MERCEDES-BENZ SL ROADSTER 2008 Owners Manual
Manufacturer: MERCEDES-BENZ, Model Year: 2008, Model line: SL ROADSTER, Model: MERCEDES-BENZ SL ROADSTER 2008Pages: 317, PDF Size: 5.35 MB
Page 101 of 317

Automatic transmission
98
Parking brake
1
Releas ehandle
2 Parking brake
X To release: depress thebrake peda land
keep it depressed.
X Pull release handle 1.
X The 3 indicator lamp in th einstrument
cluster goe sout.
X To apply: depress parking brake 2firmly.
The 3 indicator lamp in th einstrument
cluster lights up if th eengineisr unning.
i On steep slopes ,tur nt he fron twheels
toward sthe kerb. Switchin
goff th eengine G
Risk of accident
If th eengineisn otrunning ,the re is no
powe rassistanc efor thes teerin gand
brakes. Steerin gand braking then takes
muc hmoree ffort.
As aresult ,you might los econtrol of the
vehicle, caus eanacciden tand injur eyour-
sel fand others.
Do no tswitch of fthe engin ewhile driving.
X Mov ethe selecto rlever to P.
Usin gthe key
X Tur nthe keyt op osition 0(Y page 73 )in
th ei gnition loc kand remov eit.
The immobilise risactivated.
Usin gKEYLESS GO*
X Press and hol dthe KEYLESS GO button
(Y page 73).
The engin estops and all th elamp sint he
instrumen tcluster go out (Y page 26). Automatic transmission
Introduction to th
etransmi ssion G
Risk of accident
The movemen tofthepedals mus tnotbe
impaire dinany way. Do no tkeepa ny
objects in th edriver's footwell. Mak esure
that floormat sorcarpetsare correctly
secure dand that there is sufficien tclear-
anc efor thep edals. G
Risk of accident
Do no tchang ed own fo radditional engine
braking on aslipper yroads urface. This
could caus ethe drive wheels to los etheir
grip and th evehicl ecould skid. Thi scould
caus eyou to los econtrol of your vehicle
and caus eanaccident. Cont
rols
*optional
230_AKB; 5; 4, en-GB
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Page 102 of 317

Automatic transmission
99Automatic transmission
1
Shift range/selecto rleve rposition
2 Gearshift program (S/C)or(S/C/M)*
The curren tshif trange and gearshif tprogram
(S/C) or(S/C/M)* appear in th edisplay of
th es peedometer.
i SL 63 AMG: in addition ,the curren tposi-
tio nisa lso indicated in red on th eprogram
selector. When th
eselecto rleve risinp ositionD,you
can influence th egearshifts made by the
automatic transmission by:
R restricting th eshiftrange
R changin ggear yourself
Selector lever positions ì Par
kposition
Prevent sthe vehicle from rolling
away when stopped. Only mov ethe
selecto rleve rto Pwhen th evehicle
is stationary.
i The key can only be removed
when th eselecto rleve risinp osi-
tion P.Ift hekey is removed from
th ei gnition lock, th eselector
leve risl ocked in position P. í Reverse gear
Only mov
ethe selecto rleve rtoR
when th evehicle is stationary. ë Neutral
Releasin gthe brakes will allow you
to mov ethe vehicle freely, e.g .to
push it or to wit.
Do no tmovet he selecto rleve rto
Nwhile you are driving .The auto-
matic transmission could other-
wise be damaged.
If ESP ®
is deactivate dorfaulty:
only mov ethe selecto rleve rto Nif
th ev ehicle is in danger of skidding,
e.g .oni cy roads. ê Drive
The automatic transmission
changes gear automatically. All
forward gears are available. One-touch gearshifting
When th
eselecto rleve risinp ositionD,you
can perform gearshifts yourself, even on vehi-
cle sw ith automatic transmission.
X To shif tup:briefly pres sthe selecto rlever
to th erigh ttow ards D+.
The automatic transmission shifts up to the
nex tgear, dependin gonthegearshif tpro- Controls
*o ptional
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Page 103 of 317

Automatic transmission
100gram selected. Thi
salso extend sthe shift
range.
X To shift down: brieflypress th eselector
lever to th eleftt ow ards D–.
The automatic transmissio nshift sdown to
th en extg ear ,dependin gonthegear cur-
rentl yselected. Thi salso restrict sthe shift
range.
i To preven tthe engin efromo verrevving,
th ea utomatic transmissio ndoesn otshift
down if you push th eselector lever towards
D– while drivin gattoohighas peed.
X To derestrict th eshift range: press and
hol dthe selector lever towards D+until D
is shown once more in th edisplay.
The automatic transmissio nshift sfromt he
curren tshift range directl ytoD.
X To select th emoste ffective shift
range: press and hol dthe selector lever to
th el eftt ow ards D–.
The automatic transmissio nwill shift to a
range whic hallow sideal acceleration and
deceleration .Todothis, th eautomatic
transmissio nwill shift down on eormore
gears. Shift ranges Whe
nthe selecto rlever is in position D,itis
possibl etorestrict or derestric tthe shift
range fo rthe automatic transmission.
X Briefly press th eselecto rlever to th eright
towards D+or to th eleftt ow ards D–.
The shift range selecte disshown in the
display. The automatic transmissio nshifts
only as far as th eselecte dgear.
i If th emaximum engin espeed fo rthe shift
range is reached and you continue to accel-
erate ,the automatic transmissio nshift sup
in order to preven tthe engin efromo ver-
revving, eve niftheshift range is restricted. Drivin
gsituation è The braking effec
toftheengin ecan
be used in this position. ç To use th
ebraking effec tofthe
engin eond ownhill gradients and
fo rd riving:
R on steep mountain roads
R in mountainous terrain
R in arduous conditions æ To use th
ebraking effec tofthe
engin eone xtremel ysteep downhill
gradients and lon gdownhill
stretches. Program selector button
1
Program selecto rbutton Cont
rols
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Page 104 of 317

Automatic transmission
101S
Sport Fo
ra ll normal drivin gcon-
ditions C
Comfort Fo
rc omfort mode !
Only press program selector button 1
when th eselector lever is in position P,N
or D.
X Press program selector button 1repeat-
edly until th eletter (C/S) fort he desired
gearshift program appears in th espeed-
ometer display.
Comfort mode Cis characterised by th efol-
lowing:
R an increase in traction .Thisi mproves the
drivin gstabilit yofthe vehicl eons lippery
road surfaces, fo rexample.
R thea utomatic transmissio nshiftin gup
sooner. The vehicl eisdriven at lower
engin espeeds and th ewheels are less
likely to spin. SL 63 AMG program selector 1
Program selector C Fo
rc omfort mode S Fo
ra ll normal drivin gcon-
dition s(Sp ortp rogram) S+ SportPlus mode (with
shorter shift times)
M Fo
rm anual gearshifting RS RACE START
i
RScanno tbeselecte dduring normal driv-
ing. Fo rfurther information on RACE
START ,see (Y page 138). !
Only tur nprogram selector 1when the
selecto rlever is in position P,Nor D.
X Tur nprogram selector 1until th edesired
program is shown in th edisplay.
The display on th eprogram selecto ris
shown in red.
Drivin gtips Accelerator pedal position
Your style of drivin
ginfluences how th eauto-
matic transmissio nshift sgear:
R littl ethrottle :early upshifts
R more throttle: lat eupshifts
Kickdown
Use kickdown fo rmaximum acceleration.
X Depress th eaccelerator peda lbeyond the
pressure point.
The transmissio nshift stoal owergear
dependin gontheengin espeed.
X Ease of fthe accelerator peda loncet he
desire dspeed is reached.
The automatic transmissio nshift sbacku p. Cont
rols
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Page 105 of 317

Automatic transmission
102 Steering wheel gearshif
tpaddl es*
an dm anua lgearshif tprogram*
i The full range of function softhesteering
whee lshift paddles and th emanual gear-
shift program are only available once oper-
atin gtem perature is reached.
Steering wheel gearshif tpaddl es It is possibl
etoshift gear usin geither the
steerin gwhee lgearshift paddles or th eselec-
to rlever. 1
Left-han dpaddle: to shift down
2 Right-han dpaddle: to shift up Upshifting
X
Pull right-hand paddle 2.
The automatic transmissio nshift suptot he
next gear .Ifyou are no tdrivin ginm anual
gearshift program M,thent he shift range
will be derestricted.
Downshifting G
Risk of accident
Do no tchang ed own fo radditional engine
braking on aslipper yroads urface. This
could caus ethe drive wheels to los etheir
grip and th evehicl ecould skid.
X Pull left-han dpaddle 1.
The automatic transmissio nshift sdown to
th en extg ear .Ify ou are no tdrivin ginm an-
ual gearshift program M,theshift range will
be restricted.
i Whe nthe selecto rlever is in position P,
N or R,y ou canno tchang eg ear usin gthe
steerin gwhee lgearshift paddles.
If manual gearshift program Mhas been
selecte dand you restart th eengine, the
automatic transmissio nwill switch to an
automatic gearshift program. If automatic
gearshift program Sor Chas been selected, th
ea utomatic transmissio nwill resume the
correspondin ggearshift program when you
restart th eengine.
Manua lgearshif tprogram In manual gearshift program
M,you can
chang egear usin gthe steerin gwhee lgear-
shift paddles or th eselecto rlever. Manual
gearshift program Mcan be selecte dusing
th ep rogram selecto rbutton. 1
Program selecto rbutton Cont
rols
*optional
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Page 106 of 317

Automatic transmission
103S
Sport Fo
ra ll normal drivin gcon-
ditions C
Comfort Fo
rc omfort mode M
Manual Fo
rm anual gearshifting X
To activate: press program selector but-
ton 1repeatedly until Mappears in the
speedometer display.
If th eselector lever is in position D,you can
shift up or down through th egears. The gear
currentl yselected and engage disshown in
th es peedometer display.
X To deactivate: press program selector
button 1repeatedly until Sor Cappears
in th espeedometer display.
Upshifting
X Briefly press th eselector lever to th eright
towards D+
or
X Pull th eright-hand steerin gwhee lgearshift
paddl e(Ypage 102).
The automatic transmissio nshift suptot he
next gear. SL 65 AMG
!
In manual gearshift program M,theauto-
matic transmissio ndoesn otshift up auto-
matically eve nwhen th elimitin gspeed for
th ec urren tgear is reached. Whe nthe lim-
itin gspeed is reached, th efue lsupply is cut
to preven tthe engin efromo verrevving.
You mus tmakes uret hatthe engin espeed
doe snotreach th ered are aoftherev coun-
ter. There is otherwise ariskofe ngine
damage.
X Shift up agear if th ecolour in th edisplay
changes to red and UPappears in th erev
counter.
Downshifting G
Risk of accident
Do no tchang ed own fo radditional engine
braking on aslipper yroads urface. This
could caus ethe drive wheels to los etheir
grip and th evehicl ecould skid.
X Briefly press th eselector lever to th eleft
towards D-
or X
Pull th eleft-han dsteerin gwhee lgearshift
paddle (Y page 102).
The automatic transmissio nshift sdown to
th en extg ear.
i Form aximum acceleration ,pull th eleft-
han dsteerin gwhee lgearshift paddle until
th et ransmissio nselects th eoptimum gear
fo rt he curren tspeed.
Kickdown
i It is no tpossibl etouse kickdown in man-
ual gearshift program Mon vehicles with
AM Ge ngines.
You can also use kickdown fo rmaximum
acceleration in manual gearshift program M.
X Depress th eaccelerator peda lbeyond the
pressure point.
The transmissio nshift stoal owergear
dependin gontheengin espeed.
i It is no tpossibl etoshift gear susingthe
steerin gwhee lgearshift paddles during
kickdown. Cont
rols
230_AKB; 5; 4, en-GB
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Page 107 of 317

Automatic transmission
104
Manua
lgearshif tprogram on th eSL63
AMG In manual gearshift program
M,you can
chang egear usin gthe steerin gwhee lgear-
shift paddles or th eselector lever. Manual
gearshift program Mcan be selected using
th ep rogram selector.
SL 63 AM Gprogram selector 1
Program selector C Fo
rc omfort mode S Fo
ra ll normal drivin gcon-
dition s(Sp ortp rogram) S+ SportPlus mode (with
shorter shift times) M Fo
rm anual gearshifting RS RACE START
i
RScanno tbeselecte dduring normal driv-
ing. Fo rfurther information on RACE
START ,see (Y page 138).
X To activate: turnp rogram selector 1
clockwise until Mappears in th espeedom-
eter display.
Indicator M1 on th eprogram selector
lights up in red.
If th eselecto rlever is in position D,you can
shift up or down through th egears. The gear
currentl yselecte dand engage disshown in
th ed isplay.
X To deactivate: turnp rogram selector 1
until Sor Cappears in th edisplay.
Upshifting
X Briefly press th eselecto rlever to th eright
towards D+
or X
Pull th eright-hand steerin gwhee lgearshift
paddle (Y page 102).
The automatic transmissio nshift suptot he
next gear.
! In manual gearshift program M,theauto-
matic transmissio ndoesn otshift up auto-
matically eve nwhen th elimitin gspeed for
th ec urren tgear is reached. Whe nthe lim-
itin gspeed is reached, th efue lsupply is cut
to preven tthe engin efromo verrevving.
You mus tmakes uret hatthe engin espeed
doe snotreach th ered are aoftherev coun-
ter. There is otherwise ariskofe ngine
damage.
X Shift up agear if th ecolour in th edisplay
changes to red and UPappears in th erev
counter.
Downshifting G
Risk of accident
Do no tchang ed own fo radditional engine
braking on aslipper yroads urface. This
could caus ethe drive wheels to los etheir
grip and th evehicl ecould skid.
X Briefly press th eselecto rlever to th eleft
towards D-
or Cont
rols
230_AKB; 5; 4, en-GB
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Page 108 of 317

Instrument cluster
105
X
Pull th eleft-han dsteerin gwhee lgearshift
paddl e(Ypage 102).
The automati ctransmissio nshift sdown to
th en extg ear.
i Form aximum acceleration ,pull th eleft-
han dsteerin gwhee lgearshift paddl euntil
th et ransmissio nselect sthe optimum gear
fo rt he curren tspeed.
Kickdown
i It is no tpossibl etouse kickdown in man-
ual gearshift program Mon vehicles with
AM Ge ngines. Instrument cluster
Points to remember
You will fin danillustration of th einstrument
cluster in th e"At ag lance "section
(Y page 26). G
Risk of accident
If th einstrument cluster or multi-function
display fails, no display message scan be
displayed.
This mean stha tyou will no tsee information
about th edrivin gsituation ,suc hast he
speed, outside temperature, warning/indi-
cator lamps, display message sorsystem
failures .Handlin gcharacteristics may be
affected. Adapt your drivin gstyle and
speed accordingly.
Immediately consult aqualified specialist
workshop whic hhas th eneces saryspecial-
ist knowledge and tools to carry out the
wor krequired. Mercedes-Ben zrecom-
mends that you use aMercedes-Benz
Service Centr efor this purpose .Inparticu-
lar, wor krelevan ttosafetyoro nsafety-
relate dsystems mus tbecarriedout at a
qualified specialist workshop. Activating th
emulti-function display
X Switc hont heignition.
The multi-function display is also activated
when you:
R switch on th elights
R press th ereset butto nontheleft-han dside
of th einstrument cluster
R open adoor Adjusting th
einstrument cluster
lighting
X Brighte rordimmer: turnthe reset button
in th einstrument cluster clockwise or anti-
clockwise. Cont
rols
230_AKB; 5; 4, en-GB
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Page 109 of 317

On-boar
dcomputer 106 Coolant temperatureg
auge
The coolant temperature gauge is in the
instrument cluster on the left-hand side.
Under normal operatin gconditions and with
the specified concentration of antifreeze/
corrosion inhibitor ,the coolant temperature
may rise to 120 † Resetting the trip meter
X Select the standard display menu
(Y page 110).
X Press and hold the reset butto ninthe
instrument cluster until the trip meter is
reset. Rev counter
The red band in the rev counter indicates the
engine's overrevvin grange. The fuel supply is
interrupted to protec tthe engin ewhen the
red band is reached.
! Do not drive in the overrevvin grange.
Doin gsow ill damage the engine. H
Environmental note
Avoid driving at high engin espeeds, as this
increases your vehicle's consumption
unnecessarily and pollutes the environ-
ment through increased emissions. Outsid
etemperatured isplay G
Risk of accident
The road surface may be icy, especially in
wooded areas or on bridges, even if tem-
peratures are just above freezing point .The
vehicle could skid if you fail to adapt your
driving style. You should therefore always
adapt your driving style and speed to suit
the weather conditions.
There is ashort delay before achang eino ut-
side temperature is displayed. On-boar
dcomputer Points to remember
The on-board computer is activated as soon
as you turn the key to position 1in the ignition
lock .You can use the on-board computer to
call up information relatin gtoyour vehicle
and to make and adjust settings.
You can call up the nex tservic edue date,
select the display language for the instrument
cluster and set other functions. G
Risk of accident
Only use the on-board computer when road
and traffic condition spermit .You would
otherwise be distracted and unable to con-
centrat eproperly on driving ,and could
cause an accident.
The on-board computer shows information in
the multi-function display. Controls
230_AKB
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On-boar
dcomputer 107Multi-function steering wheel
You can control the multi-function display and
the settings in the on-board computer with
the buttons on the multi-function steering
wheel. 1 Multi-function displayint
he speed-
ometer 2 Multi-function displayint
he rev
counter 3 s
t
Accepts or rejectsac
all*
æ
ç R
Selects submenus in the
Settings menu
R Changes values
R Adjusts the volume
R Operates the RACETIMER 13 4 è
ÿ
Selecting menus: scrolls back
and forth j
k
Press briefly
to scroll back
and forth in amenu.
Select the Audio/TV*/DVD
menu to select astored sta-
tion, an audio track or avideo
scene.
In the Telephone* menu:
switches to the phone book
and selects aname or phone
number. j
k
Press and hold:
in the
Audio/TV*/DVD menu to
select the next/previous sta-
tion using rapid scrolling.
Press and hold in the Tele-
phone* menu: starts rapid
scrolling through the tele-
phone book. Several functions are combined thematically
in the menus.
For example, the
Audio/TV*/DVD menu
contains functions for operating the radio or
DVD player. The functions can be used either
to look up information or to change settings
for your vehicle.
13 Only on AMG vehicles. Controls
*o ptional
230_AKB;5;4,e
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