2015 NISSAN GT-R Owners Manual

5-20Starting and driving
Control on downhill roads:
The adaptive shift contro\f system shifts to a \fow
\bear that suits the de\bree of the s\fope, and uses
the en\bine brake to reduce the number of times
that the foot brake must be used.
Control on winding roads:
A \fow \bear is maintained on continuous curves
that invo\fve repeated acce\feration and dece\fera-
tion, so that smooth acce\feration is avai\fab\fe
instant\fy when the acce\ferator peda\f is de-
pressed.
NOTE:
Adaptive shift control may not operate
when the transmission oil temperature is
low immediately after the start of driving
or when it is very hot. If this occurs, switch
to the
&Mposition and downshift if neces-
sary.
&Mposition
Changing to the&Mposition:
To chan\be to the
&Mposition from the&A
position, either move the shift \fever to the&M
side or operate the padd\fe shifter. The position
indicator indicates the \bear position with the
indication of “M”.
If the padd\fe shifter is used, the first operation
chan\bes from the
&Aposition to the&Mposition, and the second and \fater operations chan\be the
\bears.
To return to the
&Aposition, move the shift \fever
to the&Mside a\bain. The position indicator
indicates the \bear position with the indication of
“A”.
Changing gears using paddle shifters:
NOTE:
The vehicle cannot be accelerated from a
stop condition while the gear is in the 2nd
to 6th position. When accelerating the
vehicle from a stop condition, use the 1st
gear position.
To shift up, pu\f\f the padd\fe shifter on the ri\bht
side
*1toward you.
To shift down, pu\f\f the padd\fe shifter on the \feft
side
*2toward you.

.First gear:
Use this position when accelerating from a
stop�f climbing a steep hill slowly or engine
braking at low spee�bs.
. Secon�b gear:
Use this position when accelerating or
engine braking at mi�b-low spee�bs.
. Thir�b gear:
Use this position when accelerating or
gently engine braking at mi�b�ble spee�bs.
. Fourth gear:
Use this position when accelerating or
gently engine braking at mi�b-high spee�bs. .
Fifth gear:
Use this position for all normal forwar�b
�briving at highway spee�bs. Engine braking
is weaker in this position.
. Sixth gear:
Use this position for all normal forwar�b
�briving at highway spee�bs. Engine braking
is weakest in this position.
Suggested maximum speed in each gear:
Downshift to a lower gear if the engine is not
running smoothly�f or if you nee�b to accelerate.
Do not excee�b the maximum suggeste�b spee�b
(shown below) in any gear. For level roa�b
�briving�f use the highest gear suggeste�b for that
spee�b. Always observe poste�b spee�b limits�f an�b
�brive accor�bing to the roa�b con�bitions that will
ensure safe operation. Do not over-rev the
engine when shifting to a lower gear as it may
cause engine �bamage or loss of vehicle control.
Gear MPH (km/h)
1st 36 (58)
2n�b 63 (102)
3r�b 91 (148)
4th —
5th —
6th —
DRIVING TIPS
After starting the engine�f fully �bepress the foot
brake pe�bal an�b push the shift lever button
before shifting the shift lever from the
&Pposition
to the&R�f&N�f or&A
F&Mposition. Be sure the
vehicle is fully stoppe�b before attempting to shift
the shift lever.
The transmission is �besigne�b so that the foot
brake pe�bal must be �bepresse�b before shifting
from
&Pto any other position.
The shift lever cannot be move�b out of the
&P
position an�b into any other position with the
ignition switch other in the LOCK�f OFF or ACC
position.
When accelerating from a stop
Keep the foot brake pe�bal �bepresse�b an�b push
the shift lever button to shift into a �briving gear
as following:
. To �brive forwar�b�f move the shift lever to the
&A
F&Mposition.
. To back up�f move the shift lever to the
&R
position.
Starting on level ground or an uphill:
1. Check the shift lever position in�bicator on the instrument panel to confirm that the
�briving gear is selecte�b.
Starting and driving5-21

5-22Starting and driving
2. Release the parking brake.
3. Release the �foot brake pedal graduall�b, thenslowl�b depress the accelerator pedal to start
the vehicle in motion.
(
“R mode start �function” page 5-32)
NOTE:
. To prevent the clutch from overheating
when the parking brake is applied,
engine output is limited when the
accelerator pedal is depressed. In par-
ticular, the vehicle may not start
smoothly when the accelerator pedal
is depressed with the parking brake
applied on an uphill grade. To enable
smooth starting, release the parking
brake before moving the vehicle.
. The hill start assist function operates
when the vehicle is accelerating from a
stop on an uphill. (
“Hill Start
Assist” page 5-38)
When driving the vehicle
WARNING
Do not move the shift lever to the&N
position while driving. Doing so may
result in an accident due to loss of
engine braking. It may also damage the
transmission.
Normal driving:
Drive with the shi�ft lever in the
&Aposition.
The appropriate gear will be automaticall�b
shi�fted according to the position o�f the accel-
erator pedal, the driving speed and driving
conditions.
Passing:
.
&Aposition:
Full�b depress the accelerator pedal to the �floor.
This shi�fts the transmission down into a lower
gear depending on the vehicle speed. Then
depress the accelerator pedal as needed to
adjust vehicle speed.
.
&Mposition:
Use the paddle shi�fter to down shi�ft, then �full�b
depress the accelerator pedal to the �floor. Then
depress the accelerator pedal as needed to adjust vehicle speed.
Hill climbing:
.
When the vehicle speed decreases, de-
press the accelerator pedal to the �floor with
the shi�ft lever in the
&Aposition. This
automaticall�b shi�fts the transmission into a
lower gear and maintains this position
depending on the gradient o�f the hill.
. The s�bstem ma�b down shi�ft according to the
accelerator pedal position and the vehicle
speed.
. I�f the transmission is �frequentl�b changing
gears while driving, switch to the
&Mposition
and select the appropriate gear �for the
driving conditions.
Driving on a downhill:
.
&Aposition:
The s�bstem shi�fts down according to the degree
o�f downhills to increase the e�f�fectiveness o�f the
engine brake.
.
&Mposition:
When driving on a long slope, selecting the
&M
position and 4th or 3rd gear will provide gentle
engine braking.
When driving on a steep downhill, selecting the
&Mposition and 2nd or 1st gear will provide
power�ful engine braking.

WARNING
.When the shift lever is in the&A
position, the adaptive shift control
system will stay in a low gear in
order to maintain the effectiveness
of the engine brake. However if the
vehicle is traveling too fast depend-
ing on the degree of the slope, you
should shift to the
&Mposition and
use the paddle shifter to shift down.
If you continue to use only the foot
brake, a high load will be applied to
the brake, which may overheat,
reducing its effectiveness. Be sure
to use the engine brake together
with the foot brake. (
“Adaptive
shift control” page 5-19)
. Do not downshift abruptly on slip-
pery roads. This may cause a loss of
control.
NOTICE
When driving in the&Aposition, gear-
shifting will be performed automatically
with the adaptive shift control system
(
“Adaptive shift control” page 5- 19) even on road conditions with con-
tinuous and sudden hills or curves.
However, when the transmission oil
temperature is low immediately after
starting the vehicle or high when enga-
ging in high performance driving, there
may be some cases where the system
cannot control shifting. When this oc-
curs, switch to the
&Mposition and
select a lower gear, depending on the
gradient of the hill.
When stopping the vehicle
Leave the shift lever in the&A
F&Mor&Rposition
and firmly depress the foot brake pedal\f
If the vehicle will be stopped for a lon\b period of
time, apply the parkin\b brake and move the shift
lever to the
&Por&Nposition as necessary\f
WARNING
. Do not race the engine while the
vehicle is stopped. Doing so may
accelerate the vehicle suddenly and
cause an accident when shifting to a
driving gear.
. While the engine is running, the
propeller shaft that transmits torque from the engine to the transmission
is turning at all times. Crawling or
reaching under the vehicle while the
engine is running may result in
serious injury.
NOTICE
When the vehicle is stopped on a hill,
do not hold the vehicle in place by
depressing the accelerator pedal. Doing
so may cause the clutch to overheat and
result in transmission damage. Use the
brakes to prevent the vehicle from
moving.
When parking the vehicle
WARNING
Follow the instructions below when
parking the vehicle to help prevent the
brake rotor and brake pads from rust-
ing together. Failure to follow the
instructions could cause the rotor and
pads to rust together. If the rotor and
pads rust together, there may be a
popping noise and some vibration
Starting and driving5-23

5-24Starting and driving
when the vehicle is driven, a wheel may
not roll correctly, or the brake pads
could be damaged. If the pads are
damaged, this may reduce the effec-
tiveness of the brake system which
could cause a collision, serious perso-
nal injury or death.
The GT-R uses brake pad mater�fals that have
h�fgh metall�f�b �bontent. The brake pad mater�fal
helps ma�fnta�fn brak�fng performan�be �fn a w�fde
range of weather and dr�fv�fng �bond�ft�fons.
For the f�frst 3,000 m�fles (5,000 km) of the
veh�f�ble’s serv�f�be l�ffe, and for the f�frst 3,000 m�fles
(5,000km) after a brake repla�bement, the brake
pad to brake rotor �blearan�be �fs very small. When
park�fng, apply the park�fng brake and move the
sh�fft lever to the
&Ppos�ft�fon. Idle the eng�fne for
more than 20 se�bonds w�fthout depress�fng the
brake pedal. Th�fs allows the brake pads to move
away from the rotor so the pad does not �bonta�bt
the rotor.
Add�ft�fonally, the brakes must be dry before
park�fng the veh�f�ble after dr�fv�fng on wet roads or
after wash�fng the veh�f�ble. If the roads are wet,
l�fghtly apply the brakes for a short d�fstan�be
before park�fng the veh�f�ble to dry the brakes.
After wash�fng the veh�f�ble, dry the brakes by
dr�fv�fng on a dry road for a few m�fles and apply the brakes normally based on traff�f�b and road
�bond�ft�fons.
The metall�f�b brake pads and brake d�fs�b rotor
may rust together when the brakes are not
appl�fed:
.
If the veh�f�ble �fs not �fdled for 20 se�bonds
w�fthout the brakes appl�fed, or �ff the brakes
are appl�fed when the veh�f�ble �fs shut off, the
rotor and pads �ban rust together, even when
the brake pads are dry.
. If the brakes are wet when the veh�f�ble �fs
parked and the park�fng brake �fs appl�fed for a
long t�fme.
Conta�bt a GT-R �bert�ff�fed NISSAN dealer �ff the
brake pads and brake rotor have rusted
together.
1. Br�fng the veh�f�ble to a �bomplete stop.
2. W�fth the foot brake pedal depressed, apply the park�fng brake.
3. Move the sh�fft lever to the
&Ppos�ft�fon.
4. Che�bk the sh�fft lever pos�ft�fon �fnd�f�bator on the �fnstrument panel to �bonf�frm that the
&P
pos�ft�fon �fs sele�bted.
5. Push the �fgn�ft�fon sw�ft�bh to stop the eng�fne.
WARNING
Before exiting the vehicle, be sure to
move the shift lever to the&Pposition
and stop the engine. If the engine is
running and the shift lever is not in the
&Pposition, the vehicle may start mov-
ing due to partial engagement of the
clutch or to the effects of gravity on a
slope, or the vehicle may suddenly
accelerate due to accidental operation
of the accelerator pedal, possibly caus-
ing an accident.

The control of the dual clutch transmission,
Bilstein Dam\fTronicŠelectronically controlled
shock absorbers and \behicle Dynamic Control
(\bDC) can be changed to the desired modes by
o\ferating the setu\f switches. Select the desired
mode best suited to the driving conditions.
NOTE:
Bilstein DampTronic
Šis a registered trade-
mark of ThyssenKrupp Bilstein Suspen-
sion GmbH.
1. Transmission setu\f switch
2. Sus\fension setu\f switch
3. \behicle Dynamic Control (\bDC) setu\f switch
HOW TO SWITCH THE MODES
Each time the engine is started, all switches are
set to the normal mode. The normal mode is
recommended for normal driving. Move the
\bDC, transmission and sus\fension setu\f
switches u\f or down to change the mode when
the engine is running.
Starting and driving5-25
VDC, TRANSMISSION AND
SUSPENSION SETUP SWITCHES

5-26Starting and driving
: Push and hold the switch \for longer than appro\bimately 1 second
: Push the switch
* The selected mode is maintained even i\f the shi\ft lever is moved between
&Aand&Mposition.
NOTICE
. “ESC (Electronic Stability Control)
OFF” indicated on the VDC setup
switch stands for “VDC OFF”.
. When the ignition switch is pushed
to the “ON” position, the indicators
on the setup switches may illumi-
nate briefly, however this is not a
malfunction.

FEATURES OF EACH MODE
Transmission
The transmission mode differs depending on the shift lever position,&Aor&M.
&Aposition:
�fet up modeFeatures
.In addition to the normal mode fun�btions, this mode allows you to a�bhieve higher
engine speed, greater powertrain torque and engine braking.
.With the VDC swit�bh in R mode, the R mode start fun�btion �ban be used. (“R
mode start fun�btion” page 5-32)
.When the R mode is sele�bted, the maximum speed is lower than the one in the
normal mode.
Normal (light is off)
.For everyday and performan�be driving, an appropriate gear position is automati�bally
sele�bted.
.For long distan�be driving, this mode helps improve fuel e�bonomy by redu�bing engine
output �bompared to the normal mode.
.The engine response to a�b�belerator operation �bhanges to be less sensitive to pedal
movement than the normal mode. The engine speed does not �bhange as qui�bkly for
small a�b�belerator pedal position �bhanges.
.This mode �bontrols powertrain torque on snowy roads and slippery surfa�bes making
starting and driving easier.
.When the �fAVE mode is sele�bted, the maximum speed is lower than the one in the
normal mode.
Starting and driving5-27