2012 KIA Forte height

323
Safety features of your vehicle
C020300AUN-EU
Seat belt precautions
C020306AUN
Infant or small child
You should be aware of the specific
requirements in your country. Child
and/or infant seats must be properly
placed and installed in the rear seat. For
more information about the use of these
restraints, refer to “Child restraint sys-
tem” in this section.
(Continued)
Do not attempt to service orrepair the pre-tensioner seat belt
system in any manner.
Do not put anything near the buckle. Placing objects near the
buckle can adversely affect the
buckle pretensioner and may
increase the risk of personal
injury in the event of a collision.
Improper handling of the pre-ten- sioner seat belt assemblies, and
failure to heed the warnings not
to strike, modify, inspect, replace,
service or repair the pre-tension-
er seat belt assemblies may lead
to improper operation or inadver-
tent activation and serious injury.
Always wear the seat belts when driving or riding in a motor vehi-
cle.
If the vehicle or pre-tensioner seat belt must be discarded, con-
tact an authorized KIA dealer.
WARNING
All occupants of the vehicle must
wear their seat belts at all times.
Seat belts and child restraints
reduce the risk of serious or fatal
injuries for all occupants in the
event of a collision or sudden stop.
Without a seat belt, occupants
could be shifted too close to a
deploying air bag, strike the interior
structure or be thrown from the
vehicle. Properly worn seat belts
greatly reduce these hazards.
Even with advanced air bags,
unbelted occupants can be severe-
ly injured by a deploying air bag.
Always follow the precautions
about seat belts, air bags and occu-
pant seat contained in this manual.
WARNING
Every person in your vehicle needs
to be properly restrained at all
times, including infants and chil-
dren. Never hold a child in your
arms or lap when riding in a vehi-
cle. The violent forces created dur-
ing a crash will tear the child from
your arms and throw the child
against the interior. Always use a
child restraint appropriate for your
child's height and weight.

Safety features of your vehicle
24
3
✽
✽
NOTICE
Small children are best protected from
injury in an accident when properly
restrained in the rear seat by a child
restraint system that meets the require-
ments of the safety standards of your
country. Before buying any child
restraint system, make sure that it has a
label certifying that it meets the safety
standards of your country. The restraint
must be appropriate for your child's
height and weight. Check the label on
the child restraint for this information.
Refer to “Child restraint system” in this
section.
C020301AHM
Larger children
Children who are too large for child
restraint systems should always occupy
the rear seat and use the available
lap/shoulder belts. The lap portion should
be fastened and snugged on the hips
and as low as possible. Check if the belt
fits periodically. A child's squirming could
put the belt out of position. Children are
given the most safety in the event of an
accident when they are restrained by a
proper restraint system in the rear seat. If
a larger child (over age 12) must be seat-
ed in the front seat, the child should be
securely restrained by the available
lap/shoulder belt and the seat should be
placed in the rearmost position. Children
age 12 and under should be restrained
securely in the rear seat. NEVER place a
child age 12 and under in the front seat.
NEVER place a rear facing child seat in
the front seat of a 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.
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.

361
Safety features of your vehicle
C041300AUN
Additional safety precautions
Never let passengers ride in the
cargo area or on top of a folded-
down back seat. All occupants should
sit upright, fully back in their seats with
their seat belts on and their feet on the
floor.
Passengers should not move out of
or change seats while the vehicle is
moving. A passenger who is not wear-
ing a seat belt during a crash or emer-
gency stop can be thrown against the
inside of the vehicle, against other
occupants, or out of the vehicle.
Each seat belt is designed to
restrain one occupant. If more than
one person uses the same seat belt,
they could be seriously injured or killed
in a collision.
Do not use any accessories on seat
belts. Devices claiming to improve
occupant comfort or repositioning the
seat belt can reduce the protection
provided by the seat belt and increase
the chance of serious injury in a crash.
Passengers should not place hard
or sharp objects between them-
selves and the air bags. Carrying
hard or sharp objects on your lap or in
your mouth can result in injuries if an
air bag inflates.
Keep occupants away from the air
bag covers. All occupants should sit
upright, fully back in their seats with
their seat belts on and their feet on the
floor. If occupants are too close to the
air bag covers, they could be injured if
the air bags inflate.
Do not attach or place objects on or
near the air bag covers. Any object
attached to or placed on the front or
side air bag covers could interfere with
the proper operation of the air bags.
Do not modify the front seats.
Modification of the front seats could
interfere with the operation of the sup-
plemental restraint system sensing
components or side air bags.
Do not place items under the front
seats. Placing items under the front
seats could interfere with the operation
of the supplemental restraint system
sensing components and wiring har-
nesses.
Never hold an infant or child on your
lap. The infant or child could be seri-
ously injured or killed in the event of a
crash. All infants and children should
be properly restrained in appropriate
child safety seats or seat belts in the
rear seat.
C041400AUN
Adding equipment to or modify-
ing your air bag-equipped vehicle
If you modify your vehicle by changing
your vehicle's frame, bumper system,
front end or side sheet metal or ride
height, this may affect the operation of
your vehicle's air bag system.
WARNING
Sitting improperly or out of posi- tion can cause occupants to be
shifted too close to a deploying
air bag, strike the interior struc-
ture or be thrown from the vehicle
resulting in serious injury or
death.
Always sit upright with the seat- back in an upright position, cen-
tered on the seat cushion with
your seat belt on, legs comfort-
ably extended and your feet on
the floor.

433
Features of your vehicle
✽
✽NOTICE
The following symptoms may occur dur-
ing normal vehicle operation:
• The EPS warning light does not illu-
minate.
• The steering wheel becomes heavier after turning the ignition switch on.
This happens as the system performs
the EPS system diagnostics. When the
diagnostics is completed, the steering
wheel will return to its normal condi-
tion.
• Click noise may be heard from the EPS relay after the ignition switch is
turned to the ON or LOCK position.
• Motor noise may be heard when the vehicle is at a stop or at a low driving
speed.
• If the Electric Power Steering System does not operate normally, the warn-
ing light will illuminate on the instru-
ment cluster. The steering wheel may
become difficult to control or operate
abnormally. Take your vehicle to an
authorized KIA dealer and have the
vehicle checked as soon as possible.
• When you operate the steering wheel in low temperature, abnormal noise
could occur. If temperature rises, the
noise will disappear. This is a normal
condition.
D130300AFD
Tilt steering (if equipped)
Tilt steering allows you to adjust the
steering wheel before you drive. You can
also raise it to give your legs more room
when you exit and enter the vehicle.
The steering wheel should be positioned
so that it is comfortable for you to drive,
while permitting you to see the instru-
ment panel warning lights and gauges.
To change the steering wheel angle, pull
down the lock release lever (1), adjust
the steering wheel to the desired angle
(2) and height (if equipped) (3), then pull
up the lock-release lever to lock the
steering wheel in place. Be sure to adjust
the steering wheel to the desired position
before driving.
WARNING
Never adjust the angle and heightof the steering wheel while driv-
ing. You may lose steering control
and cause severe personal injury,
death or accidents.
After adjusting, push the steering wheel both up and down to be
certain it is locked in position.
OTD049018

Features of your vehicle
94
4
✽
✽
NOTICE
If you install an aftermarket HID head
lamp, your vehicle’s audio and electron-
ic device may malfunction.
D300101ATD
Antenna
Your vehicle uses a roof antenna to
receive both AM and FM broadcast sig-
nals. This antenna can be removed. To
remove the antenna, turn it counterclock-
wise. To install the antenna, turn it clock-
wise.
AUDIO SYSTEM
CAUTION
• Before entering a place with a low
height clearance or a car wash,remove the antenna by rotating it counter-clockwise. If not, theantenna may be damaged.
When reinstalling your antenna, it is important that it is fully tight-ened and adjusted to the uprightposition to ensure proper recep- tion. But it could be removedwhen parking the vehicle.
OHM048154N

Driving your vehicle
26
5
E070300AHM-EC
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
The ABS continuously senses the speed
of the wheels. If the wheels are going to
lock, the ABS system repeatedly modu-
lates the hydraulic brake pressure to the
wheels.
When you apply your brakes under con-
ditions which may lock the wheels, you
may hear a “tik-tik’’ sound from the
brakes, or feel a corresponding sensation
in the brake pedal. This is normal and it
means your ABS is active.
In order to obtain the maximum benefit
from your ABS in an emergency situa-
tion, do not attempt to modulate your
brake pressure and do not try to pump
your brakes. Press your brake pedal as
hard as possible or as hard as the situa-
tion allows the ABS to control the force
being delivered to the brakes.
WARNING
ABS (or ESC) will not prevent acci-
dents due to improper or danger-
ous driving maneuvers. Even
though vehicle control is improved
during emergency braking, always
maintain a safe distance between
you and objects ahead. Vehicle
speeds should always be reduced
during extreme road conditions.
The braking distance for vehicles
equipped with an anti-lock braking
system (Electronic Stability Control
System) may be longer than for
those without it in the following
road conditions.
During these conditions the vehicle
should be driven at reduced
speeds:
Rough, gravel or snow-covered
roads.
On roads where the road surface is pitted or has different surface
height.
(Continued)
(Continued)
The safety features of an ABS (or
ESC) equipped vehicle should not
be tested by high speed driving or
cornering. This could endanger the
safety of yourself or others.

Maintenance
42
7
G200601AUN
Compact spare tire replacement
A compact spare tire has a shorter
tread life than a regular size tire.
Replace it when you can see the
tread wear indicator bars on the tire.
The replacement compact spare tire
should be the same size and design
tire as the one provided with your
new vehicle and should be mounted
on the same compact spare tire
wheel. The compact spare tire is not
designed to be mounted on a regular
size wheel, and the compact spare
tire wheel is not designed for mount-
ing a regular size tire.
G200700BUN-EC
Wheel replacement
When 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.(Continued)
Using tires and wheel other
than the recommended sizes
could cause unusual handling
characteristics and poor vehi-
cle control, resulting in a seri-
ous accident.
Wheels that do not meet KIA’s specifications may fit poorly
and result in damage to the
vehicle or unusual handling
and poor vehicle control.
The ABS works by comparing the speed of the wheels. Tire
size can affect wheel speed.
When replacing tires, all 4
tires must use the same size
originally supplied with the
vehicle. Using tires of a differ-
ent size can cause the ABS
(Anti-lock Brake System) and
ESC (Electronic Stability
Control) (if equipped) to work
irregularly.
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,
speedometer and odometer cal-
ibration, headlight aim and
bumper height.

743
Maintenance
G200800AHM
Tire traction
Tire traction can be reduced if you
drive on worn tires, tires that are
improperly inflated or on slippery
road surfaces. Tires should be
replaced when tread wear indicators
appear. Slow down whenever there
is rain, snow or ice on the road, to
reduce the possibility of losing con-
trol of the vehicle.
G200900AUN
Tire maintenance
In addition to proper inflation, correct
wheel alignment helps to decrease
tire wear. If you find a tire is worn
unevenly, have your dealer check the
wheel alignment.
When you have new tires installed,
make sure they are balanced. This
will increase vehicle ride comfort and
tire life. Additionally, a tire should
always be rebalanced if it is removed
from the wheel.
G201000AUN
Tire sidewall labeling
This information identifies and
describes the fundamental charac-
teristics of the tire and also provides
the tire identification number (TIN)
for safety standard certification. The
TIN can be used to identify the tire in
case of a recall.
G201001AUN
1. Manufacturer or brand name
Manufacturer or Brand name is
shown.
G201002ATD
2. Tire size designation
A tire’s sidewall is marked with a tire
size designation. You will need this
information when selecting replace-
ment tires for your car. The following
explains what the letters and num-
bers in the tire size designation
mean.
Example tire size designation:
(These numbers are provided as an
example only; your tire size designa-
tor could vary depending on your
vehicle.)
P205/55R16 89H
P - Applicable vehicle type (tiresmarked with the prefix “P’’ are
intended for use on passenger
vehicles or light trucks; however,
not all tires have this marking).
205 - Tire width in millimeters.
55 - Aspect ratio. The tire’s section height as a percentage of its
width.
R - Tire construction code (Radial).
16 - Rim diameter in inches.
I030B04JM
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