DailyNews

Hi, I have a 2011 Outlander Sport ES Manual Trans. and I can't seem to 'activate' the hill start assist. The paper manual book instructed that on an incline with the car stopped going uphill, hill start will hold the car still for 2 seconds as long as the parking brake is not engaged, the brake is depressed, and the car is in any other gear besides reverse. I felt like I've tried every sensible combination and the car still rolls back on an uphill. It's not a dire feature since the handbrake is there, but if the car came standard with the hill assist feature, I'd like to know that it actually works right. Anyone else experience the same issue or has it worked for anyone who drove a manual trans Outlander Sport? Thanks.

Pipefish

It only engages if the slope isn't that steep, perhaps less than 10 degrees.

AWCAWD

If it were so it would be quite counterintuitive.

I have CVT in my car and I noticed that this attribute only works if the car is in gear (D or R but not shifting back and forth). If one shifts to neutral and back to either reverse or drive it will only work if first, one applies the emergency brake (car must be at complete rest, it may not be absolutely necessary), apply the operating brake, put it in the desired gear and release the e-brake. May I ask the OP and Piperfish, do you put the car in neutral at traffic lights? If so, the hill start assist with M/T may operate the same way. I have a sloping drive way and shifting from forward to reverse often confuses the hill start assist if I do not pay attention to the details above. My two cents, may not be applicable for M/T.

DailyNews

The owner's manual states the following:
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"The hill start assist makes it easy to start off on a steep uphill slope by preventing the vehicle from moving backwards. It keeps the braking force for about 2 second when you move your foot from the brake pedal to the accelerator pedal.
CAUTION
Do not overly rely on the hill start assist to prevent backwards movement of the vehicle.
Under certain circumstances, even when hill start assist is activated, the vehicle may move backwards if the brake pedal is not sufficiently depressed, if the vehicle is heavily loaded, or if the road is very steep or slippery.
The hill start assist is not designed to keep the vehicle stopped in place on uphill slopes for more than 2 seconds.
When facing uphill, do not rely on using the hill start assist to maintain a stopped position as an alternative to depressing the brake pedal. Doing so could cause an accident.
Do not perform the following operation while the hill start assist is operating. [Except for vehicles equipped with the F.A.S.T.-key] Turn the ignition switch to the “OFF” or “ACC” position. [Vehicles equipped with the F.A.S.T.-key] Put the operation mode in OFF or ACC. Thehill start assist could stop operating, which could result in an accident.

To operate:
1. Stop the vehicle completely using the brake pedal.
2. On vehicles equipped with manual transaxle, place the gearshift lever into the 1st position.
On vehicles equipped with a continuously variable transmission (CVT), place the selector lever into the “D” position.
NOTE
When reversing on an uphill slope, place the gearshift lever or the selector into the “R” position.

3. Release the brake pedal and the hill start assist will maintain the braking for applied while stopping for approximate 2 seconds.
4. Depress the accelerator pedal and the hill start assist gradually will decrease the
braking force as the vehicle starts moving.

The hill start assist is activated when all of the following conditions are met.
• The engine is running. (The hill start assist will not be activated while the engine is starting or immediately after the engine is started.)
• On vehicles equipped with manual transaxle, the gearshift lever is in the following
position.
[When starting an uphill slope forwards.] The gearshift lever is in any position other than “R”.
(The hill start assist will operate, even if the gearshift lever is in the “N” position.)
[When starting an uphill slope backwards.] The gearshift lever is in the “R” position.
(The hill start assist will not operate when the gearshift lever is in the “N” position.)
• On vehicles equipped with CVT, the selector lever is in any position other than “P” or “N”.
• The vehicle is completely stationary, with the brake pedal depressed.
• The parking brake is released.
The hill start assist will not operate if the accelerator pedal is depressed before the brake pedal is released.
The hill start assist also operates when reversing on an uphill slope."
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The part that has me skeptical is "[When starting an uphill slope forwards.] The gearshift lever is in any position other than “R”.
(The hill start assist will operate, even if the gearshift lever is in the “N” position.)"
I switch to Neutral for traffic lights, many of which are on a slight uphill slope and without the handbrake, yet I still feel the car rolling back immediately releasing the brake.

Pipefish

When I'm on a slope in traffic, I don't even have to step on the brake for HSA to work its wonders. Makes me think the car behind me might be wondering how come the ASX isn't moving backward even if the brakelight is off.