Unsuitable fuel can causeengine damage. Infor‐
mation aboutfuel can be found in the"Fuel" sec‐
tion (/ page245).
Informationabout transportbyrail
Transportingyour vehicle by rail maybesubject
to certain restrictions or requirespecial meas‐
ures to be takeninsomecountriesdue to varying
tunnel heightsand loading standards.
Youcan obtain information about this from any
Freightliner Sprinter service center.
Notesonbrakes
&
WARNING Risk of skidding and of an
accident duetoshifting down on slippery
road surfaces
If youshiftdownonslipperyroad surfaces to
increase theengine braking effect, thedrive
wheels maylose traction.
#
Do notshiftdownonslipperyroad sur‐
faces to increase theengine braking
effect.
&
WARNING Risk of accident duetothe
brakesystem overheating
If youleave your foot on thebrake pedal
when driving, thebrake system mayoverheat.
This increases thebraking distance and the
brakesystemmay evenfail.
#
Neveruse thebrake pedal as afootrest.
#
Do notdepress thebrake pedal and the
accelerator pedal at thesame time
while driving.
Downhill gradients
On long and steep downhill gradients youshould
observethe following instructions:
R
In vehicles withanautomatic transmission,
shiftdowntoshiftranges 2 or 1 in good time
so that theengine is running at amediumto
high engine speed (/ page121).
%
Changethe shiftrangeingoodtime when
cruise control is activated. Observe thedriv‐
ing tips (/ page108).
Youtherebymakeuse of thebraking effect of the
engine and do nothave to brakeasoften to main‐
tainthe speed. This relievesthe load on the
service brakeand prevents thebrakesfromover‐
heating and wearing tooquickly.
Heavy and light loads
If thebrakeshave been subjected to aheavy
load, do notstopthe vehicle immediately. Drive
on forashortwhile. The brakes cool down more
quicklyinthe airflow.
If thebrakeshave been used onlymoderately,
youshouldoccasionallytesttheir effectiveness.
To do this, brakemorefirmlyfromahigherspeed
whilepaying attention to thetraffic conditions.
Thebrakeswillgripbetterasaresult.
Wetroad surfaces
If youhave been driving foralong time in heavy
rain without braking, theremay be adelayed
response when youfirst apply thebrakes. This
mayalso occur afterdriving through acar wash
or deep water. Youmustdepress thebrake pedal
morefirmly. Maintainagreater distancetothe
vehicle in front.
While paying attention to thetraffic conditions,
youshouldbrake thevehicle firmly afterdriving
on awet road surface or through acar wash. This
heats thebrake discs so that they drymore
quickly, whichprotects them againstcorrosion.
Limited braking effect on salt-treatedroads:
R
Alayer of salt on thebrake discs or brake‐
pads can increase braking distances consid‐
erably,orbraking mayhappen on only one
side
R
Maintainanespecially largesafedistance to
thevehicle in front
To remove thelayer of salt:
R
Applythe brakes from time to time,paying
attention to trafficconditions
R
Carefully depress thebrake pedal at theend
of ajourneyand afterthe startofanew jour‐
ney
Checking thebrakepadthickness
In addition to monitoring using thebrakepad wear
sensor,regularly monitor and checkall of the
brakepads by performing avisual inspection to
look forpad material wear.
If youare unabletocheckthe brakepad wear on
theinside of thewheels, remove thewheels if
youpossess therequired skills, or visit aqualified
specialistworkshop.
If thebrakepad material thickness is less than
0.12 in (3 mm), have thebrakepads checkedand
replaced at aqualified specialistworkshop, if
necessary.
Do notsolely rely on thebrakepad wear sensor.
Drivingand parking
111
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