When Driving; road surfaces or at high speeds:; rim when using fi ngers on the steering - Page 161

4–35

When Driving

Transaxle

  To shift down to a lower gear with the 
steering shift switches, pull the DOWN 
switch

 toward you once with your 

fi ngers.

DOWN switch

WARNING

  Do not use engine braking on slippery 
road surfaces or at high speeds:

  Shifting down while driving on wet, 
snowy, or frozen roads, or while driving 
at high speeds causes sudden engine 
braking, which is dangerous. The 
sudden change in tire speed could 
cause the tires to skid. This could 
lead to loss of vehicle control and an 
accident.
  

  Keep your hands on the steering wheel 
rim when using fi ngers on the steering 
shift switches:

  Putting your hands inside the rim of 
the steering wheel when using the 
steering shift switches is dangerous. 
If the driver's air bag were to deploy 
in a collision, your hands could be 
impacted causing injury.

   NOTE

y

  When driving at high speeds, the gear 

may not shift down.

y

  During deceleration, the gear may 

automatically shift down depending on 
vehicle speed.

y

  When depressing the accelerator fully, 

the transaxle will shift to a lower gear, 
depending on vehicle speed.

  Second  gear  fi xed mode

    When the selector lever is moved back 
while the vehicle speed is about 10 km/h 
(6.2 mph) or less, the transaxle is set in the 
second gear fi xed mode. The gear is fi xed 
in second while in this mode for easier 
acceleration from a stop and driving on 
slippery roads such as snow-covered 
roads.
  If the selector lever is moved back   or 
forward

 while in the second gear fi xed 

mode, the mode will be canceled.