fuel MERCEDES-BENZ R500 2007 R171 User Guide

116 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
Vehicles equipped with KEYLESS-GO come
with two SmartKeys with KEYLESS-GO,
each with remote control and a removable
mechanical key.
The locking tabs for the mechanical key
portion of the two SmartKeys with
KEYLESS-GO are a different color to help
distinguish each SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO unit.
The KEYLESS-GO function is integrated
into the SmartKey. On these vehicles, the
validity of the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO
is checked when you grasp an outside door
handle.
If the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is valid,
your vehicle unlocks

the doors

the tailgate

the fuel filler flap
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
1‹ Lock button
2Š Unlock button* for tailgate
3Locking tab for mechanical key
4ΠUnlock button
5Battery check lamp
6Â Panic button (
page 99)
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always take the
SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO* with you and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of
vehicle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.
!To prevent possible malfunction, avoid
exposing the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO to high
levels of electromagnetic radiation.
iUSA only:
This device complies with Part 15 of the
FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions:
(1) This device may not cause harmful interfer-
ence, and
(2) this device must accept any interference
received, including interference that may
cause undesired operation.
Any unauthorized modification to this device
could void the user’s authority to operate the
equipment.

119 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Factory setting
Global unlocking
Grasp an outside door handle.
All turn signal lamps flash once. The
locking knobs in the doors move up.
The anti-theft alarm system is dis-
armed.
The vehicle will lock again automatically
and reactivate the anti-theft alarm system
within approximately 40 seconds of
unlocking if

neither door nor tailgate is opened

the central locking switch is not
activatedGlobal locking
Press the lock button on an outside
door handle (
page 69).
With the tailgate and all doors closed,
the turn signal lamps flash three times.
The locking knobs on the doors move
down. The anti-theft alarm system is
armed.Selective setting
If you frequently travel alone, you may wish
to reprogram the SmartKey with
KEYLESS-GO so when you grasp the driv-
er’s door handle only the driver’s door and
the fuel filler flap unlocks.
Press and hold buttonsŒ and‹
simultaneously for about 5 seconds
until battery check lamp5
(
page 116) flashes twice.
The SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO will
then function as follows:
Unlocking driver’s door and fuel filler
flap
Grasp the driver’s outside door handle.
All turn signal lamps flash once. The
locking knob in the driver’s door moves
up. The anti-theft alarm system is dis-
armed.
iIf the vehicle has been parked for more than
72 hours, you must pull an outside door handle
in order to activate the KEYLESS-GO function.
iThe vehicle could be inadvertently unlocked
if the SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO is within 3 ft
(1 m) of the vehicle and

an outside door handle is splashed
with water
or

you attempt to clean an outside door handle

130 Controls in detail
Locking and unlocking
Automatic central locking
The doors and the tailgate lock automati-
cally when the ignition is switched on and
the wheels are turning at vehicle speeds of
approximately 9 mph (15 km/h) or more.
You can open a locked door from the in-
side. Open door only when conditions are
safe to do so.
For information on towing the vehicle, see
“Towing the vehicle” (
page 517).
You can deactivate the automatic locking
mode using the control system
(
page 189).
Locking and unlocking from the inside
You can lock or unlock the doors and the
tailgate from inside using the central lock-
ing or unlocking switch. This can be useful,
for example, if you want to lock the vehicle
before starting to drive.
The fuel filler flap cannot be locked or un-
locked with the central locking or unlock-
ing switch.
The switches are located in the front-door
control panels.1Central unlocking switch
2Central locking switch
Locking
Press central locking switch2.
If all doors and the tailgate are closed,
the vehicle locks.
Unlocking
Press central unlocking switch1.
The vehicle unlocks.
iThe doors unlock automatically after an
accident if the force of the impact exceeds a pre-
set threshold.
The vehicle automatically locks when the
ignition is switched on and the wheels are
turning at vehicle speeds of approximately
9 mph (15 km/h) or more. You could therefore
lock yourself out when the vehicle

is pushed or towed

is on a test stand
Warning!G
When leaving the vehicle, always remove the
SmartKey or SmartKey with KEYLESS-GO*
from the starter switch, take it with you, and
lock the vehicle. Do not leave children unat-
tended in the vehicle, or with access to an
unlocked vehicle. Unsupervised use of vehi-
cle equipment may cause an accident
and/or serious personal injury.

157 Controls in detail
Instrument cluster
Adjusting instrument cluster
illumination
Use button 1 or 3 to adjust the illumina-
tion brightness for the instrument cluster.
To brighten illumination
Press and hold button 3 until the
desired level of illumination is reached.
To dim illumination
Press and hold button 1 until the
desired level of illumination is reached.
Resetting the trip odometer
Make sure you are viewing the trip odome-
ter display (
page 159).
If it is not displayed, press buttonè
orÿ on the multifunction steering
wheel (
page 160) repeatedly until
the trip odometer appears in the multi-
function display.
Press and hold reset button 2
(
page 156) until the trip odometer is
reset.
Tachometer
The red marking on the tachometer
(
page 26) denotes excessive engine
speed.
To help protect the engine, the fuel supply
is interrupted if the engine is operated
within the red marking.
iThe instrument cluster illumination is
dimmed or brightened automatically to suit
ambient light conditions.
The instrument cluster illumination will also be
adjusted automatically when you switch on the
vehicle’s exterior lamps.!Avoid driving at excessive engine speeds, as
it may result in serious engine damage that is not
covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited
Warranty.

165 Controls in detail
Control system
Menus, submenus and functions
Menu6Menu7Menu8Menu9MenuaMenub
DISTRONIC*Vehicle status
message memorySettingsDistance warning
function*Trip computerTelephone*
(page 271)(page 174)(page 176)(page 191)(page 191)(page 193)
Commands/submenus
Status and settingsCalling up
malfunction mes-
sages, warning mes-
sages, and system
status messages
stored in memoryResetting to factory
settingsDistance warning
function* on/offFuel consumption
statistics after startLoading phone book
Instrument cluster
submenuFuel consumption
statistics since the
last resetSearching for name
in phone book
Time/Date
submenuDistance to empty
Lighting submenu
Vehicle submenu
Comfort submenu*
iThe headings used in the menus table are
designed to facilitate navigation within the sys-
tem and are not necessarily identical to those shown in the control system displays. The first
function displayed in each menu will show you
which part of the system you are in.

191 Controls in detail
Control system
Move the selection marker with
buttonæ orç to the
Comfort
submenu.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Fold in mirrors
when locking
appears in the multi-
function display.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.
Press buttonæ orç to switch
the function
On or Off.
Distance warning function*
In vehicles equipped with Distronic*, you
can determine whether the distance warn-
ing function* is to be enabled or disabled.
With this function set to
On, the system will
alert you when recognizing a stationary ob-
stacle or a slower vehicle moving in your
vehicle’s path and the danger of a collision
exists, even when the Distronic* is
switched off.
Press buttonè orÿ repeatedly
until the message
Distance warning
appears in the multifunction display.
The selection marker is on the current
setting.
Press buttonæ orç to switch
the distance warning function
On or
Off.
Trip computer menu
Use the trip computer menu to call up
statistical data on your vehicle.
The following information is available:
FunctionPage
Fuel consumption statistics
from start192
Fuel consumption statistics
since last reset192
Distance to empty193
iWhen you enter the trip computer menu, you
will always see the fuel consumption statistics
from start first.

192 Controls in detail
Control system
Fuel consumption statistics from start
Press buttonÿ orè repeatedly
until the message
From start appears
in the multifunction display.
1Distance driven since start
2Time elapsed since start
3Average speed since start
4Average fuel consumption since startResetting fuel consumption statistics
Press buttonÿ orè repeatedly
until the message
From start appears
in the multifunction display.
Press and hold the reset button in the
instrument cluster (
page 156) until
the value is reset to
0.Fuel consumption statistics since last
reset
Press buttonÿ orè repeatedly
until the message
From start appears
in the multifunction display.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
After reset appears
in the multifunction display.
1Distance driven since last reset
2Time elapsed since last reset
3Average speed since last reset
4Average fuel consumption since last
reset
iAll statistics stored since the last engine
start will be reset approximately 4 hours after
the SmartKey in the starter switch is turned to
position0 or removed from the starter switch.
Resetting will not occur if you turn the SmartKey
back to position1 or2 within this time period.

193 Controls in detail
Control system
Resetting fuel consumption statistics
manually
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
After reset appears
in the multifunction display.
Press and hold the reset button in the
instrument cluster (
page 156) until
the value is reset to
0.Distance to empty
Press buttonÿ orè repeatedly
until the message
From start appears
in the multifunction display.
Press buttonj ork repeatedly
until the message
Range: appears in
the multifunction display.
The calculated remaining driving range
based on the current fuel tank level
appears in the multifunction display.
TEL menu*
iThe fuel consumption statistics reset auto-
matically to
0 when either of the following values
is exceeded:

distance covered:100 000 miles

time elapsed: 10 000 hours
Warning!G
A driver’s attention to the road must always
be his/her primary focus when driving. For
your safety and the safety of others, we
recommend that you pull over to a safe
location and stop before placing or taking a
telephone call. If you choose to use the tele-
phone while driving, please use the
hands-free device and only use the tele-
phone when weather, road and traffic
conditions permit.
Some jurisdictions prohibit the driver from
using a cellular telephone while driving a
vehicle.


210 Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Upshifting
Briefly press right shift button2
(
page 207).
The transmission shifts to the next
higher gear.If you have selected the AMG menu in the
control system (
page 168) and you are
driving in the manual program modeM,
upshift indicator2 in the multifunction
display advises you to upshift before the
engine reaches the overspeed range. Thus
you can drive at the maximum engine
speed for each gear without overrevving
the engine.
1Gear indicator
2Upshift indicator
Shift to the next higher gear.
The fuel supply will otherwise be inter-
rupted to prevent the engine from over-
revving.Downshifting
Briefly press left shift button1
(
page 207).
The transmission shifts to the next
lower gear.
!In the manual program modeM, the trans-
mission will not upshift, even if the engine has
reached its overrevving range. Shift up to the
next gear before the engine has reached its over-
revving range. Make absolutely certain that the
engine speed does not reach the red marking on
the tachometer (
page 157). Otherwise the
engine could be damaged which is not covered
by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
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.
iWhen you brake or stop, the transmission
shifts down to a gear from which you can easily
accelerate or drive off.

286 Controls in detail
Driving systems
Adaptive Damping System (ADS)*
The fine tuning of the damping is depen-
dent on:

road surface conditions

your driving style

your personal settings
The ADS switch is located on the upper
part of the center console.
1ADS switch
2Indicator lamp for SPORT setting
3Indicator lamp for COMF settingThe following settings are available:

AUTO (for normal driving situations)
Indicator lamps2 and3 are off.

SPORT (for sporty driving)
Indicator lamp2 comes on.

COMF (for comfort driving)
Indicator lamp3 comes on.
Start the engine (page 54).
Press ADS switch1 repeatedly until
the desired suspension tuning is
reached.Vehicle level control*
The vehicle level control automatically
regulates the ride height to

reduce fuel consumption

improve driving safety
The vehicle begins adjusting to the set
vehicle level as soon as the doors or
tailgate are

unlocked
or

opened or closed with the vehicle
unlocked
For major changes in vehicle level, the
engine must be running.
iThe setting is stored when you turn off the
engine.
iChanges to the vehicle level should be made
while the vehicle is moving. The vehicle will then
reach the set level as fast as possible.