Important safety notes
iObserve the "Important safety notes" sec-tion (Ypage 61).
GWARNING
If BAS is malfunctioning, the braking distance
in an emergency braking situation is
increased. There is a risk of an accident.
In an emergency braking situation, depress
the brake pedal with full force. ABS prevents
the wheels from locking.
Braking
XKeep the brake pedal firmly depressed untilthe emergency braking situation is over.ABS prevents the wheels from locking.
The brakes will function as usual once yourelease the brake pedal. BAS is deactivated.
Active Brake Assist
General information
iObserve the "Important safety notes" sec-tion (Ypage 61).
Active Brake Assist consists of a distance warn-ing function with an autonomous braking func-tion and a situation-dependent brake boostingeffect.
Active Brake Assist can help you to minimize therisk of a collision with the vehicle traveling infront or reduce the effects of such a collision.
If Active Brake Assist detects that there is a riskof collision, you will be warned visually andacoustically. If you do not react to the visualcollision warning or the warning tone, autono-mous braking can be initiated in critical situa-tions. If you apply the brake yourself in a criticalsituation, Active Brake Assist supports you witha situation-dependent brake boosting effect.
Important safety notes
Detection of hazardous situations can be par-ticularly impaired if:
RThere is dirt on the sensors or anything elsecovering the sensors
RThere is snow or heavy rain
RThere is interference by other radar sources
RThere are strong radar reflections, for exam-ple in parking garages
RA narrow vehicle is traveling in front, e.g. amotorcycle
RA vehicle is traveling in front on a different line
RYou are driving a new vehicle or servicing onthe Active Brake Assist system has just beencarried out
Observe the important safety notes in the"Breaking-in notes" section (Ypage 122).
Following damage to the front end of the vehicle,have the configuration and operation of theradar sensor checked at a qualified specialistworkshop. This also applies to collisions at lowspeeds where no visible damage to the front ofthe vehicle is apparent.
Activating/deactivating
Active Brake Assist is active after every ignitioncycle.
You can activate or deactivate Active BrakeAssist (Ypage 187) in the on-board computer.When deactivated, the distance warning func-tion and the autonomous braking function arealso deactivated.
If Active Brake Assist is deactivated, the
iCanada only: This device complies withRSS-210 of Industry Canada. Operation issubject to the following two conditions:
1. This device may not cause interference,and
2. This device must accept any interferencereceived, including interference that maycause undesired operation of the device.
Removal, tampering, or altering of the devicewill void any warranties, and is not permitted.Do not tamper with, alter, or use in any non-approved way.
Any unauthorized modification to this devicecould void the user's authority to operate theequipment.
Important safety notes
GWARNING
Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC does not
react to:
Rpeople or animals
Rstationary objects in the road, e.g. stopped
or parked vehicles
Roncoming vehicles and crossing traffic
As a result, Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC
may neither give warnings nor intervene in
such situations. There is a risk of an accident.
Always pay careful attention to the traffic sit-
uation and be ready to brake.
GWARNING
Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC cannot
always clearly identify other road users and
complex traffic situations.
In such cases, Active Distance Assist
DISTRONIC can:
Rgive an unnecessary warning and then
brake the vehicle
Rneither give a warning nor intervene
Raccelerate or brake unexpectedly
There is a risk of an accident.
Continue to drive carefully and be ready to
brake, especially if Active Distance Assist
DISTRONIC warns you.
GWARNING
Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC brakes
your vehicle with up to 50% of the maximum
possible deceleration. If this deceleration is
not sufficient, Active Distance Assist
DISTRONIC alerts you with a visual and acous-
tic warning. There is a risk of an accident.
Adjust your speed in these cases and main-
tain sufficient distance.
Apply the brakes yourself and/or take evasive
action.
!When Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC orthe HOLD function is activated, the vehiclebrakes automatically in certain situations.
To avoid damage to the vehicle, deactivateActive Distance Assist DISTRONIC and theHOLD function in the following or similar sit-uations:
Rwhen towing the vehicle
Rin the car wash
Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC can neitherreduce the risk of an accident if you fail to adaptyour driving style, nor override the laws of phys-ics. Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC cannottake into account road, weather or traffic con-ditions. Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC isonly an aid. You are responsible for the distanceto the vehicle in front, for vehicle speed, forbraking in good time and for staying in your lane.
Do not use Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC:
RIn road and traffic conditions which do notallow you to maintain a constant speed, e.g. inheavy traffic or on winding roads
ROn slippery road surfaces. Braking or accel-erating could cause the drive wheels to losetraction and the vehicle could then skid
RIn poor visibility, e.g. due to fog, heavy rain orsnow
Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC may notdetect narrow vehicles driving in front, e.g.motorcycles, or vehicles driving in a staggeredformation.
In particular, the detection of obstacles can beimpaired if:
RThere is dirt on the sensors or anything elsecovering the sensors
RThere is snow or heavy rain
Driving systems153
Driving and parking
Z
cle with all wheels in full contact with theground.
4MATIC, together with ESP®, improves the trac-tion of your vehicle whenever a drive wheelspins due to insufficient grip.
If you fail to adapt your driving style, 4MATIC canneither reduce the risk of accident nor overridethe laws of physics. 4MATIC cannot takeaccount of road, weather and traffic conditions.4MATIC is only an aid. You are responsible forthe distance to the vehicle in front, for vehiclespeed, for braking in good time and for staying inyour lane.
If a drive wheel spins due to insufficient grip:
ROnly depress the accelerator pedal as far asnecessary when pulling away.
RAccelerate less when driving.
iIn wintry driving conditions, the maximumeffect of 4MATIC can only be achieved if youuse winter tires (M+S tires), with snow chainsif necessary.
DYNAMIC BODY CONTROL
General notes
DYNAMIC BODY CONTROL offers improveddriving comfort and continuously controls thecalibration of the dampers. The damping char-acteristics adapt to the current operating anddriving situation.
The damping is tuned individually to each wheeland depends on:
Ryour driving style, e.g. sporty
Rthe road surface conditions
Rthe drive program selected
The drive program can be set using theDYNAMIC SELECT button (Ypage 129).
Selecting Comfort mode
In theComfortdrive program, the driving char-acteristics of your vehicle are more comforta-ble. Therefore, select this drive program if youprefer a more comfortable driving style. Alsoselect theComfortdrive program when drivingfast on straight roads, e.g. on straight stretchesof highway.
XPress DYNAMIC SELECT button (Ypage 129)as many times as necessary until theCom-fortdrive program is selected.
Selecting Sport mode
The firmer setting of the suspension tuning intheSportdrive program ensures even bettercontact with the road. Select this drive programwhen employing a sporty driving style, e.g. onwinding country roads.
XPress DYNAMIC SELECT button (Ypage 129)as many times as necessary until theSportdrive program is selected.
Parking Assist PARKTRONIC
Important safety notes
Parking Assist PARKTRONIC is an electronicparking aid with ultrasound. It monitors the areaaround your vehicle using six sensors in thefront bumper and six sensors in the rearbumper. Parking Assist PARKTRONIC visuallyand audibly indicates the distance between yourvehicle and an object.
Parking Assist PARKTRONIC is only an aid. It isnot a replacement for your attention to yourimmediate surroundings. You are alwaysresponsible for safe maneuvering, parking andexiting a parking space. Make sure that thereare no persons, animals or objects in the maneu-vering area when you are maneuvering or park-ing.
!When parking, pay particular attention toobjects above or below the sensors, such asflower pots or trailer drawbars. Parking AssistPARKTRONIC does not detect such objectswhen they are in the immediate vicinity of thevehicle. You could damage the vehicle or theobjects.
The sensors may not detect snow and otherobjects that absorb ultrasonic waves.
Ultrasonic sources such as an automatic carwash, the compressed-air brakes of a truck ora pneumatic drill could cause Parking AssistPARKTRONIC to malfunction.
Parking Assist PARKTRONIC may not functioncorrectly on uneven terrain.
162Driving systems
Driving an d parking