Callaway

Taken from an MB Australia bulletin issued to dealers.

SBC "HOLD" Anti- Roll and SBC "STOP" Traffic (Tailback) Assist

As of the 1st Decade March 2003 (production), the functions of the Sensotronic Brake Control (SBC) have been extended in order to provide more comfort and reduce driver fatigue.

SBC "Hold" prevents the vehicle from rolling forwards against the will of the driver when on an incline or waiting in traffic. If the vehicle is stationary, a quick touch of the brake pedal is enough to activate SBC Hold. The vehicle is then held back by the SBC brakes, even if the driver takes his or her foot the brake. The braking effect is deactivated as soon as the driver accelerates.
When this function is activated "SBC H" appears in the instrument cluster.


SBC "Stop" relieves the stress on the driver in congestion or stop-start traffic. This function is activated using the cruise control selector lever and either keeps the vehicle at a standstill or allows it to roll forward at a maximum of 15 km/h. If the driver releases the accelerator, SBC brakes the vehicle with constant deceleration until it comes to a halt. SBC Stop can be set to remain active up to a speed of 60 km/h or can be switched off manually with the cruise control lever.
When this function is active, "SBC S" appears in the instument cluster.

Paul Le Corre

Really good news, especially for the traffic jam option.

muhri

I wonder if this is merely a flash update and we can get it in our cars.. any word on that callaway?

Juanjo

Good news, mine is to be produced on April 1st decade , so the wait will have at least the benefit of these new SBC functions.

Hope previous cars will be flash updateable.

MPTLPTR

Seems like these features aren't available to US E classes?

Callaway

I don't know what you mean by a "flash update", but it seems ALL cars built after the first week of March will get this feature as standard.

I don't know whether it is retro-fittable because the service guys at my dealership said they will have to wait for further information from MB Germany and possibly see a March built vehicle to assess what's involved.

muhri

A flash update is a computer update to the chips controlling the cars electronics.. so I would assume, they'd update your flash to put this feature in if your car was built prior to March. I hope it is only an electronic update which only needs this.. I would love to have this feature. I'll ask and you do the same then we'll share our findings. I'm also interested in the new universal phone control unit which will make the car work with a lot of different phones There is an article abot it in germancarfans.com and in jes-mercedes.de

Callaway

We will keep each other posted.

rickyfanmdr

I would love to have this feature.

My dealer is having an evening meeting tomorrow night for all recent Mercedes buyers (kinda gutsy of them and could be interesting--a whole room full of new MB owners!). Anyway, I'll ask about this if I get the chance.

rickyfanmdr

OK, I went to this meeting at my dealer's tonight (very nice and very helpful, by the way) and they said that this feature has not been approved yet in the U. S., but if it is, it involves mechanics in addition to computer items, so it will not be a reflash feature. Darn! But they said that the E-Class already has excellent anti-creep capability.

Callaway

Thanks for the update.

Double Eagle

This feature sounds good but perhaps could be expanded. One of my major dislikes of my E-500 is the inability to use left foot braking with light throttle to maneuver at low speeds or on hills. Try backing up a steep hill to park and you will see what I mean. The power cut off which occurs whenever you hit the brake pedal should be modulated to work only at speeds above 10 mph in my opinion. Any other thoughts on this subject?

STKLAW

I don't know what you mean by a "flash update", but it seems ALL cars built after the first week of March will get this feature as standard.

Does this mean world wide (mine was built this week for US delivery) and where did you get your info?

rickyfanmdr

STKLAW, I went to a 2 hour dinner meeting last night that my dealer hosted for recent Mercedes purchasers. The owner of the dealership was there along with the head of the service department and about 7 tech reps plus others (a rep from Mercedes Benz Club of America, head of the parts department, etc.). They made some introductory remarks, and then we could ask any and all generalized questions that we had during dinner. Then afterward we all went into the service bay where they had the various models set up with tech reps there to answer hands-on model-specific questions.

Apparently there will be a number of upgrades to our car that we will be able to do by what they call a reflash, which as I understand it is basically just downloading new information into the computerized electronics of the car. However, they say that with this particular feature, firstly it has not been approved for the U. S. cars, so apparently it will not be on even the cars built after March 1 for the U. S. market. Secondly, this new feature is not just a change to the computerized electronics--it is also a change to the mechanics of the car, so even for those not in the U. S., it would not be a reflash item.

I will just add here that there were owners of all classes of MB there, but the service manager and tech reps spoke of the E-Class almost with a reverence. They expressed how excited they are about this car and how E-Class owners are driving the most advanced car on the planet. The tech reps are going to classes constantly trying to learn everything about this amazing car! Each of the tech reps had just returned from a different class. I came away with a better understanding of the car and perhaps more of a sense of patience with some of the minor glitches some are experiencing. We are driving a unique car!

STKLAW

Wow, that sounds like it was a great experience. I doubt that they do that here in KC because there is only one dealership and they don't have to convince you to come to them for authorized Mercedes service.
I assume your deal was somewhat of a marketing effort to keep you at that dealership but it sounds like you got a lot of info that we here in the midwest wouldhave to beg and plead for.

ElDiabloJoe

Rickyfanmdr,

There's a bunch of us in the LA OC area here at Mbworld and we'd love to know at which dealership you had this great experience!

Thanks,

EDJ

Dlau

Is it Pensky Motorcars in West Covina? I purchased my E500 there and they offer this event once every month for new owners. I took delivery of my car last December but haven't have time to go there yet. But it does sound like a good event.

Dlau

rickyfanmdr

I got my car from Mercedes Benz of Long Beach. The owner is Mr. Shelly (sorry, I missed his first name). He also owns two BMW dealerships--Shelly BMW of Buena Park, and Shelly BMW of Tustin (I think), so some of you OC people who have had BMW's in the past may already be familiar with them. Mercedes Benz of Long Beach is a beautiful brand new facility with 50,000 sq. ft. on 6 acres. Take the Cherry Ave off-ramp from the 405 freeway (the Cherry Ave/Spring Street ramp--there are 2 different Cherry offramps). It's right by the freeway.

Mr. Shelly made the point that the sales department sells the first Mercedes and the service department is what determines if you'll come back to this dealership or not (in the VERY competitive marketplace of Los Angeles/Orange County). He wanted to get us all familiar with the people on his staff that were there to help us and to encourage us all to open the lines of dialogue. He said that we own the finest cars on the planet, and they are complex--and we'll have questions if we want to enjoy the car fully! Also that with having cutting-edge cars, problems or questions that we have may be coming up for the first time, and they need to know about whatever it is if we are to be happy. I think when the evening was over, we all had the business cards of at least a few people there that we related to particularly well.

I'm VERY happy with this dealership. My experience from day one has been excellent.

My local dealership, Simonson in Santa Monica, however, is another story. . .which I won't go into now. I'm so happy that I found Mercedes Benz of Long Beach!