Em Ergency-Starting And Towing The Vehicle - Mercedes-Benz 380 SL Owner's Manual

Em ergency-starting and Towing the Vehicle

Towing eyes are situated under­
neath the R-H front and rear end.
Use a solid towing link such as a
towbar.
Only tow-start vehicle with the bat­
tery connected and the key in
2
steering lock position " ".
Caution: Please keep in mind that
considerably more effort is neces­
sary to steer and brake the car
while the engine is not running
since there is no servo-assistance.
Emergency Engine Start
(Tow-starting)
The engine must be cold if it is to
be started by towing or pushing the
vehicle.
Never start a hot engine by towing
or pushing the vehicle as the
catalysts might otherwise suffer
damage.
Move selector lever to position " N".
Turn key in steering lock to position
2
" " and have vehicle towed.
After reaching a speed of 30 km /h/
18 mph, maintain this speed for
about one minute in order to
ensure sufficient oil pressure in the
transmission.
To start the engine, move selector
lever to " L". Only touch the accele­
rator when the engine is revolving.
As soon as the engine has fired,
return the selector lever to " N"
immediately.
If the engine fails to fire within a
few seconds, return the selector
lever from " L" to " N" as otherwise
the transmission may be damaged.
For another starting attempt, tow
car again for a short while with the
selector lever in position "N" and
then repeat starting procedure.
The same procedure may be used
for starting the engine while rolling
downhill.
Towing the Vehicle
The vehicle may be towed with the
driving wheels on the ground and
the selector lever in position " N" for
distances up to 120 km /75 miles
and at a speed not to exceed
50 km /h/30 mph.
To positively avoid a possibility of
damage to the transmission, how­
ever, we recommend to disconnect
the drive shaft at the rear axle drive
flange on any towing beyond a
short tow to a nearby garage.