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Driving your vehicle
Automatic transaxle operation
The automatic transaxle has 6 forward
speeds and one reverse speed. The indi-
vidual speeds are selected automatically,
depending on the position of the shift
lever.
✽ ✽NOTICE
The first few shifts on a new vehicle, if
the battery has been disconnected, may
be somewhat abrupt. This is a normal
condition, and the shifting sequence will
adjust after shifts are cycled a few times
by the TCM (Transaxle Control
Module) or PCM (Powertrain Control
Module).
AUTOMATIC TRANSAXLE (IF EQUIPPED)
OUB051014
+ (UP)
Button
Shift lever
- (DOWN)
To shift, depress the brake pedal and press the button.
The shift lever can be shifted freely. Press the button when shifting.
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5
For smooth operation, depress the brake
pedal when shifting from N (Neutral) to aforward or reverse gear.
When stopped on an upgrade, do not
hold the vehicle with engine power. Use
the service brake or the parking brake.
Transaxle ranges
The indicator light in the instrument clus-
ter displays the shift lever position when
the ignition switch is in the ON position.
P (Park)
Always come to a complete stop before
shifting into P (Park). This position locks
the transaxle and prevents the front
wheels from rotating.
Shifting into P (Park) while the vehicle is
in motion will cause the drive wheels to
lock which will cause you to lose control
of the vehicle.
WARNING- Automatic transaxle
Before leaving the driver’s seat,
always make sure the shift lever is
in the P (Park) position; then set the
parking brake fully and shut the
engine off. Do not use the P posi-
tion in place of the parking brake.
Always make sure the shift lever is
latched in the P position and set the
parking brake fully. Unexpected
and sudden vehicle movement can
occur if these precautions are not
followed.
CAUTION - Transaxle
To avoid damage to your transaxle,
do not accelerate the engine in R(Reverse) or any forward gear posi-tion with the brakes on. Thetransaxle may be damaged if you shift into P (Park) while the vehicleis in motion.
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Driving your vehicle
R (Reverse)
Use this position to drive the vehicle
backward.
N (Neutral)
The wheels and transaxle are not
engaged. The vehicle will roll freely even
on the slightest incline unless the parking
brake or service brakes are applied.D (Drive)
This is the normal forward driving posi-
tion. The transaxle will automatically shift
through a 6-gear sequence, providing the
best fuel economy and power.
For extra power when passing another
vehicle or climbing grades, depress the
accelerator fully, at which time the
transaxle will automatically downshift to
the next lower gear.
Sports mode
Whether the vehicle is stopped or in
motion, sports mode is selected by push-
ing the shift lever from the D (Drive) posi-
tion into the manual gate. To return to D
(Drive) range operation, push the shift
lever back into the main gate.
In sports mode, moving the shift lever
backwards and forwards will allow you to
make gearshifts rapidly. In contrast to a
manual transaxle, the sports mode
allows gearshifts with the accelerator
pedal depressed.
CAUTION - Shifting
Always come to a complete stopbefore shifting into or out of R (Reverse); you may damage thetransaxle if you shift into R(Reverse) while the vehicle is inmotion, except when “Rocking theVehicle” explained in this section.
OUB051060
+ (UP)
- (DOWN)
Sports
mode
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5
Up (+) : Push the lever forward once to
shift up one gear.
Down (-) : Pull the lever backwards once to shift down one gear.
In sports mode, the driver must exe- cute upshifts in accordance with road
conditions, taking care to keep the
engine speed below the red zone.
In sports mode, only the 6 forward gears can be selected. To reverse or
park the vehicle, move the shift lever to
the R (Reverse) or P (Park) position as
required.
In sports mode, downshifts are made automatically when the vehicle slows
down. When the vehicle stops, 1st gear
is automatically selected.
In sports mode, when the engine rpm approaches the red zone shift points
are varied to upshift automatically.
To maintain the required levels of vehi- cle performance and safety, the system
may not execute certain gearshifts
when the shift lever is operated. When driving on a slippery road, push
the shift lever forward into the +(up)
position. This causes the transaxle to
shift into the 2nd gear which is better
for smooth driving on a slippery road.
Push the shift lever to the -(down) side
to shift back to the 1st gear.
Paddle shifter (if equipped)
The paddle shifter is available when the
shift lever is in the sport mode.
With the shift lever in the sports mode
Pull the [+] or [-] paddle shifter once to
shift up or down one gear.
✽ ✽ NOTICE
If you pull the [+] and [-] paddle shifters
at the same time, you can’t shift the
gear.
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Shift lock system (if equipped)
Shift-lock override (without smart key
system)
For your safety, the automatic transaxle
has a shift lock system which prevents
shifting the transaxle out of P (Park)
unless the brake pedal is depressed.
To shift the transaxle from P (Park) into R
(Reverse):
1. Depress and hold the brake pedal.
2. Start the engine or turn the ignitionswitch to the ON position.
3. Move the shift lever.
If the brake pedal is repeatedly
depressed and released with the shift
lever in the P (Park) position, a chattering
noise near the shift lever may be heard.
This is a normal condition. Shift-lock override (with smart key sys-
tem)
If the shift lever cannot be moved from
the P (Park) or N (Neutral) position into
the R (Reverse) position with the brake
pedal depressed, continue depressing
the brake, then do the following:
1. Carefully remove the cap covering theshift-lock access hole (1).
2. Insert a screwdriver into the access hole and press down on the screwdriver.
3. Move the shift lever.
4. Have your vehicle inspected by an authorized Kia dealer immediately.
OUB053015
WARNING - Shifting frompark
Always fully depress the brake
pedal before and while shifting out
of the P (Park) position into anoth-
er position to avoid inadvertent
motion of the vehicle.
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Ignition key interlock system
(if equipped)
The ignition key cannot be removed
unless the shift lever is in the P (Park)
position.
Good driving practices
Never move the shift lever from P (Park) or N (Neutral) to any other posi-
tion with the accelerator pedal
depressed.
Never move the shift lever into P (Park) when the vehicle is in motion.
Slow down before shifting to a lower gear. Otherwise, the lower gear may
not be engaged.
Always use the parking brake. Do not depend on placing the transaxle in P
(Park) to keep the vehicle from moving.
Optimum vehicle performance and economy is obtained by smoothly
depressing and releasing the accelera-
tor pedal.
Moving up a steep grade from astanding start
To move up a steep grade from a stand-
ing start, depress the brake pedal, shift
the shift lever to D (Drive). Select the
appropriate gear depending on load
weight and steepness of the grade, and
release the parking brake. Depress the
accelerator gradually while releasing the
service brakes.
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Disc brakes wear indicator
When your brake pads are worn and new
pads are required, you will hear a high-
pitched warning sound from your front
brakes or rear brakes (if equipped). You
may hear this sound come and go or it
may occur whenever you depress the
brake pedal.
Please remember that some driving con-
ditions or climates may cause a brake
squeal when you first apply (or lightly
apply) the brakes. This is normal and
does not indicate a problem with your
brakes.
Always replace the front or rear brake
pads as pairs.
Rear drum brakes (if equipped)
Your rear drum brakes do not have wear
indicators. Therefore, have the rear brake
linings inspected if you hear a rubbing
noise. Also have your rear brakes
inspected each time you change or
rotate your tires and when you have the
front brakes replaced.
Parking brake
Applying the parking brake
To engage the parking brake, first apply
the foot brake and then without pressing
the release button in, pull the parking
brake lever up as far as possible. In addi-
tion it is recommended that when parking
the vehicle on a grade, the shift lever
should be positioned in the appropriate
low gear for manual transaxle vehicles or
in the P (Park) position for automatic
transaxle vehicles.
WARNING- Brake wear
Do not ignore high pitched wear
sounds from your brakes. If you
ignore this audible warning, you
will eventually lose braking per-
formance, which could lead to a
serious accident.
CAUTION - Parking brake
Driving with the parking brake
applied will cause excessive brake pad (or lining) and brake rotor wear.
CAUTION - Replace brake pedal
Do not continue to drive with worn
brake pads. Continuing to drivewith worn brake pads can damagethe braking system and result incostly brake repairs.
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The HAC does not operate when thetransaxle shift lever is in the P (Park) or
N (Neutral) position.
The HAC activates even though the ESC is off but it does not activate when
the ESC has malfunctioned.Vehicle stability management
(VSM)
This system provides further enhance-
ments to vehicle stability and steering
responses when a vehicle is driving on a
slippery road or a vehicle detected
changes in coefficient of friction between
right wheels and left wheels when brak-
ing.
VSM operation
When the VSM is in operation, ESC indi-
cator light ( ) blinks.
When the vehicle stability management
is operating properly, you can feel a slight
pulsation in the vehicle and/or abnormal
steering responses (EPS). This is only
the effect of brake and EPS control and
indicates nothing unusual.
The VSM does not operate when:
Driving on bank road such as gradientor incline
Driving rearward
ESC OFF indicator light ( ) remains on the instrument cluster
EPS indicator light remains on the instrument cluster
VSM operation off
If you press the ESC OFF button to turn
off the ESC, the VSM will also cancel and
the ESC OFF indicator light ( ) illumi-
nates.
To turn on the VSM, press the button
again. The ESC OFF indicator light goes
out.
Malfunction indicator
The VSM can be deactivated even if you
don’t cancel the VSM operation by press-
ing the ESC OFF button. It indicates that
a malfunction has been detected some-
where in the Electric Power Steering sys-
tem or VSM system. If the ESC indicator
light ( ) or EPS warning light remains
on, take your vehicle to an authorized Kia
dealer and have the system checked.
The VSM is designed to function aboveapproximately 15 km/h (9 mph) on
curves.
The VSM is designed to function above approximately 30 km/h (18 mph) when
a vehicle is braking on a split-mu road.
The split-mu road is made of surfaces
which have different friction forces.