2009 HYUNDAI TUCSON Owners Manual

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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WARNING: ENGINE EXHAUST CAN BE DANGEROUS!
C010A02JM-AATEngine exhaust fumes can be extremely dangerous. If, at any time, you smell exhaust fumes inside the vehicle, open the
windows immediately.
o Do not inhale exhaust fumes.
Exhaust fumes contain carbon monoxide, a colorless, odorless gas that can cause unconsciousness and death by
asphyxiation.
o Be sure the exhaust system does not leak.
The exhaust system should be checked whenever the vehicle is raised to change the oil or for any other purpose. If you
hear a change in the sound of the exhaust or if you drive over something that strikes the underneath side of the car, have
the exhaust system checked as soon as possible by your Hyundai dealer.
o Do not run the engine in an enclosed area.
Letting the engine idle in your garage, even with the garage door open, is a hazardous practice. Never run the engine
in your garage any longer than it takes to start the engine and back the car out.
o Avoid idling the engine for prolonged periods with people inside the car.
If it is necessary to idle the engine for a prolonged period with people inside the car, be sure to do so only in an open area
with the air intake set at "Fresh" and fan operating at one of the higher speeds so fresh air is drawn into the interior.
If you must drive with the tail gate open because you are carrying objects that make this necessary:
1. Close all windows.
2. Open side vents.
3. Set the air intake control at "Fresh", the air flow control at "Floor" or "Face" and the fan at one of the higher speeds.
To assure proper operation of the ventilation system, be sure the ventilation air intakes located just in front of the windshield
are kept clear of snow, ice, leaves or other obstructions.
!!
PROPOSITION 65 WARNING:
Engine exhaust and a wide variety of automobile components and parts, including components found in the interior
furnishings in a vehicle, contain or emit chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects
and reproductive harm. In addition, certain fluids contained in vehicles and certain products of component wear contain
or emit chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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WARNING:
o The 2WD Tucson is not designed for
off-road use. The 4WD Tucson is de-
signed primarily for use on paved
roads. However, occasional use in
off-highway conditions such as es-
tablished unpaved roads and non-
challenging off-road trails is allowed.
The 4WD Tucson is not designed for
blazing new trails, challenging off-road
conditions, or unpaved hill climbing.
Exceeding the conditions that were
intended for the vehicle's primary
design may result in injury or death.
o Utility vehicles have a significantly
higher rollover rate than other types
of vehicles.o Utility vehicle have higher ground
clearance and a narrower track to
make them capable of performing in
a wide variety of off-road applications.
Specific design characteristics give
them a higher center of gravitiy than
ordinary cars. An advantage of the
higher ground clearance is a better
view of the road allowing you to antici-
pate problem. They are not designed
for cornering at the same speeds as
conventional 2-wheel drive vehicles
any more than low-slung sports cars
are designed to perform satisfacto-
rily under off-road conditions. If at all
possible, avoid sharp turns or abrupt
maneuvers. As with other vehicles of
this type, failure to operate this ve-
hicle correctly may result in loss of
control or vehicle rollover.
o In a rollover crash, an unbelted per-
son is significantly more likely to die
than a person wearing a seat belt.
WARNING:
RISK OF ROLLOVER
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WARNING:
Your vehicle is equipped with tires de-
signed to provide for safe ride and han-
dling capability.
Do not use a size and type of tire and
wheel that is different from the one that
is originally installed on your vehicle. It
can affect the safety and performance
of your vehicle, which could lead to han-
dling failure or rollover and serious in-
jury.
When replacing the tires, be sure to equip
all four tires with the tire and wheel of the
same size, type, tread, brand and load-
carrying capacity. If you nevertheless
decide to equip your vehicle with any
tire/wheel combination not recom-
mended by Hyundai for off-road driving,
you should not use these tires for high-
way driving.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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TO START THE ENGINEC030A01E-AATCOMBINATION IGNITION SWITCHo If your Hyundai is equipped with a
manual transaxle, place the shift lever
in neutral and depress the clutch pedal
fully.
o If your Hyundai has an automatic
transaxle, place the shift lever in "P"
(park).
o To start the engine, insert the ignition
key and turn it to the "START" position.
Release it as soon as the engine starts.
Do not hold the key in the "START"
position for more that 15 seconds.NOTE:o For safety, the engine will not start if
the clutch pedal is not depressed fully
(Manual Transaxle) or the shift lever
is not in "P" or "N" Position (Auto-
matic Transaxle).
o The ignition key cannot be turned from
"ACC" position to "LOCK" position
unless the shift lever is in the "P"
(Park) position or the negative bat-
tery terminal is disconnected from
the battery. To remove the key, al-
ways confirm that the shift lever is
securely positioned in "P" (Park) (For
Automatic Transaxle).
o For additional information about start-
ing, see page 2-6.
BEFORE STARTING THE EN-
GINEC020A04A-AATBefore you start the engine, you should
always:
1. Look around the vehicle to be sure
there are no flat tires, puddles of oil,
water or other indications of possible
trouble.
2. After entering the car, check to be sure
the parking brake is engaged.
3. Check that all windows, and lights are
clean.
4. Check that the interior and exterior mir-
rors are clean and in position.
5. Check your seat, seatback and head-
rest to be sure they are in their proper
positions.
6. Lock all the doors.
7. Fasten your seat belt and be sure that all
other occupants have fastened theirs.
8. Turn off all lights and accessories that
are not needed.
9. When you turn the ignition switch to
"ON", check that all appropriate warn-
ing lights are operating and that you
have sufficient fuel.
10. Check the operation of warning lights
and all bulbs when key is in the "ON"
position.
!
WARNING:
o All passengers must be properly
belted whenever the vehicle is mov-
ing. Refer to pages: 1-19 through 1-
25 for more information on their proper
use.
o Always check the surrounding areas
near your vehicle for people, espe-
cially children, before putting a car
into 'drive.'
!
WARNING:
Always wear appropriate shoes when
operating your vehicle.
Unsuitable shoes (high heels, ski boots,
etc.) may interfere with your ability to
use the brake and accelerator pedal,
and the clutch (if installed).
!
WARNING:
When you intend to park or stop the
vehicle with the engine on, be careful not
to depress the accelerator pedal for a
long period of time. It may overheat the
engine or exhaust system and cause
fire.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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KEY POSITIONSC040A02A-AAT
CAUTION:
The engine should not be turned off or the
key removed from the ignition key cylin-
der while the car is in motion. The steer-
ing wheel is locked by removing the key.
!
o "START"The engine is started in this position. It will
crank until you release the key.NOTE:Do not hold the key in the "START" posi-
tion for more than 15 seconds.
C040A01E-1
LOCKACC
ON
START
o "ON"When the key is in the "ON" position, the
ignition is on and all accessories may be
turned on. If the engine is not running, the
key should not be left in the "ON" position.
This will discharge the battery and may
also damage the ignition system.o "ACC"With the key in the "ACC" position, some
electrical accessories (radio, etc.) may be
operated.o "LOCK"The key can be removed or inserted in this
position.
To protect against theft, the steering wheel
locks by removing the key.NOTE:If difficulty is experienced turning the
ignition switch to the ACC position, turn
the key while turning the steering wheel
right and left to release the tension.
C070C01E-1
LOCKACC
ON
START
C070C01A-AATTo remove the ignition key1. Turn the ignition key to the "ACC" posi-
tion.
2. Simultaneously push and turn the igni-
tion key counterclockwise from the
"ACC" position to the "LOCK" position.
3. The key can be removed in the "LOCK"
position.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
6
!
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.
C050B02JM-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.
!
C050A01E-1
STARTING!
C050A01A-AAT
WARNING:
Never run the engine in a closed or poorly
ventilated area any longer than is needed
to move your car in or out of the area. The
carbon monoxide gas emitted is odor-
less and can cause serious injury or
death.
WARNING:
Always fully depress the brake pedal
before and while shifting out of the "P"
Park position into another position to
avoid inadvertent motion of the vehicle
which could injure persons in or around
the car.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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OPERATING THE MANUAL
TRANSAXLE
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 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.
CAUTION:
When downshifting from fifth gear to
fourth gear, caution should be taken not
to inadvertently press the gear lever
sideways in such a manner that second
gear is engaged. Such a drastic down-
shift may cause the engine speed to
increase to the point that the tachometer
will enter the red-zone. Such over-rev-
ving of the engine may cause engine
damage.
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C070A02A-AATYour Hyundai's manual transaxle has a
conventional shift pattern. This shift pat-
tern is imprinted on the shift knob. The
transaxle is fully synchronized in all for-
ward gears so shifting to either a higher or
a lower gear is easily accomplished.
HJM3017C070B02A-AAT
Using 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.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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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.
C070D02O-AATRecommended Shift PointsThe shift points as shown on the chart are
recommended for optimum fuel economy
and performance.
Shift
from-to
1-2
2-3
3-4
4-5Recommended
mph (km/h)
15 (20)
25 (40)
35 (55)
45 (75)
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.o Optimum vehicle performance and
economy is obtained by smoothly de-
pressing and releasing the accelerator
pedal.

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DRIVING YOUR HYUNDAI
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HJM3018
OPERATING THE AUTOMATIC
TRANSAXLEC090A01O-GATThe highly efficient Hyundai automatic
transaxle has four 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, and is equipped with a button to
avoid inadvertent selection.
NOTE:
Depress the brake pedal and push
the button when shifting.
Push the button when shifting.
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 (Transaxle Control
Module).
C090A01JM
The indicator lights in the instrument clus-
ter indicate the selector lever position when
the ignition is switched "ON". During "D"
range operation, green lights indicate the
gear currently in use.
CAUTION:
Never shift into "R" or "P" position while
the vehicle is moving.
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