2008 HONDA FIT sport mode

These indicators on the instrument
panel show which position the shif t
lever is in.
The ‘‘D’’ indicator comes on f or a
f ew seconds when you turn the
ignition switch to the ON (II)
position. If it f lashes while driving (in
any shif t position), it indicates a
possible problem in the transmission.If the malf unction indicator lamp
comes on along with the ‘‘D’’
indicator, there is a problem with the
automatic transmission control
system. Avoid rapid acceleration, and
have the transmission checked by
your dealer as soon as possible.
To shif t f rom Park to any position,
press firmly on the brake pedal and
pressthereleasebuttononthefront
of the shif t lever, then pull the lever.
YoucannotshiftoutofParkwhen
the ignition switch is in the LOCK
(0) or the ACCESSORY (I) position.
CONT INUED
Shif t L ever Position Indicators Shif ting
Automatic Transmission
Driving
157
SHIFT LEVER
RELEASE BUTTON
Sport model All models except Sport Sport model is shown
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

µThis 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 .
To avoid transmission damage, come
to a complete stop bef ore shif ting
into Park. You must also press the
release button to shift into Park. The
shif t lever must be in Park bef ore
you can remove the key f rom the
ignition switch. 161To shift from:
PtoR
RtoP
NtoR DtoS
StoD
DtoN
NtoD RtoN Do this:
Press the brake pedal, and
press the shift lever release
button.
Press the shift lever release
button.
Move the shift lever.
Do this:
Press the brake pedal, and
press the shift lever release
button.
Press the shift lever release
button.
Move the shift lever.
To shift from:
PtoR
RtoP
NtoR
Dto2 2to1
1to2
2toD
DtoD DtoN
DtoD NtoDRtoN
3
3
3
3
All models except Sport Sport modelPark (P)
Shif t L ock Release
Automatic Transmission
158
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

µ
µ µ
µ µ
CONT INUED
Press the brake
pedal and press the release button
on the f ront of the shif t lever to shif t
f rom 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. Shif t to the Park
position if you need to leave your
vehicle for any reason. Press on the
brake pedal when you are moving
the shift lever from neutral to
another gear. Use this position f or
your normal driving. The
transmission automatically selects a
suitable gear (1 through 5) f or your
speed and acceleration. You may
notice the transmission shif ting up at
higher engine speeds when the
engine is cold. This helps the engine
warm up f aster.
This position is similar
to D, except only the first three
gears are selected. Use D to provide
engine braking when going down a
steep hill. D can also keep the
transmission f rom cycling between
third and f ourth gears in stop-and-go
driving. To shif t to second,
pressthereleasebuttononthefront
of the shif t lever. This position locks
the transmission in second gear. It
does not downshif t to f irst gear
when you come to a stop.
Use second gear:
For more power when climbing.
To help reduce wheel spin.
For starting out on a slippery
surf ace or in deep snow.
To increase engine braking when
going down steep hills.
3
3
All models except Sport All models except Sport
Automatic Transmission
Reverse (R)
Neutral (N)
Drive (D)
Drive (D )Second (2)
3Driving
159
\f—\f—y\f\f
y
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

µ
µ To shift into the S
position, press the release button on
the front of the shift lever, and move
the lever to S. This position is similar
to D, except only gears f rom f irst to
f ourth are selected. The S position
keeps the transmission f rom cycling
between fourth and fifth gears in
stop-and-go driving.
To shif t f rom second to
first, press the release button on the
f ront of the shif t lever. This position
locks the transmission in f irst gear.
By upshif ting and downshif ting
through 1, 2, D , and D, you can
operate the transmission much like a
manual transmission without a
clutch pedal. If you exceed the maximum speed
f or the gear you are in, the engine
speed will enter into the tachometer’s
red zone. If this occurs, you may f eel
the engine cut in and out. This is
caused by a limiter in the engine’s
computer controls. The engine will
run normally when you reduce the
rpm below the red zone.
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 . 162
3
All models except Sport On Sport model
S position (S)
First (1) Engine Speed L imiter
Automatic Transmission
160
\f—\f—y\f\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

´
µ ´
µ
When you are driving in D position,
you can shif t the transmission up or
down manually with the paddle
shif ters.
When you pull either paddle shif ter,
the gear position indicator shows you
the selected gear number.
When the transmission returns to
drive mode (D), the displayed gear
number goes out.
Each time you pull the (right), the
transmission shif ts to a higher gear.
Pull the (lef t) to downshif t. You
will see the selected gear number on
the instrument panel.
To shif t up or down, use the
(right) or (lef t) paddle shif ter on
each side of the steering wheel.
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters (Sport only)
Using the Paddle Shif ters in D
position (D-Paddle Shif t Mode)
162
GEAR POSITION INDICATOR
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

The transmission downshif ts to f irst
gear and returns to drive mode (D)
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 drive mode
(D).
Each time you pull either paddle
shifter, the transmission shifts one
gear up or down. If you want to shif t
up or down more than two gears, pull
the paddle shif ter twice, pause, and
then pull it again.
The transmission remains in the
selected gear if you do not accelerate.
You cannot downshif t with the
paddle shif ter bef ore the engine
speed reaches the upper limit of the
lower gear. If you try to do this, the
gear position indicator will f lash the
numberof thelowergearseveral
times, then return to a higher gear
position.
Also, you cannot upshif t with the
paddle shif ter bef ore the engine
speed reaches the lower limit of the
higher gear.
Downshifting with the paddle shifter
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. Driving in the
higher gear helps f uel economy.
The transmission control system
monitors the accelerator pedal use
and your driving conditions. When
you press the accelerator pedal as in
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 drive mode
(D).
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters (Sport only)
Driving
163
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

´µ
When you move the shif t lever f rom
‘‘D’’ to ‘‘S’’ position and pull either
paddle shif ter, the gear position
indicator displays on ‘‘M’’ along with
the selected gear number.
To upshif t, pull the (right) paddle
shif ter. To downshif t, pull the
(lef t) paddle shif ter. When you accelerate f rom a stop,
the transmission starts in f irst gear,
and you must manually upshif t
between f irst and f if th gears. Make
sure you upshif t bef ore the engine
speed reaches the tachometer’s red
zone.
The transmission remains in the
selectedgear(5,4,3,2,or1).There
is no automatic downshif t when you
push the accelerator pedal to the
f loor.
When you are driving in 4th or 5th
gear, the transmission downshifts to
the lower gear under the f ollowing
conditions:
The vehicle slows down to a
certain speed.
You press the brake pedal.
With the shif t lever in S position, you
can select the sequential shif t mode
to shif t gears; much like a manual
transmission using the paddle
shif ters, but without a clutch pedal.
To enter the sequential shif t mode,
pressthereleasebuttononthefront
of the shift lever, move the lever to
the S position, then pull either paddle
shif ter. To return to drive mode (D),
move the shif t lever to the D position.
While you are driving in the
sequential shif t mode, the
transmission will not automatically
return to drive mode (D).
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters (Sport only)
Using the Paddle Shif t in S
position (Sequential Shif t Mode)
164
‘‘M’’ INDICATOR
GEAR POSITION INDICATOR
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
y
2008 Fit

à
à
à
à
à
à
à´
Downshif ting gives you more power
when climbing, and provides engine
braking when going down a steep hill.
The transmission also shif ts
automatically as the vehicle comes to
a complete stop. It downshif ts to f irst
gear when the vehicle speed reaches
6mph(10km/h)orless.
You cannot downshif t with the
paddle shif ter bef ore the engine
speed reaches the upper limit of the
lower gear. If you try to do this, the
gear indicator will f lash the number
of the lower gear several times, then
the indicator will display the higher
gear number.
If the vehicle speed decreases below
the redline of the selected lower gear
while the indicator is f lashing, the
transmission downshif ts, and the
indicator displays the selected gear. To shift
from
12
23
34
45 Speed range
over 0 mph (0 km/h)
over 6 mph (10 km/h)
over 21 mph (34 km/h)
over 30 mph (48 km/h)
Here are the speed ranges f or
upshif ting and downshif ting.
To shift from
21
32
43 Speed range
under 25 mph (40 km/h)
under 47 mph (75 km/h)
under 75 mph (121 km/h) When you are in sequential shif t
mode, and the vehicle is stopped,
pull the (right) paddle shifter to
shif t to second gear. You will see ‘‘M
2’’ in the display. Starting in second
gear helps to reduce wheelspin in
deep snow or on a slippery surf ace.
Driving with the Paddle Shif ters (Sport only)
St art ing in Second Gear
Driving
165
\f—\f—y\fy
(
\fy\f
\fy
2008 Fit