2002 Mercedes S-Class Owner's Manual - Page 275

Instruments and controls Driving systems Operation Driving Instrument cluster display Practical hints Car care Technical data Index 272 Important! With Distronic switched off, only the distance warning function operates, meaning the vehicle does not slow down. Distronic does not register oncoming vehicles. Therefore there is no distance warning. Warning! If the distance warning lamp in the speedometer dial lights up while driving and an intermittent warning sounds, immediate attention on the part of the driver is required. As required by the traffic situation, apply the service brakes and navigate around a possible obstacle. However, do not drive by relying on the distance warning function as that will result in an emergency braking application which, especially depending on road surface conditions and driver reaction, will not always be able to avoid a collision. Important! Complex driving situations are not always fully recognized by Distronic, which could result in wrong or missing distance warnings. See page 269 for additional driving hints. Distance warning function Even if Distronic is deactivated, the distance to the vehicle ahead continues to be measured, see page 275 for multifunction display. The Distronic lamp in the speedometer dial illuminates to advise the driver of a situation which under normal braking conditions and dry surfaces should have been addressed by the driver. The distance warning function can be activated separately, see page 272. It operates when driving at speeds above approx. 25 mph (Canada: 40 km/h). When recognizing a stationary obstacle or a slower vehicle moving in the vehicle's path and the danger of a collision exists, the distance warning lamp in the speedometer dial lights up and simultaneously an intermittent warning sounds. When pressing the service brake pedal, the warning sound stops. The warning sound also stops, when the distance to the vehicle ahead is sufficient again without applying the service brake pedal. In this case the distance warning lamp also extinguishes.