Mercedes-Benz E-Class 2009 Owner's Manual page 136

Distronic Plus may detect vehicles that are
crossing your lane by mistake. Activating Dis-
tronic Plus at traffic lights with crossing traf-
fic, for example, could cause your vehicle to
pull away unintentionally.
SPEEDTRONIC
Speedtronic brakes automatically so that you
do not exceed the set speed. On long and
steep downhill gradients, especially if the
vehicle is laden or towing a trailer, you must
shift to a lower gear in good time or select
shift range 1, 2 or 3 on vehicles with auto-
matic transmission*. By doing so, you will
make use of the braking effect of the engine,
which relieves the load on the brake system
and prevents the brakes from overheating
and wearing too quickly. If you need addi-
tional braking, depress the brake pedal
repeatedly rather than continuously.
G Risk of accident
Never depress the brake pedal continuously
while the vehicle is in motion, e.g. never cause
the brakes to rub by applying constant slight
pedal pressure. This causes the brake system
to overheat, increases the braking distance
and can lead to the brakes failing completely.
G
Risk of accident
Do not change down for additional engine
braking on a slippery road surface. This could
cause the drive wheels to lose their grip and
the vehicle could skid.
You can set a variable or permanent limit
speed:
variable for speed limits, e.g. in built-up
R
areas
permanent for long-term speed restric-
R
tions, e.g. for driving on winter tyres
( page 135)
Y
* optional
G
Risk of accident
Speedtronic is only an aid designed to assist
driving. You are responsible for the vehicle's
speed and for braking in good time.
i
The speed indicated in the speedometer
may differ slightly from the limit speed
stored.
Variable Speedtronic
With the cruise control lever, you can operate
cruise control, Distronic Plus* and variable
Speedtronic.
The LIM indicator lamp on the cruise control
lever indicates which system you have selec-
ted:
LIM indicator lamp off:
R
Cruise control or Distronic Plus* is selec-
ted.
LIM indicator lamp lit:
R
Variable Speedtronic is selected.
You can use the cruise control lever to limit
the speed to any speed above 30 km/h while
the engine is running.
To store the current speed or a higher
:
speed
LIM indicator lamp
;
To store the current speed or to call up
=
the last stored speed
To store the current speed or a lower
?
speed
Driving systems
133
Z