transmission MERCEDES-BENZ B-CLASS HATCHBACK 2014 Owner's Manual

When the transmission is in position
N, you
can also start the engine with the brake pedal
depressed.
Starting procedure with the key To start the engine using the key instead of
the Start/Stop button, pull the Start/Stop
button out of the ignition lock.
X To start a petrol engine: turn the key to
position 3in the ignition lock (Y page 159)
and release it as soon as the engine is run-
ning.
X To start a diesel engine: turn the key to
position 2in the ignition lock (Y page 159).
The % preglow indicator lamp in the
instrument cluster lights up.
X When the %preglow indicator lamp
goes out, turn the key to position 3
(Y page 159) and release it as soon as the
engine is running.
You can start the engine without preglow if
the engine is warm.
Starting procedure using the Start/
Stop button The Start/Stop button can be used to start
the vehicle manually without inserting the key into the ignition lock. The key must be in the
vehicle and the Start/Stop button must be
inserted in the ignition lock. This mode for
starting the engine operates independently of
the ECO start/stop automatic engine start
function.
You can start the engine if a valid key is in the vehicle. Switch off the engine and always take
the key with you when leaving the vehicle,
even if you only leave it for a short time. Pay
attention to the important safety notes.
X Vehicles with automatic transmission:
depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Vehicles with manual transmission:
depress the clutch pedal and keep it
depressed. X
To start a petrol engine: press the Start/
Stop button once (Y page 159).
The engine starts.
X To start a diesel engine: press the Start/
Stop button once (Y page 159).
Preglow is activated and the engine starts. Pulling away
Manual transmission !
Change gear in good time and avoid spin-
ning the wheels. Otherwise, you could dam- age the vehicle.
Depress the accelerator carefully when pull-
ing away.
The vehicle locks centrally once you have
pulled away. The locking knobs in the doors
drop down.
You can open the doors from the inside at any time.
You can also deactivate the automatic lockingfeature (Y page 247).
Automatic transmission G
WARNING
If the engine speed is above the idling speed
and you engage transmission position Dor R,
the vehicle could pull away suddenly. There is a risk of an accident.
When engaging transmission position Dor R,
always firmly depress the brake pedal and do not simultaneously accelerate.
Depress the accelerator carefully when pull-
ing away.
The vehicle locks centrally once you have
pulled away. The locking knobs in the doors
drop down.
You can open the doors from the inside at any
time.
You can also deactivate the automatic locking feature (Y page 247). 162
DrivingDriving and parking

It is only possible to shift the transmission
from position
Pto the desired position if you
depress the brake pedal. Only then can the
parking lock be deactivated.
If you do not depress the brake pedal, the
DIRECT SELECT lever can still be moved but
the parking lock remains engaged.
At transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò20 †, you can only shift out of position Pinto
another transmission position when the
engine is running.
i Upshifts take place at higher engine
speeds after a cold start. This helps the
catalytic converter to reach its operating
temperature more quickly.
Information on automatically releasing the
electrical parking brake (Y page 182).
Pulling away with a trailer To ensure that you do not roll backwards
when pulling away on an uphill slope, apply
the electric parking brake.
X Press and hold handle :.
The electric parking brake continues to
brake and prevent the vehicle from rolling
backwards.
The red !indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster remains lit.
X Depress the accelerator pedal.
X As soon as the vehicle/trailer combination
is held by the driving force of the engine,
release lever :.
the electric parking brake is released. The red
!indicator lamp in the instru-
ment cluster goes out.
For further information on the electric parking
brake, see (Y page 182).
Hill start assist Hill start assist helps you when pulling away
forwards or in reverse on an uphill gradient. It
holds the vehicle for a short time after you
have removed your foot from the brake pedal.
This gives you enough time to move your foot from the brake pedal to the accelerator pedal and depress it before the vehicle begins to
roll. G
WARNING
After a short time, hill start assist will no lon-
ger brake your vehicle and it could roll away.
There is a risk of an accident and injury.
Therefore, quickly move your foot from the
brake pedal to the accelerator pedal. Never
leave the vehicle when it is held by hill start
assist.
Hill start assist is not active if: R you are pulling away on a level road or a
downhill gradient
R on vehicles with automatic transmission,
the transmission is in position N
R the electric parking brake is applied
R ESP ®
is malfunctioning
Further information on holding the vehicle
stationary on uphill gradients (Y page 173). ECO start/stop function
Introduction The ECO start/stop function switches the
engine off automatically if the vehicle is stop-
ped under certain conditions.
When pulling away again, the engine starts
automatically. The ECO start/stop function
thereby helps you to reduce the fuel con-
sumption and emissions of your vehicle. Driving
163Driving and parking Z

In vehicles with a colour multifunction dis-
play, the èECO symbol appears in yellow
in the multifunction display after the fourth
automatic engine start. When the èECO
symbol is shown in green in the multifunction
display, automatic engine switch-off is again
possible.
Vehicles with manual transmission The ECO start/stop function switches off the
engine automatically at low speeds.
X Brake the vehicle.
X Engage neutral N(Y page 169) (follow
gearshift instruction :to engage neutral
N, if necessary).
X Release the clutch pedal.
The engine is switched off automatically.
Vehicles with automatic transmission
If the vehicle is braked to a standstill in Dor N,
the ECO start/stop function switches off the engine automatically.
The HOLD function can be activated if the
engine has been switched off automatically. It is then not necessary to continue applying the
brakes during the automatic stop phase.
When you depress the accelerator pedal, the engine starts automatically and the braking
effect of the HOLD function is deactivated.
Automatic engine start General notes
The engine is started automatically if:
R
you switch off the ECO start/stop function
by pressing the ECO button
R you engage reverse gear R
R you unfasten your seat belt or open the
driver's door R
the vehicle starts to roll
R the brake system requires this
R the temperature in the vehicle interior devi-
ates from the set range
R the system detects moisture on the wind-
screen when the air-conditioning system is
switched on
R the battery's charge status is too low
Vehicles with manual transmission
! Only engage gear when the clutch pedal is
depressed.
The engine is started automatically if you:
R depress the clutch pedal fully
R depress the accelerator pedal
Vehicles with automatic transmission
The engine is started automatically if you: R release the brake pedal in transmission
position Dor Nwhen the HOLD function is
not active
R depress the accelerator pedal
R move the transmission out of position P
Shifting the transmission to position Pdoes
not start the engine.
When you shift the transmission from Rto D,
the ECO start/stop function is available in the following cases:
R after the èECO symbol appears in the
multifunction display in vehicles with black
and white multifunction display
R after the èECO symbol appears in
green in vehicles with colour multifunction
display Driving
165Driving and parking Z

Problem
Possible causes/consequences and
M
MSolutions Vehicles with a petrol
engine:
The engine is not run-
ning smoothly and is
misfiring. There is a malfunction in the engine electronics or in a mechanical
component of the engine management system.
X Only depress the accelerator pedal slightly.
Otherwise, non-combusted fuel may get into the catalytic con-
verter and damage it.
X Have the cause rectified immediately at a qualified specialist
workshop. The coolant tempera-
ture display is showing
more than 120 †. The
coolant warning lamp
may also be on and a
warning tone may
sound. The coolant level is too low. The coolant is too hot and the engine
is no longer being cooled sufficiently.
X Stop as soon as possible and allow the engine and the coolant to
cool down.
X Check the coolant level (Y page 322). Observe the warning
notes as you do so and top up the coolant if necessary. If the coolant level is correct, the engine radiator fan may be faulty.
The coolant is too hot and the engine is no longer being cooled
sufficiently.
X If the coolant temperature is below 120 †, you can continue
driving to the nearest qualified specialist workshop.
X Avoid heavy loads on the engine as you do so, e.g. driving in
mountainous terrain and stop-start traffic. Manual transmission
Gear lever
! Only engage gear when the clutch pedal is
depressed.
! When shifting to
5thand 6thgear, you
must press the shift lever to the right. Oth- erwise, you could shift unintentionally into
3rd or4th gear and damage the engine or
transmission.
If you shift down at too high a speed (trans-
mission braking), this can cause the engine
to overrev, leading to engine damage.
Do not use the clutch bite point to keep the vehicle stationary on uphill gradients.
There is otherwise a risk of damaging the
clutch.
! On long and steep downhill gradients,
especially if the vehicle is laden or towing a trailer, you must shift into gear
1, 2or3in
good time. This uses the engine's braking
effect. This relieves the load on the brake
system and prevents the brakes from over-
heating and wearing too quickly. k
Reverse gear
1 -6
Forward gears 168
Manual transmissionDriving and parking

Shifting to neutral N
X
Depress the clutch pedal fully.
X Move the gear lever to position N:. Engaging reverse gear
! Only shift into reverse gear
Rwhen the
vehicle is stationary. Otherwise, you could
damage the transmission.
X Pull the gear lever up, push it to the left and
then pull it back.
The ECO start/stop function is not available
when reverse gear is engaged. For further
information on the ECO start/stop function;
see (Y page 164). Gearshift recommendation
The gearshift recommendations assist you in
adopting an economical driving style. The rec- ommended gear is shown in the multifunction
display.
X Shift gear according to gearshift recom-
mendation :when shown in the multi-
function display of the instrument cluster. Automatic transmission
Important safety notes
G
WARNING
If the engine speed is above the idling speed
and you engage transmission position Dor R,
the vehicle could pull away suddenly. There is a risk of an accident.
When engaging transmission position Dor R,
always firmly depress the brake pedal and do not simultaneously accelerate. G
WARNING
The automatic transmission switches to neu-
tral position Nwhen you switch off the engine.
The vehicle may roll away. There is a risk of an
accident.
After switching off the engine, always switch
to parking position P. Prevent the parked vehi-
cle from rolling away by applying the parking
brake.
Bear in mind that power transmission
between the engine and the transmission is
interrupted when the engine is switched off.
To prevent the vehicle from rolling away: R when the engine is switched off and the
vehicle is stationary, shift the automatic
transmission to park position Pand
R apply the electric parking brake Automatic transmission
169Driving and parking Z

DIRECT SELECT lever
Overview of transmission positions j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive
The DIRECT SELECT lever is on the right of the
steering column.
The DIRECT SELECT lever always returns to
its original position. The current transmission position P,R, Nor Dappears in the transmis-
sion position display in the multifunction dis- play (Y page 170).
Transmission position and drive pro-
gram display !
If the transmission position display in the
multifunction display is not working, you
should pull away carefully to check whether
the desired transmission position is
engaged. Ideally, you should select trans-
mission position Dand drive program Eor
S. :
Transmission position display
; Drive program display The current transmission position and drive
program appear in the multifunction display.
The arrows in the transmission position dis-
play show how and into which transmission
positions you can shift using the DIRECT
SELECT lever.
Engaging park position P !
If the engine speed is too high, do not shift
the automatic transmission directly from D
to R, from Rto Dor directly to P. Otherwise,
the automatic transmission could be dam-
aged. j
Park position with parking lock
k Reverse gear
i Neutral
h Drive
X Push the DIRECT SELECT lever in the direc-
tion of arrow P.
Transmission position display Pis shown in
the multifunction display.
When you have engaged park position P,
make sure that the transmission position dis-
play shows Pin the multifunction display.
You can only engage park position Pwhen the
vehicle is stationary.
Depressing the brake and pushing the
DIRECT SELECT lever up or down disengages the parking lock. The transmission is in neu-
tral N.
At transmission fluid temperatures below
Ò20 †, you can only shift out of park position
P into another transmission position when
the engine is running. 170
Automatic transmissionDriving and pa
rking

In order to shift from park position
Pdirectly
into Ror D:
R depress the brake pedal and
R push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down
past the first point of resistance
Engaging park position P automatically Park position
Pis automatically engaged if:
R you switch off the engine using the key and
remove the key
R you switch off the engine using the key or
using the Start/Stop button and open the
driver's door or front-passenger door
R you open the driver's door when the vehicle
is stationary or driving at very low speed
and the transmission is in position Dor R
Engaging reverse gear R !
Only shift the automatic transmission to
R
when the vehicle is stationary.
X If the transmission is in position Dor N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up past the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up past the first point of
resistance.
The ECO start/stop function is not available
when reverse gear is engaged. For further
information on the ECO start/stop function;
see (Y page 164).
Shifting to neutral N G
WARNING
If children are left unsupervised in the vehicle, they can:
R open doors and endanger other persons or
road users
R climb out and be injured by the traffic
R operate vehicle equipment and, for exam-
ple, trap themselves. Children could also set the vehicle in motion,
for example by:
R releasing the parking brake
R shifting the automatic transmission out of
park position P
R starting the engine.
There is a risk of an accident and injury.
When leaving the vehicle, always take the key with you and lock the vehicle. Never leave
children unattended in the vehicle. Always
keep the key out of reach of children.
X If the transmission is in position Dor R:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever up or down to the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever up or down to the first point of resistance.
If you switch the engine off with the trans-
mission in position Ror D, the automatic
transmission shifts to Nautomatically.
With the key: if you then open the driver's
door or the front-passenger door or remove
the key from the ignition, the automatic trans-
mission shifts to Pautomatically.
With the Start/Stop button: if you then
open the driver's door or the front-passenger
door, the automatic transmission shifts to P
automatically.
If you want the automatic transmission to
remain in neutral N, e.g. when having the
vehicle cleaned in an automatic car wash with a towing system:
With the key:
X Switch the ignition on.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Shift to neutral N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parking brake.
X Switch off the ignition and leave the key in
the ignition lock. Automatic transmission
171Driving and parking Z

With the Start/Stop button:
X Remove the Start/Stop button from the
ignition lock.
X Insert the key into the ignition lock.
X Switch the ignition on.
X Depress the brake pedal and keep it
depressed.
X Shift to neutral N.
X Release the brake pedal.
X Release the electric parking brake.
X Switch off the ignition and leave the key in
the ignition lock.
Engaging drive position D X
If the transmission is in position Ror N:
push the DIRECT SELECT lever down past
the first point of resistance.
X If the transmission is in position P: depress
the brake pedal and push the DIRECT
SELECT lever down past the first point of
resistance. Transmission positions
B Park position
This prevents the vehicle from roll-
ing away when stopped.
Only shift the transmission into
position Pwhen the vehicle is sta-
tionary (Y page 170). The parking
lock should not be used as a brake when parking. In order to secure
the vehicle, always apply the elec-
tric parking brake in addition to the
parking lock.
In the event of a malfunction of the vehicle's electronics, the transmis-
sion may lock in position P. Have
the vehicle electronics checked
immediately at a qualified special-
ist workshop.
Park position Pis automatically
engaged if:
R you switch off the engine using
the key and remove the key
R you switch off the engine using
the key or using the Start/Stop
button and open the driver's
door or front-passenger door
R you open the driver's door when
the vehicle is stationary or driv-
ing at very low speed and the
transmission is in position Dor R C Reverse gear
Only shift the transmission to
R
when the vehicle is stationary. 172
Automatic transmissionDriving and parking

A Neutral
Do not shift the transmission to
N
while driving. Otherwise, the auto-
matic transmission could be dam-
aged.
No power is transmitted from the
engine to the drive wheels.
Releasing the brakes will allow you
to move the vehicle freely, e.g. to
push it or tow it.
If ESP ®
is deactivated or faulty:
shift the transmission to position N
if the vehicle is in danger of skid-
ding, e.g. on icy roads.
If you switch the engine off with the transmission in position Ror D, the
automatic transmission shifts to N
automatically.
! Rolling in neutral
Ncan lead to
damage to the transmission. 7 Drive
The automatic transmission
changes gear automatically. All
forward gears are available.
Driving tips
Changing gear The automatic transmission shifts to the indi-
vidual gears automatically when it is in trans-
mission position D. Gearshifting is deter-
mined by:
R the selected drive program (Y page 174)
R the position of the accelerator pedal
(Y page 173)
R the road speed
Accelerator pedal position Your style of driving influences how the auto-
matic transmission shifts gear:
R little throttle: early upshifts
R more throttle: late upshifts Holding the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients G
WARNING
If the clutch overheats, the electronic man-
agement system is automatically deactivated. This interrupts the power transmission. The
vehicle may, for example, roll backwards on
gradients. There is a risk of an accident.
Never hold the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients by depressing the accelerator.
The clutch may overheat if you hold the vehi- cle stationary on uphill gradients by depress- ing the accelerator pedal. If the clutch over-
heats, a warning tone sounds.
The Stop vehicle Shift to P Leave Stop vehicle Shift to P Leave
engine
engine running
running display message appears in
the multifunction display. You will only be
able to continue your journey once the clutch
has cooled down and the display message in
the multifunction display has disappeared.
Never hold the vehicle stationary on uphill
gradients by depressing the accelerator.
Instead, only ever hold the vehicle stationary
on uphill gradients by:
R depressing the brake pedal
R activating the HOLD function
R engaging the electric parking brake
Kickdown Use kickdown for maximum acceleration:
X Depress the accelerator pedal beyond the
pressure point.
The transmission shifts to a lower gear
depending on the engine speed.
X Ease off the accelerator pedal once the
desired speed is reached.
The automatic transmission shifts back up.
For further information on kickdown in man-
ual drive program M(Y page 175). Automatic transmission
173Driving and parking Z

Towing a trailer
Towing a trailer is not possible with all mod-
els. For further information, see
(Y
page 225).
X Drive in the middle of the engine speed
range on uphill gradients.
X Depending on the uphill or downhill gradi-
ent, select a lower gear (Y page 186), even
if cruise control, DISTRONIC PLUS, or
SPEEDTRONIC are activated. Program selector button
The program selector button allows you to
choose between drive programs with differ-
ent driving characteristics. X
Press program selector button :.
The selected drive program appears in the
multifunction display.
The automatic transmission switches to auto- matic drive program Eeach time the engine is
started. E
Economy Comfortable, economical
driving
S
Sport Sporty driving style
M
Manual Manual gearshifting
Further information on the automatic drive
program (Y page 174). Steering wheel gearshift paddles
:
Left steering wheel gearshift paddle
(shifts down)
; Right steering wheel gearshift paddle
(shifts up)
In drive program M, you can change gear
yourself using the steering wheel gearshift
paddles.
If you pull the left or right steering wheel gear- shift paddle when in automatic drive program
E or S, the automatic transmission shifts into
drive program Mfor a limited time. Depend-
ing on which gearshift paddle is pulled, the
automatic transmission immediately shifts
into the next gear down or up.
You can only change gear with the steering
wheel gearshift paddles when the transmis-
sion is in position D.
For further information on the manual drive
program, see (Y page 175). Automatic drive program
Drive program Eis characterised by the fol-
lowing:
R comfort-oriented engine settings.
R optimal fuel consumption resulting from
the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner.
R the vehicle pulling away more gently in
forward and reverse gears unless the accel- erator pedal is depressed fully. 174
Automatic transmissionDriving an
d parking