Operation Manual

179
Controls in detail
Automatic transmission
Gear selector lever one-touch
gearshifting
With the gear selector lever in drive posi-
tion D and driving in program mode C or S,
you can limit or extend the gear range.
If your vehicle is equipped with the
MANUAL shift program, you can use the
gear selector lever to manually shift the
gears.
The following instructions describe opera-
tion of the gear selector lever when driving
in the automatic program mode C or S.
Limiting gear range
Briefly press the gear selector lever to
the left in the D- direction.
The transmission will shift to the next
lower gear as permitted by the shift
program. This action simultaneously
limits the gear range of the transmis-
sion (
page 176).
Extending gear range
Briefly press the gear selector lever to
the right in the D+ direction.
The transmission will shift to the next
higher gear as permitted by the shift
program. This action simultaneously
extends the gear range of the transmis-
sion.
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For information on using the gear selector
lever in program mode MANUAL, see “Manual
shift program (SL 55 AMG and SL 65 AMG
only)” (
page 182).
!
Allow engine to warm up under low load use.
Do not place full load on the engine until the
operating temperature has been reached.
Shift into reverse gear R or park position P only
when the vehicle is stopped.
Avoid spinning of a drive wheel for an extended
period when driving off on slippery road
surfaces. This may cause serious damage to the
drivetrain which is not covered by the
Mercedes-Benz Limited Warranty.
Warning! G
On slippery road surfaces, never downshift
in order to obtain braking action. This could
result in drive wheel slip and reduced
vehicle control. Your vehicle’s ABS will not
prevent this type of loss of control.
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To avoid overrevving the engine when down-
shifting, the transmission will not shift to a lower
gear if the engine’s max. speed would be
exceeded.
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If you press on the accelerator when the en-
gine has reached its rpm limit, the transmission
will upshift beyond any gear range limit selected.