manual transmission MERCEDES-BENZ C300 SPORT 2008 W204 User Guide

134 Controls in detail
Driving and parking
Step firmly on parking brake pedal2.
When the engine is running, the
warning lamp;(USA only)
or3(Canada only) in the instru-
ment cluster will be illuminated.Turning off the engine
Manual transmission: Move the gear-
shift lever into first or reverse gear.
Automatic transmission*: Place the
gear selector lever in positionP.
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
(Canada only) from the starter switch, take
it with you, and lock the vehicle. Do not
leave children unattended in the vehicle, or
with access to an unlocked vehicle. Children
could release the parking brake and/or
move the gear selector lever from
positionP, either of which could result in an
accident and/or serious personal injury.
PositionP alone may not prevent your vehi-
cle from moving, possibly hitting people or
objects. Always set the parking brake in ad-
dition to shifting to positionP (
page 140)
(manual transmission: first or reverse gear
(
page 126).
When parked on an incline, always turn the
front wheels towards the road curb.
Getting out of your vehicle without taking
the above measurements to secure it is
dangerous.
iVehicles with automatic transmission*:
You can switch off the engine with the selector
lever in positionN. However, to secure the vehi-
cle, you need to set the selector lever toP and
apply the parking brake.
The SmartKey can only be removed from the
starter switch with the gear selector lever in
positionP.
iAlways set the parking brake in addition to
shifting to positionP (manual transmission: first
or reverse gear).
On slopes, turn the front wheels towards the
road curb.


136 Controls in detail
Manual transmission
Manual transmission is standard
equipment on C 300 Sport and not
available on other models.
For information on driving with a manual
transmission, see “Manual transmission”
(
page 130).
Warning!G
For vehicles equipped with a manual trans-
mission, getting out of your vehicle with the
gearshift lever not engaged in first or
reverse gear and parking brake engaged is
dangerous.
Also, when parked on an incline, an engaged
first or reverse gear alone may not prevent
your vehicle from moving, possibly hitting
people or objects.
Always set the parking brake in addition to
engaging first or reverse gear (
page 134).
When parked on an incline, turn front wheels
towards the road curb.
Do not park this vehicle in areas where
combustible materials such as grass, hay or
leaves can come into contact with the hot
exhaust system, as these materials could be
ignited and cause a vehicle fire.
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey from the starter switch, take it
with you, and lock the vehicle. Do not leave
children unattended in the vehicle, or with
access to an unlocked vehicle. Children
could move the gearshift lever, which could
result in an accident and/or serious person-
al injury.
Warning!G
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift
in order to obtain braking action. This could
result in drive wheel slip and reduced
vehicle control. Your vehicle’s ABS will not
prevent this type of loss of control.
Warning!G
Make sure absolutely no objects are ob-
structing the pedals’ range of movement.
Keep the driver’s footwell clear of all obsta-
cles. If there are any floormats or carpets in
the footwell, make sure the pedals still have
sufficient clearance.
During sudden driving or braking maneuvers
the objects could get caught between or be-
neath the pedals. You could then no longer
brake or accelerate. This could lead to acci-
dents and injury.

137 Controls in detail
Manual transmission
Gearshift pattern for manual transmission
Shifting into reverse
Stop the vehicle completely.
Fully depress clutch pedal.
Move the gearshift lever to neutral
position (no gear selected).
Move the gearshift lever to the left until
you feel a certain resistance.
Push the gearshift lever past this
resistance.
Then move the gearshift lever forward
into positionR.
!When you are shifting into the5th or6th
gear, make sure you press the gearshift lever to
the right. Otherwise, you could accidentally shift
into the3rd or4th gear and damage the trans-
mission.
Downshifting gears leading to overrevving the
engine can result in engine damage that is not
covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warran-
ty.
Never hold the vehicle stopped on a hill by using
the clutch pedal. The clutch may be damaged
which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Lim-
ited Warranty.
Do not exceed the engine speed limits. Refer to
tachometer (
page 149) for engine speeds.
!Only shift into reverse gearR when the vehi-
cle is stationary, as the transmission could oth-
erwise be damaged.

139 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission*
An additional indication of the current gear
selector lever position can be found on the
cover of the shifting-gate.
The indicators come on when you activate
a switch (e.g. unlocking the vehicle or
opening a door) and go out after approxi-
mately 15 minutes.
Shifting procedure
The automatic transmission selects indi-
vidual gears automatically, depending on:

gear selector lever positionD
(
page 140) with gear ranges
(
page 143)

the selected program mode (C/S)
(
page 144)

the position of the accelerator pedal
(
page 142)

the vehicle speedWhen the gear selector lever is in drive
positionD, you can influence transmission
shifting by:
limiting the gear range

changing gears manually
Warning!G
It is dangerous to shift the gear selector
lever out of park positionP or neutral
positionN if the engine speed is higher than
idle speed. If your foot is not firmly on the
brake pedal, the vehicle could accelerate
quickly forward or reverse. You could lose
control of the vehicle and hit someone or
something. Only shift into gear when the
engine is idling normally a n d w h e n y o u r r i g h t
foot is firmly on the brake pedal.
!Allow engine to warm up under low load use.
Do not place full load on the engine until the
operating temperature has been reached.
Shift into reverse gearR or park positionP only
when the vehicle is stopped.
Avoid spinning of a drive wheel when driving off
on slippery road surfaces. This may cause seri-
ous damage to the drivetrain which is not cov-
ered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.

151 Controls in detail
Control system
Control system
The control system is activated as soon as
the SmartKey in the starter switch is
turned to position2 or as soon as the
KEYLESS-GO* start/stop button (Canada
only) is in position 2. The control system
enables you to:

call up information about your vehicle

change vehicle settings
For example, you can use the control
system to find out when your vehicle is
next due for service, to call up statistical
data on your vehicle, and much more.
The control system relays information to
the multifunction display.
Multifunction display
1Text field
2Line for main menus
3Temperature
4Current program mode
(automatic transmission*)
5Current gear selector lever
position/gear range
(automatic transmission*)
Additional speedometer
(manual transmission)
6Digital clock
Settings, functions, submenus as well as
any malfunctions are shown to you in the
text field.
Warning!G
A driver’s attention to the road and traffic
conditions must always be his/her primary
focus when driving.
For your safety and the safety of others,
selecting features through the multifunction
steering wheel should only be done by the
driver when traffic and road conditions
permit it to be done safely.
Bear in mind that at a speed of just 30 mph
(approximately 50 km/h), your vehicle is
covering a distance of 44 feet
(approximately 14 m) every second.

167 Controls in detail
Control system
Instrument clusterTime/DateLightingVehicleConvenience
(page 168)(page 170)(page 171)(page 173)(page 174)
Select speedometer
display modeSet the time (hours)Setting daytime running
lamp mode (USA only)Set automatic
lockingActivate easy-entry/exit
feature* (Canada only)
Switch the additional
speedometer on or off
(vehicles with manual
transmission)Set the time (minutes)Setting locator lightingSetting fold-in function*
for exterior rear view
mirrors
Permanent display
(vehicles with automatic
transmission*)Set the date (month)Setting night security
illumination
Set the date (day)Setting interior lighting
delayed shut-off
Set the date (year)

169 Controls in detail
Control system
Showing or hiding additional
speedometer (vehicles with manual
transmission)
You can have an additional digital speed-
ometer shown on the multifunction dis-
play. The speed is shown in the unit of
kilometers/hour (USA) or miles/hour
(Canada).
Press % or $ to select the
Instr. Cluster submenu.
Press #.
Press % or $ to select the Addi-
tional Speedometer
function.
Press #.
The current setting is shown.
Press # again if you would like to
change the current status.Depending on the previous status, the
additional speedometer will be
switched
On orOff.
Permanent display (vehicles with auto-
matic transmission*)
You can use the
Permanent Display func-
tion to choose to display either the outside
temperature or the speed in kilometers
(USA) or miles (Canada) permanently.
Press % or $ to select the
Instr. Cluster submenu.
Press #.
Press % or $ to select the Per-
manent Display
function.
Press #.
The current setting
Outside tempera-
ture
orSpeedometer (km/h)
(USA)/
Speedometer (miles) (Canada)
is shown.
Press # again if you would like to
change the current status.
Depending on the previous status, the
Permanent Display will be switched
between
Outside temperature or
Speedometer (km/h) (USA)/Speedome-
ter (miles)
(Canada).
The selected display is then shown
continuously in the lower display.

243 Controls in detail
Driving systems
1SegmentsCanceling cruise control
There are several ways to cancel the cruise
control:
Step on the brake pedal.
The cruise control is canceled. The last
speed set is stored for later use.
or
Briefly push the cruise control lever in
direction of arrow3 (
page 242).
The cruise control is canceled. The last
speed set is stored for later use.
iOn uphill grades, the cruise control may not
be able to maintain the set speed. Once the
grade eases, the set speed will be resumed.
On downhill grades, the cruise control maintains
the set speed by braking with the vehicle’s
braking system. In addition, on longer downhill
grades the automatic transmission* will down-
shift automatically.
iVehicles with manual transmission:
If you depress the clutch pedal when shifting into
another gear, the engine speed may increase.

Always drive at sufficient, but not excessive,
engine speed.

Shift gear in a timely manner.

Avoid shifting down more than one gear if at
all possible.
iThe last stored set speed is canceled when
the engine is turned off.
iThe cruise control switches off
automatically and the segments in the multifunc-
tion display go out when

you step on the brake pedal.

you press the parking brake pedal.
The cruise control switches off automatically,
the segments in the multifunction display go out
and an acoustic warning sounds when

the vehicle speed is below 20 mph
(30 km/h).

the ESP® is in operation or switched off with
the ESP® switch (page 63).

Vehicles with manual transmission:
you engage neutral or depress the clutch
pedal for more than 6 seconds during shift-
ing into another gear.

Vehicles with automatic transmission*:
you move the gear selector lever to
positionN while driving.
Observe additional messages in the
multifunction display that may appear.

246 Controls in detail
Driving systems
Briefly pull the cruise control lever in
the direction of arrow4 (
page 242).
The cruise control resumes to the last
set speed or if no speed is stored, it will
set and store the current speed.
Remove your foot from the accelerator
pedal.
The last set speed appears in the multi-
function display for approximately
5 seconds, and the corresponding
speedometer segments from the se-
lected speed to the vehicle maximum
speed are illuminated.
Hill start assist system
On uphill grades with a gradient angle of
more than 5°, the hill start assist system
maintains the pressure in the brake sys-
tem for approximately 1 second after you
have released the brake pedal. Therefore,
you can start off smoothly without the
vehicle moving immediately after releasing
the brake pedal.
Depress the brake pedal
Manual transmission: Engage for-
ward or reverse gear.
Slowly release the clutch pedal, remov-
ing your foot from the brake pedal at
the same time, and carefully depress
the accelerator pedal.
Automatic transmission*: Move the
gear selector lever to position Dor R.
Remove your foot from the brake pedal
and carefully depress the accelerator
pedal.
The hill start assist system is inactive

when starting off on a level road or
downhill grades

vehicles with automatic transmission*
with the gear selector lever in
positionN

with the parking brake depressed

if the ESP® has switched off due to a
malfunction
iThe last stored set speed is deleted when
the engine is turned off.
Warning!G
The hill start assist system is not designed
to function as an parking brake and does not
prevent the vehicle from moving when
parked on an incline.
Always depress the parking brake in
addition to shifting to park positionP.
iWhen you remove your foot from the accel-
erator, the vehicle will remain stationary for ap-
prox. 1 second.

291 Controls in detail
Useful features
Ashtrays
Center console ashtray
1Cover plate
2Remove insert
3Ashtray
Opening: Press cover plate1 forward
until it engaged.
Removing the insert: Grab the insert
on the grooved side and pull it up and
out in the direction indicated by the
arrow2.
Reinstalling ashtray insert: Install
the insert by pushing it back into the
frame until it engages.
Closing: Tap the front of the cover
plate1.
The cover will retract and the ashtray
will close.
Warning!G
Remove ashtray only with vehicle standing
still. Depress the parking brake to secure
vehicle from movement.
Move gear selector lever to positionP (man-
ual transmission: second gear). With the au-
tomatic transmission* set toP (manual
transmission: second gear), turn off the
engine.