steering wheel MERCEDES-BENZ E55AMG 2005 W211 Workshop Manual

367 Practical hints
What to do if …
Vehicle status messages in the multi-function display
Warning and malfunction messages ap-
pear in the multifunction display located in
the instrument cluster.
Certain warning and malfunction messag-
es are accompanied by an audible signal.
Address these messages accordingly and
follow the additional instructions given in
this Operator’s Manual.
Selecting the vehicle status message
memory menu in the control system
(page 145) displays both cleared and
uncleared messages.
High-priority messages appear in the mul-
tifunction display in red color.Certain messages of high priority cannot
be cleared from the multifunction display
using the reset button (
page 24) or
buttonj, k, è orÿ on the
multifunction steering wheel.
Other messages of high priority and mes-
sages of less immediate priority can be
cleared from the multifunction display us-
ing the reset button or buttonj, k,
è orÿ on the multifunction steer-
ing wheel. They are then stored in the vehi-
cle status message memory (
page 153).
Remember that clearing a message will
only make the message disappear. Clear-
ing a message will not correct the condi-
tion that caused the message to appear.
Warning!
G
All categories of messages contain impor-
tant information which should be taken note
of and, where a malfunction is indicated, ad-
dressed as soon as possible at an autho-
rized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Failure to repair condition noted may cause
damage not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty, or result in property dam-
age or personal injury.Warning!
G
No messages will be displayed if either the
instrument cluster or the multifunction dis-
play is inoperative.
Contact the nearest authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center.

369 Practical hints
What to do if …
Text messagesDisplay
Display message
Possible cause
Possible solution
ABS
Malfunction
Visit workshop
The ABS has detected a malfunction
and has switched off.
The ESP and the BAS are also deac-
tivated.
The SBC brake system is still func-
tioning normally but without the ABS
available.

Continue driving with added caution.
Wheels will lock during hard braking, reduc-
ing steering capability.

Have the system checked at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions increases
the risk of an accident.
Display malfunction
Visit workshop
The ABS or the ABS display is mal-
functioning.

Continue driving with added caution.
Wheels will lock during hard braking, reduc-
ing steering capability.

Visit an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center
as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions increases
the risk of an accident.

372 Practical hintsWhat to do if …Display
Display message
Possible cause
Possible solution
ESP
Malfunction
Visit workshop
The ESP has detected a malfunction
and switched off.
The ABS may not be operational.
The SBC brake system is still func-
tioning normally but without the ESP
available.

Continue driving with added caution.

Have the system checked at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions increases
the risk of an accident.
unavailable
See Operator’s Manual
The ESP is deactivated because the
power supply was interrupted.
The SBC brake system is still func-
tioning normally but without the ESP
available.

Synchronize the ESP. With the vehicle sta-
tionary, turn the steering wheel completely
to the left and then to the right to synchro-
nize the ESP.
If the ESP message does not go out:

Continue driving with added caution.

Have the system checked at an authorized
Mercedes-Benz Center as soon as possible.
Failure to follow these instructions increases
the risk of an accident.
!When synchronizing the ESP, make
sure you can turn the steering wheel in
both directions as far as it will go with-
out the wheels hitting any objects, e.g.
a road curb.

399 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display symbol
Display messages
Possible cause
Possible solution
H
Tire pres.
Please rectify
The pressure is too low in one or more
tires.

Check and correct tire inflation pressure as
required (
page 322).
Caution
Tire pressure
One or more tires is deflating.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers. Ob-
serve the traffic situation around you.

Change the wheel (
page 425).

Have the damaged wheel repaired or re-
placed at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Cen-
ter.
Tire pres.
Check tire
The tire inflation pressure in one or
more tires is already below the mini-
mum value.
The tire inflation pressure in one or
more tires is low.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers.

Check the tire.

Check and correct the tire pressure as re-
quired.

If necessary change the wheel (
page 425).
Warning!
G
Do not drive with a flat tire. A flat tire affects
the ability to steer or brake the vehicle.
You may lose control of the vehicle. Contin-
ued driving with a flat tire will cause
excessive heat build-up and possibly a fire.

400 Practical hintsWhat to do if …Display symbol
Display messages
Possible cause
Possible solution
H
Caution
Tire pres., RL
The left rear tire is deflating.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers. Ob-
serve the traffic situation around you.

Change the wheel (
page 425).

Have the damaged wheel repaired or replaced
at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Tire pressure, RL
Check tire
The left rear tire inflation pressure is
low.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt.

Check the tire.

Check and adjust the tire inflation pressure.

If necessary, change the wheel (
page 425).
Caution
Tire pres., RR
The right rear tire is deflating.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers. Ob-
serve the traffic situation around you.

Change the wheel (
page 425).

Have the damaged wheel repaired or replaced
at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Warning!
G
Do not drive with a flat tire. A flat tire affects
the ability to steer or brake the vehicle.
You may lose control of the vehicle. Contin-
ued driving with a flat tire will cause
excessive heat build-up and possibly a fire.

401 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display symbol
Display messages
Possible cause
Possible solution
H
Tire pressure, RR
Check tire
The right rear tire inflation pres-
sure is low.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt.

Check the tire.

Check and adjust the tire inflation pressure.

If necessary, change the wheel (
page 425).
Caution
Tire pres., FL
The left front tire is deflating.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers. Ob-
serve the traffic situation around you.

Change the wheel (
page 425).

Have the damaged wheel repaired or replaced
at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Tire pressure, FL
Check tire
The left front tire inflation pres-
sure is low.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt.

Check and adjust the tire inflation pressure.

If necessary, change the wheel (
page 425).
Warning!
G
Do not drive with a flat tire. A flat tire affects
the ability to steer or brake the vehicle.
You may lose control of the vehicle. Contin-
ued driving with a flat tire will cause
excessive heat build-up and possibly a fire.

402 Practical hintsWhat to do if …Display symbol
Display messages
Possible cause
Possible solution
H
Caution
Tire pres., FR
The right front tire is deflating.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt, avoiding
abrupt steering and braking maneuvers. Ob-
serve the traffic situation around you.

Change the wheel (
page 425).

Have the damaged wheel repaired or replaced
at an authorized Mercedes-Benz Center.
Tire pressure, FR
Check tire
The right front tire inflation pres-
sure is low.

Carefully bring the vehicle to a halt.

Check the tire.

Check and adjust the tire inflation pressure.

If necessary change the wheel (
page 425).
Warning!
G
Do not drive with a flat tire. A flat tire affects
the ability to steer or brake the vehicle.
You may lose control of the vehicle. Contin-
ued driving with a flat tire will cause exces-
sive heat build-up and possibly a fire.

405 Practical hints
What to do if …
Display symbol
Display messages
Possible cause
Possible solution
t
Function
unavailable
This display appears if button t or
s on the multifunction steering wheel
is pressed and the vehicle is not equipped
with a telephone.
Ê
Trunk open
This message will appear whenever the
trunk lid is open.

Close the trunk lid.
W
Washer fluid,
please refill
The fluid level has dropped to about
1/3
of total reservoir capacity.
Add washer fluid (
page 310).

425 Practical hints
Flat tire
Flat tire
In the case of a flat tire, you may tempo-
rarily use the spare wheel when observing
the following restrictions:

Do not exceed a vehicle speed of
50 mph (80 km / h).


Drive to the nearest tire repair facility
to have the flat tire repaired or re-
placed as appropriate.


Do not operate vehicle with more than
one spare wheel mounted.
Preparing the vehicle
Park the vehicle as far as possible from
moving traffic on a hard surface.

Turn on the hazard warning flashers.

Engage the steering wheel lock in the
straight-ahead position and set the
parking brake.

Move the selector lever toP.

Have any passenger exit the vehicle at
a safe distance from the roadway.
Mounting the spare wheel
Preparing the vehicle
Prepare the vehicle as described under
“Preparing the vehicle” on this page.
Take the spare wheel out of the trunk
(page 407).

Take the wheel wrench and the jack
out of the trunk (
page 407).
Lifting the vehicle

Prevent the vehicle from rolling away
by blocking wheels with wheel chocks
(not included) or other sizable objects.
When changing wheel on a level surface:

Place one chock in front of and one be-
hind the wheel that is diagonally oppo-
site to the wheel being changed.
Warning!
G
The dimensions of the Minispare wheel and
the collapsible tire are different from those
of the road wheels. As a result, the vehicle
handling characteristics change when driv-
ing with a spare wheel mounted.
The spare wheel should only be used tempo-
rarily, and replaced with a regular road
wheel as quickly as possible.

440 Practical hintsTowing the vehicle
!
To be certain to avoid a possibility of
damage to the drive train, however, we
recommend the drive shaft be discon-
nected at the rear axle drive flange (ve-
hicles with 4MATIC: disconnected at
the front and rear axle drive flanges) for
any towing beyond a short tow to a
nearby garage.
Warning!
G
If circumstances require towing the vehicle
with all wheels on the ground, always tow
with a tow bar if:

the engine will not run


there is a malfunction in the SBC brake
system


there is a malfunction in the power sup-
ply or in the vehicle’s electrical system
as that will be necessary to adequately con-
trol the towed vehicle.
Prior to towing the vehicle with all wheels on
the ground, make certain that the SmartKey
is in starter switch position2.
If the SmartKey is left in the starter switch
position0 for an extended period of time, it
can no longer be turned in the switch. In this
case, the steering is locked. To unlock, re-
move SmartKey from starter switch and re-
insert.
Warning!
G
The brake system requires electrical power
to operate.
A malfunction in the vehicle’s power supply
or electrical system may impair brake sys-
tem operation and switch it into its emer-
gency operation mode. To brake, the driver
must then apply significantly greater brake
pedal pressure and depress the pedal much
further to obtain the expected braking ef-
fect. If necessary, apply full pressure to the
brake pedal. Brakes may only be applied to
the front wheels. Stopping distance is in-
creased! Adapt your driving style according-
ly. For more information, refer to “SBC brake
system” (
page 90).
With the engine not running, there is no
power assistance for the steering system. In
this case, it is important to keep in mind that
a considerably higher degree of effort is nec-
essary to steer the vehicle. Adapt your driv-
ing accordingly.