Safety, Driving safety systems – Mercedes-Benz SLS-Class 2015 Owners Manual User Manual
Page 58

may be shown in the instrument cluster
(
Y
page 170).
i
Only use wheels with the recommended
tire sizes. Only then will ESP
®
function
properly.
Characteristics of ESP
®
ESP
®
is activated automatically when the
engine is started.
If ESP
®
intervenes, the h ESP
®
warning
lamp flashes in the instrument cluster.
If ESP
®
intervenes:
X
Do not deactivate ESP
®
under any circum-
stances.
X
Only depress the accelerator pedal as far as
necessary when pulling away.
X
Adapt your driving style to suit the prevail-
ing road and weather conditions.
Deactivating/activating ESP
®
Important safety notes
i
Observe the "Important safety notes" sec-
tion (
Y
page 54).
You can select between the following states
of ESP
®
:
R
ESP
®
is activated.
R
SPORT handling mode is activated.
R
ESP
®
is deactivated.
G
WARNING
When SPORT handling mode is activated,
there is a greater risk of skidding and acci-
dents.
Only activate SPORT handling mode in the sit-
uations described in the following.
G
WARNING
If you deactivate ESP
®
, ESP
®
no longer sta-
bilizes the vehicle. There is an increased risk
of skidding and an accident.
Only deactivate ESP
®
in the situations descri-
bed in the following.
In the following situations, it may be better to
activate SPORT handling mode or deactivate
ESP
®
:
R
when using snow chains
R
in deep snow
R
on sand or gravel
R
when driving on designated roads when the
vehicle's own oversteering and understeer-
ing characteristics are desired
Driving in SPORT handling mode or without
ESP
®
requires an extremely qualified and
experienced driver.
i
Activate ESP
®
as soon as the situations
described above no longer apply. ESP
®
will
otherwise not be able to stabilize the vehi-
cle if the vehicle starts to skid or a wheel
starts to spin.
!
Avoid spinning the driven wheels for an
extended period with ESP
®
deactivated.
You could otherwise damage the drivetrain.
Deactivating/activating ESP
®
X
To activate SPORT handling mode:
briefly press button :.
The M handling mode warning lamp in
the instrument cluster lights up. The
56
Driving safety systems
Safety