help on gear selector please

[standupking36]

hi all, im new to the mb club! i've just bought my self a 2006 ml320 w164, my question is, in the gear selector display there is the letter S in the lower right corner, should this be on at all times or only when sport mode is selected, when using the S/M switch it just changes from M to S is this correct please?

 

[kid-jensen]

My W164 is late 2006 but doesn't have any S/M option, only the "locking out" of higher gears using the steering wheel paddle switches.

When yours is in "M", how do you change gear manually?

 

[standupking36]

using the paddle switches on the steering wheel, R
N
D
S
thats how my display looks, then press the s/m button & the s changes to m but im not sure if im running in sport mode all the time

 

[ash59fifty-uk]

using the paddle switches on the steering wheel, R N D S thats how my display looks, then press the s/m button & the s changes to m but im not sure if im running in sport mode all the time

Different car, but on mine in D it will drive in C mode by default, then selecting the S/M/C button it goes to S (sport) then select again goes to M manual, I'd of thought in D yours should technically be in a 'C' mode, then only switching to S only when selected

 

[E55BOF]

Mmmmmm... SM...

All right, I'll get m' coat.

 

[kid-jensen]

As your ML can only be a few months older than mine, I guess they found the earlier system too confusing!

I have to say that changing gears with the buttons that rotate with the steering wheel is a nightmare...it's bad enough using it to lock out higher gears when on the move. The thought of using the steering wheel buttons during a twisty B-road blast makes me want to have a lie-down..

I now do what most drivers do and leave it in "D" all the time. There's quite enough to do keeping the ML up the right way over bumpy, off-camber country lanes without having to find the right buttons on a spinning wheel...