Page 246 of 364

CAUTION!
Towing the vehicle, coasting, or
driving for any other reason with
the transmission in NEUTRAL can
cause severe transmission damage.
Refer to “Recreational Towing” in
“Starting And Operating” and
“Towing A Disabled Vehicle” in
“What To Do In Emergencies” for
further information.
DRIVE (D)
This range should be used for most
city and highway driving. It provides
the smoothest upshifts and down-
shifts, and the best fuel economy. The
transmission automatically upshifts
through all forward gears. The
DRIVE position provides optimum
driving characteristics under all nor-
mal operating conditions.
When frequent transmission shifting
occurs (such as when operating the
vehicle under heavy loading condi-
tions, in hilly terrain, traveling into
strong head winds, or while towing
heavy trailers), use the ElectronicRange Select (ERS) shift control (de-
scribed below) to select a lower gear
range. Under these conditions, using a
lower gear range will improve perfor-
mance and extend transmission life
by reducing excessive shifting and
heat buildup.
During cold temperatures, transmis-
sion operation may be modified de-
pending on engine and transmission
temperature as well as vehicle speed.
This feature improves warm up time
of the engine and transmission to
achieve maximum efficiency. Engage-
ment of the torque converter clutch is
inhibited until the transmission fluid
is warm (refer to the “Note” under
“Torque Converter Clutch” in this
section). During extremely cold tem-
peratures (-27°C or below), operation
may briefly be limited to third gear
only. Normal operation will resume
once the transmission temperature
has risen to a suitable level.
Transmission Limp Home Mode
Transmission function is monitored
electronically for abnormal condi-
tions. If a condition is detected thatcould result in transmission damage,
Transmission Limp Home Mode is ac-
tivated. In this mode, the transmis-
sion remains in third gear regardless
of which forward gear is selected.
PARK, REVERSE, and NEUTRAL
will continue to operate. The Mal-
function Indicator Light (MIL) may
be illuminated. Limp Home Mode al-
lows the vehicle to be driven to an
authorized dealer for service without
damaging the transmission.
In the event of a momentary problem,
the transmission can be reset to regain
all forward gears by performing the
following steps:
1. Stop the vehicle.
2. Shift the transmission into PARK.
3. Turn the ignition switch to the
LOCK/OFF position.
4. Wait approximately 10 seconds.
5. Restart the engine.
6. Shift into the desired gear range. If
the problem is no longer detected, the
transmission will return to normal op-
eration.
240
Page 248 of 364

The engine coolant has reached anadequate temperature.
The vehicle speed is sufficiently high.
The driver is not heavily pressing the accelerator.
Torque Converter Clutch
A feature designed to improve fuel
economy has been included in the au-
tomatic transmission on your vehicle.
A clutch within the torque converter
engages automatically at calibrated
speeds. This may result in a slightly
different feeling or response during
normal operation in the upper gears.
When the vehicle speed drops or dur-
ing some accelerations, the clutch au-
tomatically disengages.
NOTE: The torque converter
clutch will not engage until the
transmission fluid and engine
coolant are warm [usually after 2
to 5 km of driving]. Because the
engine speed is higher when the torque converter clutch is not en-
gaged, it may seem as if the trans-
mission is not shifting into Over-
drive when cold. This is normal.
Using the Electronic Range Select
(ERS) shift control, when the
transmission is sufficiently warm,
will demonstrate that the trans-
mission is able to shift into and out
of Overdrive.
DRIVING ON SLIPPERY
SURFACES
ACCELERATION
Rapid acceleration on snow covered,
wet, or other slippery surfaces may
cause the driving wheels to pull errati-
cally to the right or left. This phenom-
enon occurs when there is a difference
in the surface traction under the front
(driving) wheels.
WARNING!
Rapid acceleration on slippery sur-
faces is dangerous. Unequal trac-
tion can cause sudden pulling of the
front wheels. You could lose control
of the vehicle and possibly have a
collision. Accelerate slowly and
carefully whenever there is likely to
be poor traction (ice, snow, wet,
mud, loose sand, etc.).
TRACTION
When driving on wet or slushy roads,
it is possible for a layer of water to
build up between the tire and road
surface. This is known as hydroplan-
ing and may cause partial or complete
loss of vehicle control and stopping
ability. To reduce this possibility, the
following precautions should be ob-
served:
1. Slow down during rainstorms or
when roads are slushy.
2. Slow down if the road has standing
water or puddles.
242
Page 341 of 364
CHASSIS
ComponentFluids and Lubricants Specs (Genuine Parts)
Automatic Transmission Totally synthetic lubricant that meets FIAT Classification
9.55550-AV4 (TUTELA TRANSMISSION FORCE4, Con-
tractual Technical Reference N° F108.F11)
Brake/Clutch Master Cylinder Synthetic fluid that meets FIAT Classification 9.55597,
FMVSS n° 116, DOT 4, ISO 4925, SAE J-1704 (TUTELA
TOP 4, Contractual Technical Reference N° F001.A93)
Power Steering Reservoir Totally synthetic lubricant that meets FIAT Classification
9.55550-AV4 (TUTELA TRANSMISSION FORCE4, Con-
tractual Technical Reference N° F108.F11)
Windshield/Rear Window Washer Fluid Mixture of alcohol, water and surfactants that meets FIAT
Classification 9.55522, CUNA NC 956-11 (TUTELA PRO-
FESSIONAL SC35, Contractual Technical Reference N°
F201.D02)
335