Moving up a Steep grade from a
Standing Start
To move up a steep grade from a
standing start, depress the brake
pedal, shift the shift lever to D (Drive).
Select the appropriate gear depend-
ing on load weight and steepness of
the grade, and release the parking
brake. Depress the accelerator grad-
ually while releasing the service
brakes.
When accelerating from a stop on
a steep hill, the vehicle may have a
tendency to roll backwards.
Shifting the shift lever into 2
(Second Gear) while in Sport mode
will help prevent the vehicle from
rolling backwards.Shift Lock System
For your safety, the Automatic
Transmission has a shift lock system
which prevents shifting the transmis-
sion out of P (Park) unless the brake
pedal is depressed.
To shift the transmission out of P
(Park):
1. Depress and hold the brake pedal.
2. Start the engine or turn the ignition
to the ON position.
3. Depress the lock release button
and move the shift lever.
When the ignition switch is in the
ACC or LOCK position, the transmis-
sion cannot be shifted from P (Park).
If the brake pedal is repeatedly
depressed and released with the shift
lever in the P (Park) position, a chat-
tering noise near the shift lever may
be heard. This is a normal condition.
Also, the ignition key cannot be
removed unless the shift lever is in
the P (Park) position. If the ignition
switch is in any other position, the key
cannot be removed.
DRIVING YOUR VEHICLE
4-19
(Continued)
In sports mode, when the engine
rpm approaches the red zone
shift points are varied to upshift
automatically.
To maintain the required levels of
vehicle performance and safety,
the system may not execute cer-
tain gearshifts when the shift
lever is operated.
When driving on a slippery road,
push the shift lever forward into
the +(up) position. This causes
the transmission to shift into the
2nd gear which is better for
smooth driving on a slippery
road. Push the shift lever to the -
(down) side to shift back to the
1st gear.
While the vehicle is driving in 5th
gear with the shift lever in the
"D" position, selecting the shift
lever to sports mode position
causes the transmission to down-
shift to 4th gear automatically to
secure driving performance. At
the time of shifting you can have a
shift feeling.
BL-ENG (CAN)-4.qxd 7/28/05 5:55 PM Page 19
To release the parking brake, pull the
handle up slightly and push the
release button. Then lower the handle
to the released position while holding
the button in.Check the brake warning light each
time you start the engine. This warn-
ing will be illuminated when the
engine is running and the parking
brake is set.
Before driving, be sure the parking
brake is fully released and the brake
warning light is off.
DRIVING YOUR VEHICLE
4-33
S2BLC302C
WARNING
To prevent unintentional move-
ment when stopped and leaving
the vehicle, do not use the
gearshift lever in place of the
parking brake. Set the parking
brake AND make sure the
gearshift lever is securely posi-
tioned in 1st (First) gear or R
(Reverse) for manual transmis-
sion equipped vehicles and in P
(Park) for automatic transmis-
sion equipped vehicles.
BL-ENG (CAN)-4.qxd 7/28/05 5:55 PM Page 33
Electric Azimuth Compass
It displays azimuth according to the
vehicle’s driving direction.
The indication is displayed only when
the vehicle is in motion.Correcting Azimuth Indicator
Position correction should be per-
formed if the displayed direction of
the vehicle differs from the actual
direction of the vehicle, or if the bat-
tery has been disconnected.1. Start the vehicle and access the
compass function indicated by
DRT on the display. Press the
MODE/SET button until the DRT
display begins to blink on and off.
2. Slowly (about 3 mph) and carefully
drive the vehicle in a complete 360
degree circle, within 128 seconds
(about two minutes).
3. After completing the circle drive,
the DRT display will stop blinking
and the error correction will be
complete.
DRIVING YOUR VEHICLE
4-53
DRT ALTI BARO
E
hpa
m
ft
PUSHMODE
/SETUPDOWN
DRT
S2BLA431
✽ ✽
NOTICEIf new vehicle is first driven or if the
battery has been disconnected, cor-
rect the azimuth indicator before
driving.
BL-ENG (CAN)-4.qxd 7/28/05 5:55 PM Page 53
