Page 133 of 501
Features of your vehicle
46
4
Sport mode
The steering effort becomes heavier.
Comfort mode
The steering effort becomes lighter
in comfort mode. For your safety, if you press the
steering mode button to change
the mode while turning the steering
wheel, the LCD display will change
as you selected, but the steering
effort will not change. After that, if
you leave the steering wheel cen-
tered, the steering effort will
change to the selected mode.
Be careful when changing the steering mode while driving.
When the electronic power steer- ing is not working properly, the
driver selectable steering mode will
not work.
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517
Driving your vehicle
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.
D (Drive)
This is the normal forward driving
position. The transaxle will automati-
cally shift through a 6-gear
sequence, providing the best fuel
economy and power.
For extra power when passing anoth-
er vehicle or climbing grades,
depress the accelerator fully, at
which time the transaxle will auto-
matically downshift to the next lower
gear.Sports mode
Whether the vehicle is stationary or
in motion, sports mode is selected by
pushing the shift lever from the D
(Drive) position into the manual gate.
To return to D (Drive) range opera-
tion, push the shift lever back into the
main gate.
CAUTION- Shifting
Always come to a complete stop
before shifting into or out of R(Reverse); you may damage thetransaxle if you shift into R(Reverse) while the vehicle is inmotion, except when “Rockingthe vehicle” explained in thissection.
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S
S
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p
p
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r
r
r
r
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Driving your vehicle
18
5
In sports mode, moving the shift
lever backwards and forwards will
allow you to make gearshifts rapidly.
In contrast to a manual transaxle, the
sports mode allows gearshifts with
the accelerator pedal depressed.
Up (+) : Push the lever forward
once to shift up one gear.
Down (-) : Pull the lever backwards once to shift down one
gear. In sports mode, the driver must
execute upshifts in accordance
with road conditions, taking care to
keep the engine speed below the
red zone.
In sports mode, only the 6 forward gears can be selected. To reverse
or park the vehicle, move the shift
lever to the R (Reverse) or P (Park)
position as required.
In sports mode, downshifts are made automatically when the vehi-
cle slows down. When the vehicle
stops, 1st gear is automatically
selected.
In sports mode, when the engine rpm approaches the red zone shift
points are varied to upshift auto-
matically. To maintain the required levels of
vehicle performance and safety,
the system may not execute cer-
tain gearshifts when the shift lever
is operated.
When driving on a slippery road, push the shift lever forward into the
+(up) position. This causes the
transaxle to shift into the 2nd gear
which is better for smooth driving
on a slippery road. Push the shift
lever to the -(down) side to shift
back to the 1st gear.
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547
Driving your vehicle
ACTIVE ECO SYSTEM (IF EQUIPPED)
Active ECO operation
Active ECO helps improve fuel effi-
ciency by controlling certain engine
and transaxle system operating
parameters. Fuel efficiency depends
on the driver's driving habit and road
condition.
When the Active ECO button ispressed the ECO indicator (green)
will illuminate to show that the
Active ECO is operating. When the Active ECO is activated,
it will remain on until the Active
ECO button is pressed again.
Active ECO does not turn off when
the engine is restarted. To turn off
Active ECO, press the Active ECO
button again.
If Active ECO is turned off, the sys- tem will return to normal mode.
When Active ECO is activated:
The acceleration may slightly bereduced eventhough you depress
the accelerator fully.
The air conditioner performance may be limited.
The shift pattern of the automatic transaxle may change.
The engine noise may get louder.
The above situations are normal
conditions when the active eco sys-
tem is activated to improve fuel effi-
ciency.
Limitation of Active ECO oper-
ation:
If the following conditions occur while
Active ECO is operating, the system
operation is limited even though
there is no change in the ECO indi-
cator.
When the coolant temperature is low: The system will be limited until
engine performance becomes nor-
mal.
When driving up a hill: The system will be limited to gain power when
driving uphill because the engine
torque is restricted.
When using sports mode: The sys- tem will be limited according to the
shift location.
When the accelerator pedal is deeply depressed for a few sec-
onds: The system will be limited,
judging that the driver wants to
speed up.
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