Mercedes-Benz 2008 M-Class Operator's Manual page 186

Shifting from P to R
With the vehicle at a standstill, depress
the brake pedal and keep it pressed.
Move gear selector lever up past the re-
sistance point to select reverse gear R.
i
The gear selector lever returns to its original
position.
Release the parking brake ( page 57).
Release the brake pedal.
Carefully depress the accelerator pedal
to drive off when it is safe to do so.
Shifting from P to D
With the vehicle at a standstill, depress
the brake pedal and keep it pressed.
Move gear selector lever down past the
resistance point to select drive
position D.
i
The gear selector lever returns to its original
position.
Release the parking brake ( page 57).
Release the brake pedal.
Carefully depress the accelerator pedal
to drive off when it is safe to do so.
Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Shifting from D, R, or N to P
If you want to select park position P with
the transmission being in drive position D,
reverse gear R or neutral position N:
With the vehicle at a standstill, depress
the brake pedal and keep it pressed.
Step firmly on parking brake pedal
( page 65).
Press button on gear selector lever in
direction of arrow ( page 183) to
select park position P.
Release the brake pedal.
!
Shift the automatic transmission directly
from drive position D to reverse gear R, from
reverse gear R to drive position D or directly to
park position P only when the vehicle is stopped.
Otherwise the automatic transmission could be
damaged.
When trying to free a vehicle stuck in mud or
snow, see "Rocking the vehicle" ( page 191).
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