2013 KIA Soul Owner's Manual

Safety features of your vehicle
10
3
Seatback pocket (if equipped)
Rear seat adjustment
Folding the rear seat
The rear seatbacks can be folded to
facilitate carrying long items or to
increase the luggage capacity of the
vehicle.
WARNING - Folded
down seatback
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 sudden stop.
WARNING - Objects
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.
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WARNING - Seatback pockets
Do not put heavy or sharp
objects in the seatback pocket.
An occupant could contact
such objects in a crash. Heavy
objects in the front passenger
seatback could also interfere
with the airbag sensing system.

311
Safety features of your vehicle
To fold down the rear seatback:
1. Insert the rear seat belt buckle inthe pocket (if equipped) between
the rear seatback and cushion,
and insert the rear seat belt web-
bing in the guide to prevent the
seat belt from being damaged.
2. Set the front seatback to the upright position and if necessary,
slide the front seat forward.
3.Lower the rear headrests to the lowest position. 4.Pull on the seatback folding lever,
then fold the seat toward the front
of the vehicle. When you return the
seatback to its upright position,
always be sure it has locked into
position by pushing on the top of
the seatback. 5. To use the rear seat, lift and pull
the seatback backward by pulling
on the folding lever. Pull the seat-
back firmly until it clicks into place.
Make sure the seatback is locked
in place.
6. Return the rear seat belt to the proper position.
When returning the rear seatbacks to
the upright position, remember to
return the rear shoulder belts to their
proper position.
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Safety features of your vehicle
12
3
Headrest
The rear seat(s) is equipped with
headrests in all the seating positions
for the occupant's safety and com-
for t.
The headrest not only provides com-
fort for passengers, but also helps
protect the head and neck in the
event of a collision.
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 people's head is similar with
the height as the top of their eyes. Also adjust the headrest as close to
your head as possible. For this rea-
son, the use of a cushion that holds
the body away from the seatback is
not recommended.
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WARNING - Headrest
removal
Do not operate the vehicle with
the headrests removed.
Headrests can provide critical
neck and head support in a
crash.
WARNING - Rear seatback
When returning the rear seat-
back from a folded to an upright
position, hold the seatback and
return it slowly. Ensure that the
seatback is completely locked
into its upright position by
pushing on the top of the seat-
back. In an accident or sudden
stop, the unlocked seatback
could allow cargo to move for-
ward with great force and enter
the passenger compartment.
WARNING - Cargo
Do not place heavy objects in
the rear seats, since they can-
not be properly secured and
may hit vehicle occupants in a
frontal collision.

313
Safety features of your vehicle
Adjusting the height up and down
To raise the headrest, pull it up to the
desired position (1). To lower the
headrest, push and hold the release
button (2) on the headrest support
and lower the headrest to the desired
position (3).Removal and installation
To remove the headrest, raise it as
far as it can go then press the
release button (1) while pulling the
headrest up (2).
To reinstall the headrest, put the
headrest poles (3) into the holes
while pessing the release button (1).
Then adjust it to the appropriate
height and ensure that it locks in
position.
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Safety features of your vehicle
14
3
Seat belt restraint system
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 partic-
ularly 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.
For maximum restraint system pro-
tection, the seat belts must always
be used whenever the vehicle is
moving. A properly positioned
shoulder belt should be positioned
midway over your shoulder across
your collarbone. Never allow children to ride in the
front passenger seat. See child
restraint system section for further
discussion.
SEAT BELTS
WARNING - Shoulderbelt
Never wear the shoulder belt
under your arm or behind your
back. An improperly positioned
shoulder belt cannot protect the
occupant in a crash.
WARNING - Damagedseat belt
Replace the entire seat belt
assembly if any part of the web-
bing or hardware is damage as
you can no longer be sure that a
damage seat belt will provide
protection in a crash.
WARNING - Twisted seat belt
Make sure your seat belt is not
twisted when worn. A twisted
seat belt may not properly pro-
tect you in an accident and
could even cut into your body.
WARNING - Seat beltbuckle
Do not allow foreign material
(gum, crumbs, coins, etc.) to
obstruct the seat belt buckle.
This may prevent the seat belt
from fastening securely.

315
Safety features of your vehicle
Seat belt warning (for driver’sseat)
The driver's seat belt warning light
and chime will activate to the follow-
ing table when the ignition switch is
in "ON" position.
*
1Warning pattern repeats 11 times
with an interval of 24 seconds. If
the driver's seat belt is buckled, the
light will stop within 6 seconds and
chime will stop immediately.
*
2The light will stop within 6 seconds
and chime will stop immediately.
Seat belt - Driver's 3-point system with emergency locking retractor
To fasten your seat belt:
To fasten your seat belt, pull it out of
the retractor and insert the metal tab
(1) into the buckle (2). There will be
an audible "click" when the tab locks
into the buckle.
The seat belt automatically adjusts to
the proper length only after the lap
belt portion is adjusted manually so
that it fits snugly around your hips. If
you lean forward in a slow, easy
motion, the belt will extend and let
you move around. If there is a sud-
den stop or impact, however, the belt
will lock into position.
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ConditionsWarning Pattern
Seat BeltVehicle
SpeedLight-BlinkChime-Sound
Unbuckled6 seconds
Buckled6 secondsNone
Buckled →
Unbuckled
Below 5 km/h
(3 mph)6 secondsNone
5 km/h~10 km/h6 seconds
Above 10
km/h (6 mph)6 sec. on / 24 sec. off (11 times)
Unbuckled
Above 10
km/h (6 mph)
↓
Below 5
km/h (3 mph)
6 seconds *1
↓
Stop *
2
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Safety features of your vehicle
16
3
It will also lock if you try to lean for-
ward too quickly.
If you are not able to smoothly pull
enough of the seat belt from the
retractor, firmly pull the belt out and
release it. Then you will be able to
pull the belt out smoothly.
Height adjustment
You can adjust the height of the
shoulder belt anchor to one of the 4
positions for maximum comfort and
safety.
The height of the seat belt should not
be too close to your neck. The shoul-
der portion should be adjusted so
that it lies across your chest and mid-
way over your shoulder near the door
and not your neck.To adjust the height of the seat belt
anchor, lower or raise the height
adjuster into an appropriate position.
To raise the height adjuster, pull it up
(1). To lower it, push it down (3) while
pressing the height adjuster button
(2).
Release the button to lock the
anchor into position. Try sliding the
height adjuster to make sure that it
has locked into position.
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Front seat
WARNING - Shoulder
belt position
Never position the shoulder belt
across your neck or face.
WARNING - Seat beltreplacement
Replace your seat belts after
being in an accident. Failure to
replace seat belts after an acci-
dent could leave you with dam-
aged seat belts that will not pro-
vide protection in the event of
another collision.

317
Safety features of your vehicle
You should place the lap belt portion
as low as possible and snugly across
your hips. If the lap belt is located too
high on your waist, it may increase
the chance of injury in the event of a
collision.
The arm closest to the seat belt
buckle should be over the belt while
the other arm should be under the
belt as shown in the illustration.
Seat belts - Front passenger andrear seat 3-point system withcombination locking retractor
To fasten your seat belt:
Combination retractor type seat belts
are installed in the rear seat posi-
tions to help accommodate the
installation of child restraint systems.
Although a combination retractor is
also installed in the front passenger
seat position, it is strongly recom-
mended that children always be
seated in the rear seat. NEVER
place any infant restraint system in
the front seat of the vehicle.
This type of seat belt combines the
features of both an emergency lock-
ing retractor seat belt and an auto-
matic locking retractor seat belt. To
fasten your seat belt, pull it out of the
retractor and insert the metal tab into
the buckle. There will be an audible
"click" when the tab locks into the
buckle. When not securing a child
restraint, the seat belt operates in the
same way as the driver's seat belt
(Emergency Locking Retractor
Type). It automatically adjusts to the proper
length only after the lap belt portion
of the seat belt is adjusted manually
so that it fits snugly around your hips.
When the seat belt is fully extended
from the retractor to allow the instal-
lation of a child restraint system, the
seat belt operation changes to allow
the belt to retract, but not to extend
(Automatic Locking Retractor Type).
Refer to “Using a child restraint sys-
tem” in this section.
To convert from the automatic lock-
ing feature to the emergency locking
operation mode, allow the unbuckled
seat belt to fully retract.
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