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152Driving and operatingHill start assistThe system helps prevent unintendedmovement when driving away on
inclines.
When releasing the brake pedal after
stopping on an incline, the brakes
remain on for a further two seconds.
The brakes release automatically as
soon as the vehicle begins to
accelerate.
The hill start assist is not active during
an Autostop.Ride control systems
Traction Control system The Traction Control system (TC) is a component of the Electronic Stability
Control (ESC) 3 153.
TC improves driving stability when
necessary, regardless of the type of
road surface or tyre grip, by
preventing the drive wheels from
spinning.
As soon as the drive wheels starts to
spin, engine output is reduced and
the wheel spinning the most is braked
individually. This considerably
improves the driving stability of the
vehicle on slippery road surfaces.
TC is operational after each engine
start as soon as the control indicator
b extinguishes.
When TC operates b flashes.
9 Warning
Do not let this special safety
feature tempt you into taking risks
when driving.
Adapt speed to the road
conditions.
Control indicator b 3 94.
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Driving and operating153Deactivation
TC can be switched off when spinningof drive wheels is required:
Press b briefly to deactivate TC, k
illuminates. Deactivation is displayed
as status message in the Driver
Information Centre.
TC is reactivated by pressing b
again.
TC is also reactivated the next time
the ignition is switched on.
Electronic Stability Control
Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
improves driving stability when
necessary, regardless of the type of
road surface or tyre grip. It also
prevents the drive wheels from
spinning. ESC operates in
combination with the Traction Control system (TC) 3 152.
As soon as the vehicle starts to
swerve (understeer/oversteer),
engine output is reduced and the
wheels are braked individually. This
considerably improves the driving
stability of the vehicle on slippery road
surfaces.ESC is operational after each engine
start as soon as the control indicator
b extinguishes.
When ESC operates b flashes.9 Warning
Do not let this special safety
feature tempt you into taking risks
when driving.
Adapt speed to the road
conditions.
Control indicator b 3 94.
Deactivation
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154Driving and operatingFor a more sporty behaviour ESC and
TC can be deactivated separately:
● Press b briefly: only Traction
control system is inactive, ESC
remains active, k illuminates
● Press and hold b for at least
5 seconds: TC and ESC are deactivated, k and n illuminate.
Additionally, the selected mode is
displayed as status message in the
Driver Information Centre.
If the vehicle comes into threshold
with deactivated ESP, the system will reactivate ESP for the time duration
of the threshold, when the brake
pedal is depressed once.
ESC is reactivated by pressing b
again. If the TC system was
previously disabled, both TC and
ESC are reactivated.
ESC is also reactivated the next time
the ignition is switched on.Interactive driving system
Flex RideFlex Ride driving system allows the
driver to select between three driving
modes:
● SPORT mode: press SPORT,
LED illuminates.
● TOUR mode: press TOUR, LED
illuminates.
● NORMAL mode: both SPORT
and TOUR are not pressed, no
LED illuminates.
Deactivate SPORT mode and TOUR
mode by pressing corresponding
button once more.
In each driving mode, Flex Ride
networks the following electronic systems:
● Continuous Damping Control
● Accelerator Pedal Control
● Steering Control
● Electronic Stability Control (ESC)
● Antilock brake system (ABS) with
cornering brake control
● Automatic transmission.SPORT mode
The settings of the systems are
adapted to a sportier driving style.
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Driving and operating155TOUR mode
The settings of the systems are
adapted to a comfort driving style.
NORMAL mode
All settings of the systems are
adapted to standard values.
Drive mode control Within each manually selected driving
mode SPORT, TOUR or NORMAL,
the Drive Mode Control detects and
analyses continuously the real driving characteristic, responses by the
driver, and the active dynamic state of the vehicle. If necessary, the control
unit of Drive Mode Control
automatically changes the settings
within the selected driving mode or,
when recognising greater variations,
the driving mode is changed for the
length of variation.
If, for example, NORMAL mode is selected and Drive Mode Control
detects a sporty driving behaviour,
Drive Mode Control changes several settings of the NORMAL mode into
sporty settings. The Drive Mode
Control changes to SPORT mode in
case of very sporty driving behaviour.
If, for another example, TOUR mode
is selected and whilst driving on a
winding road a sudden hard brake is
necessary, Drive Mode Control will
detect the dynamic vehicle condition
and changes the settings for
suspension to SPORT mode to
increase vehicle stability.
When the driving characteristic or the dynamic vehicle state returns to the
former state, Drive Mode Control will
change the settings to the
preselected driving mode.Personalised settings in the
SPORT mode
The driver can select the functions of
the SPORT mode when SPORT is
pressed. These settings can be changed in the Settings menu in the
Info-Display. Vehicle personalisation
3 104.
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156Driving and operatingDriver assistance
systems9 Warning
Driver assistance systems are
developed to support the driver
and not to replace the driver's
attention.
The driver accepts full
responsibility when driving the
vehicle.
When using driver assistance
systems, always take care
regarding the current traffic
situation.
Cruise control
The cruise control can store and
maintain speeds of approx. 30 to
200 km/h. Deviations from the stored
speeds may occur when driving uphill or downhill.
For safety reasons, the cruise control cannot be activated until the brake
pedal has been operated once.
Activating in first gear is not possible.
Do not use the cruise control if it is not advisable to maintain a constant
speed.
With automatic transmission, only
activate cruise control in automatic
mode.
Control indicator m 3 96.
Switching on the system
Press m; control indicator m in
instrument cluster illuminates white.
Activation of the functionality Accelerate to the desired speed and
turn thumb wheel to SET/-, the
current speed is stored and
maintained. Control indicator m in
instrument cluster illuminates green.
Accelerator pedal can be released.
Vehicle speed can be increased by
depressing the accelerator pedal.
When the accelerator pedal is
released, the previously stored speed
is resumed.
Cruise control remains activated
while gearshifting.
Increase speed
With cruise control active, hold thumb
wheel turned to RES/+ or briefly turn
to RES/+ repeatedly: speed
increases continuously or in small
increments.
Alternatively accelerate to the desired speed and store by turning to SET/-.
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Driving and operating157
Reduce speedWith cruise control active, hold thumb
wheel turned to SET/- or briefly turn to
SET/- repeatedly: speed decreases
continuously or in small increments.
Deactivation of the functionality
Press y; control indicator m in
instrument cluster illuminates white.
Cruise control is deactivated. Last
stored speed remains in memory for
later speed resume.
Automatic deactivation:
● Vehicle speed below approx. 30 km/h.
● Vehicle speed above approx. 200 km/h.
● The brake pedal is depressed.
● The clutch pedal is depressed for
a few seconds.
● Selector lever is in N.
● Engine speed is in a very low range.
● The Traction Control system (TC)
or Electronic Stability Control
(ESC) is operating.
Resume stored speed
Turn thumb wheel to RES/+ at a
speed above 30 km/h. The stored
speed will be obtained.
Switching off the system
Press m; control indicator m in
instrument cluster extinguishes. The stored speed is deleted.Pressing L for activating speed
limiter or switching off the ignition also switches off cruise control and
deletes the stored speed.
Speed limiter
The speed limiter prevents the
vehicle exceeding a preset maximum
speed.
The maximum speed can be set at a
speed above 25 km/h.
The driver can only accelerate up to
the preset speed. Deviations from the limited speed may occur when driving
downhill.
The preset speed limit is displayed in
the top line of the Driver Information
Centre when the system is active.
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160Driving and operatingSelecting the alert sensitivity
The alert sensitivity can be set to
near, medium or far.
Press V, the current setting is shown
on the Driver Information Centre.
Press V again to change the alert
sensitivity.
Alerting the driver
A green illuminated vehicle ahead
control indicator A illuminates in the
instrument cluster when the system
has detected a vehicle in the driving
path.When the distance to a preceding
moving vehicle gets too small or when
approaching another vehicle too
rapidly and a collision is imminent, the
collision alert symbol pops-up in the
Driver Information Centre.
Simultaneously a warning chime sounds. Depress the brake pedal, if it
is required by the situation.
Deactivation The system can be deactivated.
Press V repeatedly until the following
message appears in the Driver
Information Centre.
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Driving and operating161
General information
9Warning
Forward collision alert is just a
warning system and does not
apply the brakes. When
approaching a vehicle ahead too
rapidly, it may not provide you
enough time to avoid a collision.
The driver accepts full
responsibility for the valid
following distance based on traffic, weather and visibility conditions.
The complete attention of the
driver is always required while
driving. He shall always be ready to take action and apply the
brakes.
System limitations
The system is designed to warn only for vehicles, but may react also on
other objects.
In the following cases, forward
collision alert may not detect a vehicle
ahead or sensor performance is
limited:
● On winding roads.
● When weather limits visibility, e.g. fog, rain, or snow.
● When the sensor is blocked by snow, ice, slush, mud, dirt, or
windscreen damage.
Following distance indication
The following distance indication
displays the distance to a preceding
moving vehicle. The front camera in
the windscreen is used to detect the
distance of a vehicle directly ahead in the vehicle's path. It is active at
speeds above 40 km/h.
When a preceding vehicle is detected
ahead, the distance is indicated in
seconds, displayed on a page in the
Driver Information Centre 3 96 . Press
MENU on the turn signal lever to
select Vehicle Information Menu
X and turn the adjuster wheel to
choose following distance indication
page.
The minimum indicated distance is
0.5 seconds.