Honda Civic Hybrid 2009 Owner's Manual page 280

Automatic Transmission (CVT)
Press the brake
Reverse (R)
pedal and press the release button
on the front of the shift lever to shift
from Park to reverse. To shift from
reverse to neutral, come to a
complete stop, and then shift. Press
the release button before shifting
into reverse from neutral.
Use neutral if you
Neutral (N)
need to restart a stalled engine, or if
it is necessary to stop briefly with
the engine idling. Shift to the Park
position if you need to leave your
vehicle for any reason. Press on the
brake pedal when you are moving
the shift lever from neutral to
another gear.
Use this position for
Drive (D)
your normal driving. The
transmission automatically adjusts to
keep the engine at the best speed for
driving conditions. To help the
engine warm up faster, the
transmission will select ratios that
274
allow the engine to run at higher
speeds when it is cold.
Selecting Second
Second (S)
shifts the transmission into a lower
range of ratios for better
acceleration and increased engine
braking. Use Second when you are
going down a steep hill.
Low (L) To shift to Low, press
the release button on the front of the
shift lever. Use Low to get more
power when climbing, and for
maximum engine braking when
going down steep hills.
In L, the IMA charge and discharge
characteristics will be different than
when the vehicle is in D or S. In L,
the battery is charged at a higher
rate both while driving and when the
engine is idling at a stop. The engine
will idle at higher speeds when the
IMA battery state of charge is low
and decrease as the battery reaches
a full state of charge.
For faster acceleration when in D, S
or L, the transmission will
automatically ''kick down'' to a lower
range of ratios by pushing the
accelerator pedal to the floor.
Engine Speed Limiter
When the vehicle reaches the
maximum speed in any shift position,
you may feel the engine cut in and
out. This is caused by a limiter (112
mph, 180 km/h) in the engine's
computer controls. The engine will
run normally when you reduce the
speed to below the maximum.