2017 KIA OPTIMA PLUG-IN HYBRID brake

ECONOMICAL OPERATION
Your vehicle's fuel economy depends mainly on your style of driving, where
you drive and when you drive.
Each of these factors affects how
many kilometers (miles) you can get from a liter (gallon) of fuel. To operate
your vehicle as economically as possi‐
ble, use the following driving sugges‐ tions to help save money in both fuel
and repairs: • Drive smoothly. Accelerate at a mod‐ erate rate. Do not make "jack-rabbit"
starts or full-throttle shifts and maintain a steady cruising speed. Do
not race between stop lights. Try to
adjust your speed to the traffic so
you do not have to change speeds
unnecessarily. Avoid heavy traffic whenever possible.
Always maintain a safe distance from
other vehicles so you can avoid un‐
necessary braking. This also reduces
brake wear.
• Drive at a moderate speed. The fast‐ er you drive, the more fuel your vehi‐cle uses. Driving at a moderate
speed, especially on the highway, is
one of the most effective ways to re‐
duce fuel consumption. • Do not "ride" the brake or clutch ped‐
al. This can increase fuel consumption
and also increase wear on these com‐
ponents. In addition, driving with your
foot resting on the brake pedal may
cause the brakes to overheat, which
reduces their effectiveness and may lead to more serious consequences.
• Take care of your tires. Keep them inflated to the recommended pres‐
sure. Incorrect inflation, either too
much or too little, results in unneces‐
sary tire wear. Check the tire pres‐ sures at least once a month.
• Be sure that the wheels are aligned correctly. Improper alignment can re‐
sult from hitting curbs or driving too
fast over irregular surfaces. Poor alignment causes faster tire wear
and may also result in other prob‐
lems as well as greater fuel con‐
sumption.
• Keep your vehicle in good condition. For better fuel economy and reducedmaintenance costs, maintain your ve‐
hicle in accordance with the mainte‐
nance schedule in Chapter 9, Mainte‐
nance. If you drive your vehicle in se‐
vere conditions, more frequent main‐ tenance is required (see Chapter 9,
Maintenance for details). • Keep your vehicle clean. For maxi‐
mum service, your vehicle should be
kept clean and free of corrosive ma‐ terials. It is especially important that
mud, dirt, ice, etc. not be allowed to
accumulate on the underside of the
vehicle. This extra weight can result
in increased fuel consumption and al‐ so contribute to corrosion.
• Travel lightly. Do not carry unneces‐ sary weight in your vehicle. Weight
reduces fuel economy.
• Do not let the engine idle longer than necessary. If you are waiting (and notin traffic), turn off your engine and
restart only when you're ready to go.
• Remember, your vehicle does not re‐ quire extended warm-up. After the
engine has started, allow the engine
to run for 10 to 20 seconds prior to placing the vehicle in gear. In very cold
weather, however, give your engine a
slightly longer warmup period.
• Do not "lug" or "over-rev" the engine. Lugging is driving too slowly in too
high a gear resulting engine bucking.
If this happens, shift to a lower gear. Over-revving is racing the engine be‐
yond its safe limit. This can be avoi‐
ded by shifting at the recommended
speeds.

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• Use your air conditioning sparingly.The air conditioning system is oper‐
ated by engine power so your fuel economy is reduced when you use it.
• Open windows at high speeds can re‐ duce fuel economy.
• Fuel economy is less in crosswinds and headwinds. To help offset some
of this loss, slow down when driving
in these conditions.
Keeping a vehicle in good operating
condition is important both for econo‐
my and safety. Therefore, we recom‐ mend that the system be serviced by
an authorized Kia dealer.
WARNING
nEngine off during motion
Never turn the engine off to coastdown hills or anytime the vehicle isin motion. The power steering andpower brakes will not function prop‐erly without the engine running. In‐stead, keep the engine on and down‐shift to an appropriate gear for en‐gine braking effect. In addition, turn‐
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ing off the engine start/stop buttonwhile driving could engage the steer‐ing wheel lock (if equipped) resultingin loss of vehicle steering whichcould cause serious injury or death.
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SPECIAL DRIVING CONDITIONS
Hazardous driving conditions
When hazardous driving conditions are
encountered such as water, snow, ice, mud, sand, or similar hazards, follow
these suggestions: • Drive cautiously and allow extra dis‐ tance for braking.
• Avoid sudden braking or steering.
• When braking with non-ABS brakes pump the brake pedal with a light up-
and-down motion until the vehicle is stopped.
WARNING
nABS
Do not pump the brake pedal on avehicle equipped with ABS.
• If stalled in snow, mud, or sand, use second gear. Accelerate slowly to
avoid spinning the drive wheels.
• Use sand, rock salt, tire chains, or other non-slip material under the
drive wheels to provide traction when
stalled in ice, snow, or mud.
WARNING
nDownshifting
Downshifting with an automatictransaxle, while driving on slipperysurfaces can cause an accident. Thesudden change in tire speed couldcause the tires to skid. Be carefulwhen downshifting on slippery sur‐faces.
Rocking the vehicle
If it is necessary to rock the vehicle to
free it from snow, sand, or mud, first turn the steering wheel right and left
to clear the area around your front
wheels. Then, shift back and forth be‐ tween 1 (First) and R (Reverse) in vehi‐
cles equipped with a manual transaxle
or R (Reverse) and any forward gear in vehicles equipped with an Automatic
Transaxle / Dual clutch transmission. Do
not race the engine, and spin the wheels as little as possible. If you are
still stuck after a few tries, have the
vehicle pulled out by a tow vehicle to
avoid engine overheating and possible
damage to the transaxle.
CAUTION
Prolonged rocking may cause engineover-heating, transaxle damage orfailure, and tire damage.
WARNING
nSpinning tires
Do not spin the wheels, especially atspeeds more than 56 km/h(35 mph). Spinning the wheels athigh speeds when the vehicle is sta‐tionary could cause a tire to over‐heat which could result in tire dam‐age that may injure bystanders.
NOTICE
The ESC system should be turned
OFF prior to rocking the vehicle.

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• Keep your headlights clean and prop‐erly aimed on vehicles not equipped
with the automatic headlight aiming feature. Dirty or improperly aimed
headlights will make it much more
difficult to see at night.
• Avoid staring directly at the head‐ lights of oncoming vehicles. You could
be temporarily blinded, and it will take several seconds for your eyes to
readjust to the darkness.Driving in the rain
Rain and wet roads can make driving
dangerous, especially if you’re not pre‐ pared for the slick pavement. Here are
a few things to consider when driving in
the rain: • A heavy rainfall will make it harder to see and will increase the distanceneeded to stop your vehicle, so slow
down.
• Keep your windshield wiping equip‐ ment in good shape. Replace your
windshield wiper blades when they show signs of streaking or missing
areas on the windshield. • If your tires are not in good condition,
making a quick stop on wet pave‐
ment can cause a skid and possibly
lead to an accident. Be sure your tires are in good shape.
• Turn on your headlights to make it easier for others to see you.
• Driving too fast through large pud‐ dles can affect your brakes. If you
must go through puddles, try to drive
through them slowly.
• If you believe you may have gotten your brakes wet, apply them lightly
while driving until normal braking op‐
eration returns.Driving in flooded areas
Avoid driving through flooded areas un‐
less you are sure the water is no higher than the bottom of the wheel hub.
Drive through any water slowly. Allow
adequate stopping distance because brake performance may be affected.
After driving through water, dry the
brakes by gently applying them several
times while the vehicle is moving slow‐ ly.

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WINTER DRIVING
Severe weather conditions in the winter result in greater wear and other prob‐
lems. To minimize the problems of win‐
ter driving, you should follow these suggestions: ❈ Snow tires and tire chains for the
national language (Icelandic, Bul‐
garian) see Chapter 11, Appendix.
Snowy or icy conditions
To drive your vehicle in deep snow, it
may be necessary to use snow tires or to install tire chains on your tires. If
snow tires are needed, it is necessary
to select tires equivalent in size and type of the original equipment tires.
Failure to do so may adversely affect
the safety and handling of your vehicle. Furthermore, speeding, rapid accelera‐
tion, sudden brake applications, and
sharp turns are potentially very haz‐ ardous practices.
During deceleration, use engine braking
to the fullest extent. Sudden brake ap‐
plications on snowy or icy roads may cause skids to occur. You need to keep
sufficient distance between the vehicle
in operation in front and your vehicle. Also, apply the brake gently. It should
be noted that installing tire chains on
the tire will provide a greater driving force, but will not prevent side skids.
NOTICE
Tire chains are not legal in all coun‐
tries. Check the country laws before
fitting tire chains.
Snow tires
If you mount snow tires on your vehi‐
cle, make sure they are radial tires of the same size and load range as the
original tires. Mount snow tires on all
four wheels to balance your vehicle’s handling in all weather conditions. Keep
in mind that the traction provided by
snow tires on dry roads may not be as high as your vehicle's original equip‐
ment tires. You should drive cautiously
even when the roads are clear. Check with the tire dealer for maximum
speed recommendations.
Do not install studded tires without
first checking local, state and municipal regulations for possible restrictions
against their use.
WARNING
nSnow tire size
Snow tires should be equivalent insize and type to the vehicle's stand‐ard tires. Otherwise, the safety andhandling of your vehicle may be ad‐versely affected.

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Tire chains
Since the sidewalls of radial tires are
thinner, they can be damaged by mounting some types of snow chains
on them. Therefore, the use of snow
tires is recommended instead of snow chains. Do not mount tire chains on ve‐
hicles equipped with aluminum wheels;
snow chains may cause damage to the wheels. If snow chains must be used,
use wire-type chains with a thickness
of less than 12 mm (0.47 in). Damage
to your vehicle caused by improper
snow chain use is not covered by your
vehicle manufacturers warranty.
Install tire chains only on the front tires.
CAUTION
•Make sure the snow chains are thecorrect size and type for yourtires. Incorrect snow chains cancause damage to the vehicle bodyand suspension and may not becovered by your vehicle manufac‐turer warranty. Also, the snowchain connecting hooks may bedamaged from contacting vehiclecomponents causing the snowchains to come loose from the tire.Make sure the snow chains areSAE class "S" certified.
•Always check chain installation forproper mounting after driving ap‐proximately 0.5 to 1 km (0.3 to 0.6miles) to ensure safe mounting.Retighten or remount the chains ifthey are loose.
Chain installation
When installing chains, follow the man‐
ufacturer's instructions and mount them as tightly as you can. Drive slowly
with chains installed. If you hear the
chains contacting the body or chassis, stop and tighten them. If they still
make contact, slow down until it stops.
Remove the chains as soon as you be‐ gin driving on cleared roads.
WARNING
nMounting chains
When mounting snow chains, parkthe vehicle on level ground awayfrom traffic. Turn on the vehicleHazard Warning flashers and place atriangular emergency warning devicebehind the vehicle if available. Al‐ways place the vehicle in P (Park),apply the parking brake and turn offthe engine before installing snowchains.
WARNING
nTire chains
•The use of chains may adverselyaffect vehicle handling.
•Do not exceed 30 km/h (20 mph)or the chain manufacturer’s rec‐ommended speed limit, whicheveris lower.
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•Drive carefully and avoid bumps,holes, sharp turns, and other roadhazards, which may cause the ve‐hicle to bounce.
•Avoid sharp turns or locked wheelbraking.
CAUTION
•Chains that are the wrong size orimproperly installed can damageyour vehicle's brake lines, suspen‐sion, body and wheels.
•Stop driving and retighten thechains any time you hear themhitting the vehicle.
Use high quality ethylene glycol
coolant
Your vehicle is delivered with high quali‐ty 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 cooling sys‐
tem, lubricates the water pump and
prevents freezing. Be sure to replace or replenish your coolant in accordance
with the L

Use approved window washer
anti-freeze in system
To keep the water in the window wash‐er system from freezing, add an ap‐
proved window washer anti-freeze sol‐
ution in accordance with instructions on the container. Window washer 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 finish.
Don't let your parking brake
freeze
Under some conditions your parking
brake can freeze in the engaged posi‐ tion. This is most likely to happen when
there is an accumulation of snow or ice
around or near the rear brakes or if the brakes are wet. If there is a risk the
parking brake may freeze, apply it only
temporarily while you put the shift lev‐ er in P (Automatic Transaxle / Dual
clutch transmission) or in first or re‐
verse gear (manual transaxle) and block
the rear wheels so the vehicle cannot roll. Then release the parking brake.
Don't let ice and snow
accumulate underneath
Under some conditions, snow and ice can build up under the fenders and in‐
terfere with the steering. When driving
in severe winter conditions where this may happen, you should periodically
check underneath the vehicle to be sure
the movement of the front wheels and the steering components is not ob‐
structed.
Carry emergency equipment
Depending on the severity of the
weather, you should carry appropriate emergency equipment. Some of the
items you may want to carry include
tire chains, tow straps or chains, flash‐ light, emergency flares, sand, shovel,
jumper cables, window scraper, gloves,
ground cloth, coveralls, blanket, etc.
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