ground clearance Hyundai Sonata

353
Safety features of your vehicle
Just before impact, drivers often brakeheavily. Such heavy braking lowers the
front portion of the vehicle causing it to
“ride” under a vehicle with a higher
ground clearance. Air bags may not
inflate in this "under-ride" situation
because deceleration forces that are
detected by sensors may be signifi-
cantly reduced by such “under-ride”
collisions. Air bags may not inflate in rollover acci-
dents because air bag deployment
would not provide protection to the
occupants.
However, side impact and curtain air bags may inflate when the vehicle is
rolled over by a side impact collision, if
the vehicle is equipped with side
impact air bags and curtain air bags. Air bags may not inflate if the vehicle
collides with objects such as utility
poles or trees, where the point of
impact is concentrated to one area and
the full force of the impact is not deliv-
ered to the sensors.
1JBA35171JBA35221JBA3518

What to do in an emergency
14
6
Important - use of compact spare
tyre (if equipped)
Your vehicle is equipped with a com-
pact spare tyre. This compact spare
tyre takes up less space than a reg-
ular-size tyre. This tyre is smaller
than a conventional tyre and is
designed for temporary use only.
The compact spare should be inflat-
ed to 420 kPa (60 psi).
✽✽NOTICE
Check the inflation pressure after
installing the spare tyre. Adjust it to
the specified pressure, as necessary.
When using a compact spare tyre,
observe the following precautions:
Under no circumstances should you exceed 80 km/h (50 mph); a higher speed could damage the
tyre.
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 tyre could result in tyre failure, loss
of vehicle control, and possible
personal 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 tyre.
Avoid driving over obstacles. The compact spare tyre diameter issmaller than the diameter of a con-
ventional tyre and reduces the
ground clearance approximately25 mm (1 inch), which could result
in damage to the vehicle.
CAUTION
You should drive carefully
when the compact spare is inuse. The compact spareshould be replaced by theproper conventional tyre and rim at the first opportunity.
The operation of this vehicle is not recommended withmore than one compact sparetyre in use at the same time.
WARNING
The compact spare tyre is for
emergency use only. Do not
operate your vehicle on this
compact spare at speeds over
80 km/h (50 mph). The originaltyre should be repaired or
replaced as soon as is possible
to avoid failure of the spare
possibly leading to personal
injury or death.

Maintenance
38
7
Tyre replacement
If the tyre is worn evenly, a tread
wear indicator will appear as a solid
band across the tread. This showsthere is less than 1.6 mm (1/16 inch)
of tread left on the tyre. Replace the
tyre when this happens.
Do not wait for the band to appear
across the entire tread before replac-
ing the tyre.
OEN076053
Tread wear indicator(Continued)
The use of any other tyre size
or type may seriously affect
ride, handling, ground clear-
ance, stopping distance, body
to tyre clearance, snow tyre
clearance, and speedometer
reliability.
It is best to replace all four tyres at the same time. If that
is not possible, or necessary,
then replace the two front or
two rear tyres as a pair.Replacing just one tyre can
seriously affect your vehicle’shandling.
The ABS works by comparing the speed of the wheels. Tyre
size can affect wheel speed.
When replacing tyres, all 4
tyres must use the same size
originally supplied with the
vehicle. Using tyres of a dif-
ferent size can cause the ABS
(Anti-lock Brake System) and
ESP (Electronic Stability
Program) or ESC (Electronic
Stability Control) (if equipped)
to work irregularly.WARNING - Replacing
tyres
Driving on worn-out tyres is very hazardous and will
reduce braking effectiveness,
steering accuracy, and trac-tion.
Your vehicle is equipped with tyres designed to provide for
safe ride and handling capa-
bility. Do not use a size andtype of tyre and wheel that is
different from the one that is
originally installed on your
vehicle. It can affect the safety
and performance of your vehi-
cle, which could lead to han-
dling failure or rollover and
serious injury. When replacing
the tyres, be sure to equip all
four tyres with the tyre and
wheel of the same size, type,
tread, brand and load-carrying
capacity.
(Continued)

739
Maintenance
Compact spare tyre replacement (if equipped)
A compact spare tyre has a shorter
tread life than a regular size tyre.
Replace it when you can see the
tread wear indicator bars on the tyre.The replacement compact spare tyre
should be the same size and design
tyre as the one provided with your
new vehicle and should be mountedon the same compact spare tyre
wheel. The compact spare tyre is notdesigned to be mounted on a regular
size wheel, and the compact spare
tyre wheel is not designed for mount-
ing a regular size tyre. Wheel replacement
When replacing the metal wheels for
any reason, make sure the new
wheels are equivalent to the original
factory units in diameter, rim widthand offset.
Tyre traction
Tyre traction can be reduced if you
drive on worn tyres, tyres that are
improperly inflated or on slippery
road surfaces. Tyres should be
replaced when tread wear indicators
appear. To reduce the possibility of
losing control, slow down whenever
there is rain, snow or ice on the road.
Tyre maintenance In addition to proper inflation, correct wheel alignment helps to decrease
tyre wear. If you find a tyre is worn
unevenly, have your dealer check thewheel alignment.
When you have new tyres installed,
make sure they are balanced. This
will increase vehicle ride comfort and
tyre life. Additionally, a tyre should
always be rebalanced if it is removedfrom the wheel.
WARNING
A wheel that is not the correct
size may adversely affect wheel
and bearing life, braking and
stopping abilities, handling
characteristics, ground clear-
ance, body-to-tyre clearance,
snow chain clearance,speedometer and odometer cal-
ibration, headlight aim and
bumper height.