2012 KIA Soul four wheel drive

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Driving your vehicle
WINTER DRIVING
Severe weather conditions in the
winter result in greater wear and
other problems. To minimize the
problems of winter driving, you
should follow these suggestions:
Snowy or icy conditions
To drive your vehicle in deep snow, it
may be necessary to use snow tires
on your tires. If snow tires are need-
ed, it is necessary to select tires
equivalent in size and type of the
original equipment tires. Failure to do
so may adversely affect the safety
and handling of your vehicle.
Furthermore, speeding, rapid accel-
eration, sudden brake applications,
and sharp turns are potentially very
hazardous practices.
During deceleration, use engine
braking to the fullest extent. Sudden
brake applications on snowy or icy
roads may cause skids to occur. You
need to keep sufficient distance
between the vehicle in operation in
front and your vehicle. Also, apply
the brake gently.
Snow tires
If you mount snow tires on your vehi-
cle, make sure they are radial tires of
the same size and load range as the
original tires. Mount snow tires on all
four wheels to balance your vehicle’s
handling in all weather conditions.
Keep in mind that the traction provid-
ed by snow tires on dry roads may
not be as high as your vehicle's orig-
inal equipment tires. You should drive
cautiously even when the roads are
clear. Check with the tire dealer for
maximum speed recommendations.
Do not install studded tires withoutfirst checking local, state and munic-ipal regulations for possible restric-tions against their use.
1VQA3005

What to do in an emergency
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6
Use a towing strap less than 5 m
(16 feet) long. Attach a white or red
cloth (about 30 cm (12 inches)
wide) in the middle of the strap for
easy visibility.
Drive carefully so that the towing strap is not loose during towing.
Emergency towing precautions
Turn the ignition switch to ACC sothe steering wheel isn’t locked.
Place the transaxle shift lever in N (Neutral).
Release the parking bake.
Press the brake pedal with more force than usual since you will have
reduced brake performance.
More steering effort will be required because the power steer-
ing system will be disabled.
If you are driving down a long hill, the brakes may overheat and brake
performance will be reduced. Stop
often and let the brakes cool off.
If the car is being towed with all four wheels on the ground, it can
be towed only from the front. Be
sure that the transaxle is in neutral.
Be sure the steering is unlocked by
placing the ignition switch in the
ACC position. A driver must be in
the towed vehicle to operate the
steering and brakes.
OPA067014
CAUTION - Automatictransaxle
To avoid serious damage to
the automatic transaxle, limitthe vehicle speed to 15 km/h(10 mph) and drive less than1.5 km (1 mile) when towing.
Before towing, check the level of the automatic transaxlefluid. If it is below the "HOT"range on the dipstick, addfluid. If you cannot add fluid, atowing dolly must be used.

Maintenance
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7
Vehicle Maximum Load on the
Tire: Load on an individual tire due to
curb and accessory weight plus
maximum occupant and cargo
weight.
Vehicle Normal Load on the Tire :
Load on an individual tire that is
determined by distributing to each
axle its share of the curb weight,
accessory weight, and normal occu-
pant weight and dividing by 2.
Vehicle Placard: A label permanent-
ly attached to a vehicle showing the
original equipment tire size and rec-
ommended inflation pressure.All season tires
Kia specifies all season tires on
some models to provide good per-
formance for use all year round,
including snowy and icy road condi-
tions. All season tires are identified
by ALL SEASON and/or M+S (Mud
and Snow) on the tire sidewall. Snow
tires have better snow traction than
all season tires and may be more
appropriate in some areas.
Summer tires
Kia specifies summer tires on some
models to provide superior perform-
ance on dry roads. Summer tire per-
formance is substantially reduced in
snow and ice. Summer tires do not
have the tire traction rating M+S
(Mud and Snow) on the tire side wall.
if you plan to operate your vehicle in
snowy or icy conditions. Kia recom-
mends the use of snow tires or all
season tires on all four wheels.
Snow tires
If you equip your car with snow tires,
they should be the same size and
have the same load capacity as the
original tires. Snow tires should be
installed on all four wheels; other-
wise, poor handling may result.
Snow tires should carry 28 kPa (4 psi
) more air pressure than the pressure
recommended for the standard tires
on the tire label on the driver's side of
the center pillar, or up to the maxi-
mum pressure shown on the tire
sidewall, whichever is less.
Do not drive faster than 120 km/h (75
mph) when your vehicle is equipped
with snow tires.