Hill descent control light

Hill descent control (Kia and Hyundai call it Downhill Brake Control, DBC) brakes the car automatically on steep descents so you can concentrate on steering. Green: switched on. Blinking: it is braking for you now. Red on Kia, yellow on Hyundai: a fault, and it will not work.

GreenYellow / amberRed

Not defined by regulation: a maker convention

What to do

Green or blinking needs nothing, but keep steering and be ready to brake. If it turns red (Kia) or yellow (Hyundai), the system has a fault and will not slow the car: control your speed downhill yourself with the brakes and a low gear, and have it checked.

Makes differ: what this light means on your car, the other colours it may use for the symbol and what the car wants you to do are set by the manufacturer, so your car's owner's manual is the authority.

Symbol: Car pointing down a slope
Colour: Green or Yellow / amber or Red
Standard: None — a maker convention, described here from 2 makers: Kia, Hyundai

Where makes differ

Kia shows a DBC fault in red; Hyundai shows it in yellow. Kia's guide adds that DBC can only be switched on below 40 km/h (25 mph).

Not defined by regulation: a maker convention

Neither US FMVSS 101 (Tables 1 and 2) nor UN Regulation No. 121 lists this light, so no rule fixes its symbol or its colour. What follows is what the makers cited below say; other makes, and other model years of the same make, may draw it differently.

Neither FMVSS 101 nor UN R121 lists a hill-descent tell-tale.

Other green maker lights

Lane assist (lane keeping) lightLane markings running away from you, dashed line in the middle · also yellow / amber · maker convention Adaptive cruise control (ACC) lightSpeedometer dial with a needle · also yellow / amber · maker convention Auto Hold lightThe words AUTO HOLD · also yellow / amber · maker convention Auto stop-start lightLetter A inside a circular arrow · also yellow / amber · maker convention

All green dashboard lights, regulated ones included

Other yellow / amber maker lights

All yellow / amber dashboard lights, regulated ones included

Other red maker lights

AdBlue (DEF) warning lightLiquid container with a wavy fill line and a drop · also yellow / amber · maker convention Forward collision warning lightCar seen from behind with radar arcs around it · also yellow / amber · maker convention Power steering warning light (EPS)Steering wheel, sometimes with an exclamation mark · also yellow / amber · maker convention Door open lightCar seen from above with a door open · maker convention

All red dashboard lights, regulated ones included

Sources

No regulation defines this light, so it is described from 2 carmakers' own manuals or owner pages, each fetched and checked on the date shown:

Kia: Kia UK — Dashboard warning and indicator icons (PDF) (DBC (Downhill Brake Control) Indicator) — Green when switched on (only below 40 km/h), blinking when active on a steep descent, red if the system has malfunctioned and will not operate. checked 2026-09-24
Hyundai: Hyundai owner's manual, 2025 Tucson (general market) — Warning and indicator lights (Downhill Brake Control (DBC) indicator light) — Lights when you switch DBC on, blinks while it operates, and lights yellow when there is a malfunction. checked 2026-09-24

Written in our own words; the makers' pages cover their own models only.