2018 MERCEDES-BENZ A-CLASS SALOON ESP

R
More drive torque is transferred tothe wheel
or wheels with traction.
Influence of drive prog rams on ESP ®
The drive programs enable ESP ®
to adapt todif‐
fe re nt we ather and road conditions as well as th
e driver's prefer red driving style. You can
select the drive programs using theDY NA MIC
SELECT switch (/ page165).
ESP ®
ch aracteristics per drive prog ramDrive prog
ram
ESP®
mode Cha
racteristics
A (Comfort)
; (Economy) ESP
®
Comfort These drive prog
rams pr ovide the ideal balance
between traction and stabilit y.
Select drive program ;orA in difficult
ro ad conditions, such as sn owor ice, or when
th ero ad is wet from rain.
C (Sport)
ESP®
Sport This drive program continues
toofferst ability
but with a sporty setup which allo wsthe enthu‐
siastic driver a more active driving style.
Select drive program Cin good road condi‐
tions, forex ample on dry car riag ewa ysand clear
st re tches of road. Driving and parking
19 3

Ac
tivating/deactivating ESP ®
(Electronic Sta‐
bility Prog ram) Multimedia sy
stem:
4 © 5
Settings 5
Quick access
% ESP®
can only be activated/deactivated
using quick access when at least one other
function is available in quick access. ESP ®
can otherwise be found in theAssistance
menu. #
Select ESP.
A prom ptappears. #
Select Onorå Off.
ESP ®
is deactivated if theå ESP®
OFF warn‐
ing lamp lights up continuously in the instrument
clus ter.
Obser vethe information on warning lamps and
display messages which may be shown in the
instrument clus ter. Fu
nction of ESP ®
Crosswind Assist ESP
®
Crosswind Assist de tects sudden gu sts of
side wind and helps the driver tokeep theve hi‐
cle in the lane:
R ESP ®
Crosswind Assist is active at vehicle
speeds between 80 km/h and 200 km/h
when driving stra ight ahead or cornering
slightly.
R The vehicle is stabilised bymeans of individ‐
ual brake application on one side. Fu
nction of ESP ®
trailer stabilisation &
WARNING Risk of accident in poor road
and weather conditions
In poor road and weather conditions, the
trailer stabilisation cannot pr event lu rching of
th eve hicle/trailer combination. Trailers with
a high centre of gr avity may tip over before
ESP ®
de tects this. #
Alw ays adapt your driving style to suit
th e cur rent road and weather condi‐
tions. When driving with a trailer, ESP
®
can stabilise
yo ur vehicle if the trailer begins toswer vefrom
side toside:
R ESP ®
trailer stabilisation is active abo ve
speeds of 65 km/h.
R Slight swerving is reduced bymeans of a tar‐
ge ted, individual brake application on one
side.
R Intheeve nt of se vere swerving, the engine
output is also reduced and all wheels are
braked.
ESP ®
trailer stabilisation may be impaired or
may not function if:
R The trailer is not connec ted cor rectly or is
not de tected prope rly by theve hicle. 194
Driving and pa rking

Fu
nction of EBD (Electronic Brake forc e Dis‐
tribution) EBD is
characterised bythefo llowing:
R Monitoring and regulating the brake pressure
on there ar wheels.
R Impr oved driving stability when braking,
especially on bends. Fu
nction of STEER CONT ROL ST
EER CONT ROL helps youby transmitting a
noticeable steering forc eto thesteering wheel in
th e direction requiredforve hicle stabilisation.
This steering recommendation is given pa rticu‐
lar lyin thefo llowing situations:
R both right wheels or bo thleft wheels are on a
we t or slippe ryroad sur face when you brake
R theve hicle starts toskid
Sy stem limitations
ST EER CONTROL may be impaire d or may not
function in thefo llowing situations:
R ESP ®
is deactivated R
ESP ®
is malfunctioning
R thesteering is malfunctioning
If ESP ®
is malfunctioning, you will be assis ted
fur ther by the electric po werst eering. Fu
nction of Active Brake Assi st Ac
tive Brake Assi stconsi sts of thefo llowing
functions:
R Distance warning function
R Autonomous braking function
R Situation-dependent braking assi stance
R Vehicles with Driving Assistance Pack‐
age: Evasi veSteering Assist
Ac tive Brake Assi stcan help youto minimise the
ri sk of a collision with vehicles, cyclists or
pedestrians, or reduce the ef fects of su cha colli‐
sion.
If Ac tive Brake Assi sthas de tected a risk of colli‐
sion, a warning tone sounds and theL dis‐
ta nce warning lamp lights up in the instrument
clus ter. If
yo u do not react tothewa rning, autonomous
braking can be initiated in critical situations.
In especially critical situations, Active Brake
Assi stcan initia teautonomous braking direct ly.
In this case, thewa rning lamp and warning tone
occur simultaneously wi th the braking applica‐
tion.
If yo u apply the brake yourself in a critical situa‐
tion or apply the brake during autonomous brak‐
ing, situation-dependent braking assis tance
occu rs. The brake pressure increases up tomax‐
imum full-s top braking if necessar y. If autonomous braking or situation-dependent
braking assist
ance has occur red, display 1 Driving and parking
19 5

appears in
the multifunction display and then
automatically goes out af ter a short time.
If th e autonomous braking function or the situa‐
tion-dependent braking assis tance is trig gered,
additional pr eventive measu resfo r occupant
pr otection (PRE-SAFE ®
) may also be initiated. &
WARNING Risk of an accident caused by
limited de tection per form ance of Active
Brake Assi st
Ac tive Brake Assi stcannot al ways clear ly
identify objects and complex traf fic situa‐
tions.
In su chcases, Active Brake Assi stmight:
R Give a warning or brake without reason R
Not give a warning or not brake #
Alw ays pay careful attention tothe traf‐
fi c situation; do not rely on Active Brake
Assi stalone. Active Brake Assi stis only
an aid. The driver is responsible for
maintaining a suita ble distance tothe
ve hicle in front, vehicle speed and for
braking in good time. #
Be prepared tobrake or swer veif nec‐
essar y. Also obser
vethe sy stem limitations of Active
Brake Assi st.
The individual subfunctions are available in
th efo llowing speed ranges:
Distance warning function The dis
tance warning function issues a warning
in thefo llowing situations:
R From appr oximately 30 km/h, if over se veral
seconds the dis tance maintained totheve hi‐
cle tr avelling in front is insuf ficient forthe
driven speed, theL distance warning
lamp lights up in the instrument clus ter.
R From appr oximately 7 km/h, if your vehicle
is critically close toave hicle or pedestrian,
yo u will hear an intermit tent wa rning tone
and theL distance warning lamp lights
up in the instrument clus ter.
Brake immediately or take evasive action, pr ovi‐
ded it is safe todo so and the traf fic situation
allo wsthis. 19 6
Driving and pa rking

R
Assi stance thro ugh po wer-assis tedsteering if
it de tects a swerving manoeuvre.
R Activation byan abrupt steering mo vement
during a swerving manoeuvre.
R Assis tance du ring swerving and stra ightening
of theve hicle.
R Reaction from a speed of appr oximately
20 km/h up toa speed of appr oximately
70 km/h.
Yo u can pr eventthe assis tance at any time by
actively steering. &
WARNING Risk of an accident despi te
Evasive Steering Assist
Evasive Steering Assist cann otalw ays clearly
identify objects and complex traf fic situa‐
tions.
In addition, thesteering support of Evasive
St eering Assist is general lynot su fficient to
avo id a collision. In such cases Evasive
Steering Assist can:
R give an unnecessary warning or pr ovide
assis tance
R not gi veawa rning or not pr ovide assis‐
ta nce #
Alw ays pay careful attention tothe traf‐
fi c situation; do not rely on Ev asive
St eering Assist alone. #
Beready tobrake and take evasive
action, if necessar y. #
Preve ntthe assis tance byactively steer‐
ing in non-critical driving situations. #
Drive at an appropriate speed if pedes‐
trians are close tothe path of your vehi‐
cle. Sy
stem limitations
Fu ll sy stem per form ance is not available for a
fe w seconds af ter switching on the ignition or
af te r driving off. The sy
stem may be impaired or may not function
in thefo llowing situations:
R In sno w,rain, fog, heavy spr ay, if there is
gl are, in direct sunlight or in greatlyvarying
light conditions.
R Ifth e sensors are dirty, mis ted up, damaged
or co vered.
R Ifth e sensors are impaired due tointer fer‐
ence from other radar sources, e.g. strong
ra dar reflections in multi-s torey car par ks.
R If a loss of tyre pressure or a defective tyre
has been de tected and displ ayed.
R In complex traf fic situations whe reobjects
cannot always be clearly identified.
R If pedestrians or vehicles mo vequickly into
th e sensor de tection range.
R If pede strians are hidden by other objects.
R Ifth e typical outline of a pedestrian cann ot
be distinguished from the bac kground.
R If a pedestrian is not de tected as su ch, e.g.
due tospecial clo thing or other objects.
R On bends with a tight radius. 200
Driving and parking

Setting
Active Brake Assi st Re
quirements:
R The ignition is switched on.
Multimedia sy stem:
4 © 5
Settings 5
Assistance
5 Active Brake Assist
The following settings are available:
R Early
R Medium
R Late #
Select a setting.
The setting is retained when the engine is
next star ted.
Deactivating Active Brake Assi st
% It is recommended that you alw ays lea ve
Ac tive Brake Assi stactivated. #
Select Off.
The dis tance warning function, the autono‐
mous braking function and the Evasive Steer‐
ing Assist are deactivated. When
theve hicle is next star ted, the middle
setting is automatically selected.
% IfAc tive Brake Assi stis deactivated, the
æ symbol appears inthest atus bar of the
multifunction displa y. Fu
nction of Adaptive Brake Lights Ad
aptive Brake Lights warnfollowing traf fic in an
emergency braking situation wi th thefo llowing
actions:
R Byflashing the brake lamps
R By activating the hazard warning lights
If th eve hicle is braked sharply from speeds
abo ve50 km/h, the brake lamps flash rapidl y.
This pr ovides traf fic tr avelling behind you with an
ev en more noticeable warning.
If th eve hicle is tr avelling at speeds of more than
70 km/h at the beginning of the brake applica‐
tion, the hazard warning lights switch on once
th eve hicle is stationar y.When you pull away
again, the hazard warning lights will switch off
automatically at appr oximately 10km/h. Yo u can also switch off
the hazard warning lights
using the hazard warning button. Cruise control and limiter
Fu
nction of cruise control
Cruise cont rolre gulates the speed totheva lue
selec tedby the driver.
If yo u accelerate toove rtake, forex ample, the
st ored speed is not dele ted. If youre mo veyour
fo ot from the accelera tor pedal af terov ertaking,
cruise control will resume speed regulation back
to thestored speed.
Cruise contro l is operated using the cor respond‐
ing steering wheel buttons. You can store any
speed abo ve20 km/h up tothe maximum speed
or up tothe set winter tyre limit.
If yo ufa ilto adapt your driving style, cruise con‐
trol can neither reduce therisk of an accident
nor override the la wsof ph ysics. It cannot take
into account road, weather or traf fic conditions.
Cruise control is only an aid. You are responsible
fo r maintaining a safe dis tance totheve hicle in
front, forve hicle speed, for braking in good time
and forst ay ing in lane. Driving and parking
201

Displa
yson the multifunction display
The status of cruise control and thestored
speed are shown in the multifunction displa y.1
Cruise cont rol is selec ted
2 Speed is sa ved, cruise control is deactivated
3 Speed is sa ved, cruise control is activated
% The segments extending from the cur rent
st ored speed tothe end of the scale, or to
th e set winter tyre limit, light up in the
speedome ter. Sy
stem limitations
Cruise control may be unable tomaintain the
st ored speed on uphill gradients. The stored
speed is resumed when the gradient evens out.
Change into a lo werge ar in good time on long
and steep downhill gradients. Take particular
no te ofthis when driving a laden vehicle. By
doing so, you will make use of the engine's brak‐
ing ef fect. This relie vesth e load on the brake
sy stem and pr events the brakes from overheat‐
ing and wearing tooqu ickl y.
Do not use cruise control in thefo llowing situa‐
tions:
R In traf fic situations whi chrequ ire frequent
ch anges of speed, e.g. in heavy traf fic, on
winding roads.
R On slippe ryroads. Accelerating can cause
th e drive wheels tolose traction and the
ve hicle could then skid.
R Ifyo u are driving when visibility is poor.
Fu nction of the limiter
The limiter restricts the speed of theve hicle. To
re duce the speed tothe set speed, the limiter
applies the brakes automaticall y.Yo
u can limit the speed as follo ws:
R Variable: for speed limits, e.g. in built-up
areas.
R Perm anen t:for long-term speed restrictions,
e.g. when driving in winter tyre mode.
The variable limiter is operated using the cor re‐
sponding steering wheel buttons. You can store
any speed abo ve20 km/h up tothe maximum
speed or up tothe set winter tyre limit. You can
also per form settings while theve hicle is station‐
ary if theve hicle has been star ted.
If yo ufa ilto adapt your driving style, the limiter
can neither reduce therisk of an accident nor
ov erride the la wsof ph ysics. It cannot take into
account road, weather or traf fic conditions. The
limiter is only an aid. You are responsible for
maintaining a safe dis tance totheve hicle in
front, forve hicle speed, for braking in good time
and forst ay ing in lane.
Displa ysinthe instrument display
The status of the limiter and thestored speed
are shown in the multifunction displa y.202
Driving and parking

1
Limiter is selected
2 Speed is stored, limiter is deactivated
3 Speed is stored, limiter is activated
% The segments in the speedome ter light up,
up tothe cur rently stored speed.
% When the driving speed is greater than the
st ored speed, display 3flashes.
Kickd own
If yo u depress the accelerator pedal be yond the
pressure point (kickdown), the limiter switches
to passive mode. The Limiter passivemessage
appears in the multifunction displa y.Af
ter completion of kickdown, theva riable lim‐
iter is activated again in thefo llowing situations:
R Ifth e driven speed drops below thestored
speed.
R Ifth estored speed is called up.
R Ifyo ustore a new speed.
Operating cruise control or theva riable lim‐
iter &
WARNING Risk of accident due tostored
speed
If yo u call up thestored speed and this is
lo we rth an your cur rent speed, theve hicle
decelerates. #
Take into account the tra ffic situation
before calling up thestored speed. Re
quirements:
Cruise control
R Cruise control is selected.
R ESP ®
must be activated, but not inter vening.
R The driven speed is at least 20 km/h. R
The transmission is in position h.
Va riable limiter:
R The vehicle has been star ted.
R The variable limiter is selec ted.
Switching between cruise control and the
va riable limi ter Driving and pa
rking 203