2012 Acura RL Owner's Manual - Page 416

Driving with the Paddle Shifters To upshift, pull the (right) paddle shifter. To downshift, pull the (left) paddle shifter. When you accelerate from a stop, the transmission starts in first gear, and shifts from first to second automatically. You must manually upshift between second and sixth gears. Make sure you upshift before the engine speed reaches the tachometer's red zone. The transmission remains in the selected gear (6, 5, 4, 3, or 2). There is no automatic downshift when you push the accelerator pedal to the floor. When you are driving, the transmission downshifts to the lower gear under the following conditions: The vehicle slows down to a certain speed. You press the brake pedal. The vehicle detects that you are driving uphill or downhill. Downshifting with the paddle shifter allows you to increase the engine braking when going down steep or long hills, and provides more power when climbing uphills. You can upshift the transmission manually to reduce the rpm. The transmission also shifts automatically as the vehicle comes to a complete stop. It downshifts to first gear when the vehicle speed reaches 6 mph (10 km/h) or less. The automatic transmission will not allow you to shift up or down if: You downshift before the engine speed reaches the highest threshold of the lower gear. If you try to do this, the gear position indicator will flash the number of the lower gear several times, then return to a higher gear. If the vehicle speed decreases below the redline of the selected lower gear while the indicator is flashing, the transmission downshifts, and the indicator displays the selected gear. You upshift before the engine speed reaches the lowest threshold of the higher gear. 410