357
Knowing your vehicle
Just before impact, drivers often brake
heavily. Such heavy braking lowers the
front portion of the vehicle causing it to
“ride” under a vehicle with a higher
ground clearance. Air bags may not
inflate in this "under-ride" situation
because deceleration forces that are
detected by sensors may be signifi-
cantly altered by such “under-ride”col-
lisions.
Air bags may not inflate in rollover acci-
dents because air bag deployment
would not provide proper protection to
the occupants.
However, side air bags may inflate
when the vehicle is rolled over by a
side impact collision, if the vehicle is
equipped with side air bags and cur-
tain air bags.
Air bags may not inflate if the vehicle
collides with objects such as utility
poles or trees, where the point of
impact is concentrated to one area and
the full force of the impact is not trans-
mitted to the sensors.
1JBA3518
1JBA3517
1JBA3522
JB CAN 3.qxd 7/29/05 8:57 AM Page 57
In case of an emergency18
6Important - use of compact spare
tireyour vehicle is equipped with a compact
spare tire. This compact spare tire takes
up less space than a regular-size tire.
This tire is smaller than a conventional
tire and is designed for temporary use
only.
The compact spare should be inflated to
60 psi (420 kPa).
✽ ✽
NOTICECheck the inflation pressure after
installing the spare tire. Adjust it to the
specified pressure, as necessary.When using a compact spare tire,
observe the following precautions:
Under no circumstances should you
exceed 80 km/h (50 mph); a higher
speed could damage the tire.
Ensure that you drive slowly enough for the road conditions to avoid all haz-
ards. Any road hazard, such as a pot-
hole or debris, could seriously damage
the compact spare.
Any continuous road use of this tire could result in tire failure, loss of vehi-
cle control, and possible personal
injury.
Do not exceed the vehicle’s maximum load rating or the load-carrying capaci-
ty shown on the sidewall of the com-
pact spare tire.
Avoid driving over obstacles. The com- pact spare tire diameter is smaller than
the diameter of a conventional tire and
reduces the ground clearance approxi-
mately 25 mm (1 inch), which could
result in damage to the vehicle. Do not take this vehicle through an
automatic car wash.
Do not use tire chains on this tire. Because of the smaller size, a tire
chain will not fit properly. This could
damage the vehicle and result in loss
of the chain.
This tire should not be installed on the front axle if the vehicle must be driven
in snow or on ice.
Do not use the compact spare tire on any other vehicle because this tire has
been designed especially for your vehi-
cle.
The compact spare tire’s tread life is shorter than a regular tire. Inspect your
compact spare tire regularly and
replace worn compact spare tires with
the same size and design, mounted on
the same wheel.
CAUTION
You should drive carefully whenthe compact spare is in use. The
compact spare should be
replaced by the proper conven-
tional tire and rim at the first
opportunity.
The operation of this vehicle is not recommended with more than
one compact spare tire in use at
the same time.
CAUTION
This spare tire should be used only
for VERY short distances. Compact
spares should NEVER be used for
long drives or extended distances.
JB CAN 6.qxd 7/29/05 9:10 AM Page 18
727
Maintenance
Wheel replacementWhen replacing the metal wheels for
any reason, make sure the new
wheels are equivalent to the original
factory units in diameter, rim width
and offset.
WARNING -
Replacing
tires
Driving on worn-out tires is very hazardous and will
reduce braking effectiveness,
steering accuracy, and trac-
tion.
Your vehicle is equipped with tires designed to provide for
safe ride and handling capa-
bility. Do not use a size and
type of tire and wheel that is
different from the one that is
originally installed on your
vehicle. It can affect the safety
and performance of your vehi-
cle, which could lead to han-
dling failure or rollover and
serious injury. When replacing
the tires, be sure to equip all
four tires with the tire and
wheel of the same size, type,
tread, brand and load-carrying
capacity.
(Continued)
(Continued)If you nevertheless decide to
equip your vehicle with any
tire/wheel combination not
recommended by Kia for off
road driving, you should not
use these tires for highway
driving.
The use of any other tire size or type may seriously affect
ride, handling, ground clear-
ance, stopping distance, body
to tire clearance, snow tire
clearance, and speedometer
reliability.
It is best to replace all four tires at the same time. If that is
not possible, or necessary,
then replace the two front or
two rear tires as a pair.
Replacing just one tire can
seriously affect your vehicle’s
handling.
WARNING
A wheel that is not the correct
size may adversely affect wheel
and bearing life, braking and
stopping abilities, handling
characteristics, ground clear-
ance, body-to-tire clearance,
snow chain clearance,
speedometer calibration, head-
light aim and bumper height.
JB CAN 7.qxd 7/29/05 9:11 AM Page 27
