Special Operating C Onditions; Winter Driving; Hints For Driving - Mercedes-Benz 300SD 1981 Owner's Manual

S pecial O peratin g Conditions

Winter Driving

Have your car winterized in a
MERCEDES-BENZ service station
before the onset of winter.
• Engine oil change: If no " all-year-
round" engine oil is used, fill with
recommended winter oil. For vis­
cosity and capacity, refer to
" Fuels, Coolants, Lubricants, etc.
and last page" .
• For diesel fuels, refer to page 87
and last page.
• Antifreeze in the coolant: Check
antifreeze protection periodically.
For capacity refer to " Fuels,
Coolants, Lubricants, etc." .
• Additive in the windshield washer
system: Add windshield washer
solvent to the water in the
windshield washer system.
• Test battery: Battery capacity
drops with decreasing ambient
temperature. A well charged bat­
tery ensures that the engine can
always be started, even at low
ambient temperatures.
• Tires: We recommend M -I- S
radial tires on all wheels for the
winter season. Observe permissi­
ble maximum speed for M + S
radial tires and the legal speed
limit.

Hints for Driving

The most important rule for slippery
or icy roads is to drive sensibily and to
avoid abrupt acceleration, braking
and steering action. Do not use the
cruise control system under such
conditions.
When the vehicle is in danger of
skidding, move selector lever to
position " N". Try to keep the vehicle
under control by means of corrective
steering action.
Provided the traffic conditions will
allow, only brake in a way that the
wheels are locked for no more than
fractions of a second as otherwise the
steerability of the vehicle is lost.
Road salts can adversely affect
braking efficiency. Increased pedal
force may become necessary to
produce the normal brake effect. We
therefore recommend depressing the
brake pedal repeatedly when travel­
ling on salt-strewn roads at length.
This can bring road salt impaired
braking efficiency back to normal. A
prerequisite is, however, that this is
possible without endangering other
drivers on the road.
If the vehicle is parked after being
driven on salt treated roads, the
braking efficiency should be tested as
soon as possible after driving is
resumed while adhering to the safety
requirements. Should the braking
efficiency have deteriorated consider­
ably it can be improved again by
braking several times.