
additional warning messages in the multi-
function display.
The brake fluid level may be too low due to
brake pad wear or leaking brake lines.
Have the brake system checked immedi-
ately. This work should be carried out at a
qualified specialist workshop.
!Vehicles with 4MATIC:function or per-
formance tests may only be carried out on
a 2-axle dynamometer. If you wish to oper-
ate the vehicle on such a dynamometer,
please consult an authorized Mercedes-
Benz Center in advance. You could other-
wise damage the drive train or the brake
system.
!Vehicles with 4MATIC: the ESP®system
operates automatically. The engine and the
ignition must therefore be switched off (the
SmartKey must be in position 0or 1in the
ignition lock or the Start/Stop button must
be in position 0or 1) if the electric parking
brake is tested on a brake dynamometer.
Braking triggered automatically by ESP
®
may cause severe damage to the brake
system.
!Vehicles without 4MATIC: the ESP®
system operates automatically. The engine
and the ignition must therefore be switched
off (the SmartKey must be in position 0or 1
in the ignition lock or the Start/Stop button
must be in position 0or 1) if:
Rthe electric parking brake is tested using
a brake dyn
amometer.
Rthe vehicle is towed with one axle raised.
Braking triggered automatically by ESP
®
may cause severe damage to the brake
system.
All checks and maintenance work on the
brake system must be carried out at a quali-
fied specialist workshop. Consult a qualified
specialist workshop to arrange this.
Have brake pads installed and brake fluid
replaced at a qualified specialist workshop. If the brake system has only been subject to
moderate loads, you should test the function-
ality of your brakes at regular intervals.
Information on BAS (Brake Assist) (
Ypage 68)
and BAS PLUS (Brake Assist PLUS)
(
Ypage 69).
For safety reasons, Mercedes-Benz recom-
mends only installing the following brake
disks and brake pads/linings:
Rbrake disks that have been approved by
Mercedes-Benz
Rbrake pads/linings that have been
approved by Mercedes-Benz or that are of
an equivalent standard of quality
Other brake disks or brake pads/linings can
compromise the safety of your vehicle.
Always replace all brake disks and brake
pads/linings on an axle at the same time.
Always install new brake pads/linings when
replacing brake disks.
The vehicle is equipped with lightweight
brake disks to which the wheel assembly with rim and threaded connection is matched.
The use of brake disks other than th ose
appr
oved by Mercedes-Benz can change the
track width and is subject to approval, if appli-
cable.
Shock-type loads when handling the brake
disks, such as when changing wheels, can
lead to a reduction in comfort when driving
with lightweight brake disks. Avoid shock-
type loads on the lightweight brake disks,
particularly on the brake plate.
Mercedes-Benz recommends that you only
use brake fluid that has been specially
approved for your vehicle by Mercedes-Benz,
or which corresponds to an equivalent quality
standard. Brake fluid which has not been
approved for Mercedes-Benz vehicles or
which is not of an equivalent quality could
affect your vehicle's operating safety.
Driving tips177
Driving and parking
Z 

AMG high-performance and ceramic
brakes
The high-performanc ebrak esystem is only
available on Mercedes-AM Gvehicles.
The AM Gbrak esystems are designed for
heav yloads .This may lead to noise when
braking .This will depend on :
RSpeed
RBraking force
REnvironmental conditions, suc has temper-
atur eand humidit y
The wear of individual component sof th e
brak esystem, suc has th ebrak epads/lining s
or brak ediscs, depend son th eindividual driv -
ing style and operating conditions.
Fo rthis reason ,it is impossible to state a
mileage that will be valid under all circum -
stances. An aggressive driving style will lead
to high wear .You can obtain further informa-
tion about this from your authorize d
Mercedes-Benz Center.
New and replace dbrak epads and disc sonly
reac htheir optimum braking effec tafter sev -
eral hundre dkilometers of driving .Compen -
sat efor this by applyin ggreate rforce to th e
brak epedal .Kee pthis in mind, and adapt
your driving and braking accordingly during
this break-in period.
Excessive heav ybraking result sin corre-
spondingly high brak ewear . Observ eth e
brak ewear warning lamp in th einstrumen t
cluste rand note any brak estatus message s
in th emultifunction display. Especially for
high performance driving ,it is important to
maintai nand hav
eth eb
rak esystem checke d
regularly.
Driving onwet roads
Hydroplaning
If water has accumulated to acertain dept h
on th eroad surface, there is adanger of
hydroplaning occurring, eve nif:
Ryou driv eat low speeds.
Rth etires hav eadequat etread depth.
Fo rthis reason ,in th eevent of heav yrain or in
condition sin whic hhydroplaning may occur ,
you mus tdriv ein th efollowin gmanner:
Rlower your speed.
Ravoi druts.
Ravoi dsudde nsteering movement s.
Rbrakecarefully.
Driving onflooded roads
!Do no tdriv ethroug hflooded areas .
Chec kth edept hof any water before driving
throug hit.Drive slowly throug h standing
water. Otherwise, water may ente rth e
vehicl einterior or th eengin ecompartment.
This can damag eth eelectronic compo -
nent sin th eengin eor th eautomatic trans -
mission .Water can also be drawn in by th e
engine's air suction nozzles and this can
caus eengin edamage.
Winter driving
GWARNIN G
If you shif tdown on aslipper yroad surfac ein
an attemp tto increas eth eengine's braking
effect, th edrive wheels could lose their grip.
There is an increased danger of skiddin gand
accidents .
Do no tshif tdown for additional engin ebrak -
ing on aslipper yroad surface.
GDANGER
If th eexhaust pipe is blocke dor adequat e
ventilation is no tpossible, poisonous gase s
suc has carbon monoxide (CO) may ente rth e
vehicle. This is th ecase, e.g. if th evehicl e
178Driving tips
Driving and parking 

becomes trapped in snow. There is a risk of
fatal injury.
If you leave the engine or the auxiliary heatingrunning, make sure the exhaust pipe and area
around the vehicle are clear of snow. To
ensure an adequate supply of fresh air, open a
window on the side of the vehicle that is not
facing into the wind.
Have your vehicle winter-proofed at a quali-
fied specialist workshop at the onset of win-
ter.
Drive particularly carefully on slippery road
surfaces. Avoid sudden acceleration, steering
and braking maneuvers. Do not use the cruise
control or DISTRONIC PLUS.
If the vehicle threatens to skid or cannot be
stopped when moving at low speed:
XShift the transmission to position N.
The outside temperature indicator is not
designed to serve as an ice-warning device
and is therefore unsuitable for that purpose.
Changes in the outside temperature are dis-
played after a short delay.
Indicated temperatures just above the freez-
ing point do not guarantee that the road sur-
face is free of ice. The road may still be icy,
especially in wooded areas or on bridges.
You should pay special attention to road con-
ditions when temperatures are around freez-
ing point.
For more information on driving with snow
chains, see (
Ypage 365).
For more information on driving with summer
tires, see (
Ypage 364).
Observe the notes in the "Winter operation"
section (
Ypage 364).
Driving systems
Mercedes-Benz Intelligent Drive
Mercedes-Benz Intelligent Drive stands for
innovative driver assistance and safety sys-
tems which enhance comfort and support the driver in critical situations. With these intelli-
gent co-ordinated systems Mercedes-Benz
has set a milestone on the path towards
autonomous driving.
Mercedes-Benz Intelligent Drive embraces all
elements of active and passive safety in one
well thought out system – for the safety of the
vehicle occupants and that of other road
users.
Further information on driving safety systems
(
Ypage 67).
Cruise control
General notes
Cruise control maintains a constant road
speed for you. It brakes automatically in order
to avoid exceeding the set speed. Change into
a lower gear in good time on long and steep
downhill gradients. This is especially impor-
tant if the vehicle is laden. By doing so, you
will make use of the braking effect of the
engine. This relieves the load on the brake
system and prevents the brakes from over-
heating and wearing too quickly.
Use cruise control only if road and traffic con-
ditions make it appropriate to maintain a
steady speed for a prolonged period. You can
store any road speed above 20 mph
(30 km/h).
Important safety notes
If you fail to adapt your driving style, cruise
control can neither reduce the risk of an acci-
dent nor override the laws of physics. Cruise
control cannot take into account the road,
traffic and weather conditions. Cruise control
is only an aid. You are responsible for the dis-
tance to the vehicle in front, for vehicle speed,
for braking in good time and for staying in
your lane.
Driving systems179
Driving and parking
Z 

XBriefly pull the cruise control lever towardsyou :.
XRemove your foot from the accelerator
pedal.
The first time cruise control is activated, it
stores the current speed or regulates the
speed of the vehicle to the previously
stored speed.
Setting a speed
Keep in mind that it may take a brief moment
until the vehicle has accelerated or braked to
the speed set.
XPress the cruise control lever up :for a
higher speed or down ;for a lower speed.
XTo adjust the set speed in 1 mph incre-
ments (1 km/h increments): briefly
press the cruise control lever up :or
down ;to the pressure point.
Every time the cruise control lever is
pressed up :or down ;the last speed
stored is increased or reduced.
XTo adjust the set speed in 5 mph incre-
ments (10 km/h increments): brieflypress the cruise control lever up
:or
down ;to the pressure point.
Every time the cruise control lever is
pressed up :or down ;the last speed
stored is increased or reduced.
iCruise control is not deactivated if you
depress the accelerator pedal. If you accel- erate to overtake, cruise control adjusts
the vehicle's speed to the last speed stored
after you have finished overtaking.
Deactivating cruise control
There are several ways to deactivate cruise
control:
XBriefly press cruise the control lever for-
wards :.
or
XBrake.
Cruise control is automatically deactivated if:
Ryou engage the electric parking brake
Ryou are driving at less than 20 mph
(30 km/h)
RESP®intervenes or you deactivate ESP®
Ryou shift the transmission to position N
while driving
If cruise control is deactivated, you will hear a
warning tone. You will see the Cruise Con‐
trol Offmessage in the multifunction dis-
play for approximately five seconds.
iWhen you switch off the engine, the last
speed stored is cleared.
Driving systems181
Driving and parking
Z 

DISTRONICPLUS
General notes
DISTRONIC PLU Sregulates th espeed and
automatically help syou maintain th edis -
tanc eto th evehicle detecte din front. Vehi-
cles are detecte dwit hth eaid of th eradar
sensor system. DISTRONIC PLU Sbrake s
automatically so that th eset speed is no t
exceeded .
Change into alowe rgear in goo dtime on lon g
and steep downhill gradients .Thi sis espe-
cially important if th evehicle is laden .By
doin gso, you will mak euse of th ebraking
effect of th eengine. Thi srelieves th eload on
th ebrake system and prevents th ebrake s
from overheatin gand wearin gto oquickly.
If DISTRONIC PLU Sdetects that there is aris k
of acollision ,you will be warned visually and
acoustically. DISTRONIC PLU Scanno tpre -
ven t acollision without your intervention .An
intermittent warnin gtone will then soun dand
th edistanc ewarnin glamp will ligh tup in th e
instrumen tcluster. Brak eimmediately in
order to increase th edistanc eto th evehicle
in fron tor take evasiv eaction provided it is
saf eto do so.
DISTRONIC PLU Soperates in range between
0 mph (0 km/h) and 12 0mph (20 0km/h).
Do no tuse DISTRONIC PLU Swhil edri vin
go
n
roads wit hsteep gradients .
As DISTRONIC PLU Stransmit sradar waves, it
can resemble th eradar detectors of th e
responsible authorities .You can refer to th e
relevant chapter in th eOperator's Manual if
question sare asked about this.
iUS Aonly: Thi sdevic ehas been approved
by th eFCC as a"Vehicular Radar System".
The radar sensor is intended fo ruse in an
automotive radar system only. Removal,
tampering, or altering of th edevic ewill void
any warranties ,and is no tpermitte dby th e
FCC. Do no ttampe rwith, alter, or use in
any non-approved way. An
yunauthorized modification to this
devic ecould void th euser's authorit yto
operat eth eequipment.
iCanada only: Thi sdevic ecomplies wit h
RSS-210 of Industry Canada. Operation is
subjec tto th efollowing tw oconditions:
1. Thi sdevic emay no tcaus eharmful inter-
ference ,and
2. Thi sdevic emus taccept any interferenc e
received, includin ginterferenc ethat may
caus eundesired operation of th edevice.
Removal, tampering, or altering of th e
devic ewill void any warranties ,and is no t
permitted. Do no ttampe rwith, alter, or use
in any non-approved way.
An yu
nauthorized modification to this
devic ecould void th euser's authorit yto
operat eth eequipment.
Important safet ynotes
GWARNING
DISTRONIC PLU Sdoe sno treact to :
Rpeople or animals
Rstationary obstacles on th eroad, e.g. stop-
ped or parke dvehicles
Roncomin gand crossin gtraffic
As aresult ,DISTRONIC PLU Smay neither giv e
warnings no rinterven ein suc hsituations.
There is aris kof an accident.
Always pay careful attention to th etraffic sit -
uation and be ready to brake .
GWARNING
DISTRONIC PLU Scanno talways clearly iden -
tify other road user sand complex traffic sit -
uations.
In suc hcases, DISTRONIC PLU Smay:
Rgiv ean unnecessary warnin gand then
brake th evehicle
Rneither giv e awarnin gno rinterven e
Raccelerat eor brake unexpectedly
There is aris kof an accident.
182Driving systems
Driving an d parking 

If these conditions are fulfilled, your vehicle is
accelerated. Acceleration will be interrupted
if changing lanes takes too long or if the dis-
tance between your vehicle and the vehicle in
front becomes too small.
iWhen you change lanes, DISTRONIC
PLUS monitors the left lane on left-hand-
drive vehicles or the right lane on right-
hand-drive vehicles.
Stopping
GWARNING
When leaving the vehicle, even if it is braked
only by DISTRONIC PLUS, it could roll away if:
Rthere is a malfunction in the system or in
the voltage supply.
RDISTRONIC PLUS has been deactivated
with the cruise control lever, e.g. by a vehi-
cle occupant or from outside the vehicle.
Rthe electrical system in the engine com-
partment, the battery or the fuses have
been tampered with.
Rthe battery is disconnected.
Rthe 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.
For further information on deactivating
DISTRONIC PLUS (
Ypage 188).
If DISTRONIC PLUS detects that the vehicle in
front is stopping, it brakes your vehicle until it is stationary.
Once your vehicle is stationary, it remains
stationary and you do not need to depress the
brake.
After a time, the electric parking brake
secures the vehicle and relieves the service
brake.
Depending on the specified minimum dis-
tance, your vehicle will come to a standstill at
a sufficient distance behind the vehicle in front. The specified minimum distance is set
using the control on the cruise control lever.
When DISTRONIC PLUS is activated, the
transmission is shifted automatically to posi-
tion
Pif:
Rthe driver's seat belt is not fastened and the
driver's door is open.
Rthe engine is switched off, unless it is auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
The electric parking brake secures the vehicle automatically if DISTRONIC PLUS is activated
when the vehicle is stationary and:
Ra system malfunction occurs.
Rthe power supply is not sufficient.
If a malfunction in the electric parking brake
occurs, then the transmission may also be
shifted into position Pautomatically.
Setting a speed
XPress the cruise control lever up :for a
higher speed or down ;for a lower speed.
XTo adjust the set speed in 1 mph incre-
ments (1 km/h increments): briefly
press the cruise control lever up :or
down ;to the pressure point.
Every time the cruise control lever is
pressed up :or down ;the last speed
stored is increased or reduced.
XTo adjust the set speed in 5 mph incre-
ments (10 km/h increments): briefly
186Driving systems
Driving and parking 

In the Assistance menu (Ypage 244) of the
on-board computer, you can select the assis- tance graphics display.
XSelect the Assistance Graphicfunction
using the on-board computer
(
Ypage 243).
Display when DISTRONIC PLUS is activa-
ted
:DISTRONIC PLUS active (text only
appears when the cruise control lever is
actuated)
;Vehicle in front, if detected
=Specified minimum distance to the vehi-
cle in front; adjustable
?Own vehicle
In the Assistance menu (
Ypage 244) of the
on-board computer, you can select the assis-
tance graphics display.
XSelect the Assistance Graphicfunction
using the on-board computer
(
Ypage 243).
You will see the stored speed for about five
seconds when you activate DISTRONIC PLUS.
Deactivating DISTRONIC PLUS
There are several ways to deactivate
DISTRONIC PLUS:
XBriefly press the cruise control lever for-
wards :
or
XBrake, unless the vehicle is stationary
When you deactivate DISTRONIC PLUS, you
will see the DISTRONIC
PLUSOffmessage in
the multifunction display for approximately
five seconds.
iThe last speed stored remains stored until
you switch off the engine.
iDISTRONIC PLUS is not deactivated if you
depress the accelerator pedal.
DISTRONIC PLUS is automatically deactiva-
ted if:
Ryou engage the electric parking brake or if
the vehicle is automatically secured with
the electric parking brake
RESP®intervenes or you deactivate ESP®
Rthe transmission is in the P,Ror Nposition
Ryou 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
Rthe vehicle has skidded
Ryou activate Active Parking Assist
If DISTRONIC PLUS is deactivated, you will
hear a warning tone. You will see the
DISTRONIC PLUS Off
message in the multi-
188Driving systems
Driving and parking 

Further information on deactivating the HOLD
function (
Ypage 193).
!If DISTRONIC PLUS or the HOLD function
is activated, the vehicle brakes automati-
cally in certain situations.
To prevent damage to the vehicle, deacti-
vate DISTRONIC PLUS and the HOLD func-
tion in the following or other similar situa-
tions:
Rwhen towing the vehicle
Rin the car wash
Activation conditions
You can activate the HOLD function if all of
the following conditions are fulfilled:
Rthe vehicle is stationary.
Rthe engine is running or if it has been auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
Rthe driver's door is closed or your seat belt
is fastened.
Rthe electric parking brake is released.
Rthe transmission is in position D,R or N.
RDISTRONIC PLUS is deactivated.
Activating the HOLD function
XMake sure that the activation conditions
are met.
XDepress the brake pedal.
XQuickly depress the brake pedal further
until :appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
The HOLD function is activated. You can
release the brake pedal.
iIf depressing the brake pedal the first
time does not activate the HOLD function,
wait briefly and then try again.
Deactivating the HOLD function
The HOLD function is deactivated automati-
cally if:
Ryou accelerate and the transmission is in
position Dor R.
Ryou shift the transmission to position P.
Ryou depress the brake pedal again with a
certain amount of pressure untilëdis-
appears from the multifunction display.
Ryou secure the vehicle using the electric
parking brake.
Ryou activate DISTRONIC PLUS.
iAfter a time, the electric parking brake
secures the vehicle and relieves the service
brake. The HOLD function is then deacti-
vated.
When the HOLD function is activated, the
transmission is shifted automatically to posi-
tion Pif:
Rthe driver's seat belt is not fastened and the
driver's door is open.
Rthe engine is switched off, unless it is auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/
stop function.
The electric parking brake secures the vehicle
automatically if the HOLD function is activa-
ted when the vehicle is stationary and:
Ra system malfunction occurs.
Rthe power supply is not sufficient.
Driving systems193
Driving and parking
Z