2021 KIA SPORTAGE Owners Manual

5 43
Driving your vehicle
(Continued)In these cases, the brake warning
light comes on, the AUTO HOLD
indicator changes from green to
white, and a warning sounds and a
message will appear to inform you
that EPB has been automatically
engaged. Before driving off again,
press foot brake pedal, check the
surrounding area near your vehi-
cle and release parking brake
manually with the EPB switch.
• If the AUTO HOLD indicator lights up yellow, the Auto Hold is
not working properly. Take your
vehicle to an authorized Kia deal-
er and have the system checked.If there is a malfunction with the dri-
ver’s door, engine hood open detec-
tion system, the Auto Hold may not
work properly.
Take your vehicle to an authorized Kia
dealer and have the system checked.
✽NOTICE
A click or electric brake motor
whine sound may be heard while
operating or releasing the EPB, but
these conditions are normal and
indicate that the EPB is functioning
properly.
Warning messages
Parking brake automatically locked
When the EPB is applied from Auto
Hold, a warning will sound and a
message will appear.
WARNING
To reduce the risk of an acci-
dent, do not activate Auto Hold
while driving downhill, backing
up or parking your vehicle.
OJF058376L
OJF058377L
■Type A
■Type B

Driving your vehicle
445
When the conversion from Auto Hold
to EPB is not working properly a
warning will sound and a message
will appear.
✽NOTICE
When this message is displayed, the
Auto Hold and EPB may not oper-
ate. For your safety, depress the
brake pedal.
If you do not apply the brake pedal
when you release the Auto Hold by
pressing the [AUTO HOLD] switch, a
warning will sound and a message
will appear.
OJF058374L
OJF058375L
■Type A
■Type BOJF058380L
OJF058381L
■Type A
■Type B

5 45
Driving your vehicle
AUTO HOLD conditions not met.
Close door, hood, and liftgate
When you press the [AUTO HOLD]
switch, if the driver’s door, engine
hood are not closed or the driver’s
seat belt is unfastened, a warning
will sound and a message will
appear on the LCD display. At this
moment, press the [AUTO HOLD]
button after closing the driver’s door,
engine hood and liftgate.
Anti-lock brake system (ABS)
ABS (or ESC) will not prevent acci-
dents due to improper or dangerous
driving maneuvers. Even though
vehicle control is improved during
emergency braking, always maintain
a safe distance between you and
objects ahead. Vehicle speeds
should always be reduced during
extreme road conditions. The vehicle
should be driven at reduced speeds
in the following circumstances:
• When driving on rough, gravel orsnow-covered roads
• When driving with tire chains installed
• When driving on roads where the road surface is pitted or has differ-
ent surface heights.
Driving in these conditions increases
the stopping distance for your vehicle. The ABS continuously senses the
speed of the wheels. If the wheels
are going to lock, the ABS system
repeatedly modulates the hydraulic
brake pressure to the wheels.
When you apply your brakes under
conditions which may lock the
wheels, you may hear a “tik-tik’’
sound from the brakes, or feel a cor-
responding sensation in the brake
pedal. This is normal and it means
your ABS is active.
In order to obtain the maximum benefit
from your ABS in an emergency situa-
tion, do not attempt to modulate your
brake pressure and do not try to pump
your brakes. Press your brake pedal as
hard as possible or as hard as the sit-
uation allows the ABS to control the
force being delivered to the brakes.
✽NOTICE
A click/clunk type sound may be
heard once per ignition cycle in the
engine compartment when the vehi-
cle begins to move after the engine is
started. These conditions are normal
and indicate that the anti-lock brake
system is functioning properly.
OQL058371N

Driving your vehicle
465
• Even with the anti-lock brake sys-tem, your vehicle still requires suf-
ficient stopping distance. Always
maintain a safe distance from the
vehicle in front of you.
• Always slow down when cornering. The anti-lock brake system cannot
prevent accidents resulting from
excessive speeds.
• On loose or uneven road surfaces, operation of the anti-lock brake
system may result in a longer stop-
ping distance than for vehicles
equipped with a conventional
brake system. The ABS warning light will stay on for
approximately 3 seconds after the
ignition switch is ON. During that
time, the ABS will go through self-
diagnosis and the light will go off if
everything is normal. If the light stays
on, you may have a problem with
your ABS. Contact an authorized Kia
dealer as soon as possible. • When you drive on a road having
poor traction, such as an icy road,
and have operated your brakes
continuously, the ABS will be active
continuously and the ABS warning
light may illuminate. Pull your vehi-
cle over to a safe place and stop
the engine.
• Restart the engine. If the ABS warning light goes off, then your
ABS system is normal. Otherwise,
you may have a problem with the
ABS. Contact an authorized Kia
dealer as soon as possible.
✽NOTICE
When you jump start your vehicle
because of a drained battery, the
engine may not run as smoothly and
the ABS warning light may turn on at
the same time. This happens because
of low battery voltage. It does not
mean your ABS has malfunctioned.
• Do not pump your brakes!
• Have the battery recharged beforedriving the vehicle.
W-78

5 47
Driving your vehicle
Electronic stability control
(ESC)
The Electronic Stability Control
(ESC) system is designed to stabi-
lize the vehicle during cornering
maneuvers. ESC checks where you
are steering and where the vehicle is
actually going. ESC applies the
brakes at individual wheels and inter-
venes with engine management sys-
tem to stabilize the vehicle.The Electronic stability control (ESC)
system is an electronic system
designed to help the driver maintain
vehicle control under adverse condi-
tions. It is not a substitute for safe
driving practices. Factors including
speed, road conditions and driver
steering input can all affect whether
ESC will be effective in preventing a
loss of control. It is still your respon-
sibility to drive and corner at reason-
able speeds and to leave a sufficient
margin of safety.
When you apply your brakes under
conditions which may lock the
wheels, you may hear a “tik-tik’’
sound from the brakes, or feel a cor-
responding sensation in the brake
pedal. This is normal and it means
your ESC is active.
✽NOTICE
A click/clunk type sound may be
heard once per ignition cycle in the
engine compartment when the vehi-
cle begins to move after the engine is
started. These conditions are normal
and indicate that Electronic stabili-
ty control (ESC) System is function-
ing properly.
WARNING
Never drive too fast for the road
conditions or too quickly when
cornering. Electronic stability
control (ESC) will not prevent
accidents. Excessive speed in
turns, abrupt maneuvers and
hydroplaning on wet surfaces
can still result in serious acci-
dents. Only a safe and attentive
driver can prevent accidents by
avoiding maneuvers that cause
the vehicle to lose traction.
Even with ESC installed, always
follow all the normal precautions
for driving - including driving at
safe speeds for the conditions.

Driving your vehicle
485
ESC operation
ESC ON condition• When the ignition is turnedON, ESC and ESC OFF
indicator lights illuminate for
approximately 3 seconds,
then ESC is turned on.
• Select the LCD display  ESC ESC OFF/ESC
OFF (TCS OFF) ESC OFF
indicator will illuminate.
Select the ESC ON, ESC
OFF indicator light will go
off.
• When starting the engine, you may hear a slight tick-
ing sound. This is the ESC
performing an automatic
system self-check and
does not indicate a prob-
lem. When operating
When the ESC is in opera-
tion, ESC indicator light
blinks.
• When the ElectronicStability Control is operat-
ing properly, you can feel a
slight pulsation in the vehi-
cle. This is only the effect
of brake control and indi-
cates nothing unusual.
• When moving out of the mud or slippery road, the
engine rpm (revolution per
minute) may not increase
even if you press the
accelerator pedal deeply.
This is to maintain the sta-
bility and traction of the
vehicle and does not indi-
cate a problem.
ESC operation off
ESC OFF state
This car has 2 kinds of ESC
off states.
If the engine stops when
ESC is off, ESC remains off.
Upon restarting the engine,
the ESC will automatically
turn on again.
-

5 49
Driving your vehicle
• ESC off state 1
To cancel ESC operation, Select the
ESC OFF (TCS OFF) in the ESC.
ESC OFF indicator light (ESC OFF
) illuminates). At this state, the engine
control function does not operate. It
means the traction control function
does not operate. Brake control func-
tion only operates.• ESC off state 2
To cancel ESC operation, Select the
ESC OFF in the ESC (ESC OFF indi-
cator light (ESC OFF ) illuminates.
At this state, the engine control func-
tion and brake control function do not
operate. It means the car stability
control function does not operate any
more.
Indicator light
When ignition switch is turned to ON,
the indicator light illuminates, then
goes off if the ESC system is operat-
ing normally.
The ESC indicator light blinks when-
ever ESC is operating or illuminates
when ESC fails to operate.
ESC OFF indicator light comes on
when the select the ESC OFF/ESC
OFF (TCS OFF) in the LCD display.
OQL058251LOQL058252L
■
ESC indicator light
■ ESC OFF indicator light

Driving your vehicle
505
ESC OFF usage
When driving
• ESC should be turned on for dailydriving whenever possible.
• To turn ESC off while driving, select the ESC OFF/ESC
OFF(TCS OFF) in the LCD display
while driving on a flat road surface.
✽NOTICE
• When operating the vehicle on adynamometer, ensure that you
select the LCD display 
ESC
ESC OFF/ESC OFF (TCS 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 opera-
tion.
CAUTION
Driving with varying tire or wheel
sizes may cause the ESC systemto malfunction. When replacingtires, make sure they are thesame size as your original tires.
WARNING
The Electronic Stability Control
system is only a driving aid that
can only assist you in maintain-
ing control under certain cir-
cumstances. Use precautions
for safe driving by slowing
down on curved, snowy, or icy
roads. Drive slowly and don’t
attempt to accelerate whenever
the ESC indicator light is blink-
ing, or when the road surface is
slippery.WARNING
Never select the ESC OFF/ ESC
OFF(TCS OFF) in the LCD dis-
play while ESC is operating
(ESC indicator light blinks).