2021 KIA NIRO Owners Manual

Safety features of your vehicle
70 3
Problems may arise if the sensor
installation angles are changed due
to the deformation of the front
bumper, front end module, body or
front doors where side collision sen-
sors are installed. Have the vehicle
checked and repaired by an author-
ized Kia dealer.
Installing bumper guards (or side
step or running board) or replacing a
bumper (or front door module) with
non-genuine parts may adversely
affect your vehicle’s collision and air
bag deployment performance.Air bag inflation conditions
Front air bags
Front air bags are designed to inflate
in a frontal collision depending on
the severity of impact of the front col-
lision.
Side and/or curtain air bags
Side and/or curtain air bags are
designed to inflate when an impact is
detected by side collision sensors
depending on the severity of impact
resulting from a side impact collision.
Also, the side and curtain air bags are
designed to inflate when a rollover is
detected by a rollover sensor.
Although the front air bags (driver’s
and front passenger’s air bags) are
designed to inflate in frontal collisions,
they also may inflate in other types of
collisions if the front impact sensors
detect a sufficient frontal force in
another type of impact. Side and cur-
tain air bags are designed to inflate in
certain side impact collisions.WARNING- Air bag sen-
sors
Do not hit or allow any objects
to impact the locations where
air bags or sensors are
installed.
This may cause unexpected
air bag deployment, which
could result in serious per-
sonal injury or death.
If the installation location or
angle of the sensors is altered
in any way, the air bags may
deploy when they should not
or they may not deploy when
they should.
Therefore, do not try to per-
form maintenance on or
around the air bag sensors.
Have the vehicle checked and
repaired by an authorized Kia
dealer.

371
Safety features of your vehicle
They may inflate in other types of
collisions where a side force is
detected by the sensors. Side air bag
and/or curtain air bags may also
inflate where rollover sensors indi-
cate the possibility of a rollover
occurring (even if none actually
occurs) or in other situations, includ-
ing when the vehicle is tilted while
being towed.
Even where side and/or curtain air
bags would not provide impact pro-
tection in a rollover, however, they
will deploy to prevent ejection of
occupants, especially those who are
restrained with seat belts.
If the vehicle chassis is impacted by
bumps or objects on unimproved
roads, the air bags may deploy. Drive
carefully on unimproved roads or on
surfaces not designed for vehicle
traffic to prevent unintended air bag
deployment.Air bag non-inflation conditions
In certain low-speed collisions the
air bags may not deploy. The air
bags are designed not to deploy in
such cases because they may not
provide benefits beyond the pro-
tection of the seat belts in such col-
lisions.
Air bags are not designed to inflate
in rear collisions, because occu-
pants are moved backward by the
force of the impact. In this case,
inflated air bags would not be able
to provide any additional benefit.
Front air bags may not inflate in
side impact collisions, because
occupants move to the direction of
the collision, and thus in side
impacts, frontal air bag deployment
would not provide additional occu-
pant protection.
In an angled collision, the force of
impact may direct the occupants in
a direction where the air bags would
not be able to provide any addition-
al benefit, and thus the sensors may
not deploy any air bags. Just before impact, drivers often
brake heavily. Such heavy braking
lowers the front portion of the vehi-
cle causing it to “ride” under a vehi-
cle with a higher ground clearance.
Air bags may not inflate in this
"under-ride" situation because
deceleration forces that are detect-
ed by sensors may be significantly
reduced by such “under-ride” colli-
sions.
Front air bags may not inflate in all
rollover accidents where the
SRSCM indicates that the front air
bag deployment would not provide
additional occupant protection.
Air bags may not inflate if the vehi-
cle collides with objects such as util-
ity poles or trees, where the point of
impact is concentrated to one area
and the full force of the impact is not
delivered to the sensors.

Safety features of your vehicle
72 3
SRS Care
The SRS is virtually maintenance-
free and so there are no parts you can
safely service by yourself. If the SRS
air bag warning light does not illumi-
nate, or continuously remains on, have
your vehicle immediately inspected by
an authorized Kia dealer.
Any work on the SRS system, such
as removing, installing, repairing, or
any work on the steering wheel, the
front passenger’s panel, front seats
and roof rails must be performed by
an authorized Kia dealer. Improper
handling of the SRS system may
result in serious personal injury.For cleaning the air bag pad covers,
use only a soft, dry cloth or one which
has been moistened with plain water.
Solvents or cleaners could adversely
affect the air bag covers and proper
deployment of the system.
If components of the air bag system
must be discarded, or if the vehicle
must be scrapped, certain safety
precautions must be observed. An
authorized Kia dealer knows these
precautions and can give you the
necessary information. Failure to fol-
low these precautions and proce-
dures could increase the risk of per-
sonal injury.WARNING- Tampering
with SRS
Do not tamper with or discon-
nect SRS wiring, or other com-
ponents of the SRS system.
Doing so could result in the
accidental inflation of the air
bags or render the SRS inoper-
ative.
WARNING- Towing Vehicle
Always have the ignition off
when your vehicle is being
towed. The side air bags may
inflate if the vehicle is tilted
such as when being towed
because of the rollover sensors
in the vehicle.

373
Safety features of your vehicle
Adding equipment to or modi-
fying your air bag-equipped
vehicle
If you modify your vehicle by chang-
ing your vehicle's frame, bumper sys-
tem, front end or side sheet metal or
ride height, this may affect the opera-
tion of your vehicle's air bag system.
Air bag warning label
Air bag warning labels, some
required by the U.S. National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), are attached to the sun
visor to alert the driver and passen-
gers of potential risks of the air bag
system.
ODE036090N

Features of your vehicle
Folding key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
• Record your key number . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-6
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-7
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-8
Smart key . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-11
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-15
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-16
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-17
Theft-alarm system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-19
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-19
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-20

Door locks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-22
. . . . 4-22
. . . . . . 4-23
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-26
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-26
Liftgate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-28
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-28

Windows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-31
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-32
Hood. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-36
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-36
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-37
Fuel filler door (Hybrid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-38
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-38
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-39
Fuel filler door (Plug-in hybrid) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-40
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-40
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-41
Sunroof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-44
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-45
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-46

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-47

Steering wheel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-49
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-49
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-50
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-51
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-52
4

Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-53
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-53

Instrument cluster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-67
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-69
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-69
. . . . . . . . . . 4-75
LCD Display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-77
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-77
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-78
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-90
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-95
Warning and indicator lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-106
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-106
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-115
Rear View Monitor (RVM) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-121
Reverse Parking Distance Warning (PDW) . . . . 4-122
. 4-122

Distance Warning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-123
. . 4-124
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-124
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-125

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-125 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-125
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-126

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-128
. . . . . . . . . . . 4-130
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-131
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-131
Wipers and washers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-132
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-132
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-133
. . . . . . . . . 4-134
Interior lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-136
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-136
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-136
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-137
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-138
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-138
Welcome system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-139
. . . . . . . . . . 4-139
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-139

Defroster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-140
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-140
Automatic climate control system. . . . . . . . . . . . 4-141
. . . . . . . . . 4-142
4

. . . . . . . . . . . 4-144
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-150
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-152
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-153
. . . . . . . . . . 4-153
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-154


and compressor lubricant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-155
Windshield defrosting and defogging . . . . . . . . . 4-157
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-157

Storage compartments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-161
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-161
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-161
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-162
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-163
Interior features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-164
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-164
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-164
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-166
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-167
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-167
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-168
. . . . . . . . . . 4-169 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-172

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-174
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-174
Exterior features. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-176
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-176
Infotainment system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-178

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-178
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-179
Declaration of Conformity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-182
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4-182
4

Features of your vehicle
4 4
Record your key number
The key code num-
ber is stamped on
the key code tag
attached to the key
set. Should you
lose your keys, this number will
enable an authorized Kia dealer to
duplicate the keys easily. Remove
the key code tag and store it in a safe
place. Also, record the key code
number and keep it in a safe place,
but not in the vehicle.
Key operations
• Used to start the engine.
Used to lock and unlock the doors.
To unfold the key, press the release
button then the key will unfold auto-
matically. To fold the key, fold the
key manually while pressing the
release button.
FOLDING KEY (IF EQUIPPED)
CAUTION
Do not fold the key without
pressing the release button.
This may damage the key.
WARNING - Aftermarket
key
Use only Kia original parts for
the ignition key in your vehicle.
If an aftermarket key is used,
the ignition switch may not
return to ON after START. If this
happens, the starter will contin-
ue to operate causing damage
to the starter motor and possi-
ble fire due to excessive current
in the wiring.
OBD048028