2017 MERCEDES-BENZ GLA-Class automatic transmission

When engaging transmission positionDor R,
always firmly depress the brake pedal and do
not simultaneously accelerate.
Depress the accelerator carefully when pull-
ing away.
The vehicle locks centrally once you have
pulled away. The locking knobs in the doors
drop down.
You can open the doors from the inside at any time.
You can also deactivate the automatic locking
feature (
Ypage 230).
It is only possible to shift the transmission
from position Pto the desired position if you
depress the brake pedal. Only then can the
parking lock be deactivated.
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG vehi-
cles): if you do not depress the brake pedal,
the DIRECT SELECT lever can still be moved
but the parking lock remains engaged.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: if you do not
depress the brake pedal, the selector lever
can still be moved but the parking lock
remains engaged.
At transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò4 ‡ (Ò20 †), you can only shift out of park
position Pinto another transmission position
when the engine is running.
iUpshifts take place at higher engine
speeds after a cold start. This helps the
catalytic converter to reach its operating
temperature more quickly.
Information on the automatic release of the
electric parking brake (
Ypage 173).
Hill start assist
Hill start assist helps you when pulling away
forwards or in reverse on an uphill gradient. It
holds the vehicle for a short time after you
have removed your foot from the brake pedal.
This gives you enough time to move your foot
from the brake pedal to the accelerator pedal
and to depress it before the vehicle begins to
roll.
GWARNING
After a short time, hill start assist will no lon-
ger brake your vehicle and it could roll away.
There is a risk of an accident and injury.
Therefore, quickly move your foot from the
brake pedal to the accelerator pedal. Never
leave the vehicle when it is held by hill start
assist.
Hill start assist is not active if:
Ryou are pulling away on a level road or on a downhill gradient.
Rthe transmission is in position N.
Rthe electric parking brake is applied.
RESP®is malfunctioning.
Further information on holding the vehicle
stationary on uphill gradients (
Ypage 163).
ECO start/stop function
Introduction
The ECO start/stop function switches the
engine off automatically if the vehicle is stop-
ped under certain conditions.
The engine starts automatically when the
driver wants to pull away again. The ECO
start/stop function thereby helps you to
reduce the fuel consumption and emissions
of your vehicle.
Important safety notes
GWARNING
If the engine is switched off automatically and
you exit the vehicle, the engine is restarted
automatically. The vehicle may begin moving.
There is a risk of accident and injury.
If you wish to exit the vehicle, always turn off
the ignition and secure the vehicle against
rolling away.
Driving153
Driving and parking
Z

General notes
:ECO start/stop display
The ECO start/stop function is activated
whenever you start the engine using the
SmartKey or the Start/Stop button.
If the engine has been switched off automat-
ically by the ECO start/stop function, the
è ECO symbol is shown in the multifunc-
tion display.
Mercedes-AMG vehicles: the ECO start/
stop function is only available in drive pro-
gram C.
Automatic engine switch-off
If the vehicle is braked to a standstill in Dor N,
the ECO start/stop function switches off the
engine automatically.
The ECO start/stop function is operational
when:
Rthe indicator lamp in the ECO button is lit
green.
Rthe off-road program is deactivated.
Rthe outside temperature is within the range that is suitable for the system.
Rthe engine is at normal operating temper-
ature.
Rthe set temperature for the vehicle interior
has been reached.
Rthe battery is sufficiently charged.
Rthe system detects that the windshield is
not fogged up when the air-conditioning
system is switched on.
Rthe hood is closed.
Rthe driver's door is closed and the driver's
seat belt is fastened.
All of the vehicle's systems remain active
when the engine is stopped automatically. The HOLD function can also be activated if the
engine has been switched off automatically. It
is then not necessary to continue applying the
brakes during the automatic stop phase.
When you depress the accelerator pedal, the
engine starts automatically and the braking
effect of the HOLD function is deactivated.
Automatic engine switch-off can take place a
maximum of four times in a row (initial stop,
then three subsequent stops)..
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 activate the off-road program
Ryou unfasten your seat belt or open the
driver'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
Shifting the transmission to position Pdoes
not start the engine.
154Driving
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

:Transmission position display
;Drive program display
If the transmission position display in the mul-
tifunction display is not working, you should
pull away carefully to check whether the
desired transmission position is engaged.
Ideally, you should select transmission posi-
tion Dand drive program Cor S.
Engaging park position P
XWhen the vehicle is stationary, press but-
ton :.
Transmission positions
BPark position
This prevents the vehicle from roll-
ing away when stopped.
Only shift the transmission into
position Pwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary (
Ypage 159). The parking
lock should not be used as a brake
when parking. Always apply the
electronic parking brake in addi-
tion to the parking lock in order to
secure the vehicle.
If the vehicle electronics are mal-
functioning, the transmission may
be locked in position P. Have the
vehicle electronics checked imme-
diately at a qualified specialist
workshop.
Park position Pis automatically
engaged if:
Ryou switch off the engine using
the SmartKey and remove the
SmartKey
Ryou switch off the engine using
the SmartKey or using the Start/ Stop button and open the driv-
er's door or front-passenger
door
Rthe driver's door is opened when
the vehicle is stationary or driv-
ing at very low speed and the
transmission is in position Dor R
CReverse gear
Only shift the transmission into
position Rwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary.
162Automatic transmission
Driving and parking

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

Mercedes-AMG vehicles:it is only possible
to use kickdown in the automatic drive pro-
gram and the temporary manual drive pro-
gram M. When manual drive program Mis
permanently activated, kickdown is not pos-
sible.
For further information on kickdown in man-
ual drive program M(
Ypage 168).
Rocking the vehicle free
Shifting the transmission repeatedly between
gears Dand Rmay help to free the vehicle if it
has become stuck in slush or snow. The vehi-
cle's engine management system limits the
speed to a maximum of 5 mph (9 km/h) when
shifting back and forth. To shift back and forth
between transmission positions Dand R,
move the DIRECT SELECT lever up and down
past the point of resistance.
Drive programs
All vehicles (except Mercedes-AMG
vehicles)
Drive program C (Comfort)
Drive program Cis characterized by the fol-
lowing:
Rthe vehicle delivers comfortable, economi-
cal handling characteristics.
Rthe vehicle pulling away more gently in
forward and reverse gears, unless the
accelerator pedal is depressed fully.
Rthe vehicle having improved driving stabil-
ity, for example on slippery road surfaces.
Roptimal fuel consumption resulting from
the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner. The vehicle is driven in the low
engine speed range and the wheels are less
likely to spin. Drive program S (Sport)
Drive program
Sis characterized by the fol-
lowing:
Rsporty engine settings.
Rthe automatic transmission shifting up
later. the fuel consumption possibly being
higher as a result of the later automatic
transmission shift points.
Drive program I (Individual)
In drive program Ithe following properties of
the drive program can be selected:
Rthe drive (engine and transmission man-
agement)
Rthe steering
Rthe availability of the ECO start/stop func-
tion
Rthe climate control:
Information about the configuration of drive
program Iwith COMAND or Audio 20 can be
found in the Digital Operator's Manual.
iTo permanently select the gears in drive
program Iusing the steering wheel paddle
shifters, select the M(manual) setting for
the drive.
Off-road drive program
The Off-road drive program is characterized
by the following:
Rthe vehicle exhibits optimal driving charac-
teristics on easily negotiable off-road ter-
rain.
Drive program E (Economy)
Drive program Eis characterized by the fol-
lowing:
Rcomfort-oriented engine settings.
Roptimal fuel consumption resulting from
the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner.
Rthe vehicle pulling away more gently in
forward and reverse gears, unless the
accelerator pedal is depressed fully.
164Automatic transmission
Driving and parking