2012 KIA Optima Owner's Manual

Safety features of your vehicle
12
3
Active headrest
The active headrest is designed to move
forward and upward during a rear impact.
This helps to prevent the driver's and
front passenger’s head from moving
backward and thus helps prevent neck
injuries.Seatback pocket (if equipped)
The seatback pocket is provided on the
back of the front passenger’s seatback.
HNF2041-1OTF030016
WARNING- Seatback
pocket
Do not put heavy or sharp objects
in the seatback pocket. In an acci-
dent they could come loose from
the pocket and injure vehicle occu-
pants.
WARNING
A gap between the seat and the
headrest release button may
appear when seating on the seat or
when you push or pull the seat. Be
careful not to get your finger, etc.
caught in the gap.
WARNING
Passengers should use extreme
caution when using the climate
control seat to warm due to the
possibility of excess heating or
burns. The occupants must be able
to feel if the seat is becoming too
warm and to turn the seat warmer
off. In particular, the driver must
exercise extreme care for the fol-
lowing types of passengers:
1. Infants, children, elderly or dis-
abled persons, or hospital outpa-
tients
2. Persons with sensitive skin or those that burn easily
3. Fatigued individuals
4. Intoxicated individuals
5. Individuals taking medication that can cause drowsiness or
sleepiness (sleeping pills, cold
tablets, etc.)

313
Safety features of your vehicle
Rear seat adjustment
Folding the rear seat
The rear seatbacks may be folded to
facilitate carrying long items or to
increase the luggage capacity of the
vehicle.To fold the rear seatback :
1. Set the front seatback to the upright
position and if necessary slide the
front seat forward.
2. Lower the rear headrest to the lowest position.
3. Open the trunk.
WARNING
For proper operation of the occu-
pant detection system, do not place
any items cumulatively weighing
over 1kg (2.2 lbs) in the passen-
ger’s seatback pocket.
WARNING
The purpose of the fold-down rear
seatbacks is to allow you to carry
longer objects that could not be
accommodated in the luggage area.
Never allow passengers sit on top
of the folded down seatback while
the vehicle is moving. This is not a
proper seating position and no seat
belts are available for use. This
could result in serious injury or
death in case of an accident or sud-
den stop. Objects carried on the
folded down seatback should not
extend higher than the top of the
front seatbacks. This could allow
cargo to slide forward and cause
injury or damage during sudden
stops.

Safety features of your vehicle
14
3
4. Pull out the lock release knob (1). 5. Fold the seatback forward and down
firmly.
6. To use the rear seat, lift and push the seatback backward firmly until it clicks
into place.
7. Return the rear seat belt to the proper position.
✽ ✽NOTICE
If the seat belt locks after unfolding the
rear seatback, pull out the locked seat
belt, release it then pull it out again.
OTF030022N
WARNING
When you return the rear seatback
to its upright position after being
folded down:
Be careful not to damage the seat
belt webbing or buckle. Do not
allow the seat belt webbing or
buckle to get caught or pinched in
the rear seat. Ensure that the seat-
back is completely locked into its
upright position by pushing on the
top of the seatback. Otherwise, in
an accident or sudden stop, the
seat could fold down and allow
cargo to enter the passenger com-
partment, which could result in
serious injury or death.
CAUTION- Rear seat belts
When returning the rear seatbacks
to the upright position, remember to return the rear shoulder belts totheir proper position.
OTF030020

315
Safety features of your vehicle
Headrest
The rear seat(s) is equipped with head-
rests in the outboard seating positions for
the occupant'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 incase 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.
OMG038401
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.

Safety features of your vehicle
16
3
Adjusting the height up and down
To raise the headrest, pull it up to the
desired position (1). To lower the head-
rest, push and hold the release button (2)
on the headrest support and lower the
headrest to the desired position (3). Removal
To remove the headrest, raise it as far as
it can go then press the release button
(1) while pulling the headrest upward (2).
To reinstall the headrest, put the head-
rest poles (3) into the holes while press-
ing the release button (1). Then adjust it
to the appropriate height.Seat warmer (if equipped)
The seat warmer is provided to warm the
rear seats during cold weather. With the
ignition switch in the ON position, push
either of the switches to warm the seat.
During mild weather or under conditions
where the operation of the seat warmer
is not needed, keep the switches in the
OFF position.
✽ ✽
NOTICE
With the seat warmer switch in the ON
position, the heating system in the seat
turns off or on automatically depending
on the seat temperature.
OTF030018
WARNING
Make sure the headrest locks in
position after adjusting it to proper-
ly protect the occupants.
OTF030025OTF030017

317
Safety features of your vehicle
Armrest
To use the armrest, pull it forward from
the seatback.
OTF030023N
CAUTION
When cleaning the seats, do notuse an organic solvent such asthinner, benzene, alcohol andgasoline. Doing so may damagethe surface of the heater or seats.
To prevent overheating the seat warmer, do not place anything onthe seats that insulates againstheat, such as blankets, cushionsor seat covers while the seatwarmer is in operation.
Do not place heavy or sharp objects on seats equipped withseat warmers. Damage to the seatwarming components could occur.WARNING- Seat warmer burns
Passengers should use extreme
caution when using seat warmers
due to the possibility of excess
heating or burns. The occupants
must be able to feel if the seat is
becoming too warm and to turn the
seat warmer off. The seat warmer
may cause burns even at low tem-
peratures, especially if used for
long periods of time. In particular,
the driver must exercise extreme
care for the following types of pas-
sengers:
1. Infants, children, elderly or dis-
abled persons, or hospital outpa-
tients
2. Persons with sensitive skin or those that burn easily
3. Fatigued individuals
4. Intoxicated individuals
5. Individuals taking medication that can cause drowsiness or
sleepiness (sleeping pills, cold
tablets, etc.)

Safety features of your vehicle
18
3
Seat belt restraint system
SEAT BELTS
WARNING
For maximum restraint system
protection, the seat belts must
always be used whenever the
vehicle is moving.
Seat belts are most effective when seatbacks are in the
upright position.
Children age 12 and under must always be properly restrained in
the rear seat. Never allow chil-
dren to ride in the front passen-
ger seat. If a child over 12 must
be seated in the front seat, he/she
must be properly belted and the
seat should be moved as far back
as possible.
Never wear the shoulder belt under your arm or behind your
back. An improperly positioned
shoulder belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash. The shoulder
belt should be positioned midway
over your shoulder across your
collarbone.
(Continued)
(Continued)
Avoid wearing twisted seat belts.A twisted belt can't do its job as
well. In a collision, it could even
cut into you. Be sure the belt
webbing is straight and not twist-
ed.
Be careful not to damage the belt webbing or hardware. If the belt
webbing or hardware is dam-
aged, replace it.WARNING
Seat belts are designed to bear
upon the bony structure of the
body, and should be worn low
across the front of the pelvis or the
pelvis, chest and shoulders, as
applicable; wearing the lap section
of the belt across the abdominal
area must be avoided.
Seat belts should be adjusted as
firmly as possible, consistent with
comfort, to provide the protection
for which they have been designed.
A slack belt will greatly reduce the
protection afforded to the wearer.
Care should be taken to avoid con-
tamination of the webbing with pol-
ishes, oils and chemicals, and par-
ticularly battery acid. Cleaning may
safely be carried out using mild
soap and water. The belt should be
replaced if webbing becomes
frayed, contaminated or damaged.
(Continued)

319
Safety features of your vehicle
Seat belt warning (for driver’s seat)
The driver's seat belt warning light and
chime will activate to the following table
when the ignition switch is in "ON" posi-
tion.
(Continued)
It is essential to replace the entire
assembly after it has been worn in
a severe impact even if damage to
the assembly is not obvious. Belts
should not be worn with straps
twisted. Each belt assembly must
only be used by one occupant; it is
dangerous to put a belt around a
child being carried on the occu-
pant's lap.
1GQA2083
WARNING
No modifications or additionsshould be made by the user
which will either prevent the seat
belt adjusting devices from oper-
ating to remove slack, or prevent
the seat belt assembly from being
adjusted to remove slack.
When you fasten the seat belt, be careful not to latch the seat belt in
buckles of other seat. It's very dan-
gerous and you may not be pro-
tected by the seat belt properly.
Do not unfasten the seat belt and do not fasten and unfasten the
seat belt repeatedly while driving.
This could result in loss of con-
trol, and an accident causing
death, serious injury, or property
damage.
When fastening the seat belt, make sure that the seat belt does
not pass over objects that are
hard or can break easily.
Make sure there is nothing in the buckle. The seat belt may not be
fastened securely.