
Driving your vehicle
18 5
• During cold weather, shifting may
be difficult until the transaxle lubri-
cant has warmed up. This is nor-
mal and not harmful to the
transaxle.
• If you've come to a complete stop
and it's hard to shift into 1 (First) or
R (Reverse), put the shift lever in
neutral position and release the
clutch. Press the clutch pedal back
down, and then shift into 1 (First)
or R (Reverse) gear position.CAUTION
• To avoid premature clutch
wear and damage, do not
drive with your foot resting on
the clutch pedal. Also, don’t
use the clutch to hold the
vehicle stopped on an uphill
grade, while waiting for a traf-
fic light, etc.
• Do not use the shift lever as a
handrest during driving, as
this can result in premature
wear of the transaxle shift
forks.
• To prevent possible damage
to the clutch system, do not
start with the 2nd (second)
gear engaged except when
you start on a slippery road.
WARNING
• Before leaving the driver’s
seat, always set the parking
brake fully and shut the
engine off. Then make sure the
transaxle is shifted into 1
(First) gear when the vehicle is
parked on a level or uphill
grade, and shifted into R
(Reverse) on a downhill grade.
Unexpected and sudden vehi-
cle movement can occur if
these precautions are not fol-
lowed in the order identified.
• If your vehicle has a manual
transaxle not equipped with a
ignition lock switch, it may
move and cause a serious
accident when starting the
engine without depressing the
clutch pedal while the parking
brake is released and the shift
lever not in the neutral posi-
tion.
• Do not use the engine brake
(shifting from a high gear to
lower gear) rapidly on slippery
roads. The vehicle may slip
causing an accident.

519
Driving your vehicle
Using the clutch
The clutch pedal should be
depressed all the way to the floor
before shifting, then released slowly.
The clutch pedal should always be
fully released while driving. Do not
rest your foot on the clutch pedal
while driving. This can cause unnec-
essary wear. Do not partially engage
the clutch to hold the vehicle on an
incline. This causes unnecessary
wear. Use the foot brake or parking
brake to hold the vehicle on an
incline. Do not operate the clutch
pedal rapidly and repeatedly.
Downshifting
When you must slow down in heavy
traffic or while driving up steep hills,
downshift before the engine starts to
labor. Downshifting reduces the
chance of stalling and gives better
acceleration when you again need to
increase your speed. When the vehi-
cle is traveling down steep hills,
downshifting helps maintain safe
speed and prolongs brake life.
Good driving practices
• Never take the vehicle out of gear
and coast down a hill. This is
extremely hazardous. Always leave
the vehicle in gear.
• Don't "ride" the brakes. This can
cause them to overheat and mal-
function. Instead, 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 down the vehicle.
• Slow down before shifting to a
lower gear. This will help avoid
over-revving the engine, which can
cause damage.
• Slow down when you encounter
cross winds. This gives you much
better control of your vehicle.
• Be sure the vehicle is completely
stopped before you attempt to shift
into R (Reverse). The transaxle can
be damaged if you do not. To shift
into R (Reverse), depress the
clutch, move the shift lever to neu-
tral, wait three seconds, then shift
to the R (Reverse) position.
CAUTION
When operating the clutch
pedal, depress the clutch pedal
down fully. If you don’t depress
the clutch pedal fully, the clutch
may be damaged or noise may
occur.

Driving your vehicle
22 5
Automatic transaxle operation
The highly efficient automatic
transaxle has 6 forward speeds and
one reverse speed. The individual
speeds are selected automatically,
depending on the position of the shift
lever.
✽NOTICE
The first few shifts on a new vehicle,
if the battery has been disconnected,
may be somewhat abrupt. This is a
normal condition, and the shifting
sequence will adjust after shifts are
cycled a few times by the TCM
(Transaxle Control Module) or
PCM (Powertrain Control Module).
For smooth operation, depress the
brake pedal when shifting from N
(Neutral) to a forward or reverse
gear.
WARNING- Automatic
transaxle
• Always check the surrounding
areas near your vehicle for
people, especially children,
before shifting a vehicle into
D (Drive) or R (Reverse).
• Before leaving the driver’s
seat, always make sure the
shift lever is in the P (Park)
position; then set the parking
brake fully and shut the
engine off. Unexpected and
sudden vehicle movement
can occur if these precautions
are not followed in the order
identified.
• Do not use the engine brake
(shifting from a high gear to
lower gear) rapidly on slip-
pery roads. The vehicle may
slip causing an accident.
CAUTION
• To avoid damage to your
transaxle, do not accelerate
the engine in R (Reverse) or
any forward gear position with
the brakes on.
• When stopped on an upgrade,
do not hold the vehicle sta-
tionary with engine power.
Use the service brake or the
parking brake.
• Do not shift from N (Neutral)
or P (Park) into D (Drive), or R
(Reverse) when the engine is
above idle speed.

523
Driving your vehicle
Transaxle ranges
The indicator lights in the instrument
cluster displays the shift lever posi-
tion when the ignition switch is in the
ON position.
P (Park)
Always come to a complete stop
before shifting into P (Park). This
position locks the transaxle and pre-
vents the front wheels from rotating.R (Reverse)
Use this position to drive the vehicle
backward.N (Neutral)
The wheels and transaxle are not
engaged. The vehicle will roll freely
even on the slightest incline unless
the parking brake or service brakes
are applied.
WARNING
• Shifting into P (Park) while the
vehicle is in motion will cause
the drive wheels to lock which
will cause you to lose control
of the vehicle.
• Do not use the P (Park) posi-
tion in place of the parking
brake. Always make sure the
shift lever is latched in the P
(Park) position and set the
parking brake fully.
• Never leave a child unattend-
ed in a vehicle.
CAUTION
Always come to a complete stop
before shifting into or out of R
(Reverse); you may damage the
transaxle if you shift into R
(Reverse) while the vehicle is in
motion, except as explained in
“Rocking the vehicle”, in this
manual.
CAUTION
The transaxle may be damaged
if you shift into P (Park) while
the vehicle is in motion.
WARNING
Do not drive with the shift lever
in N (Neutral).
The engine brake will not work
and lead to an accident.

527
Driving your vehicle
Good driving practices
• Never move the shift lever from P
(Park) or N (Neutral) to any other
position with the accelerator pedal
depressed.
• Never move the shift lever into P
(Park) when the vehicle is in
motion.
• Be sure the vehicle is completely
stopped before you attempt to shift
into R (Reverse) or D (Drive).
• Never take the vehicle out of gear
and coast down a hill. This may be
extremely hazardous. Always leave
the vehicle in gear when moving.
• Do not "ride" the brakes. This can
cause them to overheat and mal-
function. Instead, 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 down the vehicle.
• Slow down before shifting to a
lower gear. Otherwise, the lower
gear may not be engaged.• Always use the parking brake. Do
not depend on placing the
transaxle in P (Park) to keep the
vehicle from moving.
• 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.
• Optimum vehicle performance and
economy is obtained by smoothly
depressing and releasing the
accelerator pedal.WARNING
• Always buckle-up! In a colli-
sion, an unbelted occupant is
significantly more likely to be
seriously injured or killed than
a properly belted occupant.
• Avoid high speeds when cor-
nering or turning.
• Do not make quick steering
wheel movements, such as
sharp lane changes or fast,
sharp turns.
• The risk of rollover is greatly
increased if you lose control
of your vehicle at highway
speeds.
• Loss of control often occurs if
two or more wheels drop off
the roadway and the driver
oversteers to reenter the road-
way.
• In the event your vehicle
leaves the roadway, do not
steer sharply. Instead, slow
down before pulling back into
the travel lanes.
• Never exceed posted speed
limits.

Driving your vehicle
28 5
Moving up a steep grade from a
standing start
To move up a steep grade from a
standing start, depress the brake
pedal, shift the shift lever to D
(Drive). Select the appropriate gear
depending on load weight and steep-
ness of the grade, and release the
parking brake. Depress the accelera-
tor gradually while releasing the
service brakes.
WARNING
If your vehicle becomes stuck in
snow, mud, sand, etc., then you
may attempt to rock the vehicle
free by moving it forward and
backward. Do not attempt this
procedure if people or objects
are anywhere near the vehicle.
During the rocking operation
the vehicle may suddenly move
forward of backward as it
becomes unstuck, causing
injury or damage to nearby peo-
ple or objects.

535
Driving your vehicle
• Full-time 4WD vehicles must be
tested on a special four wheel
chassis dynamometer.
✽NOTICE
Never engage the parking brake
while performing these tests.
• A full-time 4WD vehicle should not
be tested on a 2WD roll tester. If a
2WD roll tester must be used, per-
form the following:
WARNING - Jacked
vehicle
While a full-time 4WD vehicle is
being raised on a jack, never
start the engine or cause the
tires to rotate.
There is a danger that rotating
tires touching the ground could
cause the vehicle to fall off the
jack and to jump forward or
rearward.
WARNING
Your vehicle is equipped with
tires designed to provide safe
ride and handling 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 perform-
ance of your vehicle, which
could lead to steering failure or
rollover and serious injury.
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 recommended
by HYUNDAI for off road driv-
ing, you should not use these
tires for highway driving.

Driving your vehicle
36 5
1.Check the tire pressures recom-
mended for your vehicle.
2.Place the front wheels on the roll
tester for a speedometer test as
shown in the illustration.
3.Release the parking brake.
4.Place the rear wheels on the tem-
porary free roller as shown in the
illustration.
WARNING -
Dynamometer testing
Keep away from the front of the
vehicle while the vehicle is in
gear on the dynamometer. This
is very dangerous as the vehi-
cle can jump forward and cause
serious injury or death.
ODMEDR2147Roll tester (speedometer)Temporary free roller
CAUTION
• When lifting up the vehicle, do
not operate front and rear
wheel separately. All four
wheels should be operated.
• If you need to operate the
front wheel and rear wheel
when lifting up the vehicle,
you should release the park-
ing brake.