Heated Seats — If Equipped
This feature heats leather or cloth front driver and
passenger seats. The switches for the heated seats are
located in the center console above the climate controls.
After turning the ignition ON, you can choose from High,
Low, or Off heat settings. Amber indicator lights in each
switch indicate the level of heat in use. Two indicator
lights will illuminate for High, one for Low and none for
Off.Press the switch once to select High-level heat-
ing. Press the switch a second time to select
Low-level heating. Press the switch a third time
to shut the heating elements Off.WARNING!
•Persons who are unable to feel pain to the skin
because of advanced age, chronic illness, diabetes,
spinal cord injury, medication, alcohol use, ex-
haustion or other physical condition must exercise
care when using the seat heater. It may cause burns
even at low temperatures, especially if used for
long periods of time.
•Do not place anything on the seat that insulates
against heat, such as a blanket or cushion. This may
cause the seat heater to overheat. Sitting in a seat
that has been overheated could cause serious burns
due to the increased surface temperature of the seat.
CAUTION!
Repeated overheating of the seat could damage the
heating element and/or degrade the material of the seat.
3
UNDERSTANDING THE FEATURES OF YOUR VEHICLE 101
INSTRUMENT CLUSTER DESCRIPTIONS
1. Temperature Gauge
The temperature gauge shows engine coolant tempera-
ture. Any reading below the red area of the gauge shows
that the engine cooling system is operating properly. The
gauge pointer may show a higher than normal tempera-
ture when driving in hot weather, up mountain grades, in
heavy stop and go traffic, or when towing a trailer.
If the pointer rises to theH(red) mark, the instrument
cluster will sound a chime. Pull over and stop the vehicle.
Idle the vehicle with the air conditioner turned off until
the pointer drops back into the normal range. If the
pointer remains on the H(red) mark, turn the engine off
immediately and call for service.
There are steps that you can take to slow down an
impending overheat condition. If your air conditioning is
on, turn it off. The air conditioning system adds heat to
the engine cooling system and turning off the A/C removes this heat. You can also turn the Temperature
control to maximum heat, the Mode control to Floor and
the Fan control to High. This allows the heater core to act
as a supplement to the radiator and aids in removing heat
from the engine cooling system.
2. Fuel Door Reminder
This is a reminder that the Fuel Filler Door is
located on the left side of the vehicle.
3. Fuel Gauge
When the ignition switch is in the ON position, the
pointer will show the level of fuel remaining in the fuel
tank.
4. Speedometer
Indicates the vehicle speed in miles per hour (MPH) and
kilometers per hour (km/h).
4
UNDERSTANDING YOUR INSTRUMENT PANEL 145
STARTING AND OPERATING
CONTENTS
Starting Procedures .................... 238
▫ Automatic Transmission ............... 238
▫ Normal Starting ..................... 238
▫ Extreme Cold Weather
(Below 20°F Or 29°C)............... 239
▫ If Engine Fails To Start ................ 239
▫ After Starting ....................... 240
Engine Block Heater — If Equipped ........ 241
Automatic Transmission ................. 241
▫ Key Ignition Park Interlock ............. 243
▫ Brake/Transmission Interlock System ...... 243
▫ Automatic Transmission Ignition Interlock
System ............................ 244
▫ Four-Speed/Six-Speed Automatic
Transmission ....................... 244
▫ Gear Ranges ........................ 244
5
motor will continue to run, and it will disengage auto-
matically when the engine is running. If the engine fails
to start, the starter will disengage automatically in 10 sec-
onds. If this occurs, turn the ignition switch to the LOCK
position, wait 10 to 15 seconds, then repeat the “Normal
Starting” procedure.
Extreme Cold Weather (Below20°F or29°C)
To ensure reliable starting at these temperatures, use of
an externally powered electric engine block heater (avail-
able from your dealer) is recommended.
If Engine Fails To Start
WARNING!
•Never pour fuel or other flammable liquids into
the throttle body air inlet opening in an attempt to
start the vehicle. This could result in a flash fire
causing serious personal injury.
(Continued)
WARNING! (Continued)
•Do not attempt to push or tow your vehicle to get
it started. Vehicles equipped with an automatic
transmission cannot be started this way. Unburned
fuel could enter the catalytic converter and once
the engine has started, ignite and damage the
converter and vehicle. If the vehicle has a dis-
charged battery, booster cables may be used to
obtain a start from a booster battery or the battery
in another vehicle. This type of start can be dan-
gerous if done improperly. Refer to “Jump Start-
ing” in “What To Do In Emergencies” for further
information.
Without Tip Start
If the engine fails to start after you have followed the
“Normal Starting” or “Extreme Cold Weather” proce-
dures, it may be flooded. Push the accelerator pedal all
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 239
ENGINE BLOCK HEATER — IF EQUIPPED
The engine block heater warms the engine, and permits
quicker starts in cold weather. Connect the cord to a
standard 110-115 Volt AC electrical outlet with a
grounded, three-wire extension cord.
The engine block heater cord is bundled under the hood
between the headlight assembly and the Totally Inte-
grated Power Module (Fuse Box) on the driver ’s side of
the vehicle.
WARNING!
Remember to disconnect the cord before driving.
Damage to the 110-115 Volt electrical cord could cause
electrocution.
AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
CAUTION!
Damage to the transmission may occur if the follow-
ing precautions are not observed:
•Shift the shift lever into PARK only after the
vehicle has come to a complete stop.
•Shift the shift lever into or out of REVERSE only
after the vehicle has come to a complete stop and
the engine is at idle speed.
•Do not shift the shift lever from REVERSE, PARK,
or NEUTRAL into any forward gear when the
engine is above idle speed.(Continued)
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 241
•The ESC system will make buzzing or clicking sounds
when it is active. This is normal; the sounds will stop
when ESC becomes inactive following the maneuver
that caused the ESC activation.
ESC Operating Modes
All ESC equipped vehicles can choose the following ESC
operating modes:
ESC On
This is the normal operating mode for ESC. Whenever
the vehicle is started the ESC system will be in this mode.
This mode should be used for almost all driving situa-
tions. ESC should only be turned to “Partial Off” for
specific reasons as noted below.
Partial ESC Mode
This mode is entered by momentarily pressing the “ESC
Off” switch (located in the lower switch bank below the
heater/air conditioning controls). When in “Partial Off”
mode, the TCS portion of ESC, except for the limited slipfeature described in the TCS section, has been disabled
and the “ESC Off Indicator Light” will be illuminated. All
other stability features of ESC function normally, with the
exception of engine power reduction. This mode is
intended to be used if the vehicle is in deep snow, sand,
or gravel conditions and more wheel spin than ESC
would normally allow is required to gain traction.
To turn ESC on again, momentarily press the “ESC Off”
switch. This will restore the normal “ESC On” mode of
operation.
WARNING!
In the Partial ESC mode, the engine torque reduction
and stability features are desensitized. Therefore, the
enhanced vehicle stability offered by ESC is unavail-
able.
5
STARTING AND OPERATING 265
•Some additives used in regular gasoline are not fully
compatible with E85 and may form deposits in your
engine. To eliminate driveability issues that may be
caused by these deposits, a supplemental gasoline
additive, such as MOPARInjector Cleanup or
Techron may be used.
Selection Of Engine Oil For Flexible Fuel Vehicles
(E85) and Gasoline Vehicles
FFV vehicles operated on E85 require specially formu-
lated engine oils. These special requirements are included
in MOPAR engine oils, and in equivalent oils meeting
Chrysler Specification MS-6395. The manufacturer only
recommends engine oils that are API Certified and meet
the requirements of Material Standard MS-6395. MS-6395
contains additional requirements, developed during ex-
tensive fleet testing, to provide additional protection to
Chrysler Group LLC engines. Use MOPAR or an
equivalent oil meeting the specification MS-6395.
Starting
The characteristics of E85 fuel make it unsuitable for use
when ambient temperatures fall below 0°F (-18°C). In the
range of 0°F (-18°C) to 32°F (0°C), you may experience an
increase in the time it takes for your engine to start, and
a deterioration in driveability (sags and/or hesitations)
until the engine is fully warmed up.
NOTE: Use of the engine block heater (if equipped) is
beneficial for E85 startability when the ambient tempera-
ture is less than 32°F (0°C).
Cruising Range
Because E85 fuel contains less energy per gallon/liter
than gasoline, you will experience an increase in fuel
consumption. You can expect your miles per gallon
(mpg)/miles per liter and your driving range to decrease
by about 30%, compared to gasoline operation.
302 STARTING AND OPERATING
NOTE:There are steps that you can take to slow down
an impending overheat condition:
•If your air conditioner (A/C) is on, turn it off. The A/C
system adds heat to the engine cooling system and
turning the A/C off can help remove this heat.
•You can also turn the temperature control to maximum
heat, the mode control to floor and the blower control
to high. This allows the heater core to act as a
supplement to the radiator and aids in removing heat
from the engine cooling system.
WARNING!
You or others can be badly burned by hot engine
coolant (antifreeze) or steam from your radiator. If
you see or hear steam coming from under the hood,
do not open the hood until the radiator has had time
to cool. Never try to open a cooling system pressure
cap when the radiator or coolant bottle is hot.
Engine Oil Overheating (2.4L Engine Only) —
If Equipped
During sustained high-speed driving or trailer tow up
long grades on a hot day, the engine oil temperature may
become too hot. If this happens, the “HOTOIL” message
flashes in the odometer and the vehicle speed will be
reduced to 53 mph (85 km/h) until the engine oil
temperature is reduced.
NOTE: The vehicle speed is reduced to a maximum of
53 mph (85 km/h). You may of course, reduce your
vehicle speed further if needed.
322 WHAT TO DO IN EMERGENCIES