You can select between the following states
of ESP®:
RESP®is activated.
RSPORT handling mode is activated.
RESP®is deactivated.
GWARNING
When SPORT handling mode is activated,
there is a greater risk of skidding and acci-
dents.
Only activate SPORT handling mode in the sit-
uations described in the following.
GWARNING
If you deactivate ESP
®, ESP®no longer sta-
bilizes the vehicle. There is an increased risk
of skidding and an accident.
Only deactivate ESP
®in the situations descri-
bed in the following.
In the following situations, it may be better to activate SPORT handling mode or deactivate
ESP
®:
Rwhen using snow chains
Rin deep snow
Ron sand or gravel
Ron specially designated roads when the
vehicle's own oversteering and understeer-
ing characteristics are desired
Driving in SPORT handling mode or without
ESP
®requires an extremely qualified and
experienced driver.
iActivate ESP®as soon as the situations
described above no longer apply. ESP®will
otherwise not be able to stabilize the vehi-
cle if the vehicle starts to skid or a wheel
starts to spin.
!Avoid spinning the driven wheels for an
extended period with ESP®deactivated.
You could otherwise damage the drivetrain. Deactivating/activating ESP
®
XTo activate SPORT handling mode:
briefly press button
:.
The M SPORT handling mode warning
lamp in the instrument cluster lights up.
The SPORT handling mode
message
appears in the multifunction display.
XTo deactivate SPORT handling mode:
briefly press button :.
The M SPORT handling mode warning
lamp in the instrument cluster goes out.
XTo deactivate ESP®: press button :until
the å ESP®OFF warning lamp lights up
in the instrument cluster.
The ÷ OFF
message appears in the mul-
tifunction display.
XTo activate ESP®: briefly press button :.
The å ESP®OFF warning lamp in the
instrument cluster goes out. The ÷
ESP
®ONmessage appears in the multifunc-
tion display.
Characteristics of activated SPORT han-
dling mode
If SPORT handling mode is activated and one
or more wheels start to spin, the ÷ESP
®
warning lamp in the instrument cluster
flashes. ESP®only stabilizes the vehicle to a
limited degree.
When SPORT handling mode is activated:
RESP®only improves driving stability to a
limited degree.
RTraction control is still activated.
Driving safety systems71
Safety
Z
You can only switch between Start/Stop but-
ton mode and SmartKey operation when the
vehicle is stationary.
You must also engage park positionP.
XRemove Start/Stop button:from ignition
lock ;.
You do not have to remove the Start/Stop
button from the ignition lock when you leave
the vehicle. You should, however, always take
the SmartKey with you when leaving the vehi-
cle. As long as the SmartKey is in the vehicle:
Rthe vehicle can be started using the Start/ Stop button
Rthe electrically powered equipment can be
operated
Starting the engine
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If children are left unsupervised in the vehicle,
they could:
Ropen the doors, thus endangering other
people or road users.
Rget out and disrupt traffic.
Roperate the vehicle's equipment.
Additionally, children could set the vehicle in
motion if, for example, they:
Rrelease the parking brake.
Rshifting the automatic transmission out of
park position P
RStart the engine.
There is a risk of an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, always take the
SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle. Never
leave children or animals unattended in the
vehicle. Always keep the SmartKey out of
reach of children.
GWARNING
Combustion engines emit poisonous exhaust
gases such as carbon monoxide. Inhaling
these exhaust gases leads to poisoning. There
is a risk of fatal injury. Therefore never leave
the engine running in enclosed spaces with-
out sufficient ventilation.
GWARNING
Flammable materials introduced through
environmental influence or by animals can
ignite if in contact with the exhaust system or
parts of the engine that heat up. There is a risk
of fire.
Carry out regular checks to make sure that
there are no flammable foreign materials in
the engine compartment or in the exhaust
system.
!Do not depress the accelerator when
starting the engine.
General notes
During a cold start, the engine runs at higher
speeds to enable the catalytic converter to
reach its operating temperature. The sound of
the engine may change during this time.
Automatic transmission
XShift the transmission to position P
(
Ypage 159).
The transmission position display in the
multifunction display shows
P (
Ypage 159).
iYou can start the engine in transmission
position Pand N.
Starting procedure with the SmartKey
To start the engine using the SmartKey
instead of the Start/Stop button, pull the
Start/Stop button out of the ignition lock.
XTurn the SmartKey to position 3in the igni-
tion lock and release it as soon as the
engine is running (
Ypage 149).
Driving151
Driving and parking
Z
ProblemPossible causes/consequences andMSolutions
The engine is not run-
ning smoothly and is
misfiring.There is a malfunction in the engine electronics or in a mechanical
component of the engine management system.
XOnly depress the accelerator pedal slightly.
Otherwise, non-combusted fuel may get into the catalytic con-
verter and damage it.
XHave the cause rectified immediately at a qualified specialist
workshop.
The coolant tempera-
ture gauge shows a
value above 248 ‡
(120 †). The coolant
warning lamp may also
be on and a warning
tone may sound.The coolant level is too low. The coolant is too hot and the engine
is no longer being cooled sufficiently.
XStop as soon as possible and allow the engine and the coolant to
cool down.
XCheck the coolant level (Ypage 311). Observe the warning
notes as you do so and add coolant if necessary.
DYNAMIC SELECT button (all vehicles
except Mercedes-AMG vehicles)
Use the DYNAMIC SELECT button to change
the drive program. Depending on the drive
program selected the following vehicle char-
acteristics will change:
Rthe drive (engine and transmission man-
agement)
Rthe steering
Rthe availability of the ECO start/stop func-
tion
Rthe climate control:
Each time you start the engine with the
SmartKey or the Start/Stop button, drive pro-
gram Cis activated. For further information
about starting the engine, see (
Ypage 151).
XPress DYNAMIC SELECT button :as many
times as necessary until the desired drive
program is selected.
The selected drive program appears in the
multifunction display. After five seconds
the display goes out and the status icon of
the selected drive program appears.
In addition, the current drive program set-
tings are displayed briefly in the Audio 20 or
COMAND display.
iIn a few countries, the ECO start/stop
function is deactivated at the factory due to the available fuel grade. In this case, the
ECO start/stop function is not available in
any drive program, regardless of the display
in the Audio 20 or COMAND display.
DYNAMIC SELECT button (all vehicles except Mercedes-AMG vehicles)157
Driving and parking
Z
Available drive programs:
CComfortComfortable and econom-
ical driving characteristics
SSpo rtSporty driving character-
istics
IIndivi dualIndividual settings
Off-roadOptimal driving character-
istics for easily negotiable
off-road terrain
E EconomyParticularly economical
driving characteristics
Ad ditional information for drive programs
(
Ypage 164).
You can also change gear yourself using the
steering wheel paddleshifters. For further
information on the manual drive program
(
Ypage 166).
DYNAMIC SELECT controller
(Mercedes-AMG vehicles)
Use the DYNAMIC SELECT controller to
change the drive program. Depending on the
driv e program selected the following vehicle
characteristics will change:
Rthe drive
Rthe transmission management
RESP®
Rthe suspension (vehicles with AMG adap-
tive sport suspension system)
Rthe availab ility of the ECO start /stop func-
tion
Rthe availab ility of gliding mode
Each time you start the engine with the
Sm artKey or the Start /S top button, drive pro-
gram Cis activated. For further information
about starting the engine, see (
Ypage 151).
XTurn DYNAMIC SELECT controller :as
many times as necessary unt ilthe desired
driv e program isselected.
The selected drive program appears inthe
multifunction display. After five seconds
the disp lay goes out and the status icon of
the selected drive program appears.
The drive program indicator on DYNAMIC
SE LECT controller :lights up inred.
Available drive programs:
I Indivi dualIndividual settings
CComfortComfort-oriente d,opti-
mum-economy engine
and transmission settings
S Spo rtSporty engine and trans-
mission settings
S+ Sport PlusParticularly sporty trans-
mission settings
RaceMaximum sportiness and
engine and transmission
settings suitable for the
racetrack
Additional information for drive programs
(
Ypage 164).
You can also change gear yourself using the
steering wheel paddleshifters. For further
information on the manual drive program
(
Ypage 166).
158DYNAMIC SELECT controller (Mercedes-AMG vehicles)
Driving and parking
Automa tic trans mission
Import ant safety notes
GWARNIN G
If th eengin espee dis abov eth eidlin gspee d
and you engage transmission position Dor R,
th evehicl ecould pull away suddenly. There is
a ris kof an accident.
When engagin gtransmission position Dor R,
always firmly depress th ebrak epedal and do
no tsimultaneously accelerate .
GWARNING
The automatic transmission switches to neu-
tral position Nwhen you switch off th eengine.
The vehicl emay rol laway. There is aris kof an
accident.
Afte rswitching off th eengine, always switch
to parking position P.Preven tth eparked vehi-
cle from rollin gaway by applyin gth eparking
brake.
DIRECT SELECT lever
Overview oftrans mission positions
jPark position wit hparking loc k
kReversegear
iNeutral
hDrive
All vehicles (excep tMercedes-AM G vehi-
cles): theDIRECT SELECT lever is on th eright
of th esteering column . Fo
rinformation on th eselector lever in
Mercedes-AM Gvehicles (
Ypage 161).
The DIRECT SE LECT lever always return sto
it s original position .The curren ttransmission
position P,R,N or Dappear sin th etransmis -
sion position display in th emultifunction dis-
play (
Ypage 159).
Trans mission position and drive pr o-
gram display
The curren ttransmission position and driv e
program appear in th emultifunction display.
:Transmi ssion position
;Gear
=Drive program display
The arrows in th etransmission position dis-
play sho whow and int owhic htransmission
position syou can shif tusin gth eDIRECT
SE LECT lever.
If th etransmission position display in th emul-
tifunction display is no tworking ,you should
pull away carefully to chec kwhether th e
desired transmission position is engaged.
Ideally, you should select transmission posi-
tion Dand driv eprogram Eor S.
Engaging pa rkposition P
!If th eengin espee dis to ohigh or th evehi-
cle is moving ,do no tshif tth eautomatic
transmission directly from Dto R,from Rto
D or directly to P.The automatic transmis -
sion could otherwise be damaged.
Automatic transmission15 9
Driving an d parking
Z
jPark position with parking lock
kReverse gear
iNeutral
hDrive
XPush the DIRECT SELECT lever in the direc-
tion of arrowP.
Transmission position display Pis shown in
the multifunction display.
When you have engaged park position P,
make sure that the transmission position dis-
play shows Pin the multifunction display.
You can only engage park position Pwhen the
vehicle is stationary.
Depressing the brake and pushing the
DIRECT SELECT lever up or down disengages
the parking lock. The transmission is in N
neutral.
At transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò4 ‡ (Ò20 †), you can only shift out of park
position Pinto another transmission position
when the engine is running.
In order to shift from park position Pdirectly
into Ror D:
Rdepress the brake pedal and
Rpush the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
past the first point of resistance
Engaging park position P automatically
Park position Pis automatically engaged if:
Ryou switch off the engine using the Smart-
Key and remove the SmartKey
Ryou switch off the engine using the Smart-
Key or using the Start/Stop button and open the driver's door or front-passenger
door
Rthe driver's door is opened when the vehi-
cle is stationary or driving at very low speed
and the transmission is in position Dor R
Under certain conditions, the automatic
transmission shifts automatically to transmis-
sion position Pif the HOLD function or
DISTRONIC PLUS is activated. Observe the
information on the HOLD function
(
Ypage 194) and on DISTRONIC PLUS
(
Ypage 189).
Engaging reverse gear R
!Only shift the automatic transmission to R
when the vehicle is stationary.
XIf the transmission is in position Dor N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up past the
first point of resistance.
XIf the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up past the first point of
resistance.
The ECO start/stop function is not available
when reverse gear is engaged. Further infor-
mation on the ECO start/stop function
(
Ypage 154).
Shifting to neutral N
GWARNING
If children are left unsupervised in the vehicle,
they could:
Ropen the doors, thus endangering other
people or road users.
Rget out and disrupt traffic.
Roperate the vehicle's equipment.
Additionally, children could set the vehicle in
motion if, for example, they:
Rrelease the parking brake.
Rshifting the automatic transmission out of
park position P
RStart the engine.
There is a risk of an accident and injury.
160Automatic transmission
Driving and parking
When leaving the vehicle, always take the
SmartKey with you and lock the vehicle. Never
leave children or animals unattended in the
vehicle. Always keep the SmartKey out of
reach of children.
XIf the transmission is in positionDor R:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
to the first point of resistance.
XIf the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up or down to the first point of
resistance.
If you switch the engine off with the trans-
mission in position Ror D, the automatic
transmission shifts to Nautomatically.
With the SmartKey: if you then open the
driver's door or the front-passenger door or
remove the SmartKey from the ignition, the
automatic transmission shifts to Pautomati-
cally.
With the Start/Stop button: if you then
open the driver's door or the front-passenger
door, the automatic transmission shifts to P
automatically.
If you want the automatic transmission to
remain in neutral N, e.g. when having the
vehicle cleaned in an automatic car wash with
a towing system:
Using the SmartKey:
XSwitch on the ignition.
XDepress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
XShift to neutral N.
XRelease the brake pedal.
XRelease the electric parking brake.
XSwitch off the ignition and leave the Smart-
Key in the ignition lock.
With the Start/Stop button:
XRemove the Start/Stop button from the
ignition lock.
XInsert the SmartKey into the ignition lock.
XSwitch on the ignition.
XDepress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
XShift to neutral N.
XRelease the brake pedal.
XRelease the electric parking brake.
XSwitch off the ignition and leave the Smart-
Key in the ignition lock.
Engaging drive position D
XIf the transmission is in position Ror N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever down past
the first point of resistance.
XIf the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever down past the first point of
resistance.
Selector lever (Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles)
Overview of transmission positions
jPark position with parking lock
kReverse gear
iNeutral
hDrive
Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display
The current transmission position and drive
program appear in the multifunction display.
Automatic transmission161
Driving and parking
Z
ANeutral
Do not shift the transmission toN
while driving. Otherwise, the auto-
matic transmission could be dam-
aged.
No power is transmitted from the
engine to the drive wheels.
Releasing the brakes will allow you
to move the vehicle freely, e.g. to
push it or tow it.
If ESP
®is deactivated or faulty:
shift the transmission to position N
if the vehicle is in danger of skid-
ding, e.g. on icy roads.
If you switch the engine off with the
transmission in position Ror D, the
automatic transmission shifts to N
automatically.
!Rolling in neutral Ncan damage
the drive train.
7Drive
The automatic transmission
changes gear automatically. All
forward gears are available.
Driving tips
Changing gear
The automatic transmission shifts to the indi-
vidual gears automatically when it is in trans-
mission position D. This automatic gear shift-
ing behavior is determined by:
Rthe selected drive program
Rthe position of the accelerator pedal
Rthe road speed
Accelerator pedal position
Your style of driving influences how the auto- matic transmission shifts gear:
Rlittle throttle: early upshifts
Rmore throttle: late upshifts
Holding the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients
GWARNING
If the clutch overheats, the electronic man-
agement system is automatically deactivated. This interrupts the power transmission. The
vehicle may, for example, roll backwards on
gradients. There is a risk of an accident.
Never hold the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients by depressing the accelerator.
The clutch may overheat if you hold the vehi-
cle stationary on uphill gradients by depress-ing the accelerator pedal. If the clutch over-
heats, a warning tone sounds.
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): theStop Vehicle Shift to P
Leave Engine Runningdisplay message
appears in the multifunction display. You will
only be able to continue your journey once the
clutch has cooled down and the display mes-
sage in the multifunction display has disap-
peared.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: theTrans. Oil
Overheated Drive on with Caredisplay
message appears in the multifunction dis-
play.
Do not hold the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients by depressing the accelerator
pedal. Instead, only ever hold the vehicle sta-
tionary on uphill gradients by:
Rdepressing the brake pedal
Ractivating the HOLD function
Rengaging the electric parking brake
Kickdown
Use kickdown for maximum acceleration.
XDepress the accelerator pedal beyond the
pressure point.
The automatic transmission shifts to a
lower gear depending on the engine speed.
XEase off the accelerator pedal once the
desired speed is reached.
The automatic transmission shifts back up.
Automatic transmission163
Driving an d parking
Z