Hints For Driving - Mercedes-Benz 190D 2.2 1984 Owner's Manual

Hints for Driving

Power assistance
W hen the engine is not ru n n in g ,
both the service brake and the
steering are w ithou t pow er assistance.
U nder these circum sta n ce s, a m uch
g re ater e ffo rt is necessary to steer
or stop the vehicle.
Tires
Do not a llo w y o u r tire s to w ear
dow n to o far. W ith less than 3 m m /
% in o f tread, the a n tiskid p ro p e r­
ties on a w et road are sh a rp ly re­
duced.
D epending upon the w e a th e r and /o r
road pavem ent, the tra c tio n varies
w idely.
S pe cifie d tire pressures m ust be
m aintained. This a pp lie s p a rtic u la rly
if the tire s are sub je cte d to high
loads (e.g. high speeds, heavy
loads, high am b ie n t tem peratures).
Aquaplaning
D epending on the depth o f the
w a te r layer on th e road, a q u a p la n ­
ing may occur, even at lo w speeds.
A void tra ck grooves in the road and
apply brakes ca u tio u sly in the rain.
Tire friction
A given speed at w h ic h a ve hicle
d rive n on dry roads can s till be fu lly
c o n tro lle d m ust be reduced w hen
the same veh icle is to be driven
safely on a w e t o r icy road.
You sh o u ld pay p a rtic u la r a tte n tio n
to the c o n d itio n o f th e road as soon
as the p re va ilin g tem p e ra tu re s fall
close to the fre e zin g po int.
If ice has fo rm e d on th e road tire
tra c tio n w ill be s u b s ta n tia lly re­
duced. U nder such w e a th e r c o n d i­
tio n s, drive, steer and brake p a rtic u ­
la rly carefully.
We recom m e n d M + S rad ia l-ply tire s
fo r the co ld season. On packed
snow , the y can reduce y o u r s to p p ­
ing d ista n ce as com pa red w ith sum ­
m er tires. S to p p in g distance, ho w ­
ever, is nevertheless c o n sid era b ly
g re a te r than w hen the road is w et or
dry.
Brakes
W hen d riv in g d o w n long and steep
d e clin e s, relieve the brakes by s h ift­
ing in to a lo w e r speed (selector
lever p o s itio n " 3 " o r " 2 " in the case
o f a u to m a tic transm issio ns). This
prevents o v erh ea ting o f the brakes
and reduces brake pad wear.
A fte r hard bra kin g it is advisable to
d rive on fo r som e tim e so the air
stream w ill co o l dow n th e brakes
faster.
W hen d riv in g in heavy rain fo r som e
tim e w ith o u t a p p lyin g the brakes,
the firs t b ra kin g a ctio n may be
som ew ha t reduced and increased
pedal pressure may be necessary.
For th is reason, stay fu rth e r away
fro m ve h ic le in fro n t.
The c o n d itio n o f the p a rkin g brake
system is checke d each tim e the car
is in the sho p fo r m aintenance.
B etw een m ainten a nce checks it is a
good p ra c tic e to ap p ly the parking
brake once o r tw ic e w h ile d rivin g at
a p p ro x im a te ly 50 km /h/30 m ph on a
d ry road. A p p ly brake lig h tly u n til a
s lig h t drag on the w heels is felt.
Keep a p p lyin g brakes fo r about
10 se con d s w h ile h o ld in g release
b u tto n in before releasing parking