2009 Mercedes R-Class Owner's Manual - Page 134

Controls in detail Driving and parking Driving off G Warning! 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. ! Do not run cold engine at high engine speeds. Running a cold engine at high engine speeds may shorten the service life of the engine. This is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty. ! If you hear a warning signal and the message Release Parking Brake appears in the multifunction display when driving off, you have forgotten to release the parking brake. Release the parking brake. ! Avoid spinning of a drive wheel. This may cause serious damage to the drivetrain which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty. ! Simultaneously depressing the accelerator pedal and applying the brakes reduces engine performance and causes premature brake and drivetrain wear which is not covered by the Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty. vehicle is stopped. Otherwise the automatic transmission could be damaged. X i Once the vehicle is in motion, the automatic central locking system engages and the locking knobs in the doors move down. The automatic door lock feature can be deactivated (Y page 158). Automatic transmission G Warning! It is dangerous to shift the automatic transmission out of park position P or neutral position N if the engine speed is higher than idle speed. If your foot is not firmly on the brake pedal, the vehicle could accelerate quickly forward or in reverse. You could lose control of the vehicle and hit someone or something. Only shift into gear when the engine is idling normally and when your right foot is firmly on the brake pedal. ! Only shift the automatic transmission into reverse gear R or park position P when the Depress the brake pedal. The gear selector lever can now be used. Shift the automatic transmission into drive position D or reverse gear R. X i Shifting the automatic transmission out of park position P is only possible with the brake pedal depressed. Without the brake pedal depressed, the gear selector lever can be moved up or down, but the parking pawl remains engaged, not allowing shifting to occur. X Wait for the gear selection process to complete before setting the vehicle in motion. Release the brake pedal. If engaged, release the parking brake. Carefully depress the accelerator pedal. X X X After a cold start, the automatic transmission shifts at a higher engine revolution. This allows the catalytic converter (gasoline engine) or the oxidation catalyst (diesel engine) to reach its operating temperature earlier. 132