126 Driving and operatingEngine brakingTo utilise the engine braking effect,select a lower gear in good time whendriving downhill, see manual mode.Rocking the vehicleRocking the vehicle is onlypermissible if the vehicle is stuck insand, mud or snow. Move the selectorlever between D and R in a repeatpattern. Do not race the engine andavoid sudden acceleration.ParkingApply the parking brake and engageP.The ignition key can only be removedwhen the selector lever is in positionP.Manual modeMove selector lever to position M.Press button on the selector lever:< = Shift to a higher gear.] = Shift to a lower gear.If a higher gear is selected whenvehicle speed is too low, or a lowergear when vehicle speed is too high,the shift is not executed. This cancause a message in theDriver-Info-Display.In manual mode no automatic shiftingto a higher gear takes place at highengine revolutions.Electronic drivingprogrammes■ Following a cold start, the operatingtemperature programme increasesengine speed to quickly bring thecatalytic converter to the requiredtemperature.■ The automatic neutral shift functionautomatically shifts to idling whenthe vehicle is stopped with aforward gear engaged and thebrake pedal is pressed.■ Special programmes automaticallyadapt the shifting points whendriving up inclines or down hills.KickdownIf the accelerator pedal is presseddown completely in automatic mode,the transmission shifts to a lower geardepending on engine speed.
