Downshifting; Good Driving Practices - Kia Optima 2017 Owner's Manual

Driving your vehicle

Downshifting

When you must slow down in heavy
traffic or while driving up steep hills,
downshift before the engine starts to
labor. Downshifting reduces the chance
of stalling and gives better acceleration
when you again need to increase your
speed. When the vehicle is traveling
down steep hills, downshifting helps
maintain safe speed and prolongs brake
life.

Good driving practices

• Never take the vehicle out of gear
and coast down a hill. This is ex‐
tremely hazardous. Always leave the
vehicle in gear.
• Don't "ride" the brakes. This can
cause them to overheat and malfunc‐
tion. Instead, when you are driving
down a long hill, slow down and shift
to a lower gear. When you do this,
engine braking will help slow down
the vehicle.
• Slow down before shifting to a lower
gear. This will help avoid over-revving
the engine, which can cause damage.
• Slow down when you encounter cross
winds. This gives you much better
control of your vehicle.
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• Be sure the vehicle is completely
stopped before you attempt to shift
into R (Reverse). The transaxle can
be damaged if you do not. To shift in‐
to R (Reverse), depress the clutch,
move the shift lever to neutral, wait
three seconds, then shift to the R
(Reverse) position.
• Exercise extreme caution when driv‐
ing on a slippery surface. Be especial‐
ly careful when braking, accelerating
or shifting gears. On a slippery sur‐
face, an abrupt change in vehicle
speed can cause the drive wheels to
lose traction and the vehicle to go out
of control.
WARNING
• Always buckle-up! In a collision, an
unbelted occupant is significantly
more likely to be seriously injured
or killed than a properly belted oc‐
cupant.
• Avoid high speeds when cornering
or turning.
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• Do not make quick steering wheel
movements, such as sharp lane
changes or fast, sharp turns.
• The risk of rollover is greatly in‐
creased if you lose control of your
vehicle at highway speeds.
• Loss of control often occurs if two
or more wheels drop off the road‐
way and the driver oversteers to
reenter the roadway.
• In the event your vehicle leaves
the roadway, do not steer sharply.
Instead, slow down before pulling
back into the travel lanes.
• Never exceed posted speed limits.