Mercedes-Benz 2011 C300 Luxury Sedan Operator's Manual page 66

Driving safety systems
64
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ESP is activated automatically when the
engine is running.
It may be best to deactivate ESP
following situations:
when using snow chains
R
in deep snow
R
on sand or gravel
R
G
Warning!
®
Activate ESP as soon as the situations
described above no longer apply. ESP
otherwise not be able to stabilize the vehicle
if the vehicle starts to skid or a wheel starts
to spin.
If you deactivate ESP
®
ESP no longer improves driving stability.
R
the engine's torque is no longer limited and
R
the drive wheels can spin. The spinning of
the wheels results in a cutting action, which
provides better grip.
traction control is still activated.
R
®
ESP still provides support when you
R
brake.
®
If ESP is deactivated and one or more wheels
start to spin, the ä warning lamp in the
instrument cluster flashes. In such situations,
®
ESP will not stabilize the vehicle.
X
To deactivate:(
The å warning lamp in the instrument
cluster lights up.
G
Warning
When the å ESP OFF warning lamp lights
up, ESP is switched off.
When the ä ESP warning lamp and the
å ESP OFF warning lamp are on
continuously, ESP is not operational due to a
malfunction.
When ESP is switched off or not operational,
the vehicle's stability during standard driving
maneuvers is reduced.
®
in the
®
will
®
:
Y page 178).
Adapt your driving style to suit the prevailing
road conditions/weather conditions and to
the non-operating status of ESP.
! Avoid spinning a drive wheel for an
extended period with ESP switched off. This
could cause serious damage to the drive
train.
X
To activate:( Y page 178).
The å warning lamp in the instrument
cluster goes out.
Deactivating/activating ESP
vehicles)
Activating/deactivating SPORT handling
mode
G
Warning
The SPORT handling mode should not be
switched on during normal driving.
Switching on the SPORT handling mode will
result in the following:
no restriction to the engine torque
R
system supported traction control is
R
limited
The SPORT handling mode is designed for
driving on closed tracks when the vehicle's
own natural oversteer and understeer
characteristics are desired and requires a
highly skilled and experienced driver able to
handle these critical driving situations.
You could lose control of your vehicle and
cause an accident.
Please be aware of these limits when you
switch on the SPORT handling mode.
Do not switch on the SPORT handling when a
spare wheel is mounted.
SPORT handling mode is active automatically
as long as the engine is running.
®
(AMG