2009 Hyundai Santa Fe Owner's Manual

2
DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
7
C050B01A-AATNormal Conditions:The Starting Procedure:
1. Insert key, and fasten the seat belt.
2. Depress the clutch pedal fully and place
the gearshift lever (manual transaxle)
in neutral or the selector lever (auto-
matic transaxle) in "P" (park) position.
3. After turning the ignition key to the "ON"
position, make certain all warning lights
and gauges are functioning properly
before starting the engine.
WARNING:
Be sure that the clutch is fully depressed
when starting a manual transaxle ve-
hicle. Your manual transaxle equipped
vehicle will not start unless the clutch
pedal is fully depressed. On a manual
transaxle equipped vehicle that can be
started without depressing the clutch,
there is the potential to cause damage to
the vehicle or injury to someone inside
or outside the vehicle as a result of the
forward or backward movement of the
vehicle that will occur if the clutch is not
depressed when the vehicle is started.
!
4. Turn the ignition key to the "START"
position and release it when the engine
starts.
After the engine has started, allow the
engine to run for 10 to 20 seconds prior
to placing the vehicle in gear.
The starter should not be operated for
more than 15 seconds at a time. Wait
15-30 seconds between starting at-
tempts to protect the starter from over-
heating.
OPERATING THE MANUAL
TRANSAXLEC070A01CM-AAT(If installed)This shift pattern is imprinted on the shift
knob. The transaxle is fully synchronized
in all forward gears so shifting to either a
higher or a lower gear is easily accom-
plished.
When shifting into reverse gear, pull the
mis-shift prevention tab and shift into re-
verse gear position.
OCM053003E
Mis-shift prevention tap

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
8
C070B02A-AATUsing the ClutchThe clutch should be pressed all the way
to the floor before shifting, then released
slowly. The clutch pedal should always be
fully returned to the original position. Do
not rest your foot on the clutch pedal while
driving. This can cause unnecessary wear.
Do not partially engage the clutch to hold
the car on an incline. This causes unnec-
essary wear. Use the foot brake or parking
brake to hold the car on an incline. Do not
operate the clutch pedal rapidly and re-
peatedly.
CAUTION:
When downshifting from fifth gear to
fourth gear, caution should be taken not
to inadvertently press the gear shift le-
ver sideways in such a manner that
second gear is engaged. Such a drastic
downshift may cause the engine speed
to increase to the point that the tachom-
eter will enter the red-zone. Such over-
revving of the engine may possibly cause
engine damage.
!
CAUTION:
Do not downshift more than 2 gears or
downshift the gear when the engine is
running at high speed (5,000 RPM or
higher). Such downshifting may damage
the engine.
!
NOTE:o To shift into reverse, rest the lever in
neutral for at least 3 seconds after
your car is completely stopped. Then
move the lever into the reverse posi-
tion.
o During cold weather, shifting may be
difficult until the transaxle lubricant
has warmed up. This is normal and not
harmful to the transaxle.
o If you've come to a complete stop and
it's hard to shift into 1st or R(Reverse),
put the shift lever in N(Neutral) posi-
tion and release the clutch. Press the
clutch pedal back down, and then shift
into 1st or R(Reverse) gear position.
o Do not use the shift lever as a handrest
during driving, as this can result in
premature wear of the transaxle shift
forks.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
9
C070D04O-AATGood Driving Practiceso Never take the car out of gear and coast
down a hill. This is extremely hazard-
ous. Always leave the car in gear.
o Don't "ride" the brakes. This can cause
them to overheat and malfunction. In-
stead, when you are driving down a
long hill, slow down and shift to a lower
gear. When you do this, engine braking
will help slow the car.
o Slow down before shifting to a lower
gear. This will help avoid over-revving
the engine, which can cause damage.
o Slow down when you encounter cross
winds. This gives you much better con-
trol of your car.
o Be sure the car is completely stopped
before you attempt to shift into reverse.
The transaxle can be damaged if you do
not. To shift into reverse, depress the
clutch, move the shift lever to neutral,
wait three seconds, then shift to the
reverse position.
o Exercise extreme caution when driving
on a slippery surface. Be especially
careful when braking, accelerating or
shifting gears. On a slippery surface, an
abrupt change in vehicle speed can
cause the drive wheels to lose traction
and the vehicle to go out of control. The shift points as shown above are rec-
ommended for optimum fuel economy and
performance.
C070E03A-AATRecommended Shift Points
Shift
from-toRecommended
mph(km/h)
15 (20)
25 (40)
35 (55)
45 (75) 1-2
2-3
3-4
4-5
!
WARNING:
o Always buckle-up! In a collision, an
unbelted occupant is significantly
more likely to be seriously injured or
killed than a properly belted occu-
pant.
o Avoid high speeds when cornering or
turning.
o Do not make quick steering wheel
movements, such as sharp lane
changes or fast, sharp turns.
o The risk of rollover is greatly in-
creased if you lose control of your
vehicle at highway speeds.
o Loss of control often occurs if two or
more wheels drop off the roadway
and the driver oversteers to reenter
the roadway.
o In the event your vehicle leaves the
roadway, do not steer sharply. In-
stead, slow down before pulling back
into the travel lanes.
o Never exceed posted speed limits.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
10
CAUTION:
Never shift into "R" or "P" position while
the vehicle is moving.
!
The indicator lights in the instrument clus-
ter indicate the selector lever position when
the ignition is switched "ON". During sports
mode operation, the gear currently in use
displays in the numeral indicator.
AUTOMATIC TRANSAXLE
(4 SPEED A/T, 5 SPEED A/T)C090A01NF-GAT(If Installed)The highly efficient Hyundai automatic
transaxle has four/five forward speeds and
one reverse speed. The individual speeds
are selected automatically, depending on
the position of the speed selector lever.
The selector lever has 2 gates; the main
gate and the manual gate.NOTE:For information on manual gate opera-
tion, refer to "Sports Mode".
In the main gate, the selector lever has 4
positions.
NOTE:
Depress the brake pedal when shift-
ing.
The selector lever can be shifted
freely.
The first few shifts on a new vehicle, or
if the battery has been disconnected,
may be somewhat abrupt. This is a nor-
mal condition, and the shifting sequence
will adjust after shifts are cycled a few
times by the T.C.M (Transmission Con-
trol Module).
OCM053004OCM051042L

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
11
C090B02A-AATThe function of each position is as
follows:
o P (Park):Use to hold the vehicle in place when
parked or while starting the engine. When-
ever parking the car, apply the parking
brake and shift the selector lever to the "P"
(Park) position.
CAUTION:
Never place the selector lever in the "P"
(Park) position unless the vehicle is fully
stopped. Failure to observe this caution
will cause severe damage to the
transaxle.
!
C090D02A-AATo N (Neutral):In the "N" position, the transaxle is in neu-
tral, which means that no gears are en-
gaged. The engine can be started with the
shift lever in "N" position, although this is
not recommended except if the engine
stalls while the car is moving.C090E01CM-GATo D (Drive):Use for normal driving. Bring the car to a
complete stop before shifting the selector
to "D" position. The transaxle will automati-
cally shift through a four/five gear se-
quence.C090C01A-AATo R (Reverse):Use for backing up the vehicle. Bring the
car to a complete stop before shifting the
selector lever to "R" position.
C090F02L-GATSports ModeWhether the vehicle is stationary or in
motion, sports mode is selected by push-
ing the selector lever from the "D" position
into the manual gate. To return to "D" range
operation, push the selector lever back
into the main gate.
In sports mode, moving the selector lever
backwards and forwards can make rapid
gearshifts simple. In contrast to a manual
transaxle, the sports mode allows gear-
shifts with the accelerator pedal depressed.
UP (+) : Push the lever forward once to shift
up one gear.
OCM053006

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
12
C090H01L-GATNOTE:o For smooth and safe operation, de-
press the brake pedal when shifting
from "Neutral" position or "Park"
position to a forward or reverse gear.
o The ignition key must be in the "ON"
position and the brake pedal fully de-
pressed in order to move the shift
lever from the "P" (Park) position to
any of the other positions.
o It is always possible to shift from "R",
"N", or "D" position to "P" position.
The vehicle must be fully stopped to
avoid transaxle damage. DOWN (-) : Pull the lever backwards once
to shift down one gear.
SKIP : By rapidly moving the selector for-
ward or backward twice, it is possible to
skip one gear, i.e. 1st to 3rd or 3rd to 1st .
CAUTION:
o In sports mode, the driver must ex-
ecute upward shifts in accordance
with prevailing road conditions, tak-
ing care to keep the engine speed
below the red zone.
o For engine protection, upward shifts
are made automatically when the
engine rpm reaches the red zone.
o By rapidly moving the selector lever
backwards (-) twice it is possible to
skip one gear, i.e., 3rd to 1st, 4th to 2nd
or 5th to 3rd. Since sudden engine
braking and/or rapid acceleration can
cause a loss of traction, however,
downshifts must be made carefully in
accordance with the vehicle's speed.
NOTE:o In sports mode, only the four/five for-
ward gears can be selected. To re-
verse or park the vehicle, move the
selector lever to the "R" or "P" posi-
tion as required.
o In sports mode, downward shifts are
made automatically when the vehicle
slows down. When the vehicle stops,
1st gear is automatically selected.
o To maintain the required levels of
vehicle performance and safety, the
system may not execute certain gear-
shifts when the selector lever is oper-
ated.
o Before driving away from a stop on a
slippery road, push the selector lever
forward into the +(UP) position. This
causes the transaxle to shift into 2nd
gear which is better for smooth driv-
ing away on a slippery road. Push the
selector lever to the -(DOWN) side to
shift back to 1st gear.
!

2
DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
13
C090I01CM-GAT
CAUTION:
o Shift into "R", "D" and "P" position
only when the vehicle has completely
stopped.
o Do not accelerate the engine in re-
verse or any of the forward positions
with the brakes applied.
o Always apply the footbrake when
shifting from "P" or "N", to "R" or
"D"position.
o Do not use the "P" (Park) position in
place of the parking brake. Always
set the parking brake, shift the
transaxle into "P" (Park) position and
turn off the ignition when you leave the
vehicle, even momentarily. Never
leave the vehicle unattended while
the engine is running.
o Check the automatic transaxle fluid
level regularly, and add fluid as nec-
essary.
o See the maintenance schedule for
the proper fluid recommendation.
!
C090J01NF-GATShift Lock ReleaseIf you cannot move the shift lever from the
"P" (Park) position to any other position
with the brake pedal fully depressed and
the ignition key in the "ON" position, re-
move the cap on the console and with a
thin object such as a flat-head screwdriver,
push the shift lock release button down.
OCM053005
Then, with the brake pedal depressed,
move the shift lever to the desired position,
and then the shift lock release button will
automatically return to its original position
after shifting from the "P" (Park) position.
Then, reinstall the cap.
If you need to use the shift lock release, it
could mean your car is developing a prob-
lem. Have the car checked by your Hyundai
dealer.

2
DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
14
!
WARNING:
o Always buckle-up! In a collision, an
unbelted occupant is significantly
more likely to be seriously injured or
killed than a properly belted occu-
pant.
o Avoid high speeds when cornering or
turning.
o Do not make quick steering wheel
movements, such as sharp lane
changes or fast, sharp turns.
o The risk of rollover is greatly in-
creased if you lose control of your
vehicle at highway speeds.
o Loss of control often occurs if two or
more wheels drop off the roadway
and the driver oversteers to reenter
the roadway.
o In the event your vehicle leaves the
roadway, do not steer sharply. In-
stead, slow down before pulling back
into the travel lanes.
o Never exceed posted speed limits. o Exercise extreme caution when driving
on a slippery surface. Be especially
careful when braking, accelerating or
shifting gears. On a slippery surface, an
abrupt change in vehicle speed can
cause the drive wheels to lose traction
and the vehicle to go out of control.
o Optimum vehicle performance and
economy is obtained by smoothly de-
pressing and releasing the accelerator
pedal.
C090N01CM-AATGood Driving Practiceso Never move the gear selector lever
from "P" or "N" to any other position with
the accelerator pedal depressed.
o Never move the gear selector lever into
"P" when the vehicle is in motion.
o Be sure the car is completely stopped
before you attempt to shift into "R" or "D".
o Never take the car out of gear and coast
down a hill. This may be extremely
hazardous. Always leave the car in gear
when moving.
o Do not "ride" the brakes. This can cause
them to overheat and malfunction. In-
stead, when you are driving down a
long hill, slow down and shift to a lower
gear. When you do this, engine braking
will help slow the car.
o Slow down before shifting to a lower
gear. Otherwise, the lower gear may not
be engaged.
o Always use the parking brake. Do not
depend on placing the transaxle in "P"
to keep the car from moving.