2008 Saturn VUE Owner's Manual - Page 102

MANUAL (M): This position allows you to change gears similar to a manual transmission. If your vehicle has this feature, see Manual Shift Mode. Notice: Spinning the tires or holding the vehicle in one place on a hill using only the accelerator pedal may damage the transmission. The repair will not be covered by your warranty. If you are stuck, do not spin the tires. When stopping on a hill, use the brakes to hold the vehicle in place. While using the MSM feature the vehicle will have sportier performance. You can use this when driving hilly roads to stay in gear longer or to downshift for more power or engine braking. The transmission will only allow you to shift into a gear range appropriate for the vehicle speed. • The transmission will not automatically shift to the next higher gear range without pressing the button on the shifter handle. Manual Shift Mode (MSM) (Automatic Transmission) To use this feature, do the following: 1. Move the shift lever from DRIVE (D) rearward to the MANUAL MODE (M). The six-speed transmission will downshift to a lower gear and the instrument panel will display the gear range selected. If equipped with a 4-speed transmission it will display a three (3) for third gear range. When coming to a stop in the manual position, the vehicle will automatically shift to FIRST (1) gear. 2. Press the plus (+) button to upshift or the minus (−) button to downshift. • The transmission will not allow shifting to the next lower gear if the vehicle speed is too high. If the vehicle does not respond to a gear change, or detects a problem with the transmission, the range of gears may be reduced and the Malfunction Indicator Lamp will come on. See Malfunction Indicator Lamp on page 3-41. 2-24