Mercedes-Benz S-Class 2014 Owners Manual - Manual (Page 186)

R the vehicle pulling away more gently in
forward and reverse gears, unless the
accelerator pedal is depressed fully
R increased sensitivity. This improves driving
stability on slippery road surfaces, for
example
R the automatic transmission shifting up
sooner. This results in the vehicle being
driven at lower engine speeds and the
wheels being less likely to spin
Drive program S is characterized by the
following:
R sporty engine settings
R the vehicle pulling away in first gear
R the automatic transmission shifting up
later
R the fuel consumption possibly being higher
as a result of the later automatic
transmission shift points
Manual drive program M
General notes
In this drive program, you can briefly change
gear yourself by using the steering wheel
paddle shifters. The transmission must be in
position D.
You can activate manual drive program M in
the E (C in AMG vehicles) and S automatic
drive programs.
i AMG vehicles: as well as temporary drive
program M, you can also activate
permanent drive program M.
Further information about permanent drive
program M (
Y
page 185).
Activating
X Shift the transmission to position D.
X Pull the left or right steering wheel paddle
shifter (
Y
page 183).
Manual drive program M is temporarily
activated.
All vehicles except AMG vehicles: M and
the selected gear appear in the
multifunction display.
Shifting gears
If you pull on the left or right steering wheel
paddle shifter, the automatic transmission
switches to manual drive program M for a
limited amount of time. Depending on which
paddle shifter is pulled, the automatic
transmission immediately shifts into the next
gear down or up, if permitted.
X To shift up: pull the right-hand steering
wheel paddle shifter (
Y
page 183).
The automatic transmission shifts up to the
next gear.
i If the maximum engine speed on the
currently engaged gear is reached and you
continue to accelerate, the automatic
transmission automatically shifts up in
order to prevent engine damage.
i AMG vehicles: the automatic
transmission will not shift up to the next
gear when the engine speed is very low.
X
To shift down: pull on the left-hand
steering wheel paddle shifter
(
Y
page 183).
The automatic transmission shifts down to
the next gear.
i If the engine exceeds the maximum
engine speed when shifting down, the
automatic transmission protects against
engine damage by not shifting down.
i Automatic down shifting occurs when
coasting.
Shift recommendation
184
Automatic transmission
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