(1st) gear, DRIVE (D) or REVERSE (R) gear is
displayed in the instrument cluster display,
turn the engine off and engage the parking
brake. It is essential to wait until the gear
engaged appears in the display before turning
the engine off and releasing the brake pedal.
Always remember to apply your parking
brake.
NOTE:
NEVER leave your vehicle with the gearbox in
NEUTRAL (N) without the parking brake en-
gaged. Always remember to fully apply your
parking brake. Always remember to apply the
parking brake when the “Set Park Brake”
message is displayed.
General Warnings
• With the vehicle at a standstill and a gearengaged, keep the brake pedal pressed un-
til you decide to drive away. Then release
the brake and accelerate gradually. • When parked for long periods with the en-
gine running, it is advisable to place the
transmission in NEUTRAL (N) and apply
the parking brake.
• To avoid accelerated clutch wear, do not use the accelerator to keep the vehicle at a
standstill (for example, holding on a hill);
the clutch could be damaged by overheat-
ing. Use the brake pedal instead and oper-
ate the accelerator only when you are ready
to drive away.
• Only launch (from a stop) in second gear when you need more control on surfaces
with low traction.
• Only shift between DRIVE (D) and RE- VERSE (R) gears when the vehicle has
come to a stop and the brake pedal is
pressed. • Although very inadvisable, if the vehicle is
unexpectedly allowed to roll downhill with
the gearbox in NEUTRAL (N) the system
will automatically engage the gear best
suited to vehicle speed when a gear shift is
requested to allow drive to be correctly
transmitted to the wheels.
• If necessary, with the engine off, it is pos- sible to engage 1st, REVERSE (R) or NEU-
TRAL (N) with the key in ON/RUN/MAR
position and the brake pressed.
• During hill starts, accelerate immediately after releasing the parking brake or brake
pedal to allow the engine to increase its
rpm to a greater extent and overcome
higher gradients with more torque.
85
It is recommended to replace the two front
tires or two rear tires as a pair. Replacing just
one tire can seriously affect your vehicle’s
handling. If you ever replace a wheel, make
sure that the wheel’s specifications match
those of the original wheels.
It is recommended you contact your autho-
rized tire dealer or original equipment dealer
with any questions you may have on tire
specifications or capability. Failure to use
equivalent replacement tires may adversely
affect the safety, handling, and ride of your
vehicle.
WARNING!
• Do not use a tire, wheel size, load rating,or speed rating other than that specified
for your vehicle. Some combinations of
unapproved tires and wheels may
change suspension dimensions and per-
formance characteristics, resulting in
changes to steering, handling, and brak-
ing of your vehicle. This can cause un-
predictable handling and stress to steer-
ing and suspension components. You
WARNING!
could lose control and have a collision
resulting in serious injury or death. Use
only the tire and wheel sizes with load
ratings approved for your vehicle.
• Never use a tire with a smaller load index
or capacity, other than what was origi-
nally equipped on your vehicle. Using a
tire with a smaller load index could re-
sult in tire overloading and failure. You
could lose control and have a collision.
• Failure to equip your vehicle with tires
having adequate speed capability can
result in sudden tire failure and loss of
vehicle control.
CAUTION!
Replacing original tires with tires of a
different size may result in false speedom-
eter and odometer readings.
Tire Types
All Season Tires — If Equipped
All Season tires provide traction for all sea-
sons (Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter).
Traction levels may vary between different all
season tires. All season tires can be identi-
fied by the M+S, M&S, M/S or MS designa-
tion on the tire sidewall. Use all season tires
only in sets of four; failure to do so may
adversely affect the safety and handling of
your vehicle.
Summer Or Three Season Tires —
If Equipped
Summer tires provide traction in both wet
and dry conditions, and are not intended to
be driven in snow or on ice. If your vehicle is
equipped with Summer tires, be aware these
tires are not designed for Winter or cold
driving conditions. Install Winter tires on your
vehicle when ambient temperatures are less
than 40°F (5°C) or if roads are covered with
ice or snow. For more information, contact an
authorized dealer.SERVICING AND MAINTENANCE
146
Summer tires do not contain the all season
designation or mountain/snowflake symbol
on the tire sidewall. Use Summer tires only in
sets of four; failure to do so may adversely
affect the safety and handling of your vehicle.
WARNING!
Do not use Summer tires in snow/ice con-
ditions. You could lose vehicle control,
resulting in severe injury or death. Driving
too fast for conditions also creates the
possibility of loss of vehicle control.
Snow Tires
Some areas of the country require the use of
snow tires during the Winter. Snow tires can
be identified by a “mountain/snowflake”
symbol on the tire sidewall.If you need snow tires,
select tires equivalent
in size and type to the
original equipment
tires. Use snow tires
only in sets of four; failure to do so may adversely affect the
safety and handling of your vehicle.
Snow tires generally have lower speed ratings
than what was originally equipped with your
vehicle and should not be operated at sus-
tained speeds over 75 mph (120 km/h). For
speeds above 75 mph (120 km/h) refer to
original equipment or an authorized tire
dealer for recommended safe operating
speeds, loading and cold tire inflation pres-
sures.
While studded tires improve performance on
ice, skid and traction capability on wet or dry
surfaces may be poorer than that of non-
studded tires. Some states prohibit studded
tires; therefore, local laws should be checked
before using these tire types.
Spare Tires — If Equipped
For vehicles equipped with Tire Service
Kit instead of a spare tire, please refer to
“Tire Service Kit” in “In Case Of Emergency”
in the Owner’s Manual at www.mopar.com/
en-us/care/owners-manual.html (U.S. Resi-
dents) or www.owners.mopar.ca (Canadian
Residents) for further information.
CAUTION!
Because of the reduced ground clearance,
do not take your vehicle through an auto-
matic car wash with a compact or limited
use temporary spare installed. Damage to
the vehicle may result.
Spare Tire Matching Original Equipped Tire
And Wheel — If Equipped
Your vehicle may be equipped with a spare
tire and wheel equivalent in look and function
to the original equipment tire and wheel
found on the front or rear axle of your vehicle.
This spare tire may be used in the tire rotation
for your vehicle. If your vehicle has this op-
tion, refer to an authorized tire dealer for the
recommended tire rotation pattern.
Compact Spare Tire — If Equipped
The compact spare is for temporary emer-
gency use only. You can identify if your ve-
hicle is equipped with a compact spare by
looking at the spare tire description on the
Tire and Loading Information Placard located
on the driver’s side door opening or on the
147
Traction Grades
The Traction grades, from highest to
lowest, are AA, A, B, and C. These
grades represent the tire's ability to
stop on wet pavement, as measured
under controlled conditions on speci-
fied government test surfaces of as-
phalt and concrete. A tire marked C
may have poor traction performance.
WARNING!
The traction grade assigned to this tire
is based on straight-ahead braking
traction tests, and does not include
acceleration, cornering, hydroplan-
ing, or peak traction characteristics.
Temperature Grades
The Temperature grades are A (the
highest), B, and C, representing the
tire's resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat,
when tested under controlled condi-
tions on a specified indoor laboratory
test wheel.
Sustained high temperature can cause
the material of the tire to degenerate
and reduce tire life, and excessive
temperature can lead to sudden tire
failure. The grade C corresponds to a
level of performance, which all pas-
senger vehicle tires must meet under
the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Stan-
dard No. 109. Grades B and A repre-
sent higher levels of performance on
the laboratory test wheel, than the
minimum required by law.
WARNING!
The temperature grade for this tire is
established for a tire that is properly
inflated and not overloaded. Exces-
sive speed, under-inflation, or ex-
cessive loading, either separately or
in combination, can cause heat
buildup and possible tire failure.
151