Driving your vehicle
28
5
✽ ✽
NOTICE
• When using Snow Tires, mount
them on all four wheels.
• When using Tire Chains, install them on all four tires. However, if
you are in a situation to use only
two tire chains, install them on the
rear tires. In this case, do not drive
more than a short distance to pre-
vent damage to the AWD system.
• If tire chains must be used, use AutoSock (fabric snow chain) and
install the tire chain after review-
ing the instructions provided with
the tire chains.
❈ ❈ For more information on Snow
Tires and Tire Chains, refer to
"Winter Driving" in this chapter.
Driving up or down hills
Driving uphill
- Before starting off, check if it ispossible to drive uphill.
- Drive as straight as possible.
Driving downhill - Do not change gear while drivingdownhill. Select gear before driv-
ing downhill.
- Drive slowly using engine braking while driving downhill.
- Drive as straight as possible.Emergency precautions
Tires
When replacing the tires, be sure to
equip all four tires with the tire and
wheel of the same size, type, tread,
brand and load-carrying capacity.
In case of emergency such as tire
puncture, repair it using TMK (Tire
Mobility Kit) for temporary use.
Afterwards, have the tire be inspect-
ed by an authorized K900 Kia dealer.WARNING
Exercise extreme caution driv-
ing up or down steep hills. The
vehicle's tires could lose trac-
tion depending on the grade,
terrain and water/mud condi-
tions.
WARNING
Do not use tires and wheels of a
different size and type than the
ones originally installed on your
vehicle. It can affect the safety
and performance of your vehi-
cle, which could lead to
increased steering difficulty or
rollover causing serious injury.
549
Driving your vehicle
✽ ✽NOTICE
• When operating the vehicle on a
dynamometer, ensure that the
ESC is turned off (ESC OFF light
illuminated). If the ESC is left on,
it may prevent the vehicle speed
from increasing, and result in false
diagnosis.
• Turning the ESC off does not affect ABS or brake system operation.
Vehicle stability management
(VSM)
This system provides further
enhancements to vehicle stability
and steering responses when a vehi-
cle is driving on a slippery road or a
vehicle detects changes in coeffi-
cient of friction between right wheels
and left wheels when braking.
VSM operation
When the VSM is in operation, ESC
indicator light ( ) blinks.
When the vehicle stability manage-
ment is operating properly, you can
feel a slight pulsation in the vehicle
and/or abnormal steering responses
(EPS- Electronic Power Steering).
This is only the effect of brake and
EPS control and indicates nothing
unusual.
The VSM does not operate when:
Driving on a sloping road such as a
gradient or incline
Driving in reverse
ESC OFF indicator light ( ) remains on the instrument cluster
EPS indicator light remains on the instrument cluster
WARNING- Tire/
Wheel size
When replacing tires and wheels,
make sure they are the same size
as the original tires and wheels
installed. Driving with varying
tire or wheel sizes may diminish
any supplemental safety benefits
of the VSM system.
Driving your vehicle
152
5
Severe weather conditions in the
winter result in greater wear and
other problems. To minimize the
problems of winter driving, you
should follow these suggestions: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 neces-
sary 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 acceleration, sudden brake
applications, and sharp turns are
potentially very hazardous practices.
During deceleration, use engine
braking to the fullest extent. Sudden
brake applications on snowy or icy
roads may cause skids to occur. You
need to keep sufficient distance
between the vehicle in operation in
front of 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.
Tire chains are not legal in all states.
Check state 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 provid-
ed by snow tires on dry roads may
not be as high as your vehicle's orig-
inal equipment 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 munic-ipal regulations for possible restric-tions against their use.
WINTER DRIVING
WARNING - Driving with
summer tires
Summer tires are equipped to
provide the best driving per-
formance on dry roads, varying
according to specification.
Do not use summer tires at tem-
peratures below 45°F (7°C) or
when driving on snow or ice. At
temperatures below 45°F (7°C),
summer tires can lose elastici-
ty, and therefore traction and
braking power as well. Change
the tires on your vehicle to win-
ter or all-weather tires of the
same size as the standard tires
of the vehicle. Both types of
tires are identified by the M+S
(Mud and Snow) marking. Using
summer tires at very cold tem-
peratures could cause cracks to
form, thereby damaging the
tires permanently.
WARNING - Snow tire size
Snow tires should be equivalent
in size and type to the vehicle's
standard tires. Otherwise, the
safety and handling of your vehi-
cle may be adversely affected.
5153
Driving your vehicle
Tire chains
Since the sidewalls on some radial
tires are thinner than other types of
tires, they may be damaged by
mounting certain types of tire chains
on them. Therefore, the use of snow
tires is recommended instead of tire
chains. Do not mount tire chains on
vehicles equipped with aluminum
wheels; if unavoidable, use AutoSock
(fabric snow chain). Install the tire
chain after reviewing the instructions
provided with the tire chains.
Damage to your vehicle caused by
improper tire chain use is not cov-
ered by your vehicle manufacturer’s
warranty.
✽ ✽NOTICE
• Install AutoSock (fabric snow
chain) on the rear tires for 2WD
vehicles or for AWD vehicles. It
should be noted that installing
AutoSock (fabric snow chain) on the
tires will provide a greater driving
force, but will not prevent side skids.
• Do not install studded tires with- out first checking local and munic-
ipal regulations for possible
restrictions against their use.
✽ ✽ NOTICE
If you hear noise caused by chains
contacting the body, retighten the
chain to prevent contact with the
vehicle body.
ORJ058047
CAUTION
When using AutoSock (fabric
snow chain):
Wrong size chains or improp- erly installed chains can dam-age your vehicle's brake lines,suspension, body and wheels.
To prevent body damage, retighten the chains after driv-ing 0.3 ~ 0.6 miles (0.5 ~ 1.0 km).
5157
Driving your vehicle
Tire and loading information
label
The label located on the driver's door
sill gives the original tire size, cold
tire pressures recommended for your
vehicle, the number of people that
can be in your vehicle and vehicle
capacity weight.
Vehicle capacity weight:
904 lbs. (410 kg)
Vehicle capacity weight is the maxi-
mum combined weight of occupants
and cargo. If your vehicle is equipped
with a trailer, the combined weight
includes the tongue load.
Seating capacity:
Total : 5 persons (Front seat : 2 persons, Rear seat : 3 persons)
Seating capacity is the maximum
number of occupants including a
driver, your vehicle may carry.
However, the seating capacity may
be reduced based upon the weight of
all of the occupants, and the weight
of the cargo being carried or towed.
Do not overload the vehicle as there
is a limit to the total weight, or load
limit including occupants and cargo,
the vehicle can carry.
VEHICLE LOAD LIMIT
ORJ058212N
69
What to do in an emergency
Each tire, including the spare (if pro-
vided), should be checked monthly
when cold and inflated to the inflation
pressure recommended by the vehi-
cle manufacturer on the vehicle plac-
ard or tire inflation pressure label. (If
your vehicle has tires of a different
size than the size indicated on the
vehicle placard or tire inflation pres-
sure label, you should determine the
proper tire inflation pressure for
those tires.)
As an added safety feature, your
vehicle has been equipped with a tire
pressure monitoring system (TPMS)
that illuminates a low tire pressure
telltale when one or more of your
tires is significantly under-inflated.
Accordingly, when the low tire pres-
sure telltale illuminates, you should
stop and check your tires as soon as
possible, and inflate them to the
proper pressure. Driving on a signifi-
cantly under-inflated tire causes the
tire to overheat and can lead to tire
failure. Under-inflation also reduces
fuel efficiency and tire tread life, and
may affect the vehicle’s handling and
stopping ability.Please note that the TPMS is not a
substitute for proper tire maintenance,
and it is the driver’s responsibility to
maintain correct tire pressure, even if
under-inflation has not reached the
level to trigger illumination of the
TPMS low tire pressure telltale.
Your vehicle has also been equipped
with a TPMS malfunction indicator to
indicate when the system is not
operating properly. The TPMS mal-
function indicator is combined with
the low tire pressure telltale. When
the system detects a malfunction,
the telltale will flash for approximate-
ly one minute and then remain con-
tinuously illuminated. This sequence
will continue upon subsequent vehi-
cle start-ups as long as the malfunc-
tion exists. When the malfunction
indicator is illuminated, the system
may not be able to detect or signal
low tire pressure as intended. TPMS
malfunctions may occur for a variety
of reasons, including the installation
of replacement or alternate tires or
wheels on the vehicle that prevent
the TPMS from functioning properly.
Always check the TPMS malfunction
telltale after replacing one or more
tires or wheels on your vehicle to
ensure that the replacement or alter-
nate tires and wheels allow the
TPMS to continue to function proper-
ly.
What to do in an emergency
20
6
To prevent the jack, wheel lug nut
wrench and spare tire from rattling
while the vehicle is in motion, store
them properly.
Check the inflation pressures as
soon as possible after installing the
spare tire. Adjust it to the specified
pressure, if necessary. Refer to
“Tires and wheels” in section 7.
Important - use of compact spare
tire
Your vehicle is equipped with a com-
pact spare tire. This compact spare
tire takes up less space than a regu-
lar-size tire. This tire is smaller than a
conventional tire and is designed for
temporary use only.
You should drive carefully when the compact spare is in use. The
compact spare should be replaced
by the proper conventional tire and
rim at the first opportunity.
The operation of this vehicle is not recommended with more than one
compact spare tire in use at the
same time. The compact spare should be inflat-
ed to 60 psi (420 kPa).
✽ ✽
NOTICE
Check the inflation pressure after
installing the spare tire. Adjust it to
the specified pressure, as necessary.
WARNING- Spare tire
The compact spare tire is for
emergency use only. Do not
operate your vehicle on this
compact spare at speeds over
50 mph (80 km/h). The original
tire should be repaired or
replaced as soon as possible to
avoid failure of the spare possi-
bly leading to personal injury or
death.WARNING- Wheel studs
If the studs are damaged, they
may lose their ability to retain
the wheel. This could lead to the
loss of the wheel and a collision
resulting in serious injuries.
621
What to do in an emergency
When using a compact spare tire,
observe the following precautions:
Under no circumstances shouldyou exceed 50 mph (80 km/h); a
higher speed could damage the
tire.
Ensure that you drive slowly enough for the road conditions to
avoid all hazards. Any road hazard,
such as a pothole or debris, could
seriously damage the compact
spare.
Any continuous road use of this tire could result in tire failure, loss of
vehicle control, and possible bodily
injury.
Do not exceed the vehicle’s maxi- mum load rating or the load-carry-
ing capacity shown on the sidewall
of the compact spare tire.
Avoid driving over obstacles. The compact spare tire diameter is
smaller than the diameter of a con-
ventional tire and reduces the
ground clearance approximately 1
inch (25 mm), which could result in
damage to the vehicle. Do not take this vehicle through an
automatic vehicle wash while the
compact spare tire is installed.
Do not use tire chains on the com- pact spare tire. Because of the
smaller size, a tire chain will not fit
properly. This could damage the
vehicle and result in loss of the
chain.
Do not use the compact spare tire on any other vehicle because this
tire has been designed especially
for your vehicle.
The compact spare tire’s tread life is shorter than a regular tire.
Inspect your compact spare tire
regularly and replace worn com-
pact spare tires with the same size
and design, mounted on the same
wheel.
The compact spare tire should not be used on any other wheels, nor
should standard tires, snow tires,
wheel covers or trim rings be used
with the compact spare wheel. If
such use is attempted, damage to
these items or other vehicle com-
ponents may occur. Do not use more than one compact
spare tire at a time.
Do not tow a trailer while the com- pact spare tire is installed.