2-16 FEATURES AND CONTROLS
78J00-03E
Downshifting the transaxle in slippery road
conditions could result in skidding, refer to
“Loss of Control” in “Your Driving, the
Road, and Your Vehicle” in the “Driving
Your Vehicle” section.
MANUAL SHIFT MODE (M):
This position, available on the models with
the Manual Shift Mode (MSM), allows you
to change gears similar to a manual tran-
saxle. If your vehicle has this feature, see
“Manual Shift Mode (MSM)”.
Manual Shift Mode (MSM)
(Automatic Transaxle)
1722685
To use this feature, do the following:
1) Move the shift lever from DRIVE (D) to
the left into the MANUAL SHIFT MODE
(M).
While driving in manual mode, the tran-
saxle will remain in the driver selected
gear.
When coming to a stop in the manual
position, the vehicle will automatically
shift into FIRST (1) gear.
– A shift is required to protect the engine
or transmission or
– The vehicle slows almost to a stop,
and then automatic downshift will
occur.
2) Press the shift lever forward to upshift
or rearward to downshift.A box with the current gear will display in
the middle of the telltale line below the
gear selection.
While using the Manual Shift Mode (MSM)
feature the vehicle will have firmer shifting
and increased performance. You can use
this for sport driving or when climbing hills
to stay in gear longer or to downshift for
more power or engine braking.
The transaxle will only allow you to shift
into gears appropriate for the vehicle
speed and engine revolutions per minute
(RPM):
The transaxle will not downshift to the
next lower gear if the engine RPM is too
high.
The transaxle will not automatically shift
to the next higher gear if the engine
RPM is too high.
When coming to a stop in the manual
mode, the vehicle will automatically
downshift to the proper gear based on
speed. Upon acceleration you will need
to manually upshift to the desired gear.
CAUTION
Spinning the tires or holding the
vehicle in one place on a hill using
only the accelerator pedal may dam-
age the transaxle. If you are stuck, do
not spin the tires. When stopping on
a hill, use the brakes to hold the vehi-
cle in place.
