2021 KIA NIRO wheel

Safety features of your vehicle
8 3
Reclining seatback
Sitting in a reclined position when
the vehicle is in motion can be dan-
gerous. Even when buckled up, the
protections of your restraint system
(seat belts and/or air bags) is greatly
reduced by reclining your seatback.
Seat belts must be snug against your
hips and chest to work properly.
When the seatback is reclined, the
shoulder belt cannot do its job
because it will not be snug against
your chest. Instead, it will be in front
of you. During an accident, you could
be thrown into the seat belt, causing
neck or other injuries.
The more the seatback is reclined,
the greater chance the passenger’s
hips will slide under the lap belt or
the passenger’s neck will strike the
shoulder belt.Seat height
To change the height of the seat, push
the lever upwards or downwards.
To lower the seat cushion, push the
lever down several times.
To raise the seat cushion, pull the
lever up several times.
Front seat adjustment - power
(if equipped)
The front seat can be adjusted by
using the control switches located on
the outside of the seat cushion.
Before driving, adjust the seat to the
proper position so you can easily
control the steering wheel, pedals
and switches on the instrument
panel.
ODEP039061
ODEP039106N

Safety features of your vehicle
48 3
How does the air bag system
operate?
Air bags are activated (able to
inflate if necessary) only when the
ignition switch is turned to the ON
or START position or when engine
start/stop button has been
changed to ON position.
The appropriate air bags inflate
instantly in the event of a serious
frontal collision or side collision in
order to help protect the occupants
from serious physical injury.
There is no single speed at which
the air bags will inflate.
Generally, air bags are designed to
inflate based upon the severity of a
collision and its direction. These
two factors determine whether the
sensors produce an electronic
deployment/ inflation signal.
Air bag deployment depends on a
number of factors including vehicle
speed, angles of impact, and, the
density and stiffness of the vehi-
cles or objects which your vehicle
hits in the collision. The determin-
ing factors are not limited to those
mentioned above. The front air bags will completely
inflate and deflate in an instant.
It is virtually impossible for you to
see the air bags inflate during an
accident.
It is much more likely that you will
simply see the deflated air bags
hanging out of their storage com-
partments after the collision.
In addition to inflating in serious
side collisions, side and/or curtain
air bags will inflate if the sensing
system detects a rollover.
When a rollover is detected, side
and/or curtain air bags will remain
inflated longer to help provide pro-
tection from ejection, especially
when used in conjunction with the
seat belts. In order to help provide protection,
the air bags must inflate rapidly.
The speed of the air bag inflation is
a consequence of extremely short
time in which to inflate the air bag
between the occupant and the
vehicle structures before the occu-
pant impacts those structures. This
speed of inflation reduces the risk
of serious or life-threatening
injuries and is thus a necessary
part of the air bag design.
However, air bag inflation can also
cause injuries which can include
facial abrasions, bruises and bro-
ken bones because the inflation
speed also causes the air bags to
expand with a great deal of force.
There are even circumstances
under which contact with the
steering wheel or passenger air
bag can cause fatal injuries,
especially if the occupant is
positioned excessively close to
the steering wheel or passenger
air bag.

349
Safety features of your vehicle
Noise and smoke
When inflated, the air bags make a
loud noise and leave smoke and
powder in the air inside the vehicle.
This is normal and is a result of the
ignition of the air bag inflator. After
the air bag inflates, you may feel sub-
stantial discomfort in breathing due
to the contact of your chest with both
the seat belt and the air bag, as well
as from breathing the smoke and
powder.Open your doors and/or
windows as soon as possible after
impact in order to reduce discom-
fort and prevent prolonged expo-
sure to the smoke and powder.
Though smoke and powder are non-
toxic, it may cause irritation to the
skin (eyes, nose and throat, etc). If
this is the case, wash and rinse with
cold water immediately and consult a
doctor if the symptom persists.WARNING- Hot compo-
nents
Do not touch the air bag storage
area's internal components
immediately after airbag infla-
tion. The air bag related parts in
the steering wheel, instrument
panel and the roof rails above
the front and rear doors are
very hot. Hot components can
result in burn injuries.
WARNING
Do not install or place any
accessories near air bag
deployment areas, such as the
instrument panel, windows, pil-
lars, and roof rails.
WARNING- Airbag infla-
tion
Sit as far back as possible from
the steering wheel while still
maintaining comfortable con-
trol of your vehicle. A distance
of at least 10" from your chest
to the steering wheel is recom-
mended. Failure to do so can
result in airbag inflation injuries
to the driver.

Safety features of your vehicle
52 3
If any of the following conditions
occur, this indicates a malfunction in
the air bag system. Have an author-
ized Kia dealer inspect the air bag
system as soon as possible.
The light does not turn on briefly
when you change engine start/stop
button to ON.
The light stays on after illuminating
for approximately 6 seconds.
The light comes on while the vehi-
cle is in motion.
The light blinks when engine
start/stop button is ON position.The front air bag modules are locat-
ed both in the center of the steering
wheel and in the front passenger's
panel above the glove box. When the
SRSCM detects a sufficiently severe
impact to the front of the vehicle, it
will automatically deploy the front air
bags.Upon deployment, tear seams mold-
ed directly into the pad covers will
separate under pressure from the
expansion of the air bags. Further
opening of the covers then allows full
inflation of the air bags.
B240B01L
Driver’s front air bag (1)
B240B02L
Driver’s front air bag (2)

353
Safety features of your vehicle
A fully inflated air bag, in combina-
tion with a properly worn seat belt,
slows the driver's or the passenger's
forward motion, reducing the risk of
head and chest injury.
After complete inflation, the air bag
immediately starts deflating, enabling
the driver to maintain forward visibility
and the ability to steer or operate
other controls. If an air bag deploys, there may be
a loud noise followed by a fine dust
released in the vehicle. These con-
ditions are normal and are not haz-
ardous - the air bags are packed in
this fine powder. The dust generat-
ed during air bag deployment may
cause skin or eye irritation as well
as aggravate asthma for some per-
sons. Always wash all exposed
skin areas thoroughly with cold
water and a mild soap after an
accident in which the air bags were
deployed.
B240B03L
Driver’s front air bag (3)
B240B05L
Passenger’s front air bag
WARNING- Air bag
obstructions
Do not install or place any
accessories on the steering
wheel, instrument panel, or on
the front passenger's panel
above the glove box in a vehi-
cle. Such objects may become
dangerous projectiles if the air
bag deploys.
WARNING- Flying objects
Do not place any objects (an
umbrella, bag, etc.) between the
front door and the front seat.
Such objects may become dan-
gerous projectiles if the side
airbag inflates.

363
Safety features of your vehicle
Your vehicle is equipped with an
Advanced Supplemental Restraint
(Air Bag) System and lap/shoulder
belts at both the driver and passen-
ger seating position.
The indication of the system's pres-
ence are the letters "AIR BAG" locat-
ed on the air bag pad cover on the
steering wheel and the passenger's
side front panel pad above the glove
box.The SRS consists of air bags
installed under the pad covers in the
center of the steering wheel and the
passenger's side front panel above
the glove box.
The purpose of the SRS is to provide
the vehicle's driver and/or the front
passenger with additional protection
than that offered by the seat belt sys-
tem alone in case of a frontal impact
of sufficient severity. The SRS uses
sensors to gather information about
the driver's and front passenger's
seat belt usage and impact severity.
The seat belt buckle sensor deter-
mines if the front passenger's seat
belt is fastened.These sensors provide the ability to
control the SRS deployment based on
whether or not the seat belts are fas-
tened, and how severe the impact is.
The advanced SRS offers the ability
to control the air bag inflation with
two levels. A first stage level is pro-
vided for moderate-severity impacts.
A second stage level is provided for
more severe impacts.
The passenger’s front air bag is
designed to help reduce the injury of
children sitting close to the instru-
ment panel in low speed collisions.
However, children are safer if they
are restrained in the rear seat.
According to the impact severity and
seat belt usage, the SRSCM (SRS
Control Module) controls the air bag
inflation. Failure to properly wear
seat belts can increase the risk or
severity of injury in an accident.
ODE036038
■Passenger’s front air bag

365
Safety features of your vehicle
Side air bag
❈The actual air bags in the vehicle may differ
from the illustration.
Your vehicle is equipped with a side
air bag in each front seat.
WARNING- SRS Wiring
Do not tamper with or discon-
nect SRS wiring or other com-
ponents of the SRS system.
Doing so could result in injury,
due to accidental deployment of
the air bags or by rendering the
SRS inoperative.WARNING - No attaching
objects
No objects (such as crash pad
cover, cellular phone holder,
cup holder, perfume or stickers)
should be placed over or near
the air bag modules on the
steering wheel, instrument
panel, windshield glass, and the
front passenger's panel above
the glove box. Such objects
could cause harm if the vehicle
is in a crash severe enough to
cause the air bags to deploy.
Do not place any objects over
the air bag or between the air
bag and yourself.
ODE036041
ODEP039040

Safety features of your vehicle
66 3
The purpose of the air bag is to pro-
vide the vehicle's driver and/or the
front passenger with additional pro-
tection than that offered by the seat
belt alone.
The side air bags are designed to
deploy during certain side-impact
collisions, depending on the crash
severity, angle, speed and point of
impact. However, when side deploy-
ment threshold is satisfied at front-
impact, side air bags may deploy.
The side air bags may deploy on the
side of the impact or on both sides.
The side and/or curtain air bags on
both sides of the vehicle will deploy
if a rollover or possible rollover is
detected.
The side air bags are not designed
to deploy in all side impact or
rollover situations. The side air bag is supplemental to
the driver's and the passenger's
seat belt systems and is not a sub-
stitute for them. Therefore your
seat belts must be worn at all times
while the vehicle is in operation.
For best protection from the side
air bag system and to avoid being
injured by the deploying side air
bag, both front seat occupants
should sit in an upright position
with the seat belt properly fas-
tened. The driver's hands should
be placed on the steering wheel at
the 9:00 and 3:00 positions. The
passenger's arms and hands
should be placed on their laps.
WARNING- Unexpected
deployment
Avoid impact to the side impact
airbag sensor when Engine
Start/Stop button is ON to pre-
vent unexpected deployment of
the side air bag.
WARNING- Deployment
Do not install any accessories
including seat covers, on the
side or near the side air bag as
this may affect the deployment
of the side air bags.