Get Driving your vehicle -> All Wheel Drive (AWD) system Guide for Kia Sorento SUV 2023

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

僅 Do not make quick steering wheel

movements, such as sharp lane

changes or fast, sharp turns.

僅 The risk of a rollover is greatly

increased if you lose control of your

vehicle at highway speeds.

僅 Loss of control often occurs if two or

more wheels drop off the roadway,

and the driver over steers to reenter

the roadway.

僅 In the event your vehicle leaves the

roadway, do not steer sharply.

Instead, slow down before pulling

back into the travel lanes.

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

(if equipped)

The All Wheel Drive (AWD) system deliv

ers engine power to front and rear

wheels for maximum traction.

AWD is useful when extra traction is

required, such as when driving slippery,

muddy, wet, or snow-covered roads.

If the system determines there is a need

for all wheel drive, the engine's driving

power will be distributed to all four

wheels automatically.

WARNING

Off road driving

AWD (AWD/SNOW MODE)

AWD helps the vehicle to maintain its

best driving performance by controlling

4 wheels, engine, transmission and brak-

ing according to road conditions such as

snow, mud, sand, etc.

This vehicle is designed primarily for on

road use although it can operate effec

tively off road. However, it was not

designed to drive in challenging off-road

conditions. Driving in conditions that

exceed the vehicle's intended design or

the driver's experience level may result

in severe injury or death.

Advantages of AWD

僅 Enhance safety when driving straight.

僅 Improve performance when corner

ing.

僅 Ensure operability in tough driving

conditions such as snow, rain, sand,

etc.

NOTICE

If the AWD warning light ( ) stays on

the instrument cluster, your vehicle may

have a malfunction with the AWD sys

tem. When the AWD warning light (

)

illuminates, have your vehicle checked

by an authorized Kia dealer.

WARNING

To reduce the risk of SERIOUS INJURY

or DEATH:

僅 Do not drive in conditions that exceed

the vehicle's intended design such as

challenging off-road conditions.

僅 Avoid high speeds when cornering or

turning.

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

You can switch from DRIVE MODE to

SNOW mode by turning the knob. If you

turn the DRIVE/SNOW mode button

again, the vehicle will go back to DRIVE

MODE.

Switching from/to SNOW MODE

(if equipped)

NOTICE

僅 Even though you turned off the vehi

cle in SNOW mode, DRIVE mode will

be set when you restart the vehicle.

僅 When the AWD LOCK mode is deacti

vated, a shock may be felt as the drive

power is delivered entirely to the front

wheels. This shock is not a mechanical

failure.

OMQ4A050292

AWD transfer mode selection

Transfer

Selection mode

mode

Description

僅

DRIVE MODE is used when driving on roads

in normal conditions, roads in urban areas,

and on highways.

All wheels are in operation when a vehicle

travels at a constant speed. Required trac

tions applying on front and rear wheels vary

depending on road driving conditions and

driving conditions, which will be automatically

controlled by the computing system.

DRIVE

MODE

僅

When the cluster's DRIVE MODE display

mode is selected, the cluster displays the sta

tus of how four wheels' traction forces are

distributed.

SNOW mode is used to appropriately distribute

the vehicle's traction forces and prevent wheel

slippage when driving on snowy or slippery

road.

SNOW

僅

The main goal of AWD Lock mode is to allow

a driver to maximize the vehicle's traction

under extreme driving conditions such as

unpaved off-road, sandy roads, and muddy

roads.

AWD

LOCK

(Indicator lights illu

minated)

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

exhaust pipes. Do not drive down

steep hills since it requires extreme

skill to maintain control of the vehicle.

CAUTION

Normal road conditions

僅 Maintain DRIVE mode when driving

on roads in normal conditions.

僅 Driving in TERRAIN mode on normal

roads may damage the AWD system

and cause mechanical vibration or

noise.

僅 When driving under normal road con

ditions (especially when cornering) in

AWD Lock mode, a driver may find

minor mechanical vibration or noise,

which is extremely normal phenome

non, not a malfunction. When AWD

OON058159NR

Lock mode is released, such noise or

vibration will be immediately gone.

僅 When you are driving up or down hills

drive as straight as possible. Use

僅 When you turn off AWD Lock mode, it

can lead to little shocks but this is a

normal phenomenon that lasts until

the traction forces on the front and

rear wheels of the vehicle are

released.

extreme caution in going up or down

steep hills, since you may flip your

vehicle over depending on the grade,

terrain, and water/mud conditions.

For safe All Wheel Drive (AWD)

operation

NOTICE

All Wheel Drive

The conditions of on-road or off-road

that demand rather than All Wheel Drive

mean all functions of your vehicle are

exposed to extreme stress than under

normal road conditions. Slow down and

be ready for changes in the composition

and traction of the surface under your

tires. If you have any doubt about the

safety of the conditions you are facing,

OON058160NR

WARNING

Hills

Driving across the contour of steep hills

can be extremely dangerous. This dan

ger can come from slight changes in the

wheel angle which can destabilize the

vehicle or, even if the vehicle is main

taining stability under power, it can lose

that stability if the vehicle stops its for

ward motion. Your vehicle may roll over

stop and consider the best way to pro

ceed.

僅 Do not try to drive in deep standing

water or mud since such conditions

can stall your engine and clog your

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

without warning and without time for

you to correct a mistake that could

cause serious injury or death.

僅 Always hold the steering wheel firmly

when you are driving on unpaved

roads.

僅 Make sure all passengers are wearing

seat belts.

僅 You must learn how to corner in a

AWD vehicle. Do not rely on your

experience in conventional FWD vehi

cles when cornering the vehicle in

AWD mode. For starters, you must

drive slower in AWD.

WARNING

Wind danger

If you are driving in heavy wind, the

vehicle's higher center of gravity

decreases your steering control capacity

and requires you to drive more slowly.

WARNING

All Wheel Drive (AWD)

Reduce speed when you turn corners.

WARNING

Driving through water

The center of gravity of AWD vehicles is

higher than that of conventional FWD

vehicles, making them more likely to roll

over when you turn corners too fast.

Drive slowly. If you are driving too fast in

water, the water can get into the engine

compartment and wet the ignition sys

tem, causing your vehicle to suddenly

stop. If this happens and your vehicle is

in a tilted position, your vehicle may roll

over.

NOTICE

僅 Do not drive in water if the level is

higher than the bottom of the vehicle.

僅 Check your brake condition once you

are out of mud or water. Press the

brake pedal several times as you

move slowly until you feel normal

braking forces return.

OMQ4051269L

WARNING

Steering wheel

僅 Shorten your scheduled maintenance

interval if you drive in offroad condi

Do not grab the inside of the steering

tions such as sand, mud or water

wheel when you are driving on unpaved

(refer to "Maintenance under severe

usage conditions" on page 7-12 and).

Always wash your vehicle thoroughly

after off-road use, especially cleaning

the bottom of the vehicle.

roads. You may hurt your arm by a sud

den steering maneuver or from steering

wheel rebound due to impact with

objects on the ground. You could lose

control of the steering wheel.

僅 Since the driving torque is always

applied to the 4 wheels, the perfor

mance of the AWD vehicle is greatly

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

affected by the condition of the tires.

Be sure to equip the vehicle with four

tires of the same size and type.

to ensure safe driving (wheel-slip pre

vention).

僅 Keep sufficient distance between your

vehicle and the vehicle in front of you.

僅 Reduce vehicle speed and always

check the road condition.

僅 Avoid speeding, rapid acceleration,

sudden brake applications, and sharp

turns to prevent getting stuck.

僅 A full time All Wheel Drive vehicle can

not be towed by an ordinary tow

truck. Make sure that the vehicle is

placed on a flat bed truck for moving.

WARNING

All Wheel Drive (AWD) driving

僅 Avoid high cornering speed.

僅 Do not make quick steering wheel

movements, such as sharp lane

changes or fast, sharp turns.

僅 The risk of rollover is greatly

increased if you lose control of your

vehicle at high speed.

僅 When the vehicle is stuck in snow,

sand or mud, the tires may not oper

ate. This is to protect the transmission

and not a malfunction.

NOTICE

Moving the vehicle forcibly to get out of

mud or sand can cause damage/over

heat of the engine or damage/break

僅 In a collision, an unbelted person is

down of the transmission, differential or

AWD system as well as damage to tires.

If excessive wheel slip occurs after

significantly more likely to die com

pared to a person wearing a seat belt.

entering a sandy/muddy road, the vehi

僅 Loss of control often occurs if two or

more wheels drop off the roadway,

and the driver oversteers to re-enter

the roadway. In the event your vehicle

leaves the roadway, do not steer

sharply. Instead, slow down before

pulling back into the travel lanes.

cle may fall into the sand/mud. When it

happens, put a stone or a tree branch

under the tire, and then try to pull out

the vehicle, or try to get it unstuck by

repeatedly moving forwards and back

wards.

CAUTION

Mud or snow

Transmission overheated

If one of the front or rear wheels begins

to spin in mud, snow, etc., the vehicle

can sometimes be driven out by engag

ing the accelerator pedal further; how

ever, avoid running the engine

continuously at high rpm because doing

so could damage the AWD system.

Driving in sand or mud

僅 Maintain slow and constant speed.

Operate the accelerator pedal slowly

OMQ4050023L

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

Tire precautions

Always pay attention to tires for AWD

(all-wheel drive) vehicles.

When driving in all-wheel drive, driving

force is applied to all tires, and the driv

ing performance of the vehicle is greatly

affected by the degree of tire wear:

僅 When replacing tires, be sure to equip

all four tires with the same size, type,

tread, brand and load-carrying capac

ity. Do not use tire and wheel with dif

ferent size and type from the one

originally installed on your vehicle. It

OMQ4050032L

僅 When driving on muddy and sandy

roads under the severe condition, the

transmission could be overheated.

僅 When the transmission is overheated,

the safe protection mode engages

and the "Transmission Hot! Park with

engine on" warning message will

appear on the LCD display with a

chime.

can affect the safety and perfor

mance of your vehicle, which could

lead to steering failure or rollover

causing serious injury.

僅 Replace the front and rear tire posi

tions every 10,000 km (6,000 miles).

僅 Each tire should be checked monthly

when cold and inflated to inflation

pressure recommended by the vehi

cle manufacturer on the vehicle plac

ard or tire inflation pressure label.

僅 For AWD (all-wheel drive) vehicles,

install the chains on the front wheels.

However, this may damage the AWD

system, so keep the travel distance as

short as possible.

僅 If this occurs, pull over to a safe loca

tion, stop the vehicle with the engine

running, apply the brakes and shift

the vehicle to P (Park), and allow the

transmission to cool.

僅 If you ignore this warning, the driving

condition may become worse. You

may experience abrupt shifts, fre

quent shifts, or jerkiness. To return to

the normal driving condition, stop the

vehicle and apply the foot brake or

shift into P (Park). Then allow the

transmission to cool for a few minutes

with engine on, before driving off.

Towing precautions

AWD vehicle

僅 When the message "Trans cooled.

Resume driving" appears you can

continue to drive your vehicle.

If the warning messages in the LCD dis

OMQ4060015

play continue to blink, for your safety,

have the system checked by an autho

rized Kia dealer.

Driving your vehicle

All Wheel Drive (AWD) system

FWD vehicle

vehicle to go off the jack and to jump

forward.

僅 Full-time AWD vehicles must be

tested on a special four wheel chassis

dynamometer.

OMQ4060016

NOTICE

The AWD vehicle should never be towed

with the wheels on the ground. Your

vehicle must be towed with a wheel lift

and dollies or flatbed equipment with all

the wheels off the ground.

* Refer to "Trailer towing (if equipped)"

on page 5-191.

Never engage the parking brake while

performing these tests.

僅 A full-time AWD vehicle should not be

tested on a FWD roll tester. If a FWD

roll tester must be used, perform the

following:

CAUTION

The AWD vehicle cannot be towed with

sling-type equipment. Use wheel lift or

flatbed equipment.

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

OMQ4050041

[A]: Roll tester

[B]: Temporary free roller

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.

1. Check the tire pressures recom

mended for your vehicle.

2. Place the front wheels on the roll tes

ter (A) for a speedometer test.

3. Release the parking brake.

4. Place the rear wheels on the tempo

WARNING

rary free roller (B).

Jacked vehicle

WARNING

Dynamometer testing

Keep away from the front of the vehicle

while the vehicle is in gear on the dyna

mometer. This is very dangerous as the

While the full-time AWD vehicle is being

raised on a jack, never start the engine

or cause the tires to rotate.

There is the danger that rotating tires

touching the ground could cause the

Driving your vehicle -> All Wheel Drive (AWD) system for Your Kia Sorento SUV 2023

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