Selecting Gears
Reverse
Reverse (R) is at the upper end of the three-position selector switch located at the end of the SmartShift control lever. To select reverse (R), press in the neutral lock button and move the selector switch upward to the position above neutral. When reverse is selected, the letter "R" displays on the gear indicator. See Fig..
Fig. 1, Reverse Gear Display
Important: The vehicle must come to a complete stop before selecting reverse. If reverse is selected with the vehicle moving forward, an audible alert will sound and continue sounding at three-second intervals until the selector switch is returned to N or D.
Once the vehicle has come to a complete stop, reverse can be engaged.
Neutral
Neutral (N) is in the center of the three-position selector switch located at the end of the SmartShift control lever. Always start the engine in neutral. To select neutral, move the selector switch to the center position. When neutral is selected, the letter "N" displays on the gear indicator. See Fig..
Fig. 2, Neutral Display
Warning: Do not coast in neutral. Coasting in neutral can cause an accident, possibly resulting in severe personal injury or death.
Neutral is always available during operation, whatever the vehicle speed. When in neutral, requests to upshift or downshift are ignored. If the selector switch is moved from neutral to drive while the vehicle is moving, the transmission will shift into a gear within the operating torque range of the engine.
Warning: Always apply the parking brake before shutting down the engine. AGS will shift into neutral after shutdown, regardless of the position of the shift lever. If you do not set the parking brake, the vehicle could roll and cause an accident resulting in death, serious personal injury, or property damage.
Before shutting down the engine, return the selector switch to "N." When the ignition is turned off, the transmission will reset to neutral during power down.
Drive
Important: The vehicle must come to a complete stop before selecting drive. If drive is selected with the vehicle moving in reverse, an audible alert will sound and continue sounding at three-second intervals until the selector switch is returned to N or R.
Drive (D) is at the lower end of the three-position selector switch located at the end of the SmartShift control lever. To select drive, press in the neutral lock button and move the selector switch to the position below neutral. When drive is selected, the number of the currently selected forward gear (1, 2, 3, 4 , 5, or 6) displays on the gear indicator.
Upshifting
Note: The driver can manually upshift at any time, even when the slide switch is set to AUTO mode.
To request an upshift with the transmission in drive, pull the control lever up (towards you). If the gear is available, the transmission upshifts and the new gear displays on the gear indicator.
As in a manual transmission, upshifting too early causes engine lugging and uneven operation.
To achieve smooth operation in MAN mode, upshift when the engine speed reaches approximately 2000 revolutions per minute (rpm). Heavy loads or steep grades require higher rpm; lighter loads require lower rpm.
An unavailable request to upshift is not stored in memory. The upshift must be requested again.
Downshifting
Note: The driver can manually downshift at any time, even when the slide switch is set to AUTO mode.
To request a downshift with the transmission in drive, push the control lever down (away from you). If the gear is available, the transmission downshifts and the new gear displays on the gear indicator.
Downshifts are not available if the engine speed after the shift would exceed 2700 rpm. If the gear requested is unavailable, an audible alert will sound. An unavailable request to downshift is not stored in memory. The downshift must be requested again.
To achieve smooth operation in MAN mode, downshift when the engine speed reaches approximately 1200 rpm.
Before starting down a hill, slow down. Downshift to a speed that you can control without hard pressure on the service brakes.
Before entering a curve, slow down to a safe speed. Downshift if necessary. This lets you use some power through the curve to help the vehicle be more stable when turning. It also allows you to regain speed faster as you come out of the curve.