air suspension MERCEDES-BENZ S500 2006 W221 Owner's Manual

229 Controls in detail
Driving systems
Lane changing
Distronic has not yet detected the vehicle
changing lanes. There will be insufficient
distance to the lane-changing vehicle.Narrow vehicles
Because of their narrow profile, the vehi-
cles traveling near the outer edge of the
lane have not yet been detected by Dis-
tronic. There will be insufficient distance to
the vehicles ahead.
Airmatic
Airmatic automatically selects the opti-
mum suspension tuning and ride height for
your vehicle. Airmatic consists of two com-
ponents:

Adaptive Damping System (ADS)


Level control system
The ADS automatically selects the opti-
mum damping for the respective driving
conditions. At the same time the suspen-
sion is set to either sporty or regular.
Suspension tuning
The suspension tuning is set according to:


Your driving style


Road surface conditions


Your choice of suspension style,
“Comfort”, “Sports 1” or “Sports 2”,
which you select using the damping
button.

230 Controls in detailDriving systems1Indicator lamps
2Damping button
Start the engine.

Press the damping button2 until the
desired suspension style is set.

If both indicator lamps are out, you
have chosen the automatic mode
for soft damping. The message:AIRMATIC
CONVENIENCEfor Comfort suspension tuning ap-
pears in the multifunction display.


If one indicator lamp is on, the con-
trol system supports a primarily dy-
namic style of driving. The
message:AIRMATIC
SPORTS 1for Sporty 1 suspension tuning ap-
pears in the multifunction display.


If both indicator lamps are on, the
system is set for a dynamic style of
driving. The message:AIRMATIC
SPORTS 2for Sporty 2 suspension tuning ap-
pears in the multifunction display.Vehicle level control with Airmatic
Your vehicle automatically adjusts its ride
height to:


reduce fuel consumption


increase vehicle safety
The vehicle chassis ride height is raised or
lowered according to the selected level
setting and to the vehicle speed:


With increasing speed, ride height is re-
duced by up to approximately 0.8 in
(20 mm).


With decreasing speed, the ride height
is again raised to the selected vehicle
level.
iThe selected suspension style is stored
in memory, even after the SmartKey is
removed from the starter switch.
iThese height adjustments are so small
that you may not notice any change.

470 IndexSeat ventilation*
Switching off 127
Switching on 127
Seating capacity 302
Seats 114
Adjusting 37
Adjusting lumbar support 123
Adjusting shoulder support 123
Easy entry/exit feature 114
Heater 125
Massage function 123
Multicontour backrest* 122
Rear power seat bench* 117
Rear seats 117
Securing cargo
Cargo tie-down hooks 240
Selector lever
Lock 46, 173
Message in display 357
Position 173
Self-test
BabySmart
TM air bag deactivation
system 73
Tele Aid 255Service
Major service (Service B) 329
Minor service (Service A) 329
When due 329
Service (maintenance) 329
Service and warranty information 10
Service indicator 329
Service life (tires) 298
Service System see FSS 329
Setting
Convenience functions 169
Cruise control 216
Daytime running lamp mode 165
Digital clock 25
Distronic* time interval 225
Following distance in Distronic* 225
Higher speed in cruise control 217
Higher speed in Distronic* 224
Individual vehicle settings 160
Interior illumination delayed
switch-off 167
Lamps and lighting (control
system) 164
Language, multifunction display 164
Locator lighting 166
Lower speed in cruise control 217Lower speed in Distronic* 224
Miles/kilometers in
speedometer 163
Parking position for exterior rear view
mirrors 170, 172
Slower speed in cruise control 217
Slower speed in Distronic* 224
SmartKey dependent memory 169
Speed in Distronic* 223
Speedometer display mode 163
Suspension tuning 232
Temperature (interior) 195
Temperature (rear passenger
compartment) 206
Temperature indicator 163
Tire inflation pressure units 164
To last stored speed (“Resume” func-
tion) in cruise control 217
To last stored speed in Distronic* (“Re-
sume” function) 224
Units
Speedometer 163
Temperature 163
Tire inflation pressure 164
Vehicle level control 230, 233
Setting current speed 216