Hints For Driving; Tire Chains; Traveling Abroad - Mercedes-Benz 380 SL 1984 Owner's Manual

Special Operating Conditions
• Test battery: Battery capacity
drops with decreasing ambient
temperature. A well charged
battery ensures that the engine
can always be started, even at
low ambient temperatures.
• Tires: We recommend M + S
radial tires on all wheels for the
winter season. Observe permis­
sible maximum speed for M-TS
radial tires and the legal speed
limit.

Hints for Driving

The most important rule for slippery
or icy roads is to drive sensibly and
to avoid abrupt acceleration, brak­
ing 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 and chemicals can ad­
versely affect braking efficiency.
Increased pedal force may become
necessary to produce the normal
brake effect. We therefore recom­
mend depressing the brake pedal
repeatedly when travelling on salt-
strewn roads at length. This can
bring road salt impaired braking
efficiency back to normal. A pre­
requisite 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.

Tire Chains

Use only tire chains that are tested
and recommended by us. Any
MERCEDES-BENZ sen/ice station
will be glad to advise you on this
subject.
Chains should only be used on the
rear wheels. Adhere to the manu­
facturer's mounting instructions.
Remove the wheel covers to mount
and retighten chains.
After driving a short distance
retighten the mounted chains.
Tire chains should only be driven
on snow at speeds not to exceed
50 km/h/30 mph. Remove chains
as soon as possible when driving
on roads without snow.

Traveling Abroad

Abroad, there is a widely-spread
MERCEDES-BENZ sen/ice network
at your disposal. If you travel into
areas which are not listed in the
index of your service station
booklet, you should request per­
tinent information from your dealer.