warning KIA Optima 2009 2.G User Guide

Safety features of your vehicle12
3C010304AFDArmrest (if equipped)To use the armrest, pull it forward from
the seatback.
C010307AMGFolding the rear seat (if equipped)The rear seatbacks may be folded to
facilitate carrying long items or to
increase the luggage capacity of the
vehicle.
OMG035035
CAUTION
Make sure the engine is off, the
transaxle is in P and the parkingbrake is applied whenever load-ing or unloading cargo. Vehicle may move if shift lever is inadver-tently moved to another position.
Be careful when loading cargo through the rear passenger seatsto prevent damage to the vehicle interior.
When cargo is loaded through the rear passenger seats, ensure thecargo is properly secured to pre-vent it from moving while driving. Unsecured cargo in the passen-ger compartment can cause dam-age to the vehicle or injury to it’s occupants.
WARNING
The purpose of the fold-down rear
seatbacks is to allow you to carry
longer objects than could other-
wise be accommodated.
Never allow passengers to sit on
top of the folded down seatback
while the car is moving as 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
sudden stop. Objects carried on the
folded down seatback should not
extend higher than the top of the
front seats. This could allow cargo
to slide forward and cause injury or
damage during sudden stops.

Safety features of your vehicle14
3To unfold the rear seat:1. Lift and push the seatback backward
firmly until it clicks into place (1).
2. Return the rear safety belt to the prop- er position.
OMG035033
1
WARNING
When you return the rear seatback
to its upright position after being
folded down:
Be careful not to damage the seat
belt webbing or buckle. Do not
allow the seat belt webbing or
buckle to get caught or pinched in
the rear seat. Ensure that the seat-
back is completely locked into its
upright position by pushing on the
top of the seatback. Otherwise, in
an accident or sudden stop, the
seat could fold down and allow
cargo to enter the passenger com-
partment, which could result in
serious injury or death.
CAUTION
- Rear seat belts
When returning the rear seatbacksto the upright position, rememberto return the rear shoulder belts to their proper position.
WARNING -
Cargo loading
Make sure the engine is off, the
transaxle is in P (Park) and the
parking brake is applied whenever
loading or unloading cargo. Failure
to take these steps may allow the
vehicle to move if shift lever is inad-
vertently moved to another posi-
tion.
WARNING
- Cargo
Cargo should always be secured to
prevent it from being thrown about
the vehicle in a collision and caus-
ing injury to the vehicle occupants.
Special care should be taken of
objects placed in the rear seats,
since those may hit the front seat
occupants in a frontal collision.

315
Safety features of your vehicle
C020100AUNSeat belt restraint systemSEAT BELTS
WARNING
Seat belts are designed to bear
upon the bony structure of the
body, and should be worn low
across the front of the pelvis, or 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 occu-
pant.(Continued)
(Continued)
Care should be taken to avoid con-
tamination of the webbing with pol-
ishes, oils and chemicals and par-
ticularly 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.
It is essential to replace the entire
assembly after it has been worn in
a severe impact even if damage to
the assembly is not obvious. Belts
should not be worn with straps
twisted. Each seat belt assembly
must only be used by one occu-
pant; it is dangerous to put a belt
around a child being carried on the
occupant's lap.
(Continued)
Avoid wearing twisted seat belts.A twisted belt can't do its job as
well. In a collision, it could even
cut into you. Be sure the belt
webbing is straight and not twist-
ed.
Be careful not to damage the belt webbing or hardware. If the belt
webbing or hardware is dam-
aged, replace it.
WARNING
For maximum restraint systemprotection, the seat belts must
always be used whenever the car
is moving.
Seat belts are most effective when seatbacks are in the
upright position.
Children age 12 and under must always be properly restrained in
the rear seat. Never allow chil-
dren to ride in the front passen-
ger seat. If a child over 12 must
be seated in the front seat, he/she
must be properly belted and the
seat should be moved as far back
as possible.
Never wear the shoulder belt under your arm or behind your
back. An improperly positioned
shoulder belt can cause serious
injuries in a crash. The shoulder
belt should be positioned midway
over your shoulder across your
collarbone.
(Continued)

Safety features of your vehicle16
3
C020101ABH-EUSeat belt warning As a reminder to the driver, the seat belt
warning light will blink for approximately
6 seconds each time you turn the ignition
switch ON regardless of belt fastening.
The warning light will blink again for
approximately 6 seconds when starting
the engine. If the driver’s seat belt is not fastened
when the ignition switch is turned to ON
and/or START, the seat belt warning light
and the seat belt warning chime will
operate for approximately 6 seconds until
the belt is fastened. And if the driver’s
seat belt is disconnected after the igni-
tion switch is turned ON, the seat belt
warning light will blink for approximately
6 seconds until the belt is fastened. If the
driver's seat belt is not fastened when the
vehicle speed exceeds 10 km/h (6 mph),
the seat belt warning light and chime will
operate for approximately 11 times with a
pattern of 6 seconds on and 24 seconds
off until the belt is fastened or the vehicle
speed decreases below 5 km/h (3 mph).
1GQA2083
WARNING
No modifications or additions
should be made by the user which
will either prevent the seat belt
adjusting devices from operating to
remove slack, or prevent the seat
belt assembly from being adjusted
to remove slack.

317
Safety features of your vehicleWARNING
Verify the shoulder belt anchor islocked into position at the appro-
priate height. Never position the
shoulder belt across your neck or
face. Improperly positioned seat
belts can cause serious injuries
in an accident.
Failure to replace seat belts after an accident could leave you with
damaged seat belts that will not
provide protection in the event of
another collision leading to per-
sonal injury or death. Replace
your seat belts after being in an
accident as soon as possible.
C020102AMG-EUSeat belt - Driver's 3-point systemwith emergency locking retractorTo 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.
The seat belt automatically adjusts to the
proper length only after the lap belt por-
tion is adjusted manually so that it fits
snugly around your hips. If you lean for-
ward in a slow, easy motion, the belt will
extend and let you move around. If there
is a sudden stop or impact, however, the
belt will lock into position. It will also lock
if you try to lean forward too quickly. Height adjustment
You can adjust the height of the shoulder
belt anchor to one of 5 positions for max-
imum comfort and safety.
The height of the adjusting seat belt
should not be too near 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 press-
ing 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.
B180A01NF-1
OHD036019
Front seat

Safety features of your vehicle18
3
C020106ABHSeat belts - Front passenger and rear
seat 3-point system with combinationlocking retractorTo fasten your seat belt:
Combination retractor type seat belts are
installed in the rear seat positions to help
accommodate the installation of child
restraint systems. Although a combina-
tion retractor is also installed in the front
passenger seat position, it is strongly
recommended that children always be
seated in the rear seat. NEVER place
any infant restraint system in the front
seat of the vehicle.
This type of seat belt combines the fea-
tures of both an emergency locking
retractor seat belt and an automatic lock-
ing 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 installation of a
child restraint system, the seat belt oper-
ation changes to allow the belt to retract,
but not to extend (Automatic Locking
Retractor Type). Refer to “Using a child
restraint system” in this section.
✽ ✽
NOTICEAlthough the combination retractor
provides the same level of protection for
seated passengers in either emergency
or automatic locking modes, it is recom-
mended that seated passengers use the
emergency locking feature for improved
convenience. The automatic locking
function is intended to facilitate child
restraint installation. To convert from
the automatic locking feature to the
emergency locking operation mode,
allow the unbuckled seat belt to fully
retract.
B200A02NF
WARNING
You should place the lap belt por-
tion as low as possible and snugly
across your hips, not on your waist.
If the lap belt is located too high on
your waist, it may increase the
chance of injury in the event of a
collision. Both arms should not be
under or over the belt. Rather, one
should be over and the other under,
as shown in the illustration.
Never wear the seat belt under the
arm nearest the door.

Safety features of your vehicle20
3When the vehicle stops suddenly, or if
the occupant tries to lean forward too
quickly, the seat belt retractor will lock
into position. In certain frontal collisions,
the pre-tensioner will activate and pull
the seat belt into tighter contact against
the occupant's body.
If the system senses excessive tension
on the driver or passenger's seat belt
when the pre-tensioner activates, the
load limiter inside the pre-tensioner will
release some of the pressure on the
affected seat belt.
The seat belt pre-tensioner system con-
sists mainly of the following components.
Their locations are shown in the illustra-
tion:
1. SRS air bag warning light
2. Retractor pre-tensioner assembly
3. SRS control module
1LDE3100
WARNING
Do not put anything near the buck-
le. Placing objects near the buckle
can adversely affect the buckle pre-
tensioner and may increase the risk
of personal injury in the event of a
collision.
WARNING
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 vehi-
cle’s occupant safety features –
including seat belts and air bags
– that are provided in this manu-
al.
2. Be sure you and your passen- gers always wear seat belts prop-
erly.

321
Safety features of your vehicle
✽
✽NOTICE• Both the driver's and front passen-
ger's pre-tensioner seat belts may be
activated in certain frontal collisions.
The pre-tensioners will not be activat-
ed if the seat belts are not being worn
at the time of the collision.
• 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 oper-
ating conditions and are not haz-
ardous.
• Although it is harmless, the fine dust may cause skin irritation and should
not be breathed for prolonged peri-
ods. Wash all exposed skin areas thor-
oughly after an accident in which the
pre-tensioner seat belts were activat-
ed.
✽ ✽ NOTICEBecause the sensor that activates the
SRS air bag is connected with the pre-
tensioner seat belt, the SRS air bag
warning light on the instrument
panel will illuminate for approximately
6 seconds after the ignition switch has
been turned to the ON position, and
then it should turn off.
CAUTION
If the pre-tensioner seat belt is not
working properly, this warning lightwill illuminate even if there is no malfunction of the SRS air bag. Ifthe SRS air bag warning light does not illuminate when the ignitionswitch is turned ON, or if it remainsilluminated after illuminating for approximately 6 seconds, or if itilluminates while the vehicle is being driven, have an authorizedKIA dealer inspect the pre-tension- er seat belt and SRS air bag systemas soon as possible.
WARNING
Pre-tensioners are designed to operate only one time. After acti-
vation, pre-tensioner seat belts
must be replaced. All seat belts,
of any type, should always be
replaced after they have been
worn during a collision.
The pre-tensioner seat belt assembly mechanisms become
hot during activation. Do not
touch the pre-tensioner seat belt
assemblies for several minutes
after they have been activated.
Do not attempt to inspect or replace the pre-tensioner seat
belts yourself. This must be done
by an authorized KIA dealer.
Do not strike the pre-tensioner seat belt assemblies.
Do not attempt to service or repair the pre-tensioner seat belt
system in any manner.
(Continued)

Safety features of your vehicle22
3
C020300AUNSeat belt precautions
C020306AUNInfant or small childYou should be aware of the specific
requirements in your country. Child
and/or infant seats must be properly
placed and installed in the rear seat. For
more information about the use of these
restraints, refer to “Child restraint sys-
tem” in this section.
(Continued)
Improper handling of the pre-ten-
sioner seat belt assemblies, and
failure to heed the warnings not
to strike, modify, inspect, replace,
service or repair the pre-tension-
er seat belt assemblies may lead
to improper operation or inadver-
tent activation and serious injury.
Always wear the seat belts when driving or riding in a motor vehi-
cle.
If the vehicle or pre-tensioner seat belt must be discarded, con-
tact an authorized KIA dealer.
WARNING
All occupants of the vehicle must
wear their seat belts at all times.
Seat belts and child restraints
reduce the risk of serious or fatal
injuries for all occupants in the
event of a collision or sudden stop.
Without a seat belt, occupants
could be shifted too close to a
deploying air bag, strike the interior
structure or be thrown from the
vehicle. Properly worn seat belts
greatly reduce these hazards.
Always follow the precautions
about seat belts, air bags and occu-
pant seating contained in this man-
ual.
WARNING
Every person in your vehicle needs
to be properly restrained at all
times, including infants and chil-
dren. Never hold a child in your
arms or lap when riding in a vehi-
cle. The violent forces created dur-
ing a crash will tear the child from
your arms and throw the child
against the interior. Always use a
child restraint appropriate for your
child's height and weight.

323
Safety features of your vehicleWARNING
- Shoulder belts
on small children
Never allow a shoulder belt to be
in contact with a child’s neck or
face while the vehicle is in
motion.
If seat belts are not properly worn and adjusted on children, there is
a risk of death or serious injury.
✽ ✽ NOTICESmall children are best protected from
injury in an accident when properly
restrained in the rear seat by a child
restraint system that meets the require-
ments of the safety standards of your
country. Before buying any child
restraint system, make sure that it has a
label certifying that it meets safety stan-
dards of your country. The restraint
must be appropriate for your child's
height and weight. Check the label on
the child restraint for this information.
Refer to “Child restraint system” in this
section.
C020301AUNLarger childrenChildren who are too large for child
restraint systems should always occupy
the rear seat and use the available
lap/shoulder belts. The lap portion should
be fastened snug on the hips and as low
as possible. Check belt fit periodically. A
child's squirming could put the belt out of
position. Children are afforded the most
safety in the event of an accident when
they are restrained by a proper restraint
system in the rear seat. If a larger child
(over age 12) must be seated in the front
seat, the child should be securely
restrained by the available lap/shoulder
belt and the seat should be placed in the
rearmost position. Children age 12 and
under should be restrained securely in
the rear seat. NEVER place a child age
12 and under in the front seat. NEVER
place a rear facing child seat in the front
seat of a vehicle. If the shoulder belt portion slightly touch-
es the child’s neck or face, try placing the
child closer to the center of the vehicle. If
the shoulder belt still touches their face
or neck they need to be returned to a
child restraint system.