
341
Safety system of your vehicle
How does the air bag system operate
Air bags are activated (able to inflate ifnecessary) only when the ignition
switch is turned to the ON or STARTposition.
Air bags inflate instantly in the event of serious frontal or side collision (ifequipped with side impact air bag or
curtain air bag) in order to help protect
the occupants from serious physical
injury.
There is no single speed at which the air bags will inflate.
Generally, air bags are designed to
inflate based upon the severity of a col-
lision and its direction. These two fac-
tors determine whether the sensors
produce an electronic deployment/inflation signal.
Air bag deployment depends on a number of factors including vehiclespeed, angles of impact and the densi-
ty and stiffness of the vehicles or
objects which your vehicle hits in the
collision. The determining, factors are
not limited to those mentioned above.
The front air bags will completely inflate and deflate in an instant. It is virtually impossible for you to see
the air bags inflate during an accident.
It is much more likely that you will sim-ply see the deflated air bags hanging
out of their storage compartments afterthe collision.
In order to help provide protection in a severe collision, the air bags must
inflate rapidly. The speed of air bag
inflation is a consequence of extremely
short time in which a collision occursand the need to get the air bag
between the occupant and the vehicle
structures before the occupant impacts
those structures. This speed of inflation
reduces the risk of serious or life-
threatening injuries in a severe collision
and is thus a necessary part of air bagdesign.
However, air bag inflation can also
cause injuries which can include facial
abrasions, bruises and broken bonesbecause the inflation speed also caus-
es the air bags to expand with a great
deal of force.
There are even circumstances under which contact with the steer-
ing wheel air bag can cause fatal
injuries, especially if the occupant
is positioned excessively close tothe steering wheel.
WARNING
To avoid severe personal injury or death caused by deploying air
bags in a collision, the driver
should sit as far back from the
steering wheel air bag as possible
(at least 250 mm (10 inches)
away). The front passenger should
always move their seat as far
back as possible and sit back intheir seat.
Air bag inflates instantly in an event of a collision, passengers
may be injured by the air bag
expansion force if they are not in
a proper position.
Air bag inflation may cause injuries including facial or bodily
abrasions, injuries from broken
glasses or burns.
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343
Safety system of your vehicle
Air bag warning and indicator
Air bag warning light
The purpose of the air bag warning light
in your instrument panel is to alert you of
a potential problem with your air bag -
Supplemental Restraint System (SRS).When the ignition switch is turned ON,
the warning light should illuminate for
approximately 6 seconds, then go off.
Have the system checked if:
The light does not turn on briefly when
you turn the ignition ON.
The light stays on after illuminating for approximately 6 seconds.
The light comes on while the vehicle is in motion.
The light blinks when the ignition switch is in ON position.
WARNING
Extreme Hazard! Do not use a rearward facing child restraint on
a seat protected by an air bag in
front of it!
Never put a child restraint in the front passenger’s seat. If the front
passenger air bag inflates, it
would cause serious or fatalinjuries.
When children are seated in the rear outboard seats of vehicle
equipped with curtain air bags,
be sure to install the child
restraint system as far away from
the door side as possible, and
securely lock the child restraintsystem in position.
Inflation of curtain air bags could
cause serious injury or death to
an infant or child.
W7-147
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Safety system of your vehicle
44
3
Passenger’s front air bag
ON indicator
The passenger's front air bag ON indica-
tor illuminates for approximately 4 sec-
onds after the ignition switch is turned tothe ON position. The passenger's front air bag ON indica- tor also comes on when the passenger's
front air bag ON/OFF switch is set to the
ON position and goes off after approxi-
mately 60 seconds.
Passenger’s front air bag OFF indicator
The passenger’s front air bag OFF indi-
cator illuminates for about 4 seconds
after the ignition switch is turned to theON position.
The passenger’s front air bag OFF indi- cator also comes on when the passen-
ger’s front air bag ON/OFF switch is setto the OFF position and goes off when
the passenger’s front air bag ON/OFF
switch is set to the ON position.
CAUTION
If the passenger’s front air bagON/OFF switch malfunctions, the
passenger’s front air bag OFF indi-cator will not illuminate (The pas-senger's front air bag ON indicator comes on and goes off after
approximately 60 seconds) and the passenger’s front air bag will inflatein a frontal impact even if the pas-
senger’s front air bag ON/OFFswitch is set to the OFF position.
If this occurs, we recommend thatthe passenger’s front air bagON/OFF switch and the SRS air bag
system be inspected by an author- ized Kia dealer.
OJD032033OJD032034
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345
Safety system of your vehicle
SRS components and functions
The SRS consists of the following com- ponents:
1. Driver's front air bag module
2. Passenger's front air bag module
3. Side air bag modules*
4. Curtain air bag modules*
5. Retractor pre-tensioner assemblies
6. Air bag warning light
7. SRS control module (SRSCM)
8. Front impact sensors
9. Side impact sensors*
10. Passenger’s front air bag ON/OFFindicator
11. Passenger’s front air bag ON/OFF switch
* : if equipped The SRSCM continually monitors all ele-
ments while the ignition switch is ON to
determine if a frontal, near-frontal impact
or side impact is severe enough to require
air bag deployment or pre-tensioner seat
belt deployment.
The SRS air bag warning light on the
instrument panel will illuminate for about
6 seconds after the ignition switch is
turned to the ON position, after which the
air bag warning light should go out.
WARNING
If any of the following conditions
occurs, this indicates a malfunction
of the SRS. We recommend that the
system be inspected by an author-
ized Kia dealer.
The light does not turn on briefly when you turn the ignition ON.
The light stays on after illuminat- ing for approximately 6 seconds.
The light comes on while the vehicle is in motion.
The light blinks when the ignition switch is in ON position.
OJD032053
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347
Safety system of your vehicle
WARNING
If an air bag deploys, there may be a loud noise followed by a fine
dust released in the vehicle.These conditions are normal and
are not hazardous - the air bags
are packed in this fine powder.
The dust generated during air
bag deployment may cause skin
or eye irritation as well as aggra-
vate asthma for some persons.
Always wash all exposed skin
areas thoroughly with lukewarmwater and a mild soap after an
accident in which the air bags
were deployed.
(Continued)(Continued)
The SRS can function only whenthe ignition key is in the ON posi-
tion. If the SRS air bag warning
light does not illuminate, or con-
tinuously remains on after illumi-
nating for about 6 seconds when
the ignition key is turned to the
ON position, or after the engine is
started, comes on while driving,
the SRS is not working properly.
If this occurs, we recommend
that the system be inspected by
an authorized Kia dealer.
Before you replace a fuse or dis- connect a battery terminal, turn
the ignition switch to the LOCK
position and remove the ignition
key. Never remove or replace the
air bag related fuse(s) when the
ignition switch is in the ON posi-
tion. Failure to heed this warning
will cause the SRS air bag warn-
ing light to illuminate.
WARNING
Do not install or place any acces- sories (drink holder, cassette
holder, sticker, etc.) on the front
passenger's panel above the
glove box in a vehicle with a pas-
senger's air bag. Such objects
may become dangerous projec-
tiles and cause injury if the pas-
senger's air bag inflates.
When installing a container of liq- uid air freshener inside the vehi-
cle, do not place it near the
instrument cluster nor on the
instrument panel surface.
It may become dangerous projec-
tiles and cause injury if the pas-
senger's air bag inflates.
B240B05L
Passenger’s front air bag
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Safety system of your vehicle
50
3
Passenger’s front air bag ON/OFF
switch (if equipped)
The passenger’s front air bag can be
deactivated by the passenger’s front air
bag ON/OFF switch if a child restraint isinstalled on the front passenger's seat orif the front passenger's seat is unoccu-
pied by a person.
To ensure the safety of your child, the
passenger’s front air bag must be deacti-
vated when it should be necessary to
install a rearward facing child seat on the
front passenger seat in exceptional cir-
cumstances.
OJD032037
(Continued)
For maximum safety protection in all types of crashes, all occu-
pants including the driver should
always wear their seat belts
whether or not an air bag is also
provided at their seating position
to minimize the risk of severe
injury or death in the event of a
crash. Do not sit or lean unneces-
sarily close to the air bag while
the vehicle is in motion.
Sitting improperly or out of posi- tion can result in serious or fatal
injury in a crash. All occupantsshould sit upright with the seat
back in an upright position, cen-tered on the seat cushion with
their seat belt on, legs comfort-
ably extended and their feet on
the floor until the vehicle is
parked and the ignition key is
removed.
(Continued)(Continued)
The SRS air bag system mustdeploy very rapidly to provide
protection in a crash. If an occu-pant is out of position because of
not wearing a seat belt, the air
bag may forcefully contact theoccupant causing serious or fatalinjuries.
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Safety system of your vehicle
52
3
(Continued)
Even though your vehicle is
equipped with the passenger's
front air bag ON/OFF switch, do
not install a child restraint sys-
tem in the front passenger's seat.
A child restraint system must
never be placed in the front seat.
Children who are too large for
child restraint systems should
always occupy the rear seat and
use the available lap/shoulder
belts. Children are afforded the
most safety in the event of an
accident when they are
restrained by a proper restraintsystem in the rear seat.
As soon as the child seat is no longer needed on the front pas-
senger's seat, reactivate the front
passenger's air bag.WARNING
The driver is responsible for the proper position of the passen-
ger’s front air bag ON/OFF switch.
Deactivate the passenger's front air bag only when the ignition
switch is switched off, or the mal-
function may occur in the SRS
Control Module.
And there may be a danger that
the driver's and/or front passen-
ger’s and/or side and curtain air
bag may fail to trigger, or not trig-
ger correctly during a collision.
Never install a rearward facing child seat on the front passen-
ger's seat unless the passenger's
front air bag has been deactivat-
ed. The infant or child could be
severely injured or killed by an air
bag deployment in case of anaccident.
(Continued)(Continued)
If this occurs, we recommend thatthe system be inspected by anauthorized Kia dealer.
If the SRS air bag warning light blinks or does not illuminatewhen the ignition switch is turnedto the ON position, or if it illumi-nates while the vehicle is being
driven, we recommend that the system be inspected by anauthorized Kia dealer.
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Safety system of your vehicle
54
3
Curtain air bag (if equipped)
Curtain air bags are located along both
sides of the roof rails above the front and
rear doors. They are designed to help protect theheads of the front seat occupants andthe rear outboard seat occupants in cer-
tain side impact collisions.
The curtain air bags are designed to
deploy during certain side impact colli-
sions, depending on the crash severity,
angle, speed and point of impact. The
curtain air bags are not designed to
deploy in all side impact situations, colli-
sions from the front or rear of the vehicle
or in most rollover situations.
OJD032039
OJD032041
(Continued)
Use of seat covers could reduce
or prevent the effectiveness of the system.
Do not install any accessories on the side or near the side impact
air bag.
Do not place any objects over the air bag or between the air bag
and yourself.
Do not place any objects (an umbrella, bag, etc.) between the
front door and the front seat.
Such objects may become dan-
gerous projectiles and cause
injury if the supplemental side
impact air bag inflates.
To prevent unexpected deploy- ment of the side impact air bag
that may result in personal injury,
avoid impact to the side impact
sensor when the ignition key ison.
If the seat or seat cover is dam- aged, we recommend that the
system be serviced by an author-
ized Kia dealer.
❈The actual air bags in the vehicle may dif-
fer from the illustration.
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