
67Instruments and Controls
as indicated by the “
U/S” (upshift)
light on the instrument panel.
If vehicle speed drops below
20 mph (30 km/h), or if the
engine is not running smoothly,
you should downshift to the next
lower gear. You may need to
downshift two or more gears to
keep the engine running smoothly
or for satisfactory performance.
This indicator comes on for a few
seconds when you turn the
ignition switch to the “ON”
position.4-Wheel Drive
(4WD) Indicator
4WD models only
This indicator lights when the
4-Wheel Drive system is engaged.
With the 4WD-2WD switch in the
“
OFF” or 2WD position, this light
will come on to provide a “bulb
check” when the key is turned to
the “
ON” position, but should go
out after the engine is started.
If the 4WD-2WD switch is in the
“
ON” or 4WD position, this light
will come on when the key is
turned to the “
ON” position and
remain on after the engine is
started.
Anti-Lock Indicator
This light will come on and go out
when the ignition switch is turned
to the “
ON” position. (If the light
does not come on, see your Honda
dealer to have the system
repaired.)
If the light remains on after
engine start-up or comes on
during operation of the vehicle,
stop as soon as possible and turn
the key off. Then start the engine
to reset the system. If the light
stays on, or it comes on again
while you’re driving, the anti-lock
brake system should be checked
at your Honda dealer.
Until you get it fixed, you ’ll have
normal brakes, but you won ’t
have anti-lock.

73Instruments and Controls
Headlights-On Reminder
You will hear a continuous tone
when the key is out of the ignition
switch and the driver
’s door is
opened with the headlight switch
in the “
ON” position. This will
remind you to turn the headlights
off. Never leave the headlights on
when the engine is not running.
They can rapidly discharge the
battery.
Fog Lights
EX model only
When fog or heavy mist reduces
your forward vision, push this
switch to turn the fog lights on.
The indicator light in the switch
turns on. Push the switch again to
turn off the fog lights.
The fog lights operate only when
the headlight low beams are in
use.
Illumination Control
The instrument panel lights turn
on when the light switch is on.
Brightness of the instrument panel
lights is controlled by turning the
illumination control knob
clockwise for brighter or
counterclockwise for dimmer.
DIMMER
BRIGHTER

77Instruments and Controls
and the forward driving ranges.
The shift lever can be shifted
freely into any position indicated
by the arrow “
”. The lever
cannot be shifted into any position
indicated by the arrow “
”
without pushing the button
located on the end of the shift
lever.
PARK
REV
NEUT
DRIVE
3RD
2ND
1ST
In this 4-speed automatic
transmission, the following three
modes can be selected by pressing
the “
POWER” or “WINTER”
switch on the floor console, with
the key switch in the “
ON”
position:
•NORMAL mode
•POWER mode
•WINTER mode
P (Park)
— Used to lock the
transmission when the vehicle is
parked or while starting the
engine. Never move the shift lever
to Park until your vehicle is fully
stopped. Use this position
together with the parking brake.
The shift lever can be moved from
PARK position if the regular brake
is applied.
Refer to “Starting” in this section. R (Reverse)
— Used for backing
the vehicle. Bring your vehicle to
a complete stop before shifting to
Reverse.
N (Neutral) — The out-of-gear
position. You may restart a stalled
engine while the vehicle is still
moving with the selector in
Neutral. Refer to “Starting” in this
section. This position is also used
when towing the vehicle. See “In
Case of Emergency ” for towing
information.
D (Drive) (First to Fourth
Gear)
— This position is for all
normal forward driving. For
normal driving, we recommend
that you put the shift lever in the
“
D” range. This will reduce
vehicle noise and improve fuel
economy.

78Instruments and Controls
3 (Third) — When operating your
vehicle on slippery roads, on a
long descending slope, or on a
road with many sharp curves, you
will want to use engine braking.
At this time, put the shift lever
into this range.
2 (Second) — You may choose this
position when traveling down a
moderate grade where you want to
slow down a little without using
the brake itself. Change back to
the “
D” position to return to
normal driving. With the shift
lever in “2, ” the vehicle will start
in first gear and automatically shift
to second gear.
L (First) — This position may be
selected for maximum braking
down severe grades. Return the
selector lever to the “
D” position
to resume normal driving. It is
possible to move the lever into first gear at any speed. However,
the transmission will not actually
shift to first gear until vehicle
speed is below 35 mph (Power
Mode) or 25 mph (Normal Mode).
When starting out in “L,” the
transmission will not upshift.
Starting — Start the engine with
the lever in the “P” or “N”
position. It will not start in any
other position. If it does, have
your vehicle checked by your
Honda dealer.
Always apply the foot brake
before shifting into any driving
position. This prevents the vehicle
from creeping.
Do not press the accelerator pedal
while shifting from “
P” or “N” to
any driving position.
Shift Lock — As a safety measure
for vehicles with an automatic
transmission, you cannot shift
from “
P” (Park) position into any
other position unless the brake
pedal is depressed when the key
switch is in the “
ON” position or
the engine is running.
The shift lever may not move if
the pushbutton on the shift lever is
pressed before the brake pedal is
depressed. In this case, release
the pushbutton, press the brake
pedal and try again.
If the shift lever won’ t move from
the “
P” position even when these
instructions are followed, perform
the following steps:

79Instruments and Controls
1. Check that the parking brake
is fully applied.
2. Turn the key switch to “
ACC”
position.
3. Move the shift lever from “P”
to “
N” position, depress the
brake pedal, and start the
engine again.
4. Operate the shift lever.
Have the transmission checked by
your Honda dealer as soon as
possible.
Driving Tips
Before going down a steep or long
grade, reduce speed and shift the
transmission into a lower gear or
range to control the vehicle ’s
speed. This will provide engine
braking to help slow the vehicle.
Try not to hold the brake pedal
down too long or too often. This
could cause the brakes to get hot
and not work properly.
Downshifting to a lower gear is
especially important when towing
a trailer in mountainous terrain.
Do not hold the vehicle on a hill
by pressing on the accelerator. Do
not press on the accelerator pedal
and brake pedal at the same time.
Either of these actions can
overheat the automatic
transmission and cause damage. Always keep your foot off the
accelerator pedal when shifting
from “P” or “N” to another gear.
Do not shift to “P” (Park) when
the vehicle is moving; you could
damage the automatic
transmission. Always come to a
complete stop.
Be careful that you do not exceed
the following maximum allowable
speeds when accelerating. mph (km/h)
RangeAutomatic TransmissionRange“L”“2”“3”
“2H”35 (56)65
(105)–
“4H”35 (56)65
(105)65
(105)
“4L”15 (24)30 (48)50 (81)

82Instruments and Controls
When more powerful acceleration
is needed, select the “
POWER”
driving program. The “
POWER
DRIVE
” indicator light comes on
when the driving pattern selector
is set in the “
POWER” position.
Push the button again to turn it
off.
Under inclement weather
conditions that cause slippery
roads, activating the “
WINTER”mode will improve driving
operation. The
“
WINTER” mode
may be activated while driving at
speeds of 6 mph (10 km/h) or less.
With the transmission lever in the
“P, ” “R,” “N,” or “
D” position,
push the “
WINTER” button on the
console.
The “
WINTER DRIVE” indicator
light will illuminate whenever the
“
WINTER” mode system is
activated, and the vehicle will
start off in third gear.
The “
WINTER” mode is
deactivated when the vehicle
reaches approximately 19 mph
(30 km/h), when the transmission
is shifted into “3,” “2,” or “L,” by
pushing the “
WINTER” button
again, or by turning the ignition
key to the “
OFF” position. Operation of the
“
WINTER”
mode should be limited to
slippery road conditions only.
Operation of the “
WINTER”
mode during normal driving
conditions will cause decreased
performance and sluggish
acceleration.

86Instruments and Controls
Operation
To set the parking brake, fully
pull up on the handle between the
seats. To release the parking
brake, pull upward slightly. Then
depress the pushbutton and push
down all the way.
RELEASE
To help remind you, the brake
system warning light is designed
to come on if the parking brakecontrol is not fully released when
the key is on.
Always pull the parking brake
lever as far up as possible to make
sure it sets fully. If the parking
brake is not fully set, the vehicle
could roll if it is parked on an
incline.
Parking Tips
Never drive away with the
parking brake still set. This may
overheat the rear brakes, reducing
their effectiveness and causing
excessive wear or damage.
Always apply the parking brake
whenever you leave the vehicle,
whether it is equipped with a
manual or automatic transmission.
If your vehicle is equipped with
an automatic transmission, you
should set the parking brake
whenever you leave the driver
’s
seat. If the vehicle is parked on a
grade and the shift lever is placed
in “P” (Park) position before the
parking brake is set, the weight
of the vehicle may exert so much
force on the parking mechanism
in the transmission that you may
have difficulty moving the shift
lever out of “P” (Park).
To prevent this, apply the parking
brake
BEFORE you move the
shift lever to “P” (Park) position.
When preparing to drive away,
move the shift lever out of the
“P” (Park) position
BEFORE you
release the parking brake. It is
good driving practice to set the
Parking Brake

99Interior Features
Keys and Ignition
100
. . . . . . . . .
Steering Column Lock/
Ignition Switch101 . . . . . . .
LOCK101
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
ACC101
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
ON101
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
START101
. . . . . . . . . . . . .
Key Removal102 . . . . . . . . . .
Key Reminder102 . . . . . . . . .
Guard Against Theft102 . . . .
Locks103 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Power Door Locks104 . . . . . .
Child-Safe Door Locks105 . .
Mirrors105 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interior Mirror105 . . . . . . . . .
Power Mirrors105 . . . . . . . . .
Vanity Mirrors106 . . . . . . . . . Power Windows107
. . . . . . . . . .
Checking the Circuit
Breaker108 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tailgate 108 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Operation108 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Hood Release109 . . . . . . . . . . . .
Interior Lights110 . . . . . . . . . . .
Luggage Light110 . . . . . . . . .
Dome Light111 . . . . . . . . . . .
Courtesy Lights112 . . . . . . . .
Map Lights112 . . . . . . . . . . . .
Moonroof112 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conveniences113
. . . . . . . . . . . .
Beverage Holder 113 . . . . . . .
Sun Visor114 . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Glove Box114 . . . . . . . . . . . .
Assist Grip115 . . . . . . . . . . . .
Horn Button115 . . . . . . . . . . .
Tilt Steering Wheel 115 . . . . .
Cigarette Lighter116 . . . . . . .
Ashtrays116 . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Accessory Power Outlets117 .
Interior Features