2015 KIA Soul traction control

Driving your vehicle
16
5
Downshifting
When you must slow down in heavy
traffic or while driving up steep hills,
downshift before the engine starts to
labor. Downshifting reduces the
chance of stalling and gives better
acceleration when you again need to
increase your speed. When the vehi-
cle is traveling down steep hills,
downshifting helps maintain safe
speed and prolongs brake life.
Good driving practices
Never take the vehicle out of gear
and coast down a hill. This is
extremely hazardous. Always leave
the vehicle in gear.
Don't "ride" the brakes. This can cause them to overheat and mal-
function. Instead, when you are
driving down a long hill, slow down
and shift to a lower gear. When you
do this, engine braking will help
slow down the vehicle.
Slow down before shifting to a lower gear. This will help avoid
over-revving the engine, which can
cause damage.
Slow down when you encounter cross winds. This gives you much
better control of your vehicle.
Be sure the vehicle is completely stopped before you attempt to shift
into reverse. The transaxle can be
damaged if you do not. To shift into
reverse, depress the clutch, move
the shift lever to neutral, then shift
to the reverse position. Exercise extreme caution when
driving on a slippery surface. Be
especially careful when braking,
accelerating or shifting gears. On a
slippery surface, an abrupt change
in vehicle speed can cause the
drive wheels to lose traction and
the vehicle to go out of control.
Always buckle-up! In a collision, an unbelted occupant is significantly
more likely to be seriously injured
or killed than a properly belted
occupant.
Avoid high speeds when cornering or turning. High speed cornering
and turning increase the risk of
vehicle rollover. Rollover accidents
are violent and unpredictable.
Never exceed posted speed limits.

529
Driving your vehicle
Electronic stability control
(ESC)
The Electronic Stability control
(ESC) system is designed to stabi-
lize the vehicle during cornering
maneuvers. ESC checks where you
are steering and where the vehicle is
actually going. ESC applies the
brakes on individual wheels and
intervenes with the engine manage-
ment system to stabilize the vehicle.Electronic stability control (ESC) will
not prevent accidents. Excessive
speed in turns, abrupt maneuvers
and hydroplaning on wet surfaces
can still result in serious accidents.
Only a safe and attentive driver can
prevent accidents by avoiding
maneuvers that cause the vehicle to
lose traction. Even with ESC
installed, always follow all the normal
precautions for driving - including
driving at safe speeds for the condi-
tions.
The Electronic Stability Control
(ESC) system is an electronic sys-
tem designed to help the driver main-
tain vehicle control under adverse
conditions. It is not a substitute for
safe driving practices. Factors includ-
ing speed, road conditions and driv-
er steering input can all affect
whether ESC will be effective in pre-
venting a loss of control. It is still your
responsibility to drive and corner at
reasonable speeds and to leave a
sufficient margin of safety.
When you apply your brakes under
conditions which may lock the
wheels, you may hear a “tik-tik’’
sound from the brakes, or feel a cor-
responding sensation in the brake
pedal. This is normal and it means
your ESC is active.
✽ ✽
NOTICE
A click sound may be heard in the
engine compartment when the vehi-
cle begins to move after the engine is
started. These conditions are normal
and indicate that the Electronic
Stability Control System is function-
ing properly.
OPS053013

Driving your vehicle
54
5
Driving off-road
Drive carefully off-road because your
vehicle may be damaged by rocks or
roots of trees. Become familiar with
the off-road conditions where you
are going to drive before you begin
driving.
Highway driving
Tires
Adjust the tire inflation pressures to
specification. Low tire inflation pres-
sures will result in overheating and
possible failure of the tires.
Avoid using worn or damaged tires
which may result in reduced traction
or tire failure.
Never exceed the maximum tire
inflation pressure shown on the tires.
Fuel, engine coolant and engine
oil
High speed travel consumes more
fuel than urban motoring. Do not for-
get to check both the engine coolant
and engine oil.
Drive belt
A loose or damaged drive belt may
result in overheating of the engine.
WARNING- Under/over
inflated tires
Always check the tires for proper
inflation before driving.
Underinflated or overinflated
tires can cause poor handling,
loss of vehicle control, and sud-
den tire failure leading to acci-
dents, injuries, and even death.
For proper tire pressures, refer to
“Tires and wheels” in section 8.
WARNING- Tire tread
Always check the tire tread
before driving your vehicle.
Worn-out tires can result in loss
of vehicle control. Worn-out tires
should be replaced as soon as
possible. For further information
and tread limits, refer to "Tires
and wheels" in section 7.

Maintenance
52
7
Wheel replacement
When replacing the metal wheels for
any reason, make sure the new
wheels are equivalent to the original
factory units in diameter, rim width
and offset.
A wheel that is not the correct size
may adversely affect wheel and
bearing life, braking and stopping
abilities, handling characteristics,
ground clearance, body-to-tire clear-
ance, snow chain clearance,
speedometer and odometer calibra-
tion, headlight aim and bumper
height.
Tire traction
Tire traction can be reduced if you
drive on worn tires, tires that are
improperly inflated or on slippery
road surfaces. Tires should be
replaced when tread wear indicators
appear. Slow down whenever there
is rain, snow or ice on the road to
reduce the possibility of losing con-
trol of the vehicle.
Tire maintenance
In addition to proper inflation, correct
wheel alignment helps to decrease
tire wear. If you find a tire is worn
unevenly, have your dealer check the
wheel alignment.
When you have new tires installed,
make sure they are balanced. This
will increase vehicle ride comfort and
tire life. Additionally, a tire should
always be rebalanced if it is removed
from the wheel.CAUTION- Wheels
Wheels that do not meet Kia’s
specifications may fit poorlyand result in damage to thevehicle or unusual handling andpoor vehicle control.

Maintenance
56
7
Tread wear
The tread wear grade is a compara-
tive rating based on the wear rate of
the tire when tested under controlled
conditions on a specified govern-
ment test course. For example, a tire
graded 150 would wear one-and-a-
half times (1½) as well on the gov-
ernment course as a tire graded 100.
The relative performance of tires
depends upon the actual conditions
of their use, however, and may
depart significantly from the norm
due to variations in driving habits,
service practices and differences in
road characteristics and climate.
These grades are molded on the
side-walls of passenger vehicle tires.
The tires available as standard or
optional equipment on your vehicle
may vary with respect to grade. Traction - AA, A, B & C
The traction grades, from highest to
lowest, are AA, A, B and C. Those
grades represent the tire’s ability to
stop on wet pavement as measured
under controlled conditions on spec-
ified government test surfaces of
asphalt and concrete. A tire marked
C may have poor traction perform-
ance.
The traction grade assigned to this
tire is based on straight-ahead brak-
ing traction tests, and does not
include acceleration, cornering,
hydroplaning, or peak traction char-
acteristics.
Temperature -A, B & C
The temperature grades are A (the
highest), B and C representing the
tire’s resistance to the generation of
heat and its ability to dissipate heat
when tested under controlled condi-
tions on a specified indoor laboratory
test wheel.
Sustained high temperature can
cause the material of the tire to
degenerate and reduce tire life, and
excessive temperature can lead to
sudden tire failure. Grades B and A
represent higher levels of perform-
ance on the laboratory test wheel
than the minimum required by law.

Index
8I
Tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. 4-24Closing the tailgate. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-24
Emergency tailgate safety release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-25
Opening the tailgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-24
Tire specification and pressure label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-10
Tires and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-47,8-4 Checking tire inflation pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
Low aspect ratio tire. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
Recommended cold tire inflation pressures . . . . . . . 7-47
Tire care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-47\
Tire maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-52
Tire replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
Tire rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-49
Tire sidewall labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-53
Tire traction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-52
Wheel alignment and tire balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-50
Wheel replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-52
Towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
. 6-25 Emergency towing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-27
Removable towing hook (front) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-26
Towing service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6-25
Trailer Towing. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-57
Trip computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-72 Fuel Economy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-74
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-72
Trip A/B . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-73\
Vehicle Break-In Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-6
Vehicle handling instructions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1-5
Vehicle identification number (VIN) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8-9
Vehicle load limit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-58
Certification label . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-62
Tire and loading information label. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-58
Vehicle weight glossary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64 Base curb weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
Cargo weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
GAW (Gross axle weight) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
GAWR (Gross axle weight rating) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
GVW (Gross vehicle weight). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
GVWR (Gross vehicle weight rating) . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
Vehicle curb weight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5-64
Warning and indicator lights. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-76 Indicator Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-83
Warning lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-76
Washer fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-34 Checking the washer fluid level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-34
Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
4-26 Power windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-27
Windshield defrosting and defogging. . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-127 Automatic climate control system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-128
V
W
T