2003 HONDA INSIGHT transmission

To shif t f rom Park to any position,
press the brake pedal, the release
button on the f ront of the shif t lever,
then pull the lever. You cannot shif t
out of Park when the ignition switch
is in the LOCK (0) or the
ACCESSORY (I) position.
To shift from:PtoR
RtoP
NtoR DtoS
StoD
DtoN
NtoD RtoN Do this:
Press the brake pedal and
press the release button.
Press the release button.
Move the lever.
To shift from:
PtoR
RtoP
NtoR DtoS StoL
LtoS
StoD
DtoN
NtoD RtoN Do this:
Press the brake pedal and
press the release button.
Press the release button.
Move the lever.EX models
Insight and LX modelsShif ting
Automatic Transmission (CVT)
272

µ
µ
µ
µ
µ
CONT INUED
Use this position f or
your normal driving. The
transmission automatically adjusts to
keep the engine at the best speed f or
driving conditions. To help the
engine warm up f aster, the
transmission will select ratios that
allow the engine to run at higher
speedswhenitiscold.
Press the brake
pedal and the release button on the
frontoftheshiftlevertoshiftfrom
Park to reverse. To shif t f rom
reverse to neutral, come to a
completestop,andthenshift.Press
the release button bef ore shif ting
into reverse f rom neutral.
Use Neutral if you
need to restart a stalled engine or if
it is necessary to stop brief ly with
the engine idling. Always shif t to the
Park position if you need to leave the
vehicle for any reason. Press on the
brake pedal when you are moving
the shift lever from Neutral to
another position.
This position mechani-
cally locks the transmission. Use
Park whenever you are turning of f or
starting the engine. To shif t out of
Park, you must press on the brake
pedal and have your f oot of f the
accelerator pedal. Press the release
buttononthefrontof theshiftlever
to move it.
If you have done all of the above and
still cannot move the lever out of
Park, see on
page .
You must also press the release
button to shift into Park. To avoid
transmission damage, come to a
complete stop bef ore shif ting into
Park. The shif t lever must be in Park
bef ore you can remove the key f rom
the ignition switch. To shift into the S
position, press the release button on
the front of the shift lever, and move
the lever to S. Selecting Second
shif ts the transmission into a lower
range of ratios for better
acceleration and increased engine
braking. Use Second when you are
going down a steep hill.
275
Insight and LX models
Automatic Transmission (CVT)
Drive (D)
Reverse (R)
Neutral (N)
Park (P)
Shif t L ock Release Second (S)
Driving
273

µ
µ When the vehicle reaches the
maximum speed in any shif t position,
you may f eel the engine cut in and
out. This is caused by a limiter (112
mph, 180 km/h) in the engine’s
computer controls. The engine will
run normally when you reduce the
speed to below the maximum.
To shift into the S
position, press the release button on
the front of the shift lever, and move
the lever to S. The S position is
similar to D, except the range of
ratios are different for better
acceleration and increased engine
braking.
With the shift lever in D or S, you
canalsousethepaddleshiftersto
shif t the transmission up or down.
With the paddle shifters, you can
operate the transmission much like a
manual transmission without a
clutch pedal. For more inf ormation
on driving with the paddle shif ters,
see page .
To shif t to Low, press
the release button on the front of the
shif t lever. Use Low to make better
use of engine power when climbing,
and f or maximum engine braking
when going down steep hills.
ForfasteraccelerationwheninD,S,
or L, the transmission will
automatically ‘‘kick down’’ to a lower
range of ratios by pushing the
accelerator pedal to the floor.
276
EX models
Insight and LX models
Automatic Transmission (CVT)
Second (S)
Low (L) Speed L imiter
274

If you need to use the shif t lock
release, it means your vehicle is
developing a problem. Have it
checked by your dealer.
Push down on the key while you
pressthereleasebuttononthe
shif t lever and move the shif t lever
out of Park to neutral. Insert the key in the shift lock
release slot.
This allows you to move the shif t
lever out of Park if the normal
method of pushing on the brake
pedal and pressing the release
button does not work.
Putaclothonthenotchof the
shif t lock release slot cover to
prevent scratches. Using a small
f lat-tip screwdriver or a metal
f ingernail f ile, caref ully pry on the
notch of the cover to remove it. Remove the key from the ignition
switch. Set the parking brake. Remove the key from the shift
lock release slot, then reinstall the
cover. Make sure the notch on the
cover is on the lef t side. Insert the
key into the ignition switch, press
the brake pedal, and restart the
engine.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.6.
Shif t L ock Release
Automatic Transmission (CVT)
Driving
275
SHIFT LOCK RELEASE SLOT RELEASE BUTTON

´
µ
´ µ
To shif t up or down, use the
(right) or (lef t) paddle shif ter on
either side of the steering wheel.
Pull the (right) paddle shifter to
upshift. Pull (left) to downshift. When you pull either paddle shif ter,
the shif t indicator shows you the
selected speed number.
WhenyouaredrivingintheD
position, pulling either paddle shif ter
switches f rom the D-normal shif t
mode to the D-paddle shif t mode.
You can shif t the transmission up or
down through seven-stages manually
with the paddle shifters.
When the transmission returns to
ordinary automatic transmission
(CVT), the displayed shif t indicator
disappears.
Downshif ting gives you more power
when climbing, and provides engine
braking when going down a steep hill.
On EX models
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters
Using the Paddle Shif ters in the
D position (D-Paddle Shif t Mode)
276
SHIFT INDICATOR

µ´
CONT INUED
The transmission control system
monitors the accelerator pedal use
and your driving conditions. When
you press the accelerator pedal as in
the normal driving, the system
judges that you are driving at a
constant cruising speed without
using the paddle shif ters. Under
these conditions, D-paddle shif t
mode is canceled, and the
transmission automatically returns to
ordinary automatic transmission
(CVT).
Downshifting with the (left)
paddle shif ter allows you to increase
the engine braking when going down
steep or long hills, and provides
more power when climbing uphills.
You can upshif t the transmission
manually to reduce the rpm.
To cancel the D-paddle shif t mode
manually, pull and hold the side
paddle shif ter until the shif t indicator
goes out.
The transmission remains in the
selected speed if you do not
accelerate.
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters
Driving
277

Each time you pull either paddle
shif ter, the transmission shif ts one
speed up or down. If you want to
shif t up or down more than two
speeds, pull the paddle shif ter twice,
pause, and then pull it again.The automatic transmission (CVT)
will not allow you to shif t if :
The transmission downshif ts to f irst
speed and returns to ordinary
automatic transmission (CVT) when
the vehicle comes to a complete stop
and the vehicle speed is about 6 mph
(10 km/h).
If there is a problem in the
transmission while you are driving
with the paddle shifters, the D
indicator f lashes, the D-paddle shif t
mode is canceled, and the
transmission returns to ordinary
automatic transmission (CVT).
You upshif t bef ore the engine
speed reaches the lowest
threshold of the higher speed. If you try to do this, the shift
indicator will f lash the number of
the lower speed several times,
then return to a higher speed. You downshif t bef ore the engine
speed reaches the highest
threshold of the lower speed.
You pull both paddle shif ters at
thesametime.
You pull one of the two paddle
shifters with another paddle
shif ter being pulled.
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters
278

´µ µ
With the shif t lever in the S position,
you can select the 7-speed manual
shif t mode to shif t speeds; much like
a manual transmission using the
paddle shif ters, but without a clutch
pedal.
When you move the shif t lever f rom
the ‘‘D’’ to the ‘‘S’’ position and pull
either paddle shif ter, the shif t
indicator displays ‘‘M’’ along with the
selected speed number.
To upshif t, pull the (right) paddle
shif ter. To downshif t, pull the
(lef t) paddle shif ter.If you keep depressing the
accelerator pedal without pulling the
paddle shif ter, the speed will be
automatically shifted up just before
the tachometer’s red zone.
The transmission also shif ts
automatically as the vehicle comes to
a complete stop. It downshif ts to f irst
speed when the vehicle speed
reaches 6 mph (10 km/h) or less.
Downshifting with the (left)
paddle shif ter allows you to increase
the engine braking when going down
steep or long hills, and provides
more power when climbing uphills.
You can upshif t the transmission
manually to reduce the rpm.
To enter the 7-speed manual shif t
mode, press the release button on
the front of the shift lever, move the
lever to the S position, then pull
either paddle shif ter. To cancel the
7-speed manual shif t mode and
return to the ordinary automatic
transmission (CVT), move the shif t
lever f rom the S position. When
moving the shif t lever, be caref ul not
to operate incorrectly. While you are
driving in the 7-speed manual shif t
mode, the transmission will not
automatically return to the ordinary
automatic transmission (CVT).
CONT INUED
On EX models
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters
Using the Paddle Shif ters in the S
position (7-Speed Manual Shif t
Mode)
Driving
279
SHIFT INDICATOR ‘‘M’’ INDICATOR