2017 KIA FORTE maintenance

587
Driving your vehicle
Use high quality ethylene gly-
col coolant
Your vehicle is delivered with high
quality ethylene glycol coolant in the
cooling system. It is the only type of
coolant that should be used because
it helps prevent corrosion in the cool-
ing system, lubricates the water
pump and prevents freezing. Be sure
to replace or replenish your coolant
in accordance with the maintenance
schedule in section 7. Before winter,
have your coolant tested to assure
that its freezing point is sufficient for
the temperatures anticipated during
the winter.
Check battery and cables
Winter puts additional burdens on
the battery system. Visually inspect
the battery and cables as described
in section 7. The level of charge in
your battery can be checked by an
authorized Kia dealer or a service
station.
Change to "winter weight" oil
if necessary
In some climates it is recommended
that a lower viscosity "winter weight"
oil be used during cold weather. See
section 8 for recommendations. If
you aren't sure what weight oil you
should use, consult an authorized
Kia dealer.
Check spark plugs and igni-
tion system
Inspect your spark plugs as
described in section 7 and replace
them if necessary. Also check all
ignition wiring and components to be
sure they are not cracked, worn or
damaged in any way.
To keep locks from freezing
To keep the locks from freezing,
squirt an approved de-icer fluid or
glycerine into the key opening. If a
lock is covered with ice, squirt it with
an approved de-icing fluid to remove
the ice. If the lock is frozen internally,
you may be able to thaw it out by
using a heated key. Handle the heat-
ed key with care to avoid injury.
Use approved window washer
anti-freeze in system
To keep the water in the window
washer system from freezing, add an
approved window washer anti-freeze
solution in accordance with instruc-
tions on the container. Window wash-
er anti-freeze is available from an
authorized Kia dealer and most auto
parts outlets. Do not use engine
coolant or other types of anti-freeze
as these may damage the paint fin-
ish.

Maintenance
Engine compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
Maintenance services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5
• Owner’s responsibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5
• Owner maintenance precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-6
Owner maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
• Owner maintenance schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Scheduled maintenance service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9
Explanation of scheduled maintenance items . . . 7-32
Engine oil. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
• Checking the engine oil level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
• Changing the engine oil and filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-37
Engine coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
• Checking the coolant level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
• Changing the coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-41
Brake/clutch fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-42
• Checking the brake/clutch* fluid level . . . . . . . . . . . 7-42
Washer fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-43
• Checking the washer fluid level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-43
Parking brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-43
• Checking the parking brake. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-43
Air cleaner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-44
• Filter replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-44
Climate control air filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
• Filter inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46• Filter replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
Wiper blades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
• Blade inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
• Blade replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-52
• For best battery service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-52
• Battery recharging . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-54
• Reset items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-54
Tires and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-55
• Tire care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-55
• Recommended cold tire inflation pressures . . . . . . . 7-55
• Checking tire inflation pressure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-56
• Tire rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-57
• Wheel alignment and tire balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-58
• Tire replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-59
• Wheel replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
• Tire traction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
• Tire maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
• Tire sidewall labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-60
• All season tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-66
• Summer tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-66
• Snow tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-67
• Radial-ply tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-67
• Low aspect ratio tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-67
7

73
Maintenance
ENGINE COMPARTMENT
OYDM076017/OYDM076078N
■Gasoline Nu 2.0 MPI Engine
❈The actual engine compartment in the vehicle may differ from the illustration.
■Gasoline Nu 2.0 GDI Engine1. Engine oil dipstick
2. Engine oil filler cap
3. Engine coolant reservoir
4. Radiator cap
5. Brake/clutch* fluid reservoir
6. Windshield washer fluid reservoir
7. Air cleaner
8. Positive battery terminal
9. Negative battery terminal
10. Fuse box
* : if equipped

Maintenance
4 7
OYD076038N
■Gasoline Gamma 1.6T-GDI Engine
❈The actual engine compartment in the vehicle may differ from the illustration.1. Engine oil dipstick
2. Engine oil filler cap
3. Engine coolant reservoir
4. Radiator cap
5. Brake/clutch* fluid reservoir
6. Windshield washer fluid reservoir
7. Air cleaner
8. Positive battery terminal
9. Negative battery terminal
10. Fuse box
* : if equipped

75
Maintenance
MAINTENANCE SERVICES
You should exercise the utmost care
to prevent damage to your vehicle
and injury to yourself whenever per-
forming any maintenance or inspec-
tion procedures.
Should you have any doubts con-
cerning the inspection or servicing of
your vehicle, we strongly recom-
mend that you have an authorized
Kia dealer perform this work.
An authorized Kia dealer has factory-
trained technicians and genuine Kia
parts to service your vehicle proper-
ly. For expert advice and quality serv-
ice, see an authorized Kia dealer.
Inadequate, incomplete or insuffi-
cient servicing may result in opera-
tional problems with your vehicle that
could lead to vehicle damage, an
accident, or personal injury.Owner’s responsibility
✽NOTICE
Maintenance Service and Record
Retention are the owner's responsi-
bility.
You should retain documents that
show proper maintenance has been
performed on your vehicle in accor-
dance with the scheduled mainte-
nance service charts shown on the
following pages. You need this infor-
mation to establish your compliance
with the servicing and maintenance
requirements of your vehicle war-
ranties.
Detailed warranty information is
provided in your Warranty &
Consumer Information manual.
Repairs and adjustments required as
a result of improper maintenance or
a lack of required maintenance are
not covered.
We recommend you have your vehi-
cle maintained and repaired by an
authorized Kia dealer. An authorized
Kia dealer meets Kia’s high service
quality standards and receives tech-
nical support from Kia in order to pro-
vide you with a high level of service
satisfaction.
Maintenance

Maintenance
6 7
Owner maintenance precau-
tions
Improper or incomplete service may
result in problems. This section gives
instructions only for the maintenance
items that are easy to perform.
As explained earlier in this section,
several procedures can be done only
by an authorized Kia dealer with spe-
cial tools.
✽NOTICE
Improper owner maintenance dur-
ing the warranty period may affect
warranty coverage. For details, read
the separate Warranty & Consumer
Information manual provided with
the vehicle. If you're unsure about
any servicing or maintenance proce-
dure, have it done by an authorized
Kia dealer.
WARNING- Maintenance
work
Do not wear jewelry or loose
clothing while working under
the hood of your vehicle with
the engine running. These can
become entangled in moving
parts, if you must run the
engine while working under the
hood, make certain that you
remove all jewelry (especially
rings, bracelets, watches, and
necklaces) and all neckties,
scarves, and similar loose
clothing before getting near the
engine or cooling fans.

77
Maintenance
OWNER MAINTENANCE
The following lists are vehicle checks
and inspections that should be per-
formed by the owner or an author-
ized Kia dealer at the frequencies
indicated to help ensure safe,
dependable operation of your vehi-
cle.
Any adverse conditions should be
brought to the attention of your deal-
er as soon as possible.
These Owner Maintenance Checks
are generally not covered by war-
ranties and you may be charged for
labor, parts and lubricants used.Owner maintenance schedule
When you stop for fuel:
• Check the engine oil level.
• Check the coolant level in coolant
reservoir.
• Check the windshield washer fluid
level.
• Look for low or under-inflated tires.
While operating your vehicle:
• Note any changes in the sound of
the exhaust or any smell of
exhaust fumes in the vehicle.
• Check for vibrations in the steering
wheel. Notice any increased steer-
ing effort or looseness in the steer-
ing wheel, or change in its straight-
ahead position.
• Notice if your vehicle constantly
turns slightly or “pulls” to one side
when traveling on smooth, level
road.
• When stopping, listen and check
for unusual sounds, pulling to one
side, increased brake pedal travel
or “hard-to-push” brake pedal.
• If any slipping or changes in the
operation of your transaxle occurs,
check the transaxle fluid level.
• Check the automatic transaxle P
(Park) function.
• Check the parking brake.
• Check for fluid leaks under your
vehicle (water dripping from the air
conditioning system during or after
use is normal).
WARNING- Hot coolant
Be careful when checking your
engine coolant level when the
engine is hot. Scalding hot
coolant and steam may blow
out under pressure.

Maintenance
8 7
At least monthly:
• Check the coolant level in the
engine coolant reservoir.
• Check the operation of all exterior
lights, including the stoplights, turn
signals and hazard warning flash-
ers.
• Check the inflation pressures of all
tires including the spare.
At least twice a year
(i.e., every Spring and Fall) :
• Check the radiator, heater and air
conditioning hoses for leaks or
damage.
• Check the windshield washer
spray and wiper operation. Clean
the wiper blades with clean cloth
dampened with washer fluid.
• Check the headlight alignment.
• Check the muffler, exhaust pipes,
shields and clamps.
• Check the lap/shoulder belts for
wear and function.
• Check for worn tires and loose
wheel lug nuts.
At least once a year :
• Clean the body and door drain
holes.
• Lubricate the door hinges and
check the hood hinges.
• Lubricate the door and hood locks
and latches.
• Lubricate the door rubber weather-
strips.
• Check the air conditioning system.
• Check the power steering fluid
level.
• Inspect and lubricate automatic
transaxle linkage and controls.
• Clean the battery and terminals.
• Check the brake/clutch fluid level.