Driving Your Vehicle

Special Driving Conditions

~1min read

Hazardous Driving Conditions

When encountering hazardous driving conditions, such as water, snow, ice, mud, sand, or similar hazards, follow these recommendations:

  • Drive carefully and allow extra stopping distance.
  • Avoid sudden braking or steering.
  • When braking with non-ABS brakes, pump the brake pedal with a light up-and-down motion until the vehicle stops.

Do not pump the brake pedal on a vehicle equipped with ABS.

  • When stopping on snow, mud, or sand, use second gear. Accelerate slowly to avoid wheel spin of the drive wheels.
  • Place sand, rock salt, or other non-slip material under the drive wheels to provide traction when stopping on ice, snow, or mud.

WARNING - Downshifting

Do not downshift an automatic transmission when driving on slippery road surfaces. A sudden change in tire speed may cause the tires to skid and result in an accident.

Test yourself

A quick Kia Optima DL3 quiz: every answer comes with an explanation and a link to the manual page.