2021 KIA SPORTAGE coolant level

4 83
Features of your vehicle
Fuel Gauge
This gauge indicates the approxi-
mate amount of fuel remaining in the
fuel tank.
✽NOTICE
• The fuel tank capacity is given inchapter 7.
• The fuel gauge is supplemented by a low fuel warning light which will
illuminate when the fuel tank is
nearly empty.
• On inclines or curves, the fuel gauge pointer may fluctuate or the
low fuel warning light may come
on earlier than usual due to the
movement of fuel in the tank.✽NOTICE
Fuel display may not be accurate if
you are filling in sloping places.
WARNING - Hot radiator
Never remove the radiator cap
when the engine is hot. The
engine coolant is under pres-
sure and could cause severe
burns. Wait until the engine is
cool before adding coolant to
the reservoir.
OQL048232N
WARNING - Fuel gauge
Stop and obtain additional fuel
as soon as possible after the
warning light comes on or when
the gauge indicator comes
close to the E level. Running out
of fuel can expose vehicle occu-
pants to danger.
CAUTION- Low fuel
Avoid driving with an extremely low fuel level. Running out offuel could cause the engine tomisfire damaging the catalyticconverter.

55
Driving your vehicle
Before entering vehicle
• Be sure that all windows, outsidemirror(s), and outside lights are
clean.
• Check the condition of the tires.
• Check under the vehicle for any sign of leaks.
• Be sure there are no obstacles behind you if you intend to back up.
Necessary inspections
Fluid levels, such as engine oil,
engine coolant, brake fluid, and
washer fluid should be checked on a
regular basis, at the exact interval
depending on the fluid. Further
details are provided in chapter 7,
“Maintenance”.
Before starting
• Close and lock all doors.
• Position the seat so that all con-trols are easily reached.
• Buckle your seat belt.
• Adjust the inside and outside rearview mirrors.
• Be sure that all lights work.
• Check all gauges.
• Check the operation of warning lights when the ignition switch is
turned to the ON position.
• Release the parking brake and make sure the brake warning light
goes out.
For safe operation, be sure you are
familiar with your vehicle and its
equipment.
BEFORE DRIVING
WARNING - Distracted driving
Focus on the road while driving.
The driver's primary responsi-
bility is in the safe and legal
operation of the vehicle. Use of
any handled devices, other
equipment or vehicle systems
that distract the drive should
not be used during vehicle
operation.

Driving your vehicle
1585
Chain installation
When installing chains, follow the
manufacturer'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 begin driving
on cleared roads.
When mounting snow chains, park
the vehicle on level ground away
from traffic. Turn on the vehicle
Hazard Warning flashers and place a
triangular emergency warning device
behind the vehicle if available.
Always place the vehicle in P (Park),
apply the parking brake and turn off
the engine before installing snow
chains.• The use of chains may adversely
affect vehicle handling.
• Do not exceed 20 mph (30 km/h) or the chain manufacturer’s recom-
mended speed limit, whichever is
lower.
• Drive carefully and avoid bumps, holes, sharp turns, and other road
hazards, which may cause the
vehicle to bounce.
• Avoid sharp turns or locked-wheel braking.Use high quality ethylene gly-
col coolant
Your vehicle is delivered with high
quality 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 cool-
ing system, lubricates the water
pump and prevents freezing. Be sure
to replace or replenish your coolant
in accordance with the maintenance
schedule in chapter 7. Before winter,
have your coolant tested to assure
that its freezing point is sufficient for
the temperatures anticipated during
the winter.
Check battery and cables
Winter puts additional burdens on
the battery system. Visually inspect
the battery and cables as described
in chapter 7. The level of charge in
your battery can be checked by an
authorized Kia dealer or a service
station.
CAUTION- Snow chains
• Chains that are the wrong size or improperly installed candamage your vehicle's brakelines, suspension, body andwheels.
• Stop driving and retighten the chains any time you hear themhitting the vehicle.

67
What to do in an emergency
IF THE ENGINE OVERHEATS
If your temperature gauge indicates
overheating, you experience a loss
of power, or hear loud pinging or
knocking, the engine will probably be
too hot. If this happens, you should:
1. Pull off the road and stop as soonas it is safe to do so.
2. Place the shift lever in P (for Automatic transmission) and set
the parking brake. If the air condi-
tioning is on, turn it off.
3. If engine coolant is running out under the vehicle or steam is com-
ing out from underneath the hood,
stop the engine. Do not open the
hood until the coolant has stopped
running or the steaming has
stopped. If there is no visible loss
of engine coolant and no steam,
leave the engine running and
check to be sure the engine cool-
ing fan is operating. If the fan is not
running, turn the engine off. 4. Check to see if the water pump
drive belt is missing. If it is not
missing, check to see that it is
tight. If the drive belt seems to be
satisfactory, check for coolant
leaking from the radiator, hoses or
under the vehicle. (If the air condi-
tioning had been in use, it is nor-
mal for cold water to be draining
from it when you stop).
5. If the water pump drive belt is bro- ken or engine coolant is leaking
out, stop the engine immediately
and call the nearest authorized
Kia dealer for assistance. 6. If you cannot find the cause of the
overheating, wait until the engine
temperature has returned to nor-
mal. If coolant has been lost, care-
fully add coolant to the reservoir to
bring the fluid level in the reservoir
up to the halfway mark.
7. Proceed with caution, keeping alert for further signs of overheat-
ing. If overheating happens again,
call an authorized Kia dealer for
assistance.
Serious loss of coolant indicates
there is a leak in the cooling system
and this should be checked as soon
as possible by an authorized Kia
dealer.
WARNING - Under the hood
While the engine is running, keep hair,
hands and clothing
away from moving
parts such as the fan
and drive belts to pre-
vent injury.
WARNING - Radiator cap
Do not remove the
radiator cap when the
engine is hot. This may
result in coolant being
blown out of the open-
ing and cause serious
burns.

Maintenance
Engine compartment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-3
Maintenance services . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
• Owner’s responsibility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-4
• Owner maintenance precautions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-5
Owner maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
• Owner maintenance schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-7
Scheduled maintenance service. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-9
Explanation of scheduled maintenance items . . . 7-21
Checking fluid levels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-26
Engine oil. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-27
• Checking the engine oil level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-27
• Changing the engine oil and filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-28
Engine coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-29
• Checking the coolant level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-29
• Changing the coolant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-32
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-33
• Checking the brake fluid level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-33
Washer fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-34
• Checking the washer fluid level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-34
Parking brake . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-35
• Checking the parking brake. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-35
Air cleaner. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
• Filter replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-36
Climate control air filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
• Filter inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-38
Wiper blades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-40
• Blade inspection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-40
• Blade replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-40
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-\
43
• For best battery service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-43
• Recharging the battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-44
• Reset items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-45\
Tires and wheels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-46
• Tire care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . \
7-46
• Recommended cold tire inflation pressures . . . . . . . 7-46
• Tire pressure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-47
• Checking tire inflation pressure. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-47
• Tire rotation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-48
• Wheel alignment and tire balance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-49
• Tire replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-50
• Wheel replacement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
• Tire traction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
• Tire maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
• Tire sidewall labeling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-51
• All season tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-58
• Summer tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-58
• Snow tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-\
58
• Tire chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7-58\
7

77
Maintenance
OWNER MAINTENANCE
The following lists are vehicle checks
and inspections that should be per-
formed by the owner or an author-
ized Kia dealer at the frequencies
indicated to help ensure safe,
dependable operation of your vehi-
cle.
Any adverse conditions should be
brought to the attention of your deal-
er as soon as possible.
These Owner Maintenance Checks
are generally not covered by war-
ranties and you may be charged for
labor, parts and lubricants used.Owner maintenance schedule
When you stop for fuel:
• Check the engine oil level.
• Check the coolant level in thecoolant reservoir.
• Check the windshield washer fluid level.
• Look for low or under-inflated tires.
While operating your vehicle:
• Note any changes in the sound of the exhaust or any smell of
exhaust fumes in the vehicle.
• Check for vibrations in the steering wheel. Notice any increased steer-
ing effort or looseness in the steer-
ing wheel, or change in its straight-
ahead position.
• Notice if your vehicle constantly turns slightly or “pulls” to one side
when traveling on smooth, level
roads.
• When stopping, listen and check for unusual sounds, pulling to one
side, increased brake pedal travel
or “hard-to-push” brake pedal.
• If any slipping or changes in the operation of your transmission
occurs, check the transmission
fluid level.
• Check the automatic transmission P (Park) function.
• Check the parking brake.
• Check for fluid leaks under your vehicle (water dripping from the air
conditioning system during or after
use is normal).
WARNING- Hot coolant
Be careful when checking your
engine coolant level when the
engine is hot. Scalding hot
coolant and steam may blow
out under pressure.

Maintenance
87
At least monthly:
• Check the coolant level in theengine coolant reservoir.
• Check the operation of all exterior lights, including the stoplights, turn
signals and hazard warning flash-
ers.
• Check the inflation pressures of all tires including the spare for tires
that are worn, show uneven wear,
or are damaged.
• Check for loose wheel lug nuts.
At least twice a year (i.e., every Spring and Fall) :
• Check the radiator, heater and air conditioning hoses for leaks or
damage.
• Check the windshield washer spray and wiper operation. Clean
the wiper blades with clean cloth
dampened with washer fluid.
• Check the headlight alignment.
• Check the muffler, exhaust pipes, shields and clamps.
• Check the lap/shoulder belts for wear and function.
At least once a year :
• Clean the body and door drainholes.
• Lubricate the door hinges and check the hood hinges.
• Lubricate the door and hood locks and latches.
• Lubricate the door rubber weather- strips.
• Check the air conditioning system.
• Inspect and lubricate automatic transmission linkage and controls.
• Clean the battery and terminals.
• Check the brake fluid level.

Maintenance
267
CHECKING FLUID LEVELS
When checking engine oil, engine
coolant, brake fluid, and washer fluid,
always be sure to clean the area
around any filler plug, drain plug, or
dipstick before checking or draining
any lubricant or fluid. This is espe-
cially important in dusty or sandy
areas and when the vehicle is used
on unpaved roads. Cleaning the plug
and dipstick areas will prevent dirt
and grit from entering the engine and
other mechanisms that could be
damaged.