Get Driving your vehicle -> Automatic transmission (Shift Lever) Guide for Kia Sportage SUV Fifth Generation (2022-2026)

Driving your vehicle

Automatic transmission (Shift Lever)

For smooth operation, depress the brake

pedal when shifting from N (Neutral) to

a forward or reverse gear.

Automatic transmission (Shift

Lever)

WARNING

Automatic transmission

僅 Always check the surrounding areas

near your vehicle for people, espe

-

cially children, before shifting a vehi

-

cle into D (Drive) or R (Reverse).

僅 Before leaving the driver's seat,

always make sure the shift lever is in

the P (Park) position; then set the

parking brake fully and shut the

engine off. Unexpected and sudden

vehicle movement can occur if these

precautions are not followed in the

order identified.

ONQ5041195

Depress the brake pedal and the

unlock button when shifting.

Press the unlock button when

shifting.

僅 Do not use the engine brake (shifting

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from a high gear to lower gear) rap

-

The shift lever can be shifted

freely.

idly on slippery roads.

The vehicle may slip causing an acci

-

dent.

Automatic transmission opera

tion

-

CAUTION

The automatic transmission has 8 for

ward speeds and one reverse speed.

-

僅 To avoid damage to your transmis

-

The individual speeds are selected auto

matically, depending on the balance

between the fuel economy and the

power.

-

sion, do not accelerate the engine in R

(Reverse) or any forward gear posi

tion with the brakes on.

-

僅 When stopped on an incline, do not

hold the vehicle stationary with

engine power. Use the service brake

or the parking brake.

NOTICE

The first few shifts on a new vehicle, if

the battery has been disconnected, may

be somewhat abrupt. This is a normal

condition, and the shifting sequence will

adjust after shifts are cycled a few times

僅 Do not shift from N (Neutral) or P

(Park) into D (Drive), or R (Reverse)

when the engine is above idle speed.

by the TCM (Transmission Control Mod

-

ule) or PCM (Powertrain Control Mod

-

ule).

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11

Driving your vehicle

Automatic transmission (Shift Lever)

except as explained in "Rocking the

vehicle" on page 5-55.

Transmission ranges

The indicator in the instrument cluster

displays the shift lever position when the

ignition switch or ENGINE START/STOP

button is in the ON position.

N (Neutral)

The wheels and transmission are not

engaged. The vehicle will roll freely even

P (Park)

on the slightest incline unless the park

-

Always come to a complete stop before

shifting into P (Park). This position locks

the transmission and prevents the front

wheels from rotating.

ing brake or service brakes are applied.

WARNING

Do not coast with the shift lever in N

(Neutral).

WARNING

The engine brake will not work and lead

to an accident.

僅 Shifting into P (Park) while the vehicle

is in motion will cause the drive

wheels to lock which will cause you to

lose control of the vehicle.

CAUTION

僅 Do not use the P (Park) position in

place of the parking brake. Always

make sure the shift lever is latched in

僅 Always park the vehicle in "P" (Park)

for safety and engage the parking

brake. If left in "N" (Neutral), the vehi

-

the P (Park) position and set the park

ing brake fully.

-

cle may move and cause serious dam

age and injury.

-

僅 Never leave a child unattended in a

vehicle.

僅 After the ignition switch or ENGINE

START/STOP button has been turned

off, the electronic parking brake can

not be disengaged.

-

CAUTION

僅 When the engine has been turned

The transmission may be damaged if

you shift into P (Park) while the vehicle is

in motion.

"OFF" in a vehicle equipped with EPB

(Electronic Parking Brake) and the

AUTO HOLD function turned on, the

electronic parking brake will be

engaged automatically.

R (Reverse)

Use this position to drive the vehicle

backward.

D (Drive)

CAUTION

This is the normal forward driving posi

-

tion. The transmission will automatically

shift through 8 gear sequence, providing

the best fuel economy and power.

Always come to a complete stop before

shifting into or out of R (Reverse); you

may damage the transmission if you

shift into R while the vehicle is in motion,

For extra power when passing another

vehicle or climbing grades, depress the

accelerator fully, at which time the trans

-

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12

Driving your vehicle

Automatic transmission (Shift Lever)

mission will automatically downshift to

the next lower gear.

僅 Downshifts are made automatically

when the vehicle slows down. When

the vehicle stops, 1st gear is automati

cally selected.

-

NOTICE

Always come to a complete stop before

shifting into D (Drive).

僅 When the engine rpm approaches the

red zone shift points are varied to

upshift automatically.

僅 To maintain the required levels of

vehicle performance and safety, the

Manual mode

system may not execute certain gear

-

shifts when the shift lever is operated.

僅 When driving on a slippery road, push

the shift lever forward into the +(up)

position. This causes the transmission

to shift into the 2nd gear which is bet

ter for smooth driving on a slippery

road. Push the shift lever to the -

(down) side to shift back to the 1st

gear.

-

ONQ5041197

Whether the vehicle is stationary or in

motion, manual mode is selected by

pushing the shift lever from the D (Drive)

position into the manual gate. To return

to D (Drive) range operation, push the

shift lever back into the main gate.

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Paddle shifter (if equipped)

The paddle shift function is available

when the shift lever is in the D (Drive)

position or the manual mode.

In manual mode, moving the shift lever

backwards and forwards will allow you

to make gearshifts rapidly. In contrast to

a manual transmission, manual mode

allows gearshifts with the accelerator

pedal depressed.

僅 Up (+): Push the lever forward once to

shift up one gear.

僅 Down (-): Pull the lever backwards

once to shift down one gear.

NOTICE

僅 The driver must execute upshifts in

accordance with road conditions, tak

ing care to keep the engine speed

below the red zone.

-

ONQ5041006_2

With the shift lever in the D posi

tion

-

僅 Only the 8 forward gears can be

selected. To reverse or park the vehi

cle, move the shift lever to the R

(Reverse) or P (Park) position as

required.

-

Pull the [+] or [-] paddle shifter once to

shift up or down one gear and the sys

tem changes from automatic mode to

manual mode.

-

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13

Driving your vehicle

Automatic transmission (Shift Lever)

Paddle shifter doesn’t work at low vehi

cle speed.

-

If the brake pedal is repeatedly

depressed and released with the shift

lever in the P (Park) position, a chatter

ing noise near the shift lever may be

heard. This is a normal condition.

-

To change back to automatic shift mode

from manual shift mode, do one of the

followings:

僅 Pull the [+] paddle shifter for more

than one second

WARNING

Always fully depress the brake pedal

before and while shifting out of the P

(Park) position into another position to

avoid inadvertent motion of the vehicle

which could injure persons in or around

the vehicle.

僅 Move the shift lever from D (Drive) to

manual gate and return it to D posi

tion again

-

The manual shift mode also changes

back to automatic shift mode in one of

following situations

僅 When the accelerator pedal is gently

depressed for more than 6 seconds

while driving

Shift-lock override

僅 When the vehicle stops

With the shift lever in the manual

mode

ONQ5041196

Pull the [+] or [-] paddle shifter once to

shift up or down one gear.

If the shift lever cannot be moved from

the P (Park) position into R (Reverse)

position with the brake pedal depressed,

continue depressing the brake, then do

the following:

NOTICE

If you pull the [+] and [-] paddle shifters

at the same time, you cannot shift the

gear.

1. Place the ignition switch or ENGINE

START/STOP button in the LOCK/OFF

position.

Shift lock system

For your safety, the automatic transmis

sion has a shift lock system which pre

vents shifting the transmission from P

(Park) into R (Reverse) unless the brake

pedal is depressed.

-

2. Apply the parking brake.

-

3. Carefully remove the knob boots cov

ering the shift-lock release access

hole.

-

4. Insert a tool (e.g., flathead screw

driver) into the access hole and press

down on the tool.

-

To shift the transmission from P (Park)

into R (Reverse):

1. Depress and hold the brake pedal.

2. Start the engine or turn the ignition

switch or ENGINE START/STOP but

5. Move the shift lever.

6. Remove the tool from the shift - lock

override access hole then install the

knob boots.

-

ton to the ON position.

3. Move the shift lever.

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14

Driving your vehicle

Automatic transmission (Shift Lever)

7. If the shift lever does not move even

after performing this procedure, have

depressing and releasing the acceler

ator pedal.

-

the system inspected by an autho

rized Kia dealer.

-

WARNING

僅 When driving uphill or downhill,

Good driving practices

ensure that the gear position is set for

the direction of travel: D (Drive) for

forward and R (Reverse) for rearward.

Driving in the opposite direction of the

selected gear can cause the engine to

僅 Never move the shift lever from P

(Park) or N (Neutral) to any other

position with the accelerator pedal

depressed.

僅 Never move the shift lever into P

(Park) when the vehicle is in motion.

shut off and can affect braking per

formance, increasing the risk of a

crash.

-

僅 Be sure the vehicle is completely

stopped before you attempt to shift

into R (Reverse) or D (Drive).

僅 Always buckle-up! In a collision, an

unbelted occupant is significantly

more likely to be seriously injured or

僅 Never take the vehicle out of gear and

coast down a hill. This may be

killed than a properly belted occu

-

pant.

extremely hazardous. Always leave

the vehicle in gear when moving.

僅 Avoid high speeds when cornering or

turning.

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僅 Do not "ride" the brakes. This can

cause them to overheat and malfunc

tion. Instead, when you are driving

down a long hill, slow down and shift

to a lower gear. When you do this,

engine braking will help slow down

the vehicle.

-

僅 Do not make quick steering wheel

movements, such as sharp lane

changes or fast, sharp turns.

僅 The risk of a rollover is greatly

increased if you lose control of your

vehicle at highway speeds.

僅 Slow down before shifting to a lower

gear. Otherwise, the lower gear may

not be engaged.

僅 Losing control often occurs if two or

more wheels drop off the roadway

and the driver oversteers to reenter

the roadway.

僅 Always use the parking brake. Do not

depend on placing the transmission in

P (Park) to keep the vehicle from

moving.

僅 In the event your vehicle leaves the

roadway, do not steer sharply.

Instead, slow down before pulling

back into the travel lanes.

僅 Exercise extreme caution when driv

-

ing on a slippery surface. Be espe

-

僅 Never exceed posted speed limits.

cially careful when braking,

accelerating or shifting gears. On a

slippery surface, an abrupt change in

vehicle speed can cause the drive

wheels to lose traction and the vehicle

to go out of control.

僅 Optimum vehicle performance and

economy is obtained by smoothly

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Driving your vehicle -> Automatic transmission (Shift Lever) for Your Kia Sportage SUV Fifth Generation (2022-2026)

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