steering MERCEDES-BENZ ML320 2003 W163 Service Manual

110 Controls in detailInstrument cluster
Instrument clusterA full view illustration of the instrument
cluster can be found in the “At a glance”
section of this manual (
page 24).
1Left knob
2Right knobThe instrument cluster is activated when
you:


open the driver’s door


turn the key in steering lock to
position1 or 2 (
page 33)


press the left knob1
Instrument cluster illumination
To brighten illumination
Turn knob1 clockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
brighten.
To dim illumination

Turn knob1 counterclockwise.
The instrument cluster illumination will
dim.iYou can set the instrument cluster illu-
mination with the following lamps on:

parking lamps


low beam headlamps


high beam headlamps

115 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Gear selector lever position
Gear
range
Effect
é
The transmission shifts
through fourth gear only.
è
The transmission shifts
through third gear only.
With this selection you can
use the braking effect of the
engine.
Gear
range
Effect
ç
The transmission shifts
through second gear only.
Allows the use of engine’s
braking power when driving

on steep downgrades


in mountainous regions


under extreme operating
conditions
æ
The transmission operates
only in first gear
For maximum use of engine’s
braking effect on very steep
or lengthy downgrades.
Effect
P
Park position
Selector position when the vehicle is
parked. Only place selector lever in
positionP when vehicle is stopped.
The park position is not intended to
serve as a brake when the vehicle is
parked. Rather, the driver should al-
ways set the parking brake in addi-
tion to placing the selector lever in
positionP to secure the vehicle.
The key can only be removed from
the steering lock with the selector le-
ver in positionP. With the key re-
moved the selector lever is locked in
positionP.
If the vehicle electrical system is mal-
functioning, the selector lever could
remain locked in positionP
(page 245).
R
Place selector lever in positionR only
when vehicle is stopped.

116 Controls in detailAutomatic transmission
Effect
N
Neutral
No power is transmitted from the en-
gine to the drive axle. When the
brakes are released, the vehicle can
be moved freely (pushed or towed).
To avoid damage to the transmission,
never engageN while driving.
If the ESP is deactivated or malfunc-
tioning:
Only move selector lever toN if the
vehicle is in danger of skidding (e.g.
on icy roads).
D
The transmission shifts automatical-
ly. All five forward gears are avail-
able.
!Coasting the vehicle, or driving for any
other reason with selector lever inN
can result in transmission damage that
is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz
Limited Warranty.Warning!
G
Getting out of your vehicle with the selector
lever not fully engaged in positionP is dan-
gerous. Also, positionP alone is not intend-
ed to or capable of preventing your vehicle
from moving, possibly hitting people or ob-
jects.
Always set the parking brake in addition to
shifting to positionP (
page 50).
When parked on an incline, turn the front
wheels towards the road curb.
Warning!
G
When leaving the vehicle always remove the
key from the steering lock and lock the vehi-
cle. Do not leave children unattended in the
vehicle, or with access to an unlocked vehi-
cle. Children could move the selector lever
from positionP, which could result in an ac-
cident and/or serious personal injury.

118 Controls in detailTransmission control – LOW RANGE mode
Transmission control – LOW RANGE modeIn the following situations you should
switch to LOW RANGE mode:

during off-road driving


when crossing water


when towing up or down on steep gra-
dients
Switching on LOW RANGE modeLOW RANGE mode switch
Stop the vehicle.

Move the selector lever to positionN.

Press on the upper part of the switch.
During the changeover the indicator
lamp (
page 25) blinks three times.
Once the changeover is complete, the
indicator lamp lights up continuously.
Switching off LOW RANGE mode
Stop the vehicle.

Move the selector lever to positionN.

Press on the upper part of the switch.
During the changeover the indicator
lamp (
page 25) blinks three times.
Once the changeover is complete, the
indicator lamp goes out.
For information on driving safety systems
during LOW RANGE mode see the “Safety
and Security” section (
page 71).
!Only switch the LOW RANGE mode on
or off, when the vehicle is

at a complete standstill


the engine speed is less than
1500 rpm
Failure to do so may result in transmis-
sion or engine damage which is not
covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.
!You should only operate the vehicle on
a single axle dynamometer for briefly
testing the brakes.
The key must be in steering lock
position1.

122 Controls in detailGood visibilityWindshield wipers
Information on the windshield wipers
(page 47) is found in the “Getting start-
ed” section. Intermittent wiping
Windshield wipers without rain sensor
At speeds of approximately 105 mph
(170 km/h) the wiper switches automati-
cally to continuous wiping. Always obey lo-
cal speed limits.
Windshield wipers with rain sensor*
The rain sensor controls the windshield
wipers automatically according to the
amount of water on the windshield.

Switch ignition on.

Set the wiper switch to position1
(page 47).
One initial wipe, pauses between wipes
are automatically controlled by the rain
sensor monitoring wetness of wind-
shield.
!If leaves, snow, etc. block the wind-
shield wipers, the wiper motor turns
off.

For safety reasons, withdraw key
from steering lock. Remove block-
age.


Turn the windshield wipers on
again.
If windshield wipers fail to function at
all in switch position1,


set the wiper switch to the next
highest wiper speed.


have the windshield wipers
checked at the nearest authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
iIntermittent wiping is interrupted when
the vehicle is at standstill and a front
door is opened.
!To prevent damage of the windshield
wipers, do not leave the wiper switch in
intermittent setting, when the vehicle
is taken to an automatic car wash or
when cleaning the windshield.
The switch should not be left in inter-
mittent setting as the wipers will wipe
the windshield once every time the en-
gine is started. Dust that accumulates
on the windshield might scratch the
glass when wiping occurs on a dry
windshield!iWhen intermittent wiping is on and the
key is turned from position1 to
position2 in the steering lock
(page 33), and kept in that position
for longer than 2 seconds, the wipe in-
terval will be set to approximately
5seconds.

123 Controls in detail
Good visibility
Rear window wiper
The rear window wiper will also automati-
cally engage if the windshield wiper is en-
gaged and the gear selector lever is placed
in reverse.
Rear window wiper with rain sensor*
Rear window wiper intervals are controlled
automatically according to the amount of
water on the windshield and the speed of
the vehicle, if:

rear window wiper is switched on


front windshield wipers are switched to
intermittent wiping
The interval for the rear window wiper re-
mains constant when the windshield wiper
interval is ten seconds or more.
Sun visor
The sun visors protect you from sun glare
while driving.
1Mirror cover
2Mounting

Swing sun visors down when you expe-
rience glare.

To use mirror, lift cover1 up.
Illuminated vanity mirrors

Turn the key in steering lock to
position1 (
page 33).

Lift cover up.
The lamp switches on.
Warning!
G
Do not use the vanity mirror while driving.
Keep the mirrors in the sun visors closed
while vehicle is in motion. Reflected glare
can endanger you and others.
iIf sunlight enters through a side win-
dow, disengage sun visor from
mounting2 and pivot to the side.

130 Controls in detailAutomatic climate controlActivating
Moist air can fog up the windows. You can
dehumidify the air with the air condition-
ing.
Press button
°
again.
The indicator lamp on the button
°

goes out.
The air conditioning system uses the refrig-
erant R134A. This refrigerant is free of
CFCs which are harmful to the ozone layer.
Residual heat and ventilation
With the engine switched off, it is possible
to continue to heat or ventilate the interior
for up to 30 minutes. This feature makes
use of the residual heat produced by the
engine.
Activating
Turn the key in the steering lock to
position1.

Press button
°
(page 125).
The indicator lamp on button
°

comes on.Deactivating

Press button
°
.
The indicator lamp on button
°

goes out.
!If the
°
button on the automatic cli-
mate control panel starts to blink, this
indicates that the air conditioning sys-
tem is losing refrigerant. The compres-
sor has turned itself off. The air
conditioning cannot be turned on
again.
Have the air conditioning system
checked at the nearest authorized
Mercedes-Benz Light Truck Center.
iHow long the system will provide heat-
ing depends on the coolant tempera-
ture and the temperature set in the
climate control. The blower will run at
lower speed regardless of the air vol-
ume control setting.
iThe residual heat is automatically
turned off:

when the ignition is switched on


after about 30 minutes


if the coolant temperature is too
low


if the battery voltage drops

134 Controls in detailPower windows
Power windowsOpening and closing the side windows
The power window switches are on the
front center console.
1Left front
2Right front
3Switch for rear door window override
(
page 69)
4Left rear
5Right rear Additional switches for the rear windows
are located on the rear center console.
6Left rear
7Right rear
To operate the power windows, turn key to
position2 (
page 33) in the steering lock.
Warning!
G
When closing the windows, make sure that
there is no danger of anyone being harmed
by the closing procedure.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from steering lock and lock your vehicle.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and/or serious personal
injury.

136 Controls in detailPower windowsSynchronizing power windows
The side power windows must be resyn-
chronized

after the battery has been disconnect-
ed


if the windows cannot be fully opened
or closed

Switch ignition on.

Press switch
j
until the window is
completely closed and hold down for
approximately 1 second. Repeat proce-
dure for each window.
Rear quarter windows*
The switches are on the upper part of the
center console.
1Left side
2Right side
To operate the power windows, turn key to
position2 (
page 33) in the steering lock.Opening the windows

Press and hold the upper part of
switches1 or2.
The window will open.
Closing the windows

Press and hold the lower part of
switches1 or2.
The window will close.Warning!
G
When closing the windows, make sure that
there is no danger of anyone being harmed
by the closing procedure.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from the steering lock, and lock the ve-
hicle. Do not leave children unattended in
the vehicle, or with access to an unlocked
vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehicle equip-
ment may cause an accident and/or serious
personal injury.

137 Controls in detail
Sliding/pop-up roof*
Sliding/pop-up roof*
Opening and closing the sliding/pop-up roof
1raise roof at rear
2slide roof open
3lower roof at rear
4slide roof closed
With the roof closed or tilted open, a
screen can be slid into the roof opening to
guard against sun rays. When sliding the
roof open, the screen will also retract.
To operate the sliding/pop-up roof, turn
key to position1 or 2 (
page 33) in the
steering lock. Opening the roof

Press and hold the switch in
direction2.
The sliding/pop-up roof slides open un-
til the switch is released.Closing the roof

Press and hold the switch in
direction4.
The sliding/pop-up roof closes until the
switch is released.
Stopping the roof

Briefly press the switch in any direc-
tion.
The movement of the roof will stop.
Raising the roof

Press and hold the switch in
direction1.
The roof is raised at rear.
Lowering the roof

Pull and hold the switch in direction3.
The sliding/pop-up roof is lowered and
closed.
Warning!
G
When closing the sliding/pop-up roof, make
sure that there is no danger of anyone being
harmed by the closing procedure.
The closing procedure can be immediately
reversed by moving the switch in direction1
or2.
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
key from steering lock and lock your vehicle.
Do not leave children unattended in the ve-
hicle, or with access to an unlocked vehicle.
Unsupervised use of vehicle equipment may
cause an accident and/or serious personal
injury.