-AMG vehicles and for
the GLE 450.
The electronically controlled damping system
works continuously. This improves driving
safety and ride comfort. 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 of Sport, Sport + or
Comfort
The suspension setting can be adjusted using
the corresponding button in the center console
or the DYNAMIC SELECT controller
( Y
page 152).
Each time you start the engine with the ignition
key or the Start/Stop button, Comfort mode is
activated. For further information about starting
the engine, see ( Y
page 147).
Sport mode
The firmer setting of the suspension tuning in
Sport mode ensures even better contact with
the road. Select this mode when employing a
sporty driving style, e.g. on winding country
roads. X
Press button C repeatedly until indicator
lamp