Kia Sportage 2023 Owner's Manual page 392

Driving your vehicle
slung sports vehicles are designed to
perform satisfactorily in off-road condi-
tions. Due to this risk, driver and passen-
gers are strongly recommended to
buckle their seat belts.
In a rollover crash, an unbelted person is
significantly more likely to die than a
person wearing a seat belt. There are
steps that a driver can make to reduce
the risk of a rollover.
If at all possible, avoid sharp turns or
abrupt maneuvers, do not load your roof
rack with heavy cargo, and never modify
your vehicle in any way.
WARNING
Rollover
As with other Sports Utility Vehicle
(SUV), failure to operate this vehicle cor-
rectly may result in loss of control, an
accident or vehicle rollover.
僅 Utility vehicles have a significantly
higher rollover rate than other types
of vehicles.
僅 Specific design characteristics (higher
ground clearance, narrower track,
etc.) give this vehicle a higher center
of gravity than ordinary vehicles.
僅 A SUV is not designed for cornering at
the same speeds as conventional
vehicles.
僅 Avoid sharp turns or abrupt maneu-
vers.
僅 In a rollover crash, an unbelted person
is significantly more likely to die than
a person wearing a seat belt. Make
sure everyone in the vehicle is prop-
erly buckled up.
5 168
WARNING
Your vehicle is equipped with tires
designed to provide safe ride and han-
dling capability. Do not use tires and
wheels that are different in size and type
from the originally installed ones. It can
affect the safety and performance of
your vehicle, which could lead to steer-
ing failure or rollover and serious injury.
When replacing the tires, be sure to
equip all four tires with the tire and
wheel of the same size, type, tread,
brand and load-carrying capacity.
Rocking the vehicle
If it is necessary to rock the vehicle to
free it from snow, sand, or mud, first
turn the steering wheel right and left to
clear the area around your front wheels.
Then, shift back and forth between R
(Reverse) and any forward gear.
Do not race the engine, and spin the
wheels as little as possible. If you are still
stuck after a few tries, have the vehicle
pulled out by a tow vehicle to avoid
engine overheating and possible dam-
age to the transmission.
WARNING
Sudden vehicle movement
Do not attempt to rock the vehicle if
people or objects are nearby. The vehi-
cle may suddenly move forward or
backwards as it becomes unstuck.
CAUTION
Vehicle rocking
Prolonged rocking may cause vehicle
overheating, transmission damage or
failure, and tire damage.
Special driving conditions