2016 MERCEDES-BENZ SL ROADSTER automatic transmission

i
The following function is not operational in
all countries.
Distance Pilot DISTRONIC uses additional infor- mation from your navigation system so that it
can adapt to certain traffic situations. This is the
case if, while following a vehicle, Distance Pilot
DISTRONIC is active and you:
R approach or drive around a roundabout
R approach a T-junction
R turn off at a motorway exit
Even if the vehicle in front leaves the detection
range, Distance Pilot DISTRONIC temporarily
maintains the current driving speed and does
not accelerate. This is based on the current map
data in the navigation system.
Afterwards, the vehicle accelerates back to the
speed you set.
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 If Distance Pilot DISTRONIC detects that the
vehicle in front is stopping, it brakes your vehicle
until it is stationary.
Once your vehicle is stationary, it remains sta-
tionary and you do not need to depress the
brake. After a short period, the vehicle is
secured by the electric parking brake, thus
relieving the service brake.
Depending on the specified minimum distance,
your vehicle will come to a standstill at a suffi-
cient distance behind the vehicle in front. The
specified minimum distance is set using the
control on the cruise control lever.
The electric parking brake secures the vehicle
automatically if Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is
activated and:
R the driver's door is open and the driver's seat
belt is unfastened
R the engine is switched off, unless it is auto-
matically switched off by the ECO start/stop
function R
a system fault occurs
R the power supply is insufficient
If a malfunction in the electric parking brake
occurs, then the transmission may also be shif-
ted into position Pautomatically.
Setting a speed Bear in mind that it may take a brief moment
until the vehicle has accelerated or braked to
the set speed.
X Press the cruise control lever up :for a
higher speed or down Afor a lower speed.
X Keep the cruise control lever pressed until the
desired speed is reached or press the cruise
control lever repeatedly until the desired
speed is reached.
X Release the cruise control lever.
The new speed is stored. Distance Pilot
DISTRONIC is activated and adjusts the vehi-
cle's speed to the new speed stored.
X To adjust the set speed in 1 km/h incre-
ments:
briefly press the cruise control lever
up : to the pressure point for a higher speed
or down Afor a lower speed.
The last speed stored is increased or reduced.
X To adjust the set speed in 10 km/h incre-
ments: briefly press the cruise control lever
up : beyond the pressure point for a higher
speed, or down Afor a lower speed.
The last speed stored is increased or reduced.
Setting the specified minimum distance You can set the specified minimum distance for
Distance Pilot DISTRONIC by varying the time
span between one and two seconds. With this
function you can set the minimum distance that Distance Pilot DISTRONIC maintains to the vehi-
cle in front, dependent on vehicle speed. You
can see this distance in the multifunction dis-
play (Y page 166).
The specified minimum distance can be
changed when Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is acti- vated or deactivated.
Make sure that you maintain a sufficient and
safe distance from the vehicle in front. Adjust
the distance to the vehicle in front if necessary. Driving systems
165Driving and parking Z

Deactivating Distance Pilot DISTRONIC
Cruise control lever
There are several ways to deactivate Distance
Pilot DISTRONIC:
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 =.
The variable limiter is selected. LIM indicator lamp ;in the cruise control lever lights up.
When you deactivate Distance Pilot DISTRONIC,
the Distance Pilot off
Distance Pilot off message will appear
in the multifunction display for approximately
five seconds.
i The last speed stored remains stored until
you switch off the engine.
i Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is not deactivated
if you depress the accelerator pedal. If you
accelerate to overtake, Distance Pilot
DISTRONIC adjusts the vehicle's speed to the last speed stored after you have finished over-
taking.
Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is automatically deac- tivated if:
R you apply the electric parking brake or if the
vehicle is automatically secured with the elec-
tric parking brake
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 is open
R the vehicle has skidded If Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is automatically
deactivated, you will hear a warning tone. The
Distance Pilot off
Distance Pilot off message will appear in
the multifunction display for approximately five
seconds.
Tips for driving with Distance Pilot
DISTRONIC General notes
The following contains descriptions of certain
road and traffic conditions in which you must be particularly attentive. In such situations, brake if
necessary. Distance Pilot DISTRONIC will then
be deactivated.
Cornering, entering and exiting a bend The ability of Distance Pilot DISTRONIC to
detect vehicles when cornering is limited. Your
vehicle may brake unexpectedly or late.
Vehicles which are not driving in the mid-
dle of their lane Distance Pilot DISTRONIC may not detect vehi-
cles which are not driving in the middle of their
lane. The distance to the vehicle in front will be
too short. Driving syste
ms
167Driving an d parking Z

Activation conditions
You can activate the HOLD function if all of the
following conditions are fulfilled:
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 your seat belt is
fastened
R the electric parking brake is released
R the transmission is in position D,Ror N
R Distance Pilot DISTRONIC is deactivated
Activating the HOLD function X
Make sure that the activation conditions are
met.
X Depress the brake pedal.
X Quickly depress the brake pedal further
until :appears in the multifunction display.
The HOLD function is activated. You can
release the brake pedal.
i If 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 automatically
if:
R you depress the accelerator and the trans-
mission is in position Dor R.
R the transmission is in position P.
R you depress the brake pedal again with a cer-
tain amount of pressure until HOLD HOLDdisappears
from the multifunction display.
R you secure the vehicle using the electric park-
ing brake.
R you activate Distance Pilot DISTRONIC.
i After a short period, the vehicle is secured
by the electric parking brake, thus relieving
the service brake. When the HOLD function is activated, the trans-
mission is shifted automatically to position Pif:
R the driver's seat belt is not fastened and the
driver's door is open
R the 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 activated,
the vehicle is stationary and:
R a system fault occurs
R the power supply is insufficient
If a malfunction in the electric parking brake
occurs, then the transmission may also be shif-
ted into position P automatically. RACE START
Important safety notes i
RACE START must not be used on normal
roads. RACE START must only be activated
and used on dedicated road circuits, outside
of public road use.
i RACE START is only available in
Mercedes‑ AMG vehicles.
RACE START enables optimum acceleration
from a standing start. For this, a suitably high-
grip road surface is required, along with the
tyres and vehicle being in good condition. G
WARNING
If you use RACE START, individual tyres may
get into a spin and the vehicle could skid.
Depending on the selected ESP ®
mode, there
is an increased risk of skidding and having an accident. Make sure that no persons, animals
or obstacles are within range of the vehicle.
i Observe the safety notes on driving safety
systems (Y page 62).
Be sure to read the safety notes and informa-
tion on ESP ®
(Y page 67). Driving systems
173Driving and parking Z

Activation conditions
You can activate RACE START if:
R the doors are closed
R the engine is running and the engine and
transmission are at operating temperature.
This is the case when the oil temperature
gauge in the multifunction display is shown in
white (Y page 213).
R ESP ®
is functioning correctly (Y page 67)
R the drive program S,S+ orRace is selected
(Y page 140)
R the steering wheel is in the straight-ahead
position
R the vehicle is stationary and the brake pedal is
depressed (left foot)
R the transmission is in position D
Activating RACE START i
When manual mode (Y
page 147) is active,
the transmission automatically shifts up to
RACE START in the drive program. This func-
tion supports maximum acceleration with
RACE START. After going through an acceler- ating process once from a stationary position,
this function is automatically deactivated.
X Depress the brake pedal with your left foot
and keep it depressed.
X Pull and hold both steering wheel gearshift
paddles.
X The RACE START Confirm: Paddle UP
RACE START Confirm: Paddle UP
Cancel: Paddle DOWN Cancel: Paddle DOWN message appears in
the multifunction display.
X Release both steering wheel gearshift pad-
dles.
i If the activation conditions are no longer ful-
filled, RACE START is cancelled. The RACE RACE
START not possible See Owner's Man‐
START not possible See Owner's Man‐
ual
ual message appears in the multifunction
display.
X To cancel: pull the left steering wheel shift
paddle (Y page 147).
or X To confirm: pull the right steering wheel shift
paddle (Y page 147).
The RACE START available Depress
RACE START available Depress
accelerator
accelerator message appears in the multi-
function display.
i If you do not depress the accelerator pedal
within a few seconds, RACE START is cancel- led. The
RACE START cancelled
RACE START cancelled message
appears in the multifunction display.
X Fully depress the accelerator pedal.
The engine speed increases.
The RACE
RACE START START Release
Release brake
braketo
tostart
start
message appears in the multifunction display.
i If the brake pedal is not released after a
short while, RACE START is cancelled. The
RACE RACE START
START cancelled
cancelled message appears in
the multifunction display.
X Take your foot off the brake, but keep the
accelerator pedal depressed.
The vehicle pulls away at maximum acceler-
ation.
The RACE RACE START
START active
active message appears in
the multifunction display.
RACE START is deactivated when the vehicle
reaches a speed of approximately 50 km/h.
RACE START is deactivated immediately if you
release the accelerator pedal during RACE
START or if any of the activation conditions are
no longer fulfilled. The RACE START not pos‐
RACE START not pos‐
sible See Owner's Manual sible See Owner's Manual orRACE START
RACE START
cancelled
cancelled message appears in the multifunc-
tion display.
i After using it several times in short succes-
sion, RACE START will be unavailable until a
certain distance has been driven. Adaptive Damping System
General notes Suspension with the adaptive adjustable damp-
ing provides improved driving comfort and con-
tinuously controls the calibration of the damp-
ers. 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 selected drive program (Y page 139).174
Driving systemsDriving and pa
rking

mode if you prefer a more comfortable driving
style.
X Make sure that the engine is running or that it
has been switched off by the ECO start/stop function.
X If indicator lamp ;
; is lit: press button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. The comfortable
suspension setting is selected.
The AMG Ride Control COMFORT AMG Ride Control COMFORT message
appears in the multifunction display.
Activating the driving dynamics display in the COMAND display Using the driving dynamics display in the multi-
media system display, you can see the drive
program you selected as well as additional infor-
mation on the vehicle's operating status.
X Switch on COMAND Online. You can find fur-
ther information in the separate COMAND
Online operating instructions.
The following information on the vehicle's oper- ating status is displayed in the driving dynamics display:
R Drive program selected (Y page 140)
R Accelerator pedal position shown in %
R Brake pedal position shown in %
R Steering angle
R Vehicle level display (Y page 178)
R Activity of the ABC spring struts
R Level settings animation
R G-FORCE cross to display longitudinal and lat-
eral acceleration (only available in Sport,
Sport Plus andRACE drive programs)
R Overrun mode animation PARKTRONIC
Important safety notes PARKTRONIC is an electronic parking aid with
ultrasonic sensors. It monitors the area around
your vehicle using six sensors in the front
bumper and six sensors in the rear bumper.
PARKTRONIC indicates visually and audibly the
distance between your vehicle and an object.
PARKTRONIC is only an aid. It is not a substitute
for your attention to the immediate surround-
ings. The responsibility for safe manoeuvring
and parking remains with you. Make sure that there are no persons, animals or objects in
range while manoeuvring and parking.
! When parking, pay particular attention to
objects above or below the sensors, such as
flower pots or trailer drawbars. PARKTRONIC
does not detect such objects when they are in the immediate vicinity of the vehicle. You
could damage the vehicle or the objects.
The sensors may not detect snow and objects
which absorb ultrasonic sources.
Ultrasonic sources, such as an automatic car wash, a lorry's compressed-air brakes or a
pneumatic drill, could cause PARKTRONIC to
malfunction.
PARKTRONIC may not function correctly on
uneven terrain.
PARKTRONIC is activated automatically when
you:
R switch on the ignition
R shift the transmission to position D,Ror N
R release the electric parking brake
PARKTRONIC is deactivated at speeds above
18 km/h. It is reactivated at lower speeds.
Range of the sensors General notes
PARKTRONIC does not take into account obsta- cles located:
R below the detection range, e.g. persons, ani-
mals or objects
R above the detection range, e.g. overhanging
loads, tail sections or loading ramps of goods vehicles :
Example: sensors in the front bumper, left-
hand side
The sensors must be free of dirt, ice and slush.
Otherwise, they may not function correctly. 180
Driving systemsDriving and parking

need to judge whether your vehicle will fit in
the parking space.
When driving at speeds below 30 km/h, you will
see parking symbol ;as a status indicator in
the instrument cluster. When a parking space
has been detected, an arrow towards the right or the left also appears. Active Parking Assist only
displays parking spaces on the front-passenger side as standard. Parking spaces on the driver's
side are displayed as soon as the turn signal on the driver's side is activated. When parking on
the driver's side, this must remain activated
until you confirm the use of Active Parking Assist by pressing the abutton on the multifunc-
tion steering wheel. The system automatically
determines whether the parking space is paral-
lel or at right angles to the direction of travel.
A parking space is displayed while you are driv-
ing past it, and until you are approximately 15 m away from it.
Parking G
WARNING
Active Parking Assist merely aids you by inter- vening actively in the steering. There is a risk
of accident if you do not apply the brakes
yourself.
Always apply the brakes yourself when park-
ing and manoeuvring.
X Stop the vehicle when the parking symbol
shows the desired parking space in the instru- ment cluster.
X Shift the transmission to position R.
The Start Park Assist? Yes: OK No:
Start Park Assist? Yes: OK No:
% message appears in the multifunction
display.
X To cancel the procedure: press the%
button on the multifunction steering wheel or pull away.
or
X To park using Active Parking Assist: press
the a button on the multifunction steering
wheel.
The Park Assist active Accelerate
Park Assist active Accelerate
and brake Observe surroundings and brake Observe surroundings mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
X Release the multifunction steering wheel.
X Reverse the vehicle, being ready to brake at
all times. When reversing, drive at a speed below 10 km/h. Otherwise, Active Parking
Assist will be cancelled.
X Stop as soon as PARKTRONIC sounds the
continuous warning tone, if not before.
Manoeuvring may be required in tight parking
spaces.
The Park Assist active Select D Park Assist active Select D
Observe surroundings
Observe surroundings message appears in
the multifunction display.
X Shift the transmission to position Dwhile the
vehicle is stationary.
Active Parking Assist immediately steers in
the other direction.
The Park Assist active Accelerate Park Assist active Accelerate
and brake Observe surroundings
and brake Observe surroundings mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
i You will achieve the best results by waiting
for the steering procedure to complete before
pulling away.
X Drive forwards and be ready to brake at all
times.
X Stop as soon as PARKTRONIC sounds the
continuous warning tone, if not before.
The Park Assist active Select R Park Assist active Select R
Observe surroundings
Observe surroundings message appears in
the multifunction display.
As soon as the parking procedure is complete,
the Park Assist switched off
Park Assist switched off message
appears in the multifunction display and a warn- ing tone sounds. The vehicle is now parked.
Active Parking Assist no longer supports you
with steering interventions. When Active Park-
ing Assist is finished, you must steer again your-
self. PARKTRONIC is still available.
Parking tips:
R The way your vehicle is positioned in the park-
ing space after parking is dependent on vari-
ous factors. These include the position and
shape of the vehicles parked in front and
behind it and the conditions of the location. It
may be the case that Active Parking Assist
guides you too far into a parking space, or not
far enough into it. In some cases, it may also
lead you across or onto the kerb. If necessary, you should cancel the parking procedure with
Active Parking Assist.
R You can also preselect transmission position
D. The vehicle redirects and does not drive as
far into the parking space. Should the trans-
mission change take place too early, the park-
ing procedure will be cancelled. A sensible Driving systems
185Driving and parking Z

parking position can no longer be achieved
from this position.
Exiting a parking space In order that Active Parking Assist can assist you
when exiting the parking space:
R the border of the parking space must be high
enough at the front and the rear. A kerb stone is too small, for example.
R the border of the parking space must not be
too wide, as the position of the vehicle must
not exceed an angle of 45° to the starting
position as it is manoeuvred into the parking
space.
R a manoeuvring distance of at least 1.0 mmust
be available.
Active Parking Assist can only assist you with
exiting a parking space if you have parked the
vehicle parallel to the direction of travel using
Active Parking Assist.
X Start the engine.
X Release the electric parking brake.
X Switch on the turn signal in the direction you
will drive out of the parking space.
X Shift the transmission to position Dor R.
The Start Park Assist? Yes: OK No: Start Park Assist? Yes: OK No:
message appears in the multifunction display
%.
X To cancel the procedure: press the%
button on the multifunction steering wheel or
pull away.
or X To exit a parking space using Active Park-
ing Assist: press theabutton on the mul-
tifunction steering wheel.
The Park Assist active Accelerate
Park Assist active Accelerate
and brake Observe surroundings
and brake Observe surroundings mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
X Release the multifunction steering wheel.
X Pull away, being ready to brake at all times. Do
not exceed a maximum speed of approx-
imately 10 km/h when exiting a parking
space. Otherwise, Active Parking Assist will
be cancelled.
X Shift the transmission to position Dor Ras
required or according to the message while
the vehicle is stationary.
Active Parking Assist immediately steers in
the other direction. The Park Assist
Park Assist
active active Accelerate
Accelerate and
andbrake
brake Observe
Observe surroundings
surroundings
message appears in the mul-
tifunction display.
i You will achieve the best results by waiting
for the steering procedure to complete before
pulling away.
If you reverse after activation, the steering
wheel is moved to the straight-ahead posi-
tion.
X Drive forwards and reverse as prompted by
the PARKTRONIC warning displays, several
times if necessary.
Once you have exited the parking space com-
pletely, the steering wheel is moved to the
straight-ahead position. You hear a tone and the
Park
Park Assist Assist switched
switched off
offmessage appears
in the multifunction display. You will then have
to steer and merge into traffic on your own.
PARKTRONIC is still available. You can take over the steering before the vehicle has exited the
parking space completely. This is useful, for
example, when you recognise that it is already
possible to pull out of the parking space.
Cancelling Active Parking Assist You can cancel Active Parking Assist at any
time.
X Stop the movement of the multifunction
steering wheel or steer yourself.
Active Parking Assist will be cancelled at
once. The Park Assist cancelled Park Assist cancelled mes-
sage appears in the multifunction display.
or
X Press the PARKTRONIC button on the centre
console (Y page 182).
PARKTRONIC is switched off and Active Park-
ing Assist is immediately cancelled. The
Park Assist cancelled Park Assist cancelled message appears
in the multifunction display.
Active Parking Assist is cancelled automatically
if:
R parking using Active Parking Assist is no lon-
ger possible
R you are driving faster than 10 km/h
R a wheel spins and ESP ®
intervenes or fails.
The ÷ ESP®
warning lamp lights up in the
instrument cluster.
A warning tone sounds. The parking symbol
goes out and the Park Assist cancelled Park Assist cancelled
message appears in the multifunction display. 186
Driving systemsDriving and pa
rking

brake application, e.g. after intentionally driv-
ing over a solid lane marking. There is a risk ofan accident.
An inappropriate brake application may be
interrupted at any time if you steer slightly in
the opposite direction. Always make sure that
there is sufficient distance to the side for
other traffic or obstacles. If you leave your lane under certain circumstan-
ces, the vehicle will brake briefly on one side.
This is intended to help you return the vehicle to
the original lane.
If a lane-correcting brake application occurs,
display :appears in the multifunction display.
A lane-correcting brake application can be made
after driving over a lane marking recognised as
being solid or broken. Before this, a warning
must have been issued by means of intermittent
vibration through the steering wheel. In addi-
tion, a lane with lane markings on both sides
must be detected.
In the case of a broken lane marking being
detected, a lane-correcting brake application
can only be made if a vehicle has been detected
in the adjacent lane. The following vehicles can have an influence on brake application: oncom- ing traffic, vehicles that are overtaking and vehi-
cles that are driving parallel to your vehicle.
i A further lane-correcting brake application
can only occur after your vehicle has returned
to the original lane.
No lane-correcting brake application occurs if: R you clearly and actively steer, brake or accel-
erate
R you cut the corner on a sharp bend
R you have switched on the turn signal R
a driving safety system intervenes, such as
ESP ®
, PRE-SAFE ®
Brake or Active Blind Spot
Assist
R you have adopted a sporty driving style with
high cornering speeds or high rates of accel-
eration
R ESP ®
is deactivated
R the transmission is not in position D
R an obstacle has been detected in the lane in
which you are driving
R a loss of tyre pressure or a defective tyre has
been detected and displayed
There is a possibility that the Active Lane Keep- ing Assist could misjudge the given traffic sit-
uation. An inappropriate brake application may
be interrupted at any time if:
R you steer slightly in the opposite direction
R you switch on the turn signal
R you clearly brake or accelerate
A lane-correcting brake application is interrup-
ted automatically if:
R a driving safety system intervenes, such as
ESP ®
, PRE-SAFE ®
Brake or Active Blind Spot
Assist
R lane markings are no longer detected
Activating Active Lane Keeping Assist
X Activate Active Lane Keeping Assist using the
on-board computer; to do so, select Stand‐
Stand‐
ard ard orAdaptive
Adaptive (Ypage 208).
If you drive at speeds above 60 km/ hand lane
markings are detected, the lines in the assis-
tance graphic display (Y page 207) are
shown in green. Active Lane Keeping Assist is ready for use.
If Standard
Standard is selected, no warning vibration
occurs if:
R you have switched on the turn signals. In
this event, the warnings are suppressed for
a certain period of time.
R a driving safety system intervenes, such as
ABS, BAS or ESP ®
.
When Adaptive
Adaptive is selected, no warning vibra-
tion occurs if:
R you have switched on the turn signals. In
this event, the warnings are suppressed for
a certain period of time.
R a driving safety system intervenes, such as
ABS, BAS or ESP ®
.
R you accelerate hard, e.g. kickdown. Driving systems
197Driving and parking Z