2010 Mercedes S-Class Owner's Manual - Page 341

Driving systems Rthe Ryou 339 radar sensors are switched off pull the DISTRONIC PLUS lever in direction of arrow ? (Y page 335) for driving off and the front passenger or a rear passenger door is open G Warning! X The DISTRONIC PLUS switches off and releases the brakes when the vehicle decelerates below the minimum speed of 20 mph (30 km/h) by operation of the system unless the DISTRONIC PLUS detects a vehicle directly ahead of you. At that time the driver must apply the brakes in order to reduce vehicle speed further or bring it to a stop. Increasing distance: Turn distance setting switch : in direction of arrow ;. Increasing the distance setting tells the DISTRONIC PLUS to maintain a greater following distance to the preceding vehicle. Decreasing distance: Turn distance setting switch : in direction of arrow =. Decreasing the distance setting tells the DISTRONIC PLUS to maintain a shorter following distance to the preceding vehicle. X Depressing the accelerator pedal does not deactivate the DISTRONIC PLUS. After a brief acceleration (e.g. for passing), the DISTRONIC PLUS will resume the last set speed. Driving with DISTRONIC PLUS This section describes a number of driving situations where special precaution is required on the part of the driver. Be prepared to brake in such situations. Braking will deactivate the DISTRONIC PLUS system. Setting the following distance in DISTRONIC PLUS You can set the specified following distance for the DISTRONIC PLUS by varying the time setting between 1.0 and 2.0 seconds. Using this time setting and the current speed of your vehicle, the DISTRONIC PLUS calculates and sets the required following distance to the preceding vehicle. The set distance will be shown in the multifunction display. G Warning! The DISTRONIC PLUS works to maintain the speed selected by the driver unless a moving obstacle proceeding directly ahead of it in the same travel direction is detected (e.g. following another vehicle ahead of you at your set distance). This means that: RYour vehicle can pass another vehicle after G Warning! It is up to the driver to exercise discretion to select the appropriate setting given road conditions, traffic, driver's preferred driving style and applicable laws and driving recommendations for safe following distance. you have changed lanes. RWhile in a sharp turn or if the preceding vehicle is in a sharp turn, the DISTRONIC PLUS could lose sight of the preceding vehicle. Your vehicle could then accelerate to the previously selected speed. Z Controls in detail The marker for the set speed on the speedometer dial go out, an acoustic signal sounds, and the message DISTRONIC PLUS Off appears in the multifunction display for approximately 5 seconds.