2017 MERCEDES-BENZ CLS-Class lights

pedal, the engine starts automatically and the
braking effect of the HOLD function is deac-
tivated.
Automatic engine switch-off can take place a
maximum of four times in a row (initial stop, then
three subsequent stops).
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: the number of con-
secutive automatic engine switch-offs is unlimi- ted.
All other models: automatic engine switch-off
can take place a maximum of four times in a row
(initial switch-off, then three subsequent switch-
offs).
Automatic engine start
The engine starts automatically if:
Ryou switch off the ECO start/stop function by
pressing the ECO button
Rin transmission position Dor Nthe brake
pedal is released and the HOLD function is not
active
Ryou depress the accelerator pedal
Ryou engage reverse gear R
Ryou move the transmission out of position P
Ryou switch to drive programS,S+ orM
(Mercedes-AMG vehicles)
Ryou unfasten your seat belt or open the driv-
er's door
Rthe vehicle starts to roll
Rthe brake system requires this
Rthe temperature in the vehicle interior devi-
ates from the set range
Rthe system detects moisture on the wind-
shield when the air-conditioning system is
switched on
Rthe battery's condition of charge is too low
iShifting the transmission to position Pdoes
not start the engine.
Deactivating or activating the ECO
start/stop function
Mercedes-AMG vehicles
XTo deactivate: in drive program C, press ECO
button :.
or
XSwitch to drive program S,S+ or
M(Ypage 134).
Indicator lamp ;goes out.
XTo activate: press ECO button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up.
If drive program S,S+ orMis active, the auto-
matic transmission switches to drive program
C.
If indicator lamp ;is off, the ECO start/stop
function has been deactivated manually or as
the result of a malfunction. The engine will then
not be switched off automatically when the vehi- cle stops.
All other models
XTo deactivate: press ECO button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out.
XTo activate: press ECO button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up.
Driving127
Driving and parking
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Vehicles with the AMG Sports package
XPress program selector button:repeatedly
until the letter for the desired drive program
appears in the multifunction display.
The program selector button allows you to
choose between different driving characteris-
tics.
iFurther information about permanent drive
program M(Ypage 136).
As well as this permanent drive program M,
you can also activate temporary drive pro-
gram M(
Ypage 135).
EEconomyComfortable, economical
driving
S SportSporty driving style
M ManualManual gear shifting
iFor further information on the automatic
drive program, see (Ypage 135).
iThe automatic transmission shifts to auto-
matic drive program Eeach time the engine is
started.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles
Drive program selector with manual drive program
XTurn drive program selector :until the
desired drive program appears in the multi-
function display in the speedometer.
The drive program indicator on drive program
selector :lights up in red.
iFurther information about permanent drive
program M(Ypage 136).
As well as this permanent drive program M,
you can also activate temporary drive pro-
gram M(
Ypage 135).
CControlled
EfficiencyComfortable, economical
driving
S SportSporty driving style
S+ SportPlusParticularly sporty driving
style
MManualManual gear shifting
RS RACE
STARTOptimal vehicle accelera-
tion from a standstill
iFor further information on the automatic
drive program, see (Ypage 135).
iThe automatic transmission shifts to auto-
matic drive program Ceach time the engine is
started.
iRS cannot be selected during normal driv-
ing. For further information on RACE START,
see (
Ypage 158).
134Automatic transmission
Driving and parking

sion automatically shifts up in order to pre-
vent engine damage.
XTo shift down:pull on the left-hand steering
wheel paddle shifter (Ypage 135).
The automatic transmission shifts down to
the next gear.
If the engine exceeds the maximum engine
speed when shifting down, the automatic
transmission protects against engine damage
by not shifting down.
iAutomatic down shifting occurs when
coasting.
Shift recommendation
The gearshift recommendations assist you in
adopting an economical driving style. The mul-
tifunction display shows you the recommended
gear.
XShift to recommended gear ;according to
gearshift recommendation :when shown in
the multifunction display.
Deactivating
If you have activated manual drive program M, it
will remain active for a certain amount of time.
Under certain conditions the minimum amount
of time is extended, e.g. in the case of lateral
acceleration, during an overrun phase or when
driving on steep terrain.
If manual drive program Mhas been deactiva-
ted, the automatic transmission shifts into the
automatic drive program that was last selected,
i.e. E,Cor S.
You can also deactivate manual drive program
M yourself:
XPull on the right-hand steering wheel paddle
shifter and hold it in place (Ypage 135).
or
XSwitch the transmission position.
RAll vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles: use the DIRECT SELECT lever
(
Ypage 130)
RMercedes-AMG vehicles: use the lever
(Ypage 129)
or
XChange the drive program.
RAll vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles: use the drive program selector button
(
Ypage 133)
RMercedes-AMG vehicles: use the drive
program selector (Ypage 134)
Manual drive program (Mercedes-
AMG vehicles and vehicles with the
AMG sports package)
General notes
In this drive program, you can permanently
change gear yourself by using the steering
wheel paddle shifters. The transmission must be
in position D.
As well as this permanent drive program M, you
can also activate temporary drive program M
(
Ypage 135).
Switching on the manual drive program
XAll vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles: press the program selector button
repeatedly until drive program Mappears in
the multifunction display (
Ypage 133).
XMercedes-AMG vehicles: turn the drive pro-
gram selector until drive program Mappears
in the multifunction display (
Ypage 134).
The indicator Mon the drive program selector
lights up in red.
Manual drive program Mis different from drive
programs Sand S+with regard to spontaneity,
responsiveness and smoothness of gear
changes.
In manual drive program M, you can change gear
using the steering wheel paddle shifters if the
transmission is in position D. The multifunction
display shows the selected and engaged gear.
136Automatic transmission
Driving and parking

XTo apply:depress parking brake ;firmly.
When the engine is running, the $(USA
only) or J(Canada only) indicator lamp
lights up in the instrument cluster.
XTo release: depress the brake pedal and keep
it depressed.
XPull release handle :.
When the ignition is switched on or the engine
is running, the $(USA only) or J(Can-
ada only) indicator lamp goes out in the instru-
ment cluster.
Parking the vehicle for a long period
If you leave the vehicle parked for longer than
four weeks, the battery may be damaged by
exhaustive discharging.
If you leave the vehicle parked for longer than six
weeks, the vehicle may suffer damage as a
result of lack of use.
XVisit a qualified specialist workshop and seek
advice.
iYou can obtain information about trickle
chargers from a qualified specialist work-
shop.
Driving tips
General notes
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If you switch off the ignition while driving,
safety-relevant functions are only available
with limitations, or not at all. This could affect, for example, the power steering and the brake
boosting effect. You will require considerably
more effort to steer and brake. There is a risk
of an accident.
Do not switch off the ignition while driving.
GWARNING
If you operate mobile communication equip-
ment while driving, you will be distracted from traffic conditions. You could also lose control
of the vehicle. There is a risk of an accident.
Only operate this equipment when the vehicle
is stationary.
Observe the legal requirements for the country
in which you are driving. Some jurisdictions pro-
hibit the driver from using a mobile phone while
driving a vehicle.
If you make a call while driving, always use
hands-free mode. Only operate the telephone
when the traffic situation permits. If you are
unsure, pull over to a safe location and stop
before operating the telephone.
Bear in mind that at a speed of only 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/h), the vehicle covers a
distance of 44 ft (approximately 14 m)per sec-
ond.
Drive sensibly – save fuel
Observe the following tips to save fuel:
XThe tires should always be inflated to the rec-
ommended tire pressure.
XRemove unnecessary loads.
XRemove roof racks when they are not needed.
XWarm up the engine at low engine speeds.
XAvoid frequent acceleration or braking.
XHave all maintenance work carried out as
indicated by the service intervals in the Main-
tenance Booklet or by the service interval dis-
play.
Fuel consumption also increases when driving in cold weather, in stop-start traffic and in hilly ter-
rain.
Drinking and driving
GWARNING
Drinking and driving and/or taking drugs and driving are very dangerous combinations.
Even a small amount of alcohol or drugs can
affect your reflexes, perceptions and judg-
ment.
The possibility of a serious or even fatal acci-
dent is greatly increased when you drink or
take drugs and drive.
Do not drink or take drugs and drive or allow
anyone to drive who has been drinking or tak-
ing drugs.
Driving tips143
Driving and parking
Z

change dynamically at the beginning of the
journey. On longer journeys, there are fewer
changes. For more dynamic changes, carry
out a manual reset.
For further information on the ECO display, see
(
Ypage 191).
Braking
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If you shift down on a slippery road surface in an attempt to increase the engine's braking
effect, the drive wheels could lose their grip.
There is an increased danger of skidding and
accidents.
Do not shift down for additional engine brak-
ing on a slippery road surface.
Downhill gradients
!On long and steep gradients, you must
reduce the load on the brakes by shifting to a
lower gear in good time. This allows you to
take advantage of the engine's braking effect.
This helps you to avoid overheating the
brakes and wearing them out excessively.
When you take advantage of engine braking, a
drive wheel may not turn for some time, e.g.
on a slippery road surface. This could cause
damage to the drive train. This type of damage
is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz war-
ranty.
Change into a lower gear in good time on long
and steep downhill gradients. This is especially
important if the vehicle is laden.
Heavy and light loads
GWARNING
If you rest your foot on the brake pedal while
driving, the braking system can overheat. This increases the stopping distance and can even
cause the braking system to fail. There is a
risk of an accident.
Never use the brake pedal as a footrest. Never
depress the brake pedal and the accelerator
pedal at the same time.
!Depressing the brake pedal constantly
results in excessive and premature wear to
the brake pads.
If the brakes have been subjected to a heavy
load, do not stop the vehicle immediately, but
drive on for a short while. This allows the airflow
to cool the brakes more quickly.
Wet roads
If you have driven for a long time in heavy rain
without braking, there may be a delayed reac-
tion from the brakes when braking for the first
time. This may also occur after the vehicle has
been washed or driven through deep water.
You have to depress the brake pedal more
firmly. Maintain a greater distance from the
vehicle in front.
After driving on a wet road or having the vehicle
washed, brake firmly while paying attention to
the traffic conditions. This will warm up the
brake discs, thereby drying them more quickly
and protecting them against corrosion.
Limited braking performance on salt-
treated roads
If you drive on salted roads, a layer of salt resi-
due may form on the brake discs and brake
pads. This can result in a significantly longer
braking distance.
RIn order to prevent any salt build-up, apply the
brakes occasionally while paying attention to
the traffic conditions.
RCarefully depress the brake pedal and the
beginning and end of a journey.
RMaintain a greater distance to the vehicle
ahead.
Servicing the brakes
!The brake fluid level may be too low, if:
Rif the red brake warning lamp lights up in
the instrument cluster and
Ryou hear a warning tone while the engine is
running
Observe additional warning messages in the
multifunction display.
The brake fluid level may be too low due to
brake pad wear or leaking brake lines.
Driving tips145
Driving and parking
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Deactivating DISTRONICPLUS
There are severa lways to deactivat e
DISTRONIC PLUS:
XBriefly push th ecruise contro llever for-
ward s:.
or
XBrake, unless th evehicle is stationary
If you deactivat eDISTRONIC PLUS, th e
DISTRONIC PLU SOff
messag eappears in th e
multifunction display fo rapproximately fiv esec -
onds.
iThe last speed stored remain sstored until
you switch of fth eengine.
iDISTRONIC PLU Sis no tdeactivated if you
depress th eaccelerator pedal.
DISTRONIC PLU Sis automatically deactivated
if:
Ryou engage th eparking brake
RES P®intervenes or you deactivat eES P®
Rthetransmissio nis in th eP, Ror Nposition
Ryou pull th ecruise contro llever toward syou
in order to pull away and th efront-passenger
doo ror on eof th erea rdoors is ope n
Rthevehicle is skidding
Ryou activat eActive Parking Assis t
If DISTRONIC PLU Sis deactivated, you will hear
a tone .The DISTRONIC PLU SOff
messag e
appears in th emultifunction display fo rapprox -
imately fiv eseconds.
Tips for drivin gwit hDISTRONI CPLUS
General notes
Pay particular attention in th efollowin gtraffic
situations:
RCornering, enterin gand exitin g abend: th e
ability of DISTRONIC PLU Sto detec tvehicles
when cornering is limited. Your vehicle may
brake unexpectedly or late.
RDriving on adifferen tline: DISTRONIC PLU S
may no tdetec tvehicles whic hare no tdrivin g
in th emiddle of their lane. The distanc eto th e
vehicle in fron twill be to oshort .
ROther vehicles changin glane: DISTRONIC
PLU Shas no tdetecte dth evehicle cutting in
yet .The distanc eto this vehicle will be to o
short .
RNarro wvehicles :DISTRONIC PLU Sdoe sno t
detec tth evehicle in fron ton th eedg eof th e
road because of it snarro wwidth. The dis -
tanc eto th evehicle in fron twill be to oshort .
RObstacles and stationary vehicles :
DISTRONIC PLU Sdoe sno tbrake fo robsta -
cles or stationary vehicles .If ,fo rexample, th e
detecte dvehicle turn s acorner and reveals an
obstacl eor stationary vehicle, DISTRONIC
PLU Swill no tbrake fo rthese .
RCrossing vehicles :DISTRONIC PLU Smay mis -
takenl ydet ectvehicles that are crossin gyour
lane. Activatin gDISTRONIC PLU Sat traffic
lights wit hcrossin gtraffic ,fo rexample, could
cause your vehicle to pull away unintention -
ally.
In suc hsituations, brake if necessary.
DISTRONIC PLU Sis then deactivated.
DISTRONI CPLUS wit hSteering Assis t
an dStop&Go Pilo t
General notes
Driving systems155
Driving an d parking
Z

Activating RACE START
XDepress thebrak epedal wit hyour lef tfoo t
and keep it depressed.
XTurn th edrive program selector clockwise
(Ypage 134) until th eRS lamp lights up.
The RACESTART Confirm: Paddle UP
Cancel :Paddle DOW Nmessage appear sin
th emultifunction display.
iIf th eactivation condition sare no longer ful-
filled, RACE START is canceled. The RACE
START Canceledmessage appear sin th e
multifunction display.
XTo cancel: pull th elef tsteering whee lpaddl e
shifte r (Ypage 135).
or
XTo confirm :pull th eright steering whee lpad-
dle shifte r (Ypage 135).
The RACESTART available Depres s
acceleratormessage appearsin th emulti-
function display.
iIf you do no tdepress th eaccelerato rpedal
fully within two seconds, RACE START is can -
celed. The RACE
STARTNotPossibleSeeOperator' sManualmessage appear sin th e
multifunction display.
XFull ydepress th eaccelerato rpedal .
The engin espee drises to approximately
3,500 rpm.
The RACE
STARTReleas ebraketostartmessage appear sin th emultifunction display.
iIf you do no trelease th ebrak epedal within
fiv eseconds, RACE START is canceled. The
RAC ESTART Canceled
message appear sin
th emultifunction display.
XTak eyour foo toff th ebrake, but keep th e
accelerato rpedal depressed.
The vehicl epulls away at maximum acceler -
ation .
The RACE
STARTactivemessage appear sin
th emultifunction display.
RACE START is deactivated when th evehicl e
reaches aspee dof approximately 30 mph (Can -
ada: 50 km/h). Drive program S+is activated.
SPORT handlin gmod eremain sswitched on .
RACE START is deactivated immediately if you
release th eaccelerato rpedal during RACE
START or if any of th eactivation condition sare
no longer fulfilled .The RACESTART Not Pos ‐
sible See Operator' sManualmessage
appear sin th emultifunction display.
iIf RACE START is used repeatedly within a
short period of time, it is only available again
after th evehicl ehas been driven acertain
distance.
AIRMATIC
Vehicle level
Important safety notes
GWARNIN G
When th evehicl eis bein glowered, people
could become trapped if their limb sare
between th evehicl ebody and th ewheels or
underneat hth evehicle. There is aris kof
injury.
Mak esur eno on eis underneat hth evehicl eor
in th eimmediat evicinity of th ewhee larches
when th evehicl eis bein glowered.
Your vehicl eregulates it sheight automatically.
All-roun dlevel control ensures th ebest possibl e
suspension and constan tground clearance ,
eve nwit h a laden vehicle. When you drive fast,
th evehicl eis lowered automatically to improve
drivin gsafet yand to reduce fuel consumption .
The followin gvehicl elevels are possible:
RNormal
RRaised :th evehicl eis raised by approximately
0.80 in (20 mm ) when compared with the nor-
mal level
RLowered: the vehicle is raised by approx-
imately 0.40 in (10 mm) when compared with
the normal level
iThese changes in level are so slight that you
are hardly aware of them.
The "Normal" and "Raised" vehicle levels can be
set manually.
The "Lowered” vehicle level is set automatically:
Rat speeds above 70 mph (113 km/h)
Rif you have selected "Sports tuning"
(Ypage 160)
Setting the vehicle level
Select the "Normal" setting for normal road sur-
faces and "Raised" for driving with snow chains or on particularly poor road surfaces. Your
Driving systems159
Driving and parking
Z

selection remains stored even if you remove the
SmartKey from the ignition lock.
Setting raised level
XStart the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is not lit:
XPress the :button.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. The vehicle height
is adjusted to raised level.
The Vehicle
Risingmessage appears in the
display.
The "Raised level" setting is canceled if you:
Rdrive at a speed over approximately 75 mph
(120 km/h)
Rdrive for approximately three minutes at a
speed over 50 mph (80 km/h)
The "Raised level" remains active when you are
not driving within these speed ranges.
Setting the normal level
XStart the engine.
If indicator lamp ;is lit:
XPress button :.
Indicator lamp ;goes out. The vehicle is
adjusted to normal level.
Suspension tuning
General notes
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:
Ryour driving style, e.g. sporty
Rthe road surface condition, e.g. bumps
Ryour individual selection, i.e. sports or com-
fort
Your selection remains stored even if you
remove the SmartKey from the ignition lock.
Sports tuning
The firmer suspension tuning in Sport mode
ensures even better contact with the road.
Select this mode when employing a sporty driv-
ing style, e.g. on winding country roads.
XPress button :.
Indicator lamp ;lights up. Sports suspen-
sion tuning is selected.
The AIRMATIC
SPORTmessage appears in the
multifunction display.
Comfort tuning
In comfort mode, the driving characteristics of
your vehicle are more comfortable. Therefore,
select this mode if you favor a more comfortable
driving style. Select comfort mode also when
driving fast on straight roads, e.g. on straight
stretches of highway.
160Driving systems
Driving and parking