Kia Soul 2023 Manual page 456

Maintenance
whenever your vehicle has been
exposed to such salts or chemicals.
僅 Do a thorough washing of the under-
carriage at the end of the winter.
僅 Use professional service technicians
or governmental inspection stations
to annually inspect for corrosion.
僅 Immediately seek an inspection of
your vehicle if you become visually
aware of corrosion flaking or scaling
or if you become aware of a change in
vehicle performance, such as soft or
spongy brakes, fluids leaking, impair-
ment of directional control, suspen-
sion noises or rattling metal straps.
Aluminum wheel maintenance
The aluminum wheels are coated with a
clear protective finish.
僅 Do not use any abrasive cleaner, pol-
ishing compound, solvent, or wire
brushes on aluminum wheels. They
may scratch or damage the finish.
僅 Clean the wheel when it has cooled.
僅 Use only a mild soap or neutral deter-
gent, and rinse thoroughly with water.
Also, be sure to clean the wheels after
driving on salted roads. This helps
prevent corrosion.
僅 Avoid washing the wheels with high
speed vehicle wash brushes.
僅 Do not use any alkaline or acid deter-
gents It may damage and corrode the
aluminum wheels coated with a clear
protective finish.
Corrosion protection
Protecting your vehicle from cor-
rosion
By using the most advanced design and
construction practices to combat corro-
7 62
sion, we produce vehicles of the highest
quality. However, this is only part of the
job. To achieve the long-term corrosion
resistance your vehicle can deliver, the
owner's cooperation and assistance is
also required.
Common causes of corrosion
The most common causes of corrosion
on your vehicle are:
僅 Road salt, dirt and moisture that is
allowed to accumulate underneath
the vehicle.
僅 Removal of paint or protective coat-
ings by stones, gravel, abrasion or
minor scrapes and dents which leave
unprotected metal exposed to corro-
sion.
High-corrosion areas
If you live in an area where your vehicle
is regularly exposed to corrosive materi-
als, corrosion protection is particularly
important. Some of the common causes
of accelerated corrosion are road salts,
dust control chemicals, ocean air and
industrial pollution.
Moisture breeds corrosion
Moisture creates the conditions in which
corrosion is most likely to occur. For
example, corrosion is accelerated by
high humidity, particularly when tem-
peratures are just above freezing. In
such conditions, the corrosive material is
kept in contact with the vehicle's surface
by moisture that evaporates slowly.
Mud is particularly corrosive because it
dries slowly and holds moisture in con-
tact with the vehicle. Although the mud
appears to be dry, it can still retain the
moisture and promote corrosion.
Appearance care