2011 KIA Optima Owner's Manual

329
Safety features of your vehicle
If the shoulder belt portion slightly touch-
es the child’s neck or face, try placing the
child closer to the center of the vehicle. If
the shoulder belt still touches their face
or neck they need to be returned to a
child restraint system.Pregnant women
The use of a seat belt is recommended
for pregnant women to lessen the chance
of injury in an accident. When a seat belt
is used, the lap belt portion should be
placed as low and snugly as possible on
the hips, not across the abdomen. For
specific recommendations, consult a
physician.
Injured person
A seat belt should be used when an
injured person is being transported.
When this is necessary, you should con-
sult a physician for recommendations.
One person per belt
Two people (including children) should
never attempt to use a single seat belt.
This could increase the severity of
injuries in case of an accident.
Do not lie down
To reduce the chance of injuries in the
event of an accident and to achieve maxi-
mum effectiveness of the restraint system,
all passengers should be sitting up and
the front seats should be in an upright
position when the vehicle is moving. A
seat belt cannot provide proper protection
if the person is lying down in the rear seat
or if the front seat is in a reclined position.
WARNING- Shoulder belts
on small children
Never allow a shoulder belt come
in contact with a child’s neck or
face while the vehicle is in
motion.
If seat belts are not properly worn and adjusted on children, there is
a risk of death or serious injury.
WARNING - Pregnantwomen
Pregnant women must never place
the lap portion of the safety belt
over the area of the abdomen
where the fetus is located or above
the abdomen where the belt could
crush the fetus during an impact.

Safety features of your vehicle
30
3
Care of seat belts
Seat belt systems should never be disas-
sembled or modified. In addition, care
should be taken to assure that seat belts
and belt hardware are not damaged by
seat hinges, doors or other abuse.
Periodic inspection
All seat belts should be inspected peri-
odically for wear or damage of any kind.
Any damaged parts should be replaced
as soon as possible.
Keep belts clean and dry
Seat belts should be kept clean and dry.
If belts become dirty, they can be
cleaned by using a mild soap solution
and warm water. Bleach, dye, strong
detergents or abrasives should not be
used because they may damage and
weaken the fabric.
When to replace seat belts
The entire in-use seat belt assembly or
assemblies should be replaced if the
vehicle has been involved in an accident.
This should be done even if no damage
is visible. Additional questions concern-
ing seat belt operation should be directed
to an authorized KIA dealer.
WARNING
When you return the rear seatback
to its upright position after the rear
seatback has been folded down, be
careful not to damage the seat belt
webbing or buckle. Be sure that the
webbing or buckle does not get
caught or pinched in the rear seat.
A seat belt with damaged webbing
or buckle could fail during a colli-
sion or sudden stop, resulting in
serious injury. If the webbing or
buckles are damaged, get them
replaced immediately.
WARNING
Riding with a reclined seatback
increases your chance of serious
or fatal injuries in the event of a col-
lision or sudden stop. The protec-
tion of your restraint system (seat
belts and air bags) is greatly
reduced by reclining your seat.
Seat belts must be snugged against
your hips and chest to work proper-
ly. The more the seatback is
reclined, the greater the chance
that an occupant's hips will slide
under the lap belt causing serious
internal injuries. Also, the shoulder
belt may strike the occupant's
neck. Drivers and passengers
should always sit well back in their
seats, properly belted, and with the
seatbacks upright.

331
Safety features of your vehicle
CHILD RESTRAINT SYSTEM
Children riding in the car should sit in the
rear seat and must always be properly
restrained to minimize the risk of injury in
an accident, sudden stop or sudden
maneuver. According to accident statis-
tics, children are safer when properly
restrained in the rear seats than in the
front seat. Larger children not in a child
restraint should use one of the seat belts
provided.
You should be aware of the specific
requirements in your country. Child and/or
infant safety seats must be properly
placed and installed in the rear seat. You
must use a commercially available child
restraint system that meets the require-
ments of the safety standards of your
country.
Child restraint systems are designed to be
secured in vehicle seats by seat belt, or by
a tether anchor and/or LATCH anchors (if
equipped). Children could be injured or killed in a
crash if their restraints are not properly
secured. For small children and babies, a
child seat or infant seat must be used.
Before buying a particular child restraint
system, make sure it fits your vehicle
seat and seat belts, and fits your child.
Follow all the instructions provided by the
manufacturer when installing the child
restraint system.
WARNING
A child restraint system must be
placed in the rear seat. Never
install a child or infant seat on the
front passenger's seat. Should an
accident occur and cause the
passenger-side air bag to deploy,
it could severely injure or kill an
infant or child seated in an infant
or child seat. Thus only use a
child restraint in the rear seat of
your vehicle.
(Continued)
(Continued)
A seat belt or child restraint sys-tem can become very hot if it is
left in a closed vehicle on a sunny
day, even if the outside tempera-
ture does not feel hot. Be sure to
check the seat cover and buckles
before placing a child there.
When the child restraint system is not in use, store it in the lug-
gage area or fasten it with a seat
belt so that it will not be thrown
forward in case of a sudden stop
or an accident.
Children may be seriously injured or killed by an inflating air bag.
All children, even those too large
for child restraints, must ride in
the rear seat.

Safety features of your vehicle
32
3
(Continued)
Never leave children unattended
in a vehicle – not even for a short
time. The car can heat up very
quickly, resulting in serious
injuries to children inside. Even
very young children may inadver-
tently cause the vehicle to move,
entangle themselves in the win-
dows, or lock themselves or oth-
ers inside the vehicle.
Never allow two children, or any two persons, to use the same
seat belt.
Children often squirm and repo- sition themselves improperly.
Never let a child ride with the
shoulder belt under their arm or
behind their back. Always prop-
erly position and secure children
in rear seat.
Never allow a child to stand-up or kneel on the seat or floorboard of
a moving vehicle. During a colli-
sion or sudden stop, the child
can be violently thrown against
the vehicles interior, resulting in
serious injury.
(Continued)(Continued)
Never use an infant carrier or achild safety seat that "hooks"
over a seatback, it may not pro-
vide adequate security in an acci-
dent.
Seat belts can become very hot, especially when the vehicle is
parked in direct sunlight. Always
check the seat belt buckles
before fastening them over a
child.
After an accident, have an author- ized KIA dealer check the child
restraint system, seat belt, tether
anchor and lower anchor.
If there is not enough space to place the child restraint system
because of the driver's seat,
install the child restraint system
in the rear right seat.WARNING
To reduce the chance or serious or
fatal injuries:
Children of all ages are saferwhen restrained in the rear seat.
A child riding in the front passen-
ger seat can be forcefully struck
by an inflating air bag resulting in
serious or fatal injuries.
Always follow the child restraint system manufacture’s instruc-
tions for installation and use of
the child restraint.
Always make sure the child seat is secured properly in the vehicle
and your child is securely
restrained in the child seat.
Never hold a child in your arms or lap when riding in a vehicle. The
violent forces created during a
crash will tear the child from your
arms and throw the child against
the vehicle’s interior.
Never put a seat belt over your- self and a child. During a crash,
the belt could press deep into the
child causing serious internal
injuries.
(Continued)

333
Safety features of your vehicle
Using a child restraint system
For small children and babies, the use of
a child seat or infant seat is required. This
child seat or infant seat should be of
appropriate size for the child and should
be installed in accordance with the man-
ufacturer's instructions.
For safety reasons, we recommend that
the child restraint system be used in the
rear seats.Since all passenger seat belts move
freely under normal conditions and only
lock under extreme or emergency condi-
tions (emergency lock mode), you must
manually change these seat belts to the
auto lock mode to secure a child
restraint.
WARNING- Child seat
installation
A child can be seriously injured
or killed in a collision if the child
restraint is not properly anchored
to the car and the child is not
properly restrained in the child
restraint. Before installing the
child restraint system, read the
instructions supplied by the child
restraint system manufacturer.
If the seat belt does not operate as described in this section, have
the system checked immediately
by your authorized KIA dealer.
Failure to observe this manual's instructions regarding child
restraint system and the instruc-
tions provided with the child
restraint system could increase
the chance and/or severity of
injury in an accident.
WARNING
Never place a rear-facing child
restraint in the front passenger
seat, because of the danger that an
inflating passenger-side air bag
could impact the rear-facing child
restraint and kill the child.
CRS09
OTQ037038
Rearward-facing child restraint system
Forward-facing child restraint system

Safety features of your vehicle
34
3
Placing a passenger seat belt into
the auto lock mode
The auto lock mode will help prevent the
normal movement of the child in the vehi-
cle from causing the seat belt to loosen
and compromise the child restraint sys-
tem. To secure a child restraint system,
use the following procedure. To install a child restraint system on the
outboard or center rear seats, do the fol-
lowing:
1. Place the child restraint system in the
seat and route the lap/shoulder belt
around or through the restraint, follow-
ing the restraint manufacturer’s
instructions. Be sure the seat belt web-
bing is not twisted.
2. Fasten the lap/shoulder belt latch into the buckle. Listen for the distinct “click”
sound.
Position the release button so that it iseasy to access in case of an emergency.
3. Pull the shoulder portion of the seat belt all the way out. When the shoulder
portion of the seat belt is fully extend-
ed, it will shift the retractor to the “Auto
Lock” (child restraint) mode.
E2MS103005OEN036101OEN036102

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Safety features of your vehicle
4. Slowly allow the shoulder portion ofthe seat belt to retract and listen for an
audible “clicking” or “ratcheting” sound.
This indicates that the retractor is in
the “Auto Lock” mode. If no distinct
sound is heard, repeat steps 3 and 4. 5. Remove as much slack from the belt
as possible by pushing down on the
child restraint system while feeding the
shoulder belt back into the retractor.
6. Push and pull on the child restraint system to confirm that the seat belt is
holding it firmly in place. If it is not,
release the seat belt and repeat steps
2 through 6.
7. Double check that the retractor is in the “Auto Lock” mode by attempting to
pull more of the seat belt out of the
retractor. If you cannot, the retractor is
in the “Auto Lock” mode.
To remove the child restraint, press the
release button on the buckle and then
pull the lap/shoulder belt out of the
restraint and allow the seat belt to retract
fully. When the seat belt is allowed to
retract to its fully stowed position, the
retractor will automatically switch
from the “Auto Lock” mode to the
emergency lock mode for normal
adult usage.
OEN036104OEN036103
WARNING- Auto lock
mode
The lap/shoulder belt automatically
returns to the “emergency lock
mode” whenever the belt is allowed
to retract fully. Therefore, the pre-
ceding seven steps must be fol-
lowed each time a child restraint is
installed.
If the retractor is not in the Auto
lock mode, the child restraint can
move when your vehicle turns or
stops suddenly. A child can be seri-
ously injured or killed if the child
restraint is not properly anchored to
the car, including setting the retrac-
tor to the Auto lock mode.

Safety features of your vehicle
36
3
Securing a child restraint seat with
“Tether Anchor” system
Child restraint hook holders are located
on the package tray. 1. Route the child restraint seat tether
strap over the seatback.
For vehicles with adjustable headrests,
route the tether strap under the head-
rest and between the headrest posts,
otherwise route the tether strap over
the top of the seatback.
2. Connect the tether strap hook to the appropriate child restraint hook holder
and tighten to secure the child restraint
seat.
OTF030029NOTF030030N
WARNING
When using the vehicle's "Tether
Anchor" system to install a child
restraint system in the rear seat, all
unused vehicle rear seat belt metal
latch plates or tabs must be latched
securely in their seat belt buckles
and the seat belt webbing must be
retracted behind the child restraint
to prevent the child from reaching
and taking hold of unretracted seat
belts. Unlatched metal latch plates
or tabs may allow the child to reach
the unretracted seat belts which
may result in strangulation and a
serious injury or death to the child
in the child restraint.