2008 KIA Optima brake

Introduction2 1We want to help you get the greatest
possible driving pleasure from your vehi-
cle. Your Owner’s Manual can assist you
in many ways. We strongly recommend
that you read the entire manual.
Especially, in order to minimize the
chance of death or injury, you must read
the WARNING and CAUTION sections
spread throughout the manual.
Illustrations complement the words in this
manual to best explain how to enjoy your
vehicle. By reading your manual, you
learn about features, important safety
information, and driving tips under vari-
ous road conditions.
The general layout of the manual is pro-
vided in the Table of Contents. A good
place to start is the index; it has an alpha-
betical listing of all information in your
manual.
Sections: This manual has nine sections
plus an index. Each section begins with a
brief list of contents so you can tell at a
glance if that section has the information
you want.You’ll find various WARNING’s,
CAUTION’s, and NOTICE’s in this manu-
al. These were prepared to enhance your
personal safety. You should carefully read
and follow ALL procedures and recom-
mendations provided in these
WARNING’s, CAUTION’s and NOTICE’s.
✽ ✽
NOTICEA NOTICE indicates a situation in
which damage to your vehicle could
result if the notice is ignored.
No special break-in period is needed. By
following a few simple precautions for the
first 1,000 km (600 miles) you may add to
the performance, economy and life of
your vehicle.
 Do not race the engine.
 Do not maintain a single speed for long
periods of time, either fast or slow.
Varying engine speed is needed to
properly break-in the engine.
 Avoid hard stops, except in emergen-
cies, to allow the brakes to seat prop-
erly.
 Avoid full-throttle starts.
HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL
WARNING
A WARNING indicates a situation in
which serious bodily injury or death
could result if the warning is ignored.
CAUTION
A CAUTION indicates a situation in
which personal injury, perhaps
severe, could result if the caution is
ignored.
VEHICLE BREAK-IN PROCESS

Your vehicle at a glance4 2ENGINE COMPARTMENT
OMG077002
1. Engine coolant reservoir ...................7-12
2. Engine oil filler cap............................7-11
3. Brake fluid reservoir ..........................7-14
4. Air cleaner .........................................7-18
5. Fuse box ...........................................6- 8
6. Negative battery terminal ...........6-4/7-21
7. Positive battery terminal .............6-4/7-21
8. Auto transaxle oil dipstick* ................7-16
9. Radiator cap......................................7-13
10. Engine oil dipstick ...........................7-11
11. Power steering fluid reservoir .........7-15
12. Windshield washer fluid reservoir ...7-17
* : if equipped

311
Knowing your vehicle
✽ ✽
NOTICEAlways remove the ignition key, engage
the parking brake, close all windows
and lock all doors when leaving your
vehicle unattended. ✽ ✽
NOTICEIf the door is locked/unlocked multiple
times in rapid succession with either the
vehicle key or door lock switch, the sys-
tem may stop operating temporarily in
order to protect the circuit and prevent
damage to system components.
Operating door locks from inside
the vehicleWith the door lock button To unlock a door, push the door lock
button forward to the “Unlock” position
(red mark on button visible).
To lock a door, push the door lock but-
ton (1) forward to the “Lock” position. If
the door is locked properly, the red
mark (2) on the door lock button will
not be visible.
To open a door, pull the door handle
(3) outward.
If the inner door handle of front door is
pulled when the door lock button is in
lock position, the button is unlocked
and door opens. (if equipped) Front doors cannot be locked if the
ignition key is in the ignition switch and
door is open.
WARNING
- Door lock mal-
function
If a power door lock ever fails to
function while you are in the vehi-
cle, try one or more of the following
techniques to exit:
• Operate the door unlock feature
repeatedly (both electronic and
manual) while simultaneously
pulling on the door handle.
Operate the other door locks and
handles, front and rear.
Lower a front window and use the
key to unlock the door from out-
side.
Lower the rear seats (if
equipped), move to the cargo
area and open the trunk using the
emergency release handle (if
equipped).
OMG035007
Lock
Unlock

Knowing your vehicle12 3With central door lock switch
(if equipped) When pushing down on the front por-
tion (1) of the switch, all vehicle doors
will lock.
When pushing down on the rear por-
tion (2) of the switch, all vehicle doors
will unlock. However, if the key is in the ignition
switch and any front door is open, the
doors will not lock when the front por-
tion of central door lock switch is
pressed.
CAUTION
- Doors
The doors should always be fully
closed and locked while the vehi-
cle is in motion to prevent acci-
dental opening of the door.
Locked doors will also discour-
age potential intruders when the
vehicle stops or slows.
Be careful when opening doors
and watch for vehicles, motorcy-
cles, bicycles or pedestrians
approaching the vehicle in the
path of the door. Opening a door
when something is approaching
can cause damage or injury.
WARNING
- Unlocked vehi-
cles
Leaving your vehicle unlocked can
invite theft or possible harm to you
or others from someone hiding in
your vehicle while you are gone.
Always remove the ignition key,
engage the parking brake, close all
windows and lock all doors when
leaving your vehicle unattended.
WARNING
- Unattended
children
An enclosed vehicle can become
extremely hot, causing death or
severe injury to unattended chil-
dren or animals who cannot escape
the vehicle. Furthermore, children
might operate features of the vehi-
cle that could injure them, or they
could encounter other harm, possi-
bly from someone gaining entry to
the vehicle. Never leave children or
animals unattended in your vehicle.
OMG035008OMG035009
Driver’s doorPassenger’s door (if equipped)

Knowing your vehicle26 3To unfold the rear seat:1. Lift and push the seatback backward
firmly until it clicks into place (1).
2. Return the rear safety belt to the prop-
er position.
✽ ✽
NOTICEBe careful when loading cargo through
the rear passenger seats to prevent dam-
age to the vehicle interior.
OMG035033
1
OMG035042
(if equipped)
CAUTION
When returning the rear seat-
backs to the upright position,
remember to return the rear
shoulder belts to their proper
position.
Do not remove the floor carpet in
your vehicle. Emission control
system components cause high
exhaust temperatures under the
floor.
WARNING
- Cargo danger
Cargo should always be secured to
prevent it from being thrown about
the vehicle in a collision and caus-
ing injury to the vehicle occupants.
CAUTION
- Loading proce-
dure
Make sure the engine is off, the
transaxle is in P (Park) and the
parking brake is applied whenever
loading or unloading cargo. Vehicle
may move if shift lever is inadver-
tently moved to another position
with the engine on.

357
Knowing your vehicle
✽ ✽
NOTICE• If luggage or other objects are placed
on the front passenger's seat or if the
temperature of the seat changes while
the seat is unoccupied, the "PASSEN-
GER AIR BAG OFF" indicator may
blink. These conditions do not indi-
cate a problem.
• Do not put heavy objects on the front
passenger's seat. This may cause front
passenger air bag deployment in the
event of an accident, thus increasing
your repair costs.
(Continued)
Kia does not endorse nor will it
support any changes to any part
or structure of the vehicle that
could affect the advanced air bag
system, including the occupant
classification system.
Specifically, the front passenger
seat, dashboard or door should
not be replaced except by an
authorized Kia dealer using origi-
nal Kia parts designed for this
vehicle and model. Any other
such replacement or modification
could adversely affect the opera-
tion of the occupant classification
system and your advanced air
bags.
For the same reason, do not
attach anything to the seat, dash-
board or door, even temporarily. If
the system is adversely affected,
it could cause severe personal
injuries or death in a collision.
(Continued)
(Continued)
Do not place sharp objects on the
front passenger seat. These can
damage the occupant classifica-
tion system, if they puncture the
seat cushion.
Do not install accessory seat cov-
ers on the front seats, since these
will interfere with proper sensor
operation.
WARNING
The front seat passenger’s air bag
is much larger than the steering
wheel air bag and inflates with
considerably more force. It can
seriously hurt or kill a passenger
who is not in the proper position
and wearing the safety belt prop-
erly. The front passengers
should always move their seat as
far back as practical and sit back
in their seat.
It is essential that the front pas-
sengers always wear their safety
belts when vehicle is in motion,
even when the vehicle is moving
in a parking lot or up a driveway
into garage.
If the driver brakes the vehicle
heavily in urgent situations, occu-
pants will be thrown forward. If
front passengers are not wearing
the safety belts, they will be
directly in front of the air bags
when inflation occurs. In that sit-
uation, severe injury or death is
possible.
(Continued)

Knowing your vehicle64 3 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

4
Ignition switch / 4-2
Starting the engine / 4-3
Manual transaxle / 4-4
Automatic transaxle / 4-6
Brake system / 4-10
Steering wheel / 4-16
Cruise control system / 4-18
Electronic stability control / 4-21
Instrument cluster / 4-24
Gauges / 4-25
Warnings and indicators / 4-30
Compass - Z-Nav™ compass / 4-36
Rear parking assist system / 4-37
Lighting / 4-40
Wipers and washers / 4-43
Defroster / 4-46
Hazard warning flasher / 4-47
Manual climate control system / 4-48
Automatic climate control / 4-55
Windshield defrosting and defogging / 4-63
Driving your vehicle