KIA FORTE 2018 Owner's Guide

Safety features of your vehicle
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3
Removal and installation
To remove the headrest, raise it as
far as it can go then press the
release button (1) while pulling the
headrest upward (2).
To reinstall the headrest, put the
headrest poles (3) into the holes
while pressing the release button (1).
Then adjust it to the appropriate
height and ensure that it locks in
position.
Armrest
To use the armrest, pull it forward
from the seatback.
Folding the rear seat
The rear seatbacks may be folded to
facilitate carrying long items or to
increase the luggage capacity of the
vehicle.
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WARNING- Folded
Seatback
Never allow passengers to sit
on top of the folded down seat-
back while the vehicle is mov-
ing. This is not a proper seating
position and no seat belts are
available for use. This could
result in serious injury or death
in case of an accident or sud-
den stop.

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Safety features of your vehicle
To fold the rear seatback :

1. Make sure the rear seat belt web-bing is in the guide to prevent the
seat belt from being damaged.
2. Set the front seatback to the upright position and if necessary,
slide the front seat forward.
3. Lower the rear headrests to the lowest position.
4. Open the trunk. 5.Pull the lock release lever (1) and
fold the rear seatback forward and
down firmly.
If the seat belt locks after unfolding
the rear seatback, pull out the
locked seat belt, release it then pull
it out again.
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WARNING- Objects
Objects carried on the folded
down seatback should not
extend higher than the top of
the front seatbacks. This could
allow cargo to slide forward and
cause injury or damage during
sudden stops.
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Safety features of your vehicle
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3

1. Set the front seatback to the upright
position and if necessary, slide the
front seat forward.
2. Lower the rear headrests to lowest position.
3. Pull the lock release lever (1) and fold the rear seatback forward and
down firmly.
4. To use the rear seat, lift and pull the seatback backward. Pull the seat-
back firmly until it clicks into place.
Make sure the seatback is locked in
place. When you return the seat-
back to its upright position, always
be sure it has locked into position by
pushing on the top of the seatback. If you can not see the red line at
the folding lever, it means the seat-
back is locked completely.
To unfold the rear seat
1. To use the rear seat, lift and pull the seatback rearward. Pull the
seatback firmly until it clicks into
place. Make sure the seatback is
locked in place. When you return
the seatback to its upright posi-
tion, always be sure it has locked
into position by pushing on the top
of the seatback.
2. Return the rear seat belt to the proper position.
3. When the seatback is completely installed, check the seatback fold-
ing lever again.
When returning the rear seatbacks to
the upright position, remember to
return the rear shoulder belts to their
proper position.
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WARNING- Cargo
Do not place heavy objects in
the rear seats, since they can-
not be properly secured and
may hit vehicle occupants in a
frontal collision.
WARNING- Rear seatback
When returning the rear seat-
back from a folded to an upright
position, hold the seatback and
return it slowly. Ensure that the
seatback is completely locked
into its upright position by
pushing on the top of the seat-
back. In an accident or sudden
stop, the unlocked seatback
could allow cargo to move for-
ward with great force and enter
the passenger compartment.

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Safety features of your vehicle
Seat belt restraint system
Seat belts are designed to bear upon
the bony structure of the body, and
should be worn low across the front
of the pelvis, chest and shoulders, as
applicable; wearing the lap section of
the belt across the abdominal area
must be avoided.
Seat belts should be adjusted as
firmly as possible, consistent with
comfort, to provide the protection for
which they have been designed.
A slack belt will greatly reduce the
protection afforded to the wearer.
Care should be taken to avoid con-
tamination of the webbing with pol-
ishes, oils and chemicals, and partic-
ularly battery acid. Cleaning may
safely be carried out using mild soap
and water. The belt should be
replaced if webbing becomes frayed,
contaminated or damaged. For maximum restraint system pro-
tection, the seat belts must always
be used whenever the vehicle is
moving. A properly positioned
shoulder belt should be positioned
midway over your shoulder across
your collarbone.
Never allow children to ride in the front passenger seat. See child
restraint system section for further
discussion.
SEAT BELTS
WARNING- Shoulder belt
Never wear the shoulder belt
under your arm or behind your
back. An improperly positioned
shoulder belt cannot protect the
occupant in a crash.
WARNING- Damaged seat belt
Replace the entire seat belt
assembly if any part of the web-
bing or hardware is damaged as
you can no longer be sure that a
damaged seat belt will provide
protection in a crash.
WARNING- Twisted seat belt
Make sure your seat belt is not
twisted when worn. A twisted
seat belt may not properly pro-
tect you in an accident and
could even cut into your body.
WARNING- Seat belt buckle
Do not allow foreign material
(gum, crumbs, coins, etc.) to
obstruct the seat belt buckle.
This may prevent the seat belt
from fastening securely.

Safety features of your vehicle
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3
Seat belt warning (if equipped)
As a reminder to the driver, the dri-
ver’s seat belt warning lights will illu-
minate for approximately 6 seconds
each time you turn the ignition switch
ON regardless of belt fastening. If the driver’s seat belt is not fastened
when the ignition switch is turned ON
or if it is disconnected after the igni-
tion switch is turned ON, the seat
belt warning light will illuminate until
the belt is fastened.
If you continue not to fasten the seat
belt and you drive over 15 km/h (9
mph), the illuminated warning light
will start to blink until you drive under
10 km/h (6 mph).
If you continue not to fasten the seat
belt and you drive over 20 km/h (12
mph) the seat belt warning chime will
sound for approximately 100 sec-
onds and the corresponding warning
light will blink.
Seat belt - Driver's 3-point system
with emergency locking retractor
To fasten your seat belt:
To fasten your seat belt, pull it out of
the retractor and insert the metal tab
(1) into the buckle (2). There will be
an audible "click" when the tab locks
into the buckle.
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Safety features of your vehicle
The seat belt automatically adjusts to
the proper length only after the lap
belt portion is adjusted manually so
that it fits snugly around your hips. If
you lean forward in a slow, easy
motion, the belt will extend and let
you move around. If there is a sud-
den stop or impact, however, the belt
will lock into position. It will also lock
if you try to lean forward too quickly.
If you are unable to pull out the seat
belt from the retractor, firmly pull the
belt out and release it. Then you will
be able to pull the belt out smoothly.Height adjustment
You can adjust the height of the shoul-
der belt anchor to one of the 4 posi-
tions for maximum comfort and safety.
The height of the adjusting seat belt
should not be too close to your neck.
The shoulder portion should be
adjusted so that it lies across your
chest and midway over your shoulder
nearest the door and not your neck.
To adjust the height of the seat belt
anchor, lower or raise the height
adjuster into an appropriate position.To raise the height adjuster, pull it up
(1). To lower it, push it down (3) while
pressing the height adjuster button (2).
Release the button to lock the anchor
into position. Try sliding the height
adjuster to make sure that it has
locked into position. Never position the
shoulder belt across your neck or face.
Improperly positioned seat belts can
cause serious injuries in an accident.
WARNING- Seat belt
replacement
Replace your seat belts after
being in an accident. Failure to
replace seat belts after an acci-
dent could leave you with dam-
aged seat belts that will not pro-
vide protection in the event of
another collision.
WARNING- Shoulder belt positioning
Never position the shoulder belt
across your neck or face.
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Safety features of your vehicle
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3
You should place the lap belt portion
as low as possible and snugly across
your hips. If the lap belt is located too
high on your waist, it may increase
the chance of injury in the event of a
collision.
The arm closest to the seat belt
buckle should be over the belt while
the other arm should be under the
belt as shown in the illustration.
Seat belts - Front passenger and
rear seat 3-point system withcombination locking retractor
To fasten your seat belt
Combination retractor type seat belts
are installed in the rear seat posi-
tions to help accommodate the
installation of child restraint systems.
Although a combination retractor is
also installed in the front passenger
seat position, it is strongly recom-
mended that children always be
seated in the rear seat. NEVER
place an infant restraint system in
the front seat of the vehicle.
This type of seat belt combines the
features of both an emergency lock-
ing retractor seat belt and an auto-
matic locking retractor seat belt. To
fasten your seat belt, pull it out of the
retractor and insert the metal tab into
the buckle. There will be an audible
"click" when the tab locks into the
buckle. When not securing a child
restraint, the seat belt operates in the
same way as the driver's seat belt
(Emergency Locking Retractor Type). It automatically adjusts to the proper
length only after the lap belt portion
of the seat belt is adjusted manually
so that it fits snugly around your hips.
When the seat belt is fully extended
from the retractor to allow the instal-
lation of a child restraint system, the
seat belt operation changes to allow
the belt to retract, but not to extend
(Automatic Locking Retractor Type).
Refer to “Using a child restraint sys-
tem” in this section.
To convert from the automatic lock-
ing feature to the emergency locking
operation mode, allow the unbuckled
seat belt to fully retract.
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Safety features of your vehicle
When using the rear center seat belt,
the buckle with the “CENTER” mark
must be used.To release the seat belt
The seat belt is released by pressing
the release button (1) of the locking
buckle. When it is released, the belt
should automatically draw back into
the retractor.
If this does not happen, check the
belt to be sure it is not twisted, then
try again.
Pre-tensioner seat belt
Your vehicle is equipped with driver's
and front passenger's pre-tensioner
seat belts.
1. Retractor pre-tensioner
The retractor pre-tensioner, which is
a supplement system of the seat
belts. The purpose of the retractor
pre-tensioner is to tighten the shoul-
der belt against the occupant's upper
body in certain frontal collisions.
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Safety features of your vehicle
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2. Emergency Fastening Device
(EFD)
The Emergency Fastening Device
(EFD) is a supplemental system of
the seat belts. The purpose of the
EFD is to tighten the lap belt against
the occupant's pelvis in certain
frontal collisions.
The pre-tensioner seat belts may be
activated, when a frontal collision is
severe enough, together with the air
bags.
When the vehicle stops suddenly, or
if the occupant tries to lean forward
too quickly, the seat belt retractor
may lock into position. In certain
frontal collisions (or side collisions),
the pre-tensioner may activate and
pull the seat belt into tighter contact
against the occupant's body.
If the system senses excessive ten-
sion on the driver or passenger's seat
belt when the pre-tensioner activates,
the load limiter inside the retractor
pre-tensioner will release some of the
pressure on the affected seat belt. The seat belt pre-tensioner system
consists mainly of the following com-
ponents. Their locations are shown in
the illustration:
1. SRS air bag warning light
2. Retractor pre-tensioner assembly
3. SRS control module
4. Emergency fastening device (EFD)To obtain maximum benefit from a
pre-tensioner seat belt:
1. The seat belt must be worn cor-
rectly and adjusted to the proper
position. Please read and follow all
of the important information and
precautions about your vehicle's
occupant safety features - includ-
ing seat belts and air bags - that
are provided in this manual.
2. Be sure you and your passengers always wear seat belts properly.
✽ ✽NOTICE
When the pre-tensioner seat belts
are activated, a loud noise may be
heard and fine dust, which may
appear to be smoke, may be visible
in the passenger compartment.
These are normal operating condi-
tions and are not hazardous.
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Safety features of your vehicle
Because the sensor that activates the
SRS air bag is connected with the
pre-tensioner seat belt, the SRS air
bag warning light ( ) on the instru-
ment panel will illuminate for approxi-
mately 6 seconds after the ignition
switch has been turned to the ON
position, and then it should turn off.
If the pre-tensioner seat belt does
not work properly, this warning light
will illuminate even if the SRS air bag
has not malfunctioned. If the SRS air
bag warning light does not illuminate
when the ignition switch is turned
ON, or if it remains illuminated after
illuminating for approximately 6 sec-
onds, or if it illuminates while the
vehicle is being driven, please have
an authorized Kia dealer inspect the
pre-tensioner seat belt or SRS air
bag system as soon as possible.
✽ ✽NOTICE
Do not attempt to service or repair
the pre-tensioner seat belt system in
any manner. Do not attempt to
inspect or replace the pre-tensioner
seat belts yourself. This must be
done by an authorized Kia dealer.
Pre-tensioners are designed to oper-
ate only one time. After activation,
pre-tensioner seat belts must be
replaced. If the pre-tensioner must
be replaced, contact an authorized
Kia dealer.
WARNING- Skin irritation
Wash all exposed skin areas
thoroughly after an accident in
which the pre-tensioner seat
belts were activated. The fine
dust from the pre-tensioner
activation may cause skin irrita-
tion and should not be breathed
for prolonged periods.WARNING - Hot pre- tensioner
Do not touc

h the pre-tensioner
seat belt assemblies for several
minutes after they have been
activated. When the pre-ten-
sioner seat belt mechanism
fires during a collision the pre-
tensioner becomes hot and can
burn you.