Freeing A Stuck Vehicle - Fiat 500 L 2019 User Manual

FREEING A STUCK VEHICLE

If your vehicle becomes stuck in mud, sand or
snow, it can often be moved using a rocking
motion. Turn the steering wheel right and left to
clear the area around the front wheels. Push and
hold the lock button on the gear selector. Then,
shift back and forth between DRIVE and RE-
VERSE, while gently pressing the accelerator. Use
the least amount of accelerator pedal pressure
that will maintain the rocking motion, without
spinning the wheels, or racing the engine.
NOTE:
Push the "ESC Off" switch, to place the Electronic
Stability Control (ESC) system in "Partial Off"
mode, before rocking the vehicle. Refer to "Elec-
tronic Brake Control System" in "Safety" in your
Owner' s Manual for further information. Once
the vehicle has been freed, push the "ESC Off"
switch again to restore "ESC On" mode.
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WARNING!
Fast spinning tires can be dangerous. Forces
generated by excessive wheel speeds may
cause damage, or even failure, of the axle and
tires. A tire could explode and injure some-
one. Do not spin your vehicle's wheels faster
than 30 mph (48 km/h) or for longer than
30 seconds continuously without stopping
when you are stuck and do not let anyone
near a spinning wheel, no matter what the
speed.
CAUTION!
• Racing the engine or spinning the wheels
may lead to transmission overheating and
failure. Allow the engine to idle with the
transmission in NEUTRAL for at least one
minute after every five rocking-motion
cycles. This will minimize overheating and
reduce the risk of transmission failure during
prolonged efforts to free a stuck vehicle.
CAUTION!
• When "rocking" a stuck vehicle by shifting
between DRIVE and REVERSE, do not spin
the wheels faster than 15 mph (24 km/h), or
drivetrain damage may result.
• Revving the engine or spinning the wheels
too fast may lead to transmission overheat-
ing and failure. It can also damage the tires.
Do not spin the wheels above 30 mph
(48 km/h) while in gear (no transmission
shifting occurring).