Mercedes-Benz SL-Class 2009 Owners Manual - Manual (Page 118)

Automatic transmission
116
There are additional indicators on the cover
of the shifting gate showing the current gear
selector lever position.
The indicators come on when you insert the
SmartKey into the starter switch, and go out
when you remove the SmartKey from the
starter switch.
Shifting procedure
The automatic transmission selects individual
gears automatically, depending on:
R drive position D ( Y page 117) with gear
ranges ( Y page 118)
R the selected program mode:
C/S (
Y page 118)
or
M (SL 63 AMG and SL 65 AMG only)
( Y page 121)
R the position of the accelerator pedal
R the vehicle speed
With drive position D selected, you can influ-
ence transmission shifting by:
R limiting the gear range
R extending the gear range
R changing the gears manually (SL 63 AMG
and SL 65 AMG only)
Transmission positions
The current transmission position appears in
the right multifunction display.
1 Transmission position indicator
Effect
ì Park position
Shift the automatic transmission
into park position
P only when the
vehicle is stopped. The park posi-
tion is not intended to serve as a
brake when the vehicle is parked.
Rather, the driver should always
engage the parking brake in addi-
tion to shifting the automatic
transmission into park position
P
to secure the vehicle.
The SmartKey can only be
removed from the starter switch
with the gear selector lever in park
position
P. With the SmartKey
removed from the starter switch,
the gear selector lever is locked in
park position
P.
If the vehicle’s electrical system is
malfunctioning, the gear selector
lever could remain locked in park
position
P.
X Have the vehicle’s electrical
system checked as soon as pos-
Controls in detail