Lexus ES-300 2001 Manual page 306

3. Release the parking brake and brake pedal.
Depress the accelerator pedal slowly for smooth
starting.
The vehicle will start in the first gear and automatically
shift to the most suitable gear for the running conditions,
such as the vehicle speed, hill climbing, hard towing, etc.
However, while the engine coolant temperature is low
and the vehicle is traveling at low speed, the
transmission will not shift into the overdrive gear even
with the overdrive on.
When the lever is in the "D" position, the automatic
transmission system will select the most suitable gear
for the running conditions such as hill climbing, hard
towing, etc.
If you need to accelerate rapidly while driving, push the
accelerator pedal all the way to the floor. The
transmission will automatically downshift to the third,
second or first gear, according to the vehicle speed.
If engine braking is needed, such as in descending a
long hill, see "(c) Using engine braking".
STARTING AND DRIVING
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