2012 MITSUBISHI OUTLANDER Owners Manual

3-94 Features and controls
3
NOTE
During the break-in period or immediately after recon-
necting the battery, your vehicle may not shift smoothly.
This does not indicate a problem in the transaxle. Shifting
will become smoother once the transaxle has been shifted
several times by the electronic control system.
Selector lever operation
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As an additional safety precaution, models equipped with an
automatic transaxle have a shift-lock device that holds the
selector lever in the “P” (PARK) position. To move the selector
lever from the “P” (PARK) position to another position, follow
the steps below.
1. Press and hold the brake pedal down.
2. Move the selector lever to the desired position.NOTE
The selector lever cannot be moved from “P” (PARK) to
another position if the ignition switch is set to the
“LOCK” or “ACC” position, or if the key has been
removed, or if the brake pedal is not pressed and held
down.
CAUTION
!
The electronically controlled transaxle system is
strictly intended to provide supplementary func-
tions. When driving downhill under certain condi-
tions, when the automatic transaxle is cold
immediately after starting, no automatic downshift
may be made. The driver should move the selector
lever to use sports mode to downshift a lower gear.
This will permit the engine to begin braking.
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Features and controls
3-95
3
The transaxle has 6 forward gears and 1 reverse gear.
The individual gears are selected automatically, depending on
the position of the gear selector lever, the speed of the vehicle
and the position of the accelerator pedal.
The selector lever (A) has “2 gates”: The main gate (B) and the
manual gate (C).NOTE
There are 4 selector lever positions in the main gate.

For information on manual gate operation, please refer to
“Sports mode” on page 3-100.
Set the selector lever in the gate to operate while the
brake pedal is depressed.
Set the selector lever in the gate to operate.WA R N I N G
!
Always press the brake pedal when shifting the
selector lever into a gear from the “N” (NEUTRAL)
position.
When beginning to drive, do not shift the selector
lever from the “N” (NEUTRAL) position while
pressing the accelerator pedal. This will cause the
vehicle to “jump” forward or backward.
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3-96 Features and controls
3
NOTE
To prevent mistakes in operating the lever, make sure you
stop briefly at each position. After operating, check the
position in the multi-information display.

If the brake pedal is not depressed and held, the shift-lock
device activates to prevent the selector lever from being
moved from the “P” (PARK) position.

For a shift indicated by in the illustration, depress
the brake pedal before moving the selector lever. If you
attempt to move the selector lever before depressing the
brake pedal, the selector lever may become immovable.
When the selector lever cannot be shifted from the “P”
(PARK) position
N00563100034
When the selector lever cannot be shifted from the “P” (PARK)
position to another position while the brake pedal is pressed
and held down with the ignition switch at the “ON” position,
the battery may be flat or the shift-lock mechanism may be
malfunctioning.
Immediately have your vehicle checked by an authorized Mit-
subishi Motors dealer or a repair facility of your choice.
If you need to move the vehicle, shift the selector lever as fol-
lows.
1. Make sure the parking brake is fully applied.
2. Stop the engine if it is running.
3. Insert a screwdriver with a cloth over its tip into the notch
(A) of the cover. Pry gently as shown to remove the cover.
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Features and controls
3-97
3
4. Depress the brake pedal with the right foot.
5. Turn the ignition switch to the “ACC” position.NOTE
For vehicles with the Free-hand Advanced Security
Transmitter (F.A.S.T.-key), turn the ignition switch to the
“ACC” position with the emergency key if the vehicle
battery is flat.
6. Insert a screwdriver in the shift-lock release hole (B).
Shift the selector lever to the “N” (NEUTRAL) position
while pressing the screwdriver down.
Selector lever position display
N00513900415
When the ignition switch is turned to the “ON” position, the
selector lever position is shown on the multi-information dis-
play. Type 1 Type 2
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3-98 Features and controls
3
Warning display
N00514000208
Ty p e 1
or
Ty p e 2
or
When the warning display or the warning display
appears on the information screen in the multi-information dis-
play while you are driving, there could be a malfunction in the
automatic transaxle.
CAUTION
!
If a malfunction occurs in the automatic transaxle
while driving, the warning display or the
warning display will appear on the information
screen in the multi-information display.
In this case, immediately park your vehicle in a safe
place and follow these procedures:
When warning display is showing
The automatic transaxle fluid is overheating. Stop
your vehicle in a safe place, put the selector lever in
the “P” position, and open the engine hood with the
engine running to allow the engine to cool down.
After a while, confirm that the warning display is
no longer showing. It is safe to continue driving if
the display is no longer showing. If the warning dis-
play remains or flashes frequently, have your vehicle
inspected by an authorized Mitsubishi Motors
dealer or a repair facility of your choice.
When warning display is showing
It may be that there is something unusual happening
in the automatic transaxle, causing a safety device to
activate. Have your vehicle inspected by an autho-
rized Mitsubishi Motors dealer or a repair facility of
your choice as soon as possible.
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Features and controls
3-99
3
Selector lever positions (Main gate)
N00514200297
“P” PARKThis position locks the transaxle to prevent the vehicle from
moving. The engine can be started from the “P” (PARK) posi-
tion.“R” REVERSEMove the lever to this position only after the vehicle has come
to a complete stop.“N” NEUTRALAt this position, the transaxle is disengaged. It is the same as
the neutral position on a manual transaxle and should be used
when the vehicle is not moving for an extended length of time
during driving, such as in a traffic jam.
“D” DRIVEThis position is used for most city and highway driving. Engine
shifting and braking are done automatically as needed, depend-
ing on road conditions.NOTE
For information on manual gate operation, please refer to
“Sports mode” on page 3-100.
CAUTION
!
Never shift into the “P” (PARK) or “R”
(REVERSE) position while the vehicle is in motion.
If the lever is shifted into the “P” (PARK) or “R”
(REVERSE) position while the vehicle is in motion,
the transaxle may be damaged.
WA R N I N G
!
Never move the selector lever to the “N” (NEU-
TRAL) position while driving since you could acci-
dentally slip it into the “P” (PARK) or “R”
(REVERSE) position, damaging the transaxle.

To prevent the vehicle from rolling when stopped on
a slope, the engine should be started in the “P”
(PARK) position, not in “N” (NEUTRAL) position.
Always keep your foot on the brake pedal when the
vehicle is in “N” (NEUTRAL) position, or when
shifting into or out of “N” (NEUTRAL) position, to
prevent rolling.
CAUTION
!
Never shift into the “D” (DRIVE) position from the
“R” (REVERSE) position while the vehicle is in
motion to avoid a transaxle damage.
WA R N I N G
!
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3-100 Features and controls
3
Sports mode
N00514400358
Whether the vehicle is stationary or in motion, sports mode is
selected by gently pushing the selector lever from the “D”
(DRIVE) position into the manual gate. To return to “D” opera-
tion, gently push the selector lever back into the main gate.
In sports mode, rapid gear shifting is possible simply by oper-
ating the selector lever or sportronic steering wheel paddle
shifter.
Unlike the manual transaxle, sports mode allows gear shifts
with the accelerator pedal depressed.NOTE
For vehicles equipped with the sportronic steering wheel
paddle shifter, sports mode can be selected by shifting
gears even when the selector lever is in the main gate (2).
Also, you can return to the “D” operation in any of fol-
lowing ways.
When returning to “D” operation, the selector lever posi-
tion display will change to “D” (DRIVE) position.
• Pull the + (SHIFT UP) side sportronic steering wheel
paddle shifter forward (toward the driver) for over 2 sec-
onds.
• Stop the vehicle
• Push the selector lever from the “D” (DRIVE) position
into the manual gate (A) and push the selector lever
back into the main gate (B).
+ (SHIFT UP)
The transaxle shifts up by one gear with each operation.
- (SHIFT DOWN)
The transaxle shifts down by one gear with each operation.
CAUTION
!
Upward shifts do not take place automatically in
sports mode. The driver must make upward shifts in
accordance with prevailing road conditions, making
sure the engine revolutions remain below the red
zone on the tachometer.
Repeated continuous operation of the selector lever
or the sportronic steering wheel paddle shifter will
continuously switch shift position.SHIFT
DOWNSHIFT
DOWN
SHIFT
UP SHIFT
UP
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Features and controls
3-101
3
NOTE
Gears can only be selected in a forward direction from 1st
gear to 6th gear. To reverse or park the vehicle, move the
selector lever to the “R” or “P” position.

To maintain good running performance, the transaxle may
refuse to perform an upshift when the selector lever is
moved to the “+ (SHIFT UP)” position at certain vehicle
speeds. Also, to prevent over-revving of the engine, the
transaxle may refuse to perform a downshift when the
lever is moved to the “- (SHIFT DOWN)” position at cer-
tain vehicle speeds. When this happens, a buzzer sounds
to indicate that a downshift is not going to take place.

When pulling away from a standstill on a slippery road,
push the selector lever forward to the + (SHIFT UP) posi-
tion to select 2nd gear. Push the selector lever to the -
(SHIFT DOWN) side to shift back to 1st gear.
Sports mode display
N00538800167
In sports mode, the currently selected gear is displayed on the
information screen in the multi-information display.NOTE
While driving in sports mode, the sports mode display
may change to show “D” and shifting in sports mode may
no longer be possible.
This indicates that controls to drive in the “D” position are
operating normally in order to lower the temperature of
the automatic transaxle fluid; it does not indicate a mal-
function. Once the temperature of the automatic transaxle
fluid drops, shifting in the sports mode will be possible
again.

On vehicles with a sportronic steering wheel paddle
shifter, gears may not change when the lateral pad-
dle shifters are operated at the same time.
CAUTION
!
Type 1 Type 2
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