
good time, and for staying in lane. Always adapt
your driving style to suit the prevailing road and
weather conditions and maintain as afe distance
from the vehicle in front .D rive carefully.
The driving safety systems described only work
as effectively as possible when there is ade-
quate contact between the tires and the road
surface. Pay particular attention to the informa-
tion regarding tires, recommended minimum
tire tread depths etc. in the "Wheels and tires"
section ( Y
page 255).
In wintry driving conditions, always use winter
tires (M+S tires) and if necessary, snow chains.
Only in this way will the driving safety systems
described in this section work as effectively as
possible.
ABS (Anti-lock Braking System)
General information ABS regulates brake pressure in such aw ay that
the wheels do not lock when you brake. This
allows you to continue steering the vehicle when
braking.
The % ABS warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up when the ignition is switched
on. It goes out when the engine is running.
ABS works from as peed of about 5m ph
(8 km/h), regardless of road-surface conditions.
ABS works on slippery surfaces, even when you
only brake gently.
Important safety notes
i Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion ( Y
page 54).
G WARNING
If ABS is faulty, the wheels could lock when
braking. The steerability and braking charac-
teristics may be severely impaired. Addition-
ally ,f urther driving safety systems are deac-
tivated. There is an increased danger of skid-
ding and accidents.
Drive on carefully. Have ABS checked imme-
diately at aq ualified specialist workshop.
When ABS is malfunctioning, other systems,
including driving safety systems, will also
become inoperative. Observe the information
on the ABS warning lamp ( Y
page 204) and dis- play messages which may be shown in the
instrument cluster ( Y
page 179).
Braking X
If ABS intervenes: continue to depress the
brake pedal vigorously until the braking sit-
uation is over. X
To make af ull brake application: depress
the brake pedal with full force.
If ABS intervenes when braking, you will feel a
pulsing in the brake pedal.
The pulsating brake pedal can be an indication
of hazardous road conditions, and functions as a
reminder to take extr ac are while driving.
BAS (Brake Assist System)
General information BAS operates in emergenc yb raking situations.
If you depress the brake pedal quickly, BAS
automatically boosts the braking force, thus
shortening the stopping distance.
Important safety notes
i Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion ( Y
page 54).
G WARNING
If BAS is malfunctioning, the braking distance
in an emergenc yb raking situation is
increased. There is ar isk of an accident.
In an emergenc yb raking situation, depress
the brake pedal with full force. ABS prevents
the wheels from locking.
Braking X
Keep the brake pedal firmly depressed until
the emergenc yb raking situation is over.
ABS prevent st he wheels from locking.
The brakes will function as usual once you
release the brake pedal. BAS is deactivated.Driving safety systems 55
Safety Z

Important safety notes
G WAR NING
Adaptive Brake Assist canno ta lways clearly
iden tif yo bj ect sa nd co mple xt ra ff ic situa-
tions.
In suc hc ases, Adaptive Brake Assist can:R
interven eu nnecessar ilyR
no ti ntervene
Ther eisar is kofana cc iden t.
Always pay careful attentio ntot he traff ic sit-
uation and be read yt ob rake. Terminate the
interventio ninan on-cri tical driv ing situation.
G WAR NING
Adaptive Brake Assist does no tr eact:R
to peop le or animalsR
to oncomin gv eh icle sR
to crossing traff icR
when cornering
As ar esult, th eA da pt ive Brake Assist may not
interven eina ll critical conditions. Ther eisa
ris kofana cc iden t.
Always pay careful attentio ntot he traff ic sit-
uation and be read yt ob rake.
Due to th en ature of th es ystem, particularly
co mpli cated but non-critical driv ing conditions
may also caus eB ra ke Assist to intervene.
If adaptive Brake Assist is no ta vailab le due to a
malfunctio nint he radar sensor system, the
brak es ystem remains availab le wit hf ull brake
boostin ge ffect and BA S.
ESP ®
(Electronic Stability Program)
General notes
i Observ et he "Im portan ts afety notes" sec-
tio n( Y
page 54).
ESP ®
monitors driving st abilit ya nd traction ,i .e.
power transmission between th et ir es and the
road surface.
If ESP ®
detect st ha tt he veh icle is deviating from
th ed irection desired by th ed river, on eorm ore
wheel sa re braked to st abiliz et he veh icle .T he
engin eo utput is also mod ifie dtok ee pt he veh i- cle on th ed esired course within physical limits.
ESP ®
assists th ed river when pullin ga way on
wet or slippery roads. ESP ®
can also stabilize
th ev ehicle durin gb raking.
ETS (Electronic Traction System)
i Observ et he "Importan ts afety notes" sec-
tio n( Y
page 54).
ET St ra ction control is part of ESP ®
.
ET Sb rakes th ed riv ew heel si nd ivid ually if they
spin .T his enables you to pull away and acceler-
ate on slippery surfaces, for example if th er oad
surface is slippery on on es ide .Ina ddit ion ,m ore
driv et or que is transferred to th ew heel or
wheel sw it ht ra ction.
ET Sr emains active when you deactivate ESP ®
.
Important safety notes
G WARNING
If ESP ®
is malfunctioning, ESP ®
is unab le to
stabiliz et he vehicle .A dd it ionally, further driv-
ing safety systems are deactivate d. This
increases th er is kofs ki ddin ga nd an accident.
Drive on carefully. Hav eE SP ®
checked at a
qualified specialist workshop.
When to win gt he vehicle wit ht he rear axle
raised, observ et he note sonE SP ®
( Y
page 252).
If the

Deactivating/activating ESP (SLC 43 ®
AMG )Important safet yn otes
i Observ et he "Important safet yn otes "s ec -
tion ( Y
page 54).
You can selec tb etween th ef ol lowin gs tate so f
ES P ®
:R
ES P ®
is activated.R
SPORT handlin gm od eisa ctivated.R
ES P ®
is deactivated.
G WARNING
Whe nS PO RT handlin gm od eisa ctivated,
there is ag re ater ris kofs ki dding and acci-
dents .
Only activat eS PO RT handlin gm od eint he sit -
uation sd escribed in th ef ol lowing.
G WARNING
If you deactivat eE SP ®
,E SP ®
no longer sta-
bilizes th ev ehicle. There is an increase dr is k
of skidding and an accident.
Only deactivat eE SP ®
in th es ituation sd escri-
bed in th ef ol lowing.
In th ef ol lowin gs ituations, it may be bette rt o
activat eS PO RT handlin gm od eord eactivat e
ES P ®
:R
when usin gs no wc ha in sR
in dee ps no wR
on san dorg ra ve lR
on specially designated roads when th ev ehi-
cle's own oversteering and understeering
characteristics are desire d
Spinning th ew heels result sinac utting action
whic hp rovides bette rg ri p.
Driving in SPORT handlin gm od eorw ithout
ES P ®
require sane xtremel yq ualified and expe-
rienced driver .
i Activat eE SP ®
as soo nast he situation s
described abov enol onger apply .E SP ®
will
otherwise no tbea ble to stabilize th ev ehicle if
th ev ehicle start stos ki doraw hee ls ta rt st o
spin. ! Avoid spinnin gt he driven wheels fo ra n
extended period wit hE SP ®
deactivated. You
could otherwise damage th ed rivetrain .
Deactivating/activating ESP ®
X
To activate SPORT handling mode: briefly
press butto n C .
The t SPORT handlin gm od ew arnin g
lamp in th ei nstrument cluster lights up. The
SPORT handling mod e
messag ea ppears in
th em ultifunction display. X
To deactivate SPORT handling mode:
briefly press butto n C .
The t SPORT handlin gm od ew arnin g
lamp in th ei nstrument cluster goe so ut .X
To deactivate ESP ®
: press butto n C until
th e

R
Engine torque is no longe rl im ite da nd the
drive wheels ar ea bl etos pi n.R
ESP ®
still provides support when yo ub rake
firmly.
Characteristics when ESP ®
is deactivatedIf ESP ®
is deactivated and one or mor ew heel s
start to spin, the