Acura MDX 2018 Owner's Manual

470
uuWhen Driving uPrecautions While Driving
Driving
Precautions While Driving
Utility vehicles have a significantly higher rollover rate than other types of vehicles.
To prevent rollovers or loss of control:
• Take corners at slower speeds than yo u would with a passenger vehicle.
• Avoid sharp turns and abrupt maneuvers whenever possible.
• Do not modify your vehicle in any way that you would raise the center of gravity.
• Do not carry heavy cargo on the roof.
Never carry more than 165 lbs (75 kg) of cargo on the roof rack (Acura accessory).
Avoid driving in deep water and on flooded roads. This can damage the engine or
driveline, or cause elec trical component failure.
If there is a strong impact with something under the vehicle, stop in a safe location.
Check the underside of the vehicle for damage or any fluid leaks.
■Driving Guidelines for Your Utility Vehicle
■In Rain
■Other Precautions
1 Precautions While Driving
NOTICE
Do not change the gear position while pressing the
accelerator pedal. You could damage the
transmission.
NOTICE
If you repeatedly turn the steering wheel at an
extremely low speed, or hold the steering wheel in
the full left or right position for a while, the system
heats up. The system goes into a protective mode,
and limits its performa nce. The steering wheel
becomes harder and harder to operate. Once the
system cools down, the EPS system is restored.
Repeated operation under these conditions can
eventually damage the system.
If the power mode is set to ACCESSORY while
driving, the engine will shut down and all steering
and brake power assist functi ons will stop, making it
difficult to control the vehicle.
Do not change the gear position to
( N, as you will
lose engine braking (and acceleration) performance.
During the first 600 miles (1,000 km) of operation,
avoid sudden acceleration or full throttle operation so
as not to damage the engine or powertrain.
Avoid hard braking for the first 200 miles (300 km).
You should also follow this when the brake pads are
replaced.
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471
uuWhen Driving uAutomatic Transmission
Driving
Automatic Transmission
The engine runs at a higher id le speed and creeping increases.
Keep the brake pedal firmly depressed when stopped.
Quickly depressing the accelerator peda l while driving uphill may cause the
transmission to drop to a lower gear, unex pectedly increasing vehicle speed. Depress
the accelerator pedal carefully, especi ally on slippery roads and curves.
■Creeping
■Kickdown
1Driving Guidelines for Your Utility Vehicle
Failure to operate your vehicle correctly might result
in a crash or a rollover. 2 Important Handling Information P. 30
2 Precautions While Driving P. 470
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472
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Driving
Shifting
Change the gear position in acco rdance with your driving needs.
■Shift button positions
1Shifting
To prevent malfunc tion and unintended
engagement:
•Do not spill any liquids on or around shift buttons.
•Do not place or drop any objects on or around shift
buttons.
•Do not let passengers or ch ildren operate the shift
buttons.
The beeper sounds and the message appears on the
MID when you depress the accelerator pedal with the
gear position in
( N.
Change the gear position to
( D or (R with the brake
pedal depressed.
When shifting gears in extremely low temperatures
(−22°F/−30°C), there may be a short delay before the
shift is indicated in the di splay. Always confirm you
are in the correct gear before driving.
3WARNING
The vehicle can roll aw ay if left unattended
without confirming that Park is engaged.
A vehicle that rolls away could cause a crash
resulting in serious injury or death.
Always keep your foot on the brake pedal
until you have confirmed that
( P is shown
on the gear position Indicator.
Park
Used when parking, before turning off or
starting the engine
Reverse
Used when reversing
Neutral
Transmission is not locked
Drive
Used for:
●Normal driving (gears change between 1st
and 9th automatically)
●Temporarily driving in the sequential
mode
Drive (S)
Used for:
●Automatically changing gears between 1st
and 7th (7th gear is used only at high
speed)
●Driving in the sequential mode
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473
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Continued
Driving
■(P (parking) button
The gear position changes to
(P when you
press the
(P button while the vehicle is
parked with the power mode in ON.
The indicators on the sides of the
(P button
come on.
( P Button
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uuWhen Driving uShifting
474
Driving
■Shift Operation1Shift Operation
NOTICE
When you change (D to (R and vice versa, come to
a complete stop and keep the brake pedal depressed.
Operating the shift button before the vehicle has
come to a complete standstill can damage the
transmission.
Use the gear position indicator and the shift button
indicator to check the gear position before selecting
a shift button.
If the indicator of the curren tly selected gear position,
or all the gear position indicators are blinking
simultaneously, there is a problem with the
transmission.
Avoid sudden acceleration and have the transmission
checked by a dealer as soon as possible.
The fuel supply may be cut of f if you drive at engine
speeds in or over the tachometer’s red zone (engine
speed limit). If this happe ns, you may experience a
slight jolt.
When the engine speed is increased while the
transmission is in
( N, (P or (R, the fuel supply may
be cut off even without the engine speed entering
the tachometer’s red zone.
The beeper sounds once when you change to
( R.
Gear Position Indicator
Tachometer’s red zone
Press the (P button.
Pull back the (R button.
Press the
( N button.
Press the button.
D/S
Shift Button
Indicator M
(sequential mode)
Indicator
Sequential Mode Gear
Selection Indicator
Press the button twice.
If the gear position is in
( D,
press the button again.
D/S
D/S
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Continued475
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Driving
In freezing or sub-freezing conditions, the gear selection response may be slow.
Always depress the brake pedal before changing the gear position to
(P, and
confirm that
(P is shown on the gear position in dicator before releasing the brake.
■When opening the driver’s door
If you open the driver’s door under the following conditions, the gear position
automatically changes to
(P.
• The vehicle is in stationary with the engi ne running, or moving at 1 mph (2 km/h)
or slower.
• The transmission is in other than
(P.
• You have unfastened the driver side seat belt.
u If you manually change the gear position from
(P with the brake pedal
depressed, the gear position will automatically return to
(P once you release
the brake pedal.
■When turning off the power mode
If you turn the engine off wh ile the vehicle is stationary, and the transmission is in
other than
(P, the gear position au tomatically changes to (P.
1When opening the driver’s door
While the system is designed to automatically change
the gear position to
(P under the described
conditions, in the interest of safety you should always
select
( P before opening the driver’s door.
Make sure to park the vehicle in a safe place.
2 When Stopped P. 545
If you want to drive the ve hicle after the gear position
has automatically changed to
( P under the described
conditions, close the door, fasten the seat belt,
depress the brake pedal, then change the gear
position.
If you leave the vehicle, tu rn off the engine and lock
the doors.
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uuWhen Driving uShifting
476
Driving
■If you want to keep the transmission in (N position [car wash mode]
With the engine running:
1. Press and hold the brake pedal.
2. Select
(N, then release the button to display (N (Neutral) hold mode on the MID.
3. Press and hold
(N again for two seconds.
u This puts the vehicle in car wash mode which must be used when your vehicle
is pulled through a conveyor type automatic car wash where you or an
attendant do not remain in the vehicle.
If the ENGINE STOP/START button is pressed
after car wash mode has been activated, the
power mode will change to ACCESSORY and
a message will be displayed on the multi-
information display.u The gear position remains in
(N with the
power mode in ACCESSORY for 15
minutes, then, it automatically changes
to
(P and the power mode changes to
OFF.
u Manually changing to
(P cancels
ACCESSORY mode. The
(P indicator
comes on and the power mode changes
to OFF. You must always shift to
(P
when car wash mode is no longer
needed.
1 If you want to keep the transmission in (N position [car wash
mode]
The transmission may not stay in
(N position while
the following indicators ar e on or when the message
below appears:
•Malfunction indicator lamp
•Transmission system indicator
•Charging system indicator•The Charging System Problem message on the
MID.
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477
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Continued
Driving
■Restriction on select ing a gear position
You cannot select a gear position under certain circumstances that may lead to a crash.
When the
transmission is in:1. Under the circumstances
of that:2. You cannot select:3. The gear position
remains in/changes to:How to change the
gear position
(P
The brake pedal is not
depressed.
Other gear position
(P
Release the accelerator
pedal and depress the
brake pedal.
The accelerator pedal is
depressed.
(N
The vehicle is moving at low
speed without the brake pedal
depressed.
(N
The vehicle is moving at low
speed with the accelerator
pedal depressed.
(N, (D or (SThe vehicle is moving forward.(RStop your vehicle in a
safe place, depress the
brake pedal, and select
the appropriate gear
position.
(R or (NThe vehicle is moving backward.(D, (S
(R, (N, (D or (SThe vehicle is moving.(P
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478
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Driving
Use the paddle shifters to change betwee n 1st and 9th gears without releasing your
hands from the steering wheel. The transmiss ion will switch to the sequential mode.
■When the transmission is in (D:
The vehicle will go into the sequential mo de momentarily, and the sequential mode
gear selection indicator will come on.
Once you start traveling at a constant sp eed, the sequential mode will automatically
switch off, and the sequential mode gear selection indicator will go off.
Hold the
(+ paddle shifter for two seconds or push the button to return to
normal drive.
■When the transmission is in (S
The vehicle will go into th e sequential mode, and the M (sequential mode) indicator
and sequential mode gear selection indicator will come on.
If the vehicle speed increases and the engi ne speed reaches near the tachometer’s
red zone, the transmission automatica lly shifts up to the next gear.
You can cancel this mode by holding the
(+ paddle shifter for two seconds or push
the button. When the se quential mode is canceled, the sequential mode
indicator and sequential mode gear selection indicator will turn off.
■Sequential Mode
D/S
D/S
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479
uuWhen Driving uShifting
Driving
■Sequential Mode Operation1Sequential Mode Operation
Each paddle shift operation makes a single gear
change.
To change gears continuously, release the paddle
shifter before pulling it again for the next gear.
If the sequential mode gear selection indicator blinks
when you try to shift up or down, this means your
vehicle speed is not in its allowable gear range.
Slightly accelerate to shift up and decelerate to shift
down while the indi cator is blinking.
Downshifting when pulling
the paddle shifter.
(Changes to a lower gear)Upshifting when pulling
the paddle shifter.
(Changes to a higher gear)
Paddle Shifter
(Shift down) Paddle Shifter
(Shift up)
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