2012 KIA Forte Transaxle

Index
2I
Air cleaner ··················\
··················\
··················\
···············7-31
Airbag-supplemental restraint system ··················\
·········3-35
Appearance care··················\
··················\
··················\
·······7-59
Audio system ··················\
··················\
··················\
···········4-94
Automatic climate control system ··················\
···············4-78
Automatic transaxle ··················\
··················\
··················\
·5-15
Automatic transaxle fluid ··················\
··················\
··········7-30
Battery··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
····7-34
Before driving ··················\
··················\
··················\
············5-3
Brake system··················\
··················\
··················\
············5-23
Brake/clutch fluid ··················\
··················\
··················\
····7-28
Bulb wattage ··················\
··················\
··················\
··············8-2
Child restraint system ··················\
··················\
················3-27
Climate control air filter ··················\
··················\
············7-32
Cruise control system ··················\
··················\
················5-33
Defroster ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
4-67
Dimensions ··················\
··················\
··················\
················8-2
Door locks··················\
··················\
··················\
················4-12Economical operation ··················\
··················\
················5-37
Emergency starting ··················\
··················\
··················\
····6-4
Emission control system ··················\
··················\
············7-65
Engine compartment ··················\
··················\
·············2-4/7-2
Engine coolant ··················\
··················\
··················\
·········7-25
Engine number ··················\
··················\
··················\
···········8-7
Engine oil ··················\
··················\
··················\
·················7-24\
ENGINE START/STOP button ··················\
··················\
···5-6
Explanation of scheduled maintenance items ···············7-21
Fuel filler lid ··················\
··················\
··················\
············4-25
Fuel requirements ··················\
··················\
··················\
······1-3
Fuses ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
······7-50
Hazard warning flasher ··················\
··················\
··············4-58
Hood··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
·······4-23
How to use this manual ··················\
··················\
···············1-2
If the engine overheats··················\
··················\
·················6-6
If the engine will not start ··················\
··················\
···········6-3
If you have a flat tire ··················\
··················\
··················\
·6-7
AE
F
H
I
B
C
D

I3
Index
In case of an emergency while driving ··················\
··········6-2
Indicator symbols on the instrument cluster ··················\
·1-5
Instrument cluster ··················\
··················\
··················\
····4-39
Instrument panel overview··················\
··················\
···········2-3
Interior features··················\
··················\
··················\
········4-96
Interior light ··················\
··················\
··················\
·············4-66
Interior overview··················\
··················\
··················\
········2-2
Key positions ··················\
··················\
··················\
·············5-4
Keys ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
·········4-2
Lighting··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
··4-59
Maintenance schedule··················\
··················\
··················\
7-6
Maintenance services ··················\
··················\
··················\
·7-3
Manual climate control system··················\
··················\
··4-69
Manual transaxle··················\
··················\
··················\
······5-12
Mirrors ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
···4-35
Owner maintenance ··················\
··················\
··················\
···7-4Parking brake ··················\
··················\
··················\
···········7-31
Power steering fluid ··················\
··················\
··················\
·7-29
Rearview camera··················\
··················\
··················\
······4-58
Recommended lubricants and capacities ··················\
·······8-4
Remote keyless entry ··················\
··················\
··················\
·4-8
Road warning ··················\
··················\
··················\
·············6-2
Seat··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
···········3-2
Seat belts ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
3-15
Smart key ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
·4-6
Special driving conditions ··················\
··················\
·········5-39
Starting the engine ··················\
··················\
··················\
·····5-9
Steering wheel ··················\
··················\
··················\
·········4-32
Storage compartment ··················\
··················\
·················4-88\
Sunroof··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
···4-28
Tire specification and pressure label ··················\
·············8-7
Tires and wheels ··················\
··················\
··················\
7-37/8-3
Towing ··················\
··················\
··················\
··················\
···6-15
Trailer towing··················\
··················\
··················\
···········5-45
K
L
M
O
P
R
S
T

313
Safety features of your vehicle
C010303APB
Headrest (if equipped)
■4 door, 2 door vehicle
The rear seat(s) is equipped with head-
rests in the outboard seating positions for
the occupant's safety and comfort.
■ 5 door vehicle
The rear seat is equipped with headrests
in all the seating positions for the occu-
pant's safety and comfort.
The headrest not only provides comfort
for passengers, but also helps protect the
head and neck in the event of a collision.
WARNING
For maximum effectiveness in case of an accident, the headrest
should be adjusted so the middle
of the headrest is at the same
height of the center of gravity of
an occupant's head. Generally,
the center of gravity of most peo-
ple's head is similar with the
height of the top of their eyes.
Also adjust the headrest as close
to your head as possible. For this
reason, the use of a cushion that
holds the body away from the
seatback is not recommended.
Do not operate the vehicle with the headrests removed as severe
injury to an occupant may occur
in the event of an accident.
Headrests may provide protec-
tion against severe neck injuries
when properly adjusted.
WARNING- Cargo
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.
Do not place objects in the rear
seats, since they cannot be proper-
ly secured and may hit the front
seat occupants in a frontal colli-
sion.
WARNING - Cargo loading
Make sure the engine is off, the
automatic transaxle is in P (Park)
or the manual transaxle is in
Reverse or 1st, and the parking
brake is securely applied whenever
loading or unloading cargo. Failure
to take these steps may allow the
vehicle to move if the shift lever is
inadvertently moved to another
position.

Features of your vehicle
14
4
Press the switch to the "Lock" position
(1), all vehicle doors will lock.
Press the switch to the "Unlock" posi- tion (2), all vehicle doors will unlock.
If the key is in the ignition switch (or if the smart key is in the vehicle) and any
front door is opened, the doors will not
lock when the “Lock” position (1) of the
central door lock switch is pressed. (if
equipped)D050300AHM
Impact sensing door unlock sys-
tem (if equipped)
All doors will automatically unlock when
an impact causes the air bags to deploy.
D050400ATD-EU
Auto door lock/unlock feature
(if equipped)
All doors will automatically lock whenthe transaxle shift lever is shifted out of
P (Park).
All doors will automatically unlock when the transaxle shift lever is shifted
into P (Park).
WARNING- Unlocked
vehicles
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- Unattendedchildren
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.
WARNING - 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.

415
Features of your vehicle
D050400ATD-EE
✽
✽NOTICE
An authorized KIA dealer can activate
or deactivate some auto door lock/
unlock features as follows;
• Auto door unlock by using the dri-
ver's door lock button
• Auto door lock/unlock by shifting the transaxle shift lever out of P (Park) or
into P (Park)
• Auto door unlock when the ignition key is removed from the ignition
switch (for smart key, when the
ENGINE START/STOP button is
turned to the OFF position)
If you want to activate or deactivate
some door lock/unlock feature, consult
an authorized KIA dealer.
D050500ATD-EU
Child-protector rear door lock
(for 4 door, 5 door vehicle only)
The child safety lock is provided to help
prevent children from accidentally open-
ing the rear doors from inside the vehicle.
The rear door safety locks should be
used whenever children are in the vehi-
cle.
1. Open the rear door.
2. Push the child safety lock (1) located
on the rear edge of the door to the
lock position. When the child safety
lock is in the lock position, rear door
will not open even when the inner door
handle is pulled. 3. Close the rear door.
To open the rear door, pull the outside
door handle (3).
Even though the doors may be unlocked,
the rear door will not open by pulling the
inner door handle (2) until the rear door
child safety lock is unlocked.
WARNING- Rear door
locks
If children accidentally open the
rear doors while the vehicle is in
motion, they could fall out and be
severely injured or killed. To pre-
vent children from opening the rear
doors from the inside, the rear door
safety locks should be used when-
ever children are in the vehicle.OTD049008

449
Features of your vehicle
D150308ATD
Parking brake & brake fluidwarning light
Parking brake warning
This warning light illuminates for 3 sec-
onds after the ignition switch is turned to
the ON position and then it will go out.
Also, this light illuminates when the park-
ing brake is applied with the ignition
switch in the START or ON position. The
warning light should go out when the
parking brake is released.
Low brake fluid level warning
If the warning light remains on, it may
indicate that the brake fluid level in the
reservoir is low.
If the warning light remains on:
1. Drive carefully to the nearest safe location and stop your vehicle.
2. With the engine stopped, check the brake fluid level immediately and add
fluid as required. Then check all brake
components for fluid leaks.
3. Do not drive the vehicle if leaks are found, the warning light remains on or
the brakes do not operate properly.
Have the vehicle towed to any author-
ized KIA dealer for a brake system
inspection and necessary repairs. Your vehicle is equipped with dual-diago-
nal braking systems. This means you still
have braking on two wheels even if one
of the dual systems should fail. With only
one of the dual systems working, more
than normal pedal travel and greater
pedal pressure are required to stop the
vehicle. Also, the vehicle will not stop in
as short a distance with only a portion of
the brake system working. If the brakes
fail while you are driving, shift to a lower
gear for additional engine braking and
stop the vehicle as soon as it is safe to do
so.
To check bulb operation, check whether
the parking brake and brake fluid warning
light illuminates when the ignition switch
is in the ON position.
D150309APB
Front fog light indicator
(if equipped)
This indicator comes on when the front
fog lights are ON.
D150312AAM
Shift pattern indicator (if equipped)
The indicator displays which automatic
transaxle shift position is selected.
WARNING
Driving the vehicle with a warning
light on is dangerous. If the brake
warning light remains on, have the
brakes checked and repaired imme-
diately by an authorized KIA dealer.

Features of your vehicle
54
4
D150340ATD-EU
ECOMINDERTMindicator
(if equipped)
The ECOMINDERTMindicator is dis-
played to help you improve fuel efficiency
when you are driving.
The ECOMINDER
TMindicator will turn
the ECO light green on the instrument
panel when you are driving fuel effi-
ciently in the ECO ON mode.
If you don't want the indicator dis-
played, you can turn the ECO ON
mode to OFF mode by pressing the
TRIP button.
When the instant fuel consumption mode(if equipped) is displayed on the
LCD display or the system is not work-
ing properly, the indicator turns off. If
the indicator turns off when the instant
fuel consumption mode or ECO OFF
mode is not selected, have the system
checked by an authorized KIA dealer
as soon as possible.
The fuel efficiency depends on the dri- ver's driving habit and road condition.
The system stops operating when the transaxle is in the P (Park), R
(Reverse), N (Neutral) position or
sports mode, or when the instant fuel
consumption mode is selected.
D150400ATD
LCD display warning (if equipped)
Door Open
This warning illuminates when a door is
not closed securely.
The indicator displays which door is
opened.
Low Battery
This warning indicates a malfunction of
either the generator or electrical charging
system.
If the warning illuminates while the vehi-
cle is in motion:
1. Drive to the nearest safe location.
2. With the engine off, check the genera- tor drive belt for looseness or break-
age.
3. If the belt is adjusted properly, a prob- lem exists somewhere in the electrical
charging system. Have an authorized
KIA dealer correct the problem as soon
as possible.ECOECOMINDERTM WARNING
Don't keep watching the “ECO”
ECOMINDERTM indicator while driv-
ing. It may distract you while driv-
ing and cause an accident that
could result in severe personal
injury.

5
Before driving / 5-3
Key positions / 5-4
ENGINE START/STOP button / 5-6
Starting the engine / 5-9
Manual transaxle / 5-12
Automatic transaxle / 5-15
Brake system / 5-23
Cruise control system / 5-33
Economical operation / 5-37
Special driving conditions / 5-39
Winter driving / 5-43
Trailer towing / 5-45
Vehicle load limit / 5-46
Vehicle weight / 5-51
Driving your vehicle