KIA SOUL 2018 Owner's Guide

313
Safety features of your vehicle
Seatback pocket (if equipped)
The seatback pocket is provided on
the back of the front passenger’s
seatbacks.
Rear seat adjustment
Folding the rear seat
The rear seatbacks can be folded to
facilitate carrying long items or to
increase the luggage capacity of the
vehicle.
OPS033016
WARNING- Seatbackpockets
Do not put heavy or sharp
objects in the seatback pocket.
An occupant could contact such
objects in a crash. Heavy objects
in the front passenger seatback
could also interfere with the
airbag sensing system.
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.
WARNING - Folded
Seatback
The purpose of the fold-down
rear seatbacks is to allow you to
carry longer objects than could
not otherwise be accommodated.
Never allow a passenger to sit on top of the folded down
seatback while the car is mov-
ing. This is not a proper seat-
ing position since no seat
belts are available for use.
To reduce the risk of injury caused by sliding cargo within
the passenger compartment
of the vehicle, objects carried
on the folded down seatback
should not extend higher than
the top of the front seats.

Safety features of your vehicle
14
3
To fold down the rear seatback
1. Insert the rear seat belt buckle in
the pocket (if equipped) between
the rear seatback and cushion,
and insert the rear seat belt web-
bing 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.Pull on the seatback folding lever,then fold the seat toward the front
of the vehicle. When you return the
seatback to its upright position,
always be sure it has locked into
position by pushing on the top of
the seatback.
5.To use the rear seat, lift and pull the seatback backward by pulling
on the folding lever.
Pull the seatback firmly until it
clicks into place.
Make sure the seatback is locked
in place.
6.Return the rear seat belt to the proper position.
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OPS033015
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315
Safety features of your vehicle
✽
✽

NOTICE
After folding the rear seat, unless
the driver’s position is properly set
according to the driver’s physical
figure, do not fold the rear seat.
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- Cargo loading
Make sure the engine is off, the
automatic transaxle / dual clutch
transmission is in P (Park) and
the parking brake is securely
applied whenever loading or
unloading cargo. Failure to take
these steps may allow the vehi-
cle to move if the shift lever is
inadvertently moved to another
position.
WARNING - Uprighting
seat
When you return the seatback
to its upright position, hold the
seatback and return it slowly. If
the seatback is returned with-
out holding it, the back of the
seat could spring forward,
resulting in injury caused by
being struck by the seatback.WARNING - Rear
Seatback
To ensure maximum protection
in the event of an accident or
sudden stop, when returning the
rear seat to the upright position:
Be careful not to damage the seat belt webbing or buckle.
Do not allow the seat belt webbing or buckle to become
pinched or caught in the rear
seat.
Ensure the seatback is com- pletely locked into its upright
position by pushing on the
top of the seatback.
Failure to adhere to any of
these instructions could
result in serious injury or
death in the event of a crash.
CAUTION
- Damaging rear seat belt
buckles
When you fold the rear seat-back, insert the buckle betweenthe rear seatback and cushion.Doing so can prevent the bucklefrom being damaged by the rearseatback.

Safety features of your vehicle
16
3
Headrest
The rear seat(s) is equipped with
headrests in all the seating positions
for the occupant's safety and comfort.
The headrest not only provides com-
fort for passengers, but also helps
protect the head and neck in the
event of a collision. For maximum effectiveness in case of
an accident, the headrest should be
adjusted so the middle of the head-
rest is at the same height as the cen-
ter of gravity of an occupant's head.
Generally, the center of gravity of
most people's head is similar with
the height of the top of their eyes.
Also adjust the headrest as close to
your head as possible. For this rea-
son, the use of a cushion that holds
the body away from the seatback is
not recommended.
Adjusting the height up and down
To raise the headrest :
1. Pull it up to the desired position (1).
To lower the headrest :
1. Push and hold the release button
(2) on the headrest support
2. Lower the headrest to the desired position (3).
OPA039053
*
WARNING- Headrest
removal/adjustment
Do not operate the vehicle with
the headrests removed.
Headrests can provide critical
neck and head support in a
crash.
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317
Safety features of your vehicle
Removal and installation
To remove the headrest :
1. Raise it as far as it can go thenpress the release button (1) while
pulling the headrest up (2).
To reinstall the headrest :
1. Put the headrest poles (3) into the holes while pressing the release
button (1).
2. Adjust it to the appropriate height.
Make sure the headrest locks in
position after adjusting it to properly
protect the occupants.
Armrest (if equipped)
To use the armrest, pull it forward
from the seatback.
OPS033034OPS033032
WARNING- Headrest installation
After installing the headrest,
make sure that it is installed in
the right direction.
A headrest installed reversely
could increase whiplash injury
during rear impact.

Safety features of your vehicle
18
3
SEAT BELTS
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.WARNING- Shoulder Belt
Never wear the shoulder belt under your arm or behind
your back. An improperly
positioned shoulder belt can-
not protect the occupant in a
crash.
Always wear both the shoul- der portion and lap portion of
the lap/shoulder belt.
WARNING - Damagedseat 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.

319
Safety features of your vehicle
No modifications or additionsshould 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.
When you fasten the seat belt, be careful not to latch the seat belt in
buckles of other seat. It's very dan-
gerous and you may not be pro-
tected by the seat belt properly.
Do not unfasten the seat belt and do not fasten and unfasten the seat
belt repeatedly while driving. This
could result in loss of control, and
an accident causing death, serious
injury, or property damage.
When fastening the seat belt, make sure that the seat belt does
not pass over objects that are hard
or can break easily.Seat belt warning (for driver’s seat)
The driver's seat belt warning light
and chime will activate pursuant to
the following table when the ignition
switch is in "ON" position.
1GQA2083
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
20
3
*1Warning pattern repeats 11 times with
an interval of 24 seconds. If the driver's
seat belt is buckled, the light will stop
within 6 seconds and chime will stop
immediately.
*
2The light will stop within 6 seconds and
chime will stop immediately.
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. 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.
B180A01NF-1
ConditionsWarning Pattern
Seat BeltVehicle
SpeedLight-BlinkChime-Sound
Unbuckled6 seconds
Buckled6 secondsNone
Buckled →
Unbuckled
Below 3 mph (5 km/h)6 secondsNone
3 mph~6 mph6 seconds
Above 6 mph (10 km/h)6 sec. on / 24 sec. off (11 times)
Unbuckled
Above 6 mph(10 km/h)
↓
Below 3 mph (5 km/h)
6 seconds *1
↓
Stop *
2

321
Safety features of your vehicle
Height adjustment
You can adjust the height of the shoul-
der belt anchor to one of the 3 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
near 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.
You should place the lap belt portion 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 that is near the door.
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Front seat
WARNING- Shoulder beltpositioning
Never position the shoulder belt
across your neck or face.
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.

Safety features of your vehicle
22
3
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 any 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.
✽ ✽
NOTICE
Although the combination retractor
provides the same level of protection
for seated passengers in either emer-
gency or automatic locking modes,
have the seated passengers use the
emergency locking feature for
improved convenience. The auto-
matic locking function is intended to
facilitate child restraint installation.
To convert from the automatic lock-
ing feature to the emergency locking
operation mode, allow the unbuck-
led seat belt to fully retract.
Do NOT fold down the left portion of
the rear seat back when the rear
center seat belt is buckled. ALWAYS
UNBUCKLE the rear center seat belt
before folding down the left portion of
the rear seat back. If the rear center
seat belt is buckled when the left por-
tion of the rear seat back is folded
down, distortion and damage to the
top portion of the seat back and seat
belt garnish may result, causing the
seat back to lock into the folded
down position.