Hyundai and Kia bury pickup truck
Crumbling pickup truck sales and rising gas prices have led Hyundai and its affiliate Kia to abandon their plans to build pick-up trucks in the U.S. “Because of high oil prices, the light-truck market has been declining,’” Kim Dong Jin, Vice Chairman of the Hyundai said today. “We don’t think it’s the right time.”
As for Kia’s new Georgia plant where Hyundai and Kia carmakers considered building their pickup trucks, the company now says that it will be used to produce the Sorento SUV.
Kia get version of Microsoft’s SYNC
Microsoft Corp. has signed a worldwide deal with automaker Kia to use its in-car software that allows people to use voice commands to control personal music players and telephones.
Fiat sells cars with the software outside the U.S.
Kia Motors will be entitled to sell cars equipped with Microsoft Auto around the world starting in November, but the company is working on new capabilities and probably won’t be ready this fall, said Velle Kolde, senior product manager for Microsoft Auto.
Kolde wouldn’t say what types of features Kia may add but said the software could include navigation and an emergency call service activated when air bags inflate.
“What specific features you see will be tailored toward the types of vehicles they go into,” Kolde said.
Microsoft is now free to license the software to other automakers as well.
Kia Cee’d diesels power up
Kia has finished a new bigger diesel for its Cee’d model. The Kia is making the 2.0-litre CRDi oil-burner from the Pro_cee’d Sport available across its family car line-up.
The 138bhp diesel appears in a new range-topping Sport trim on the five-door hatchback and SW estate bodystyles. And as well as the engine, the models get new 17-inch alloys, unique headlamps and tinted rear windows on the outside, plus part-leather sports seats inside.
Although it delivers more power, the 2.0-litre unit features the same fuel injection and Variable Geometry Turbocharger technology as the cur-rent 113bhp 1.6 CRDi in the Cee’d. It also complies with the latest Euro IV emissions standards. The new variants command a $2,400 premium over 1.6 models, so the Cee’d Sport starts from $32,000, with the Cee’d SW Sport priced at $32,000. Both are covered by the brand’s market-leading seven-year warranty.
KIA CEE’D CRDi Sport Edition
Kia is now offering the 138 Hp strong diesel-unit on the Cee’d 5door and Cee’d SW models. Kia’s range topping diesel engine is introduced with a new Sport grade for the 5door and Station Wagon models featuring 17-inch alloys, black bezel headlights and rear privacy glass. The Sport models’ interior has part leather seats featuring a specially designed tyre tread cloth design with silver stitching highlights on seats, arm rest and steering wheel. The five-door Cee’d 2.0 CRDi Sport is priced at $30,000 while the Cee’d 2.0 CRDi Sport S W at $33,000.
Kia specific smells just for Europeans
Kia has announced that interior components on its cars are smell-tested just for Europeans.
As part of the company’s push to ensure that its cars are perceived as being totally European, it seals components in a jar and has them smell-tested before they are fitted.
David Labrosse, from the product planning department of Kia’s European Research and Development centre in Germany, said:
‘The European nose is quite different to the Korean one. We like different smells so we developed odours for the car’s interior that were pleasing to Europeans.’
Labrosse says that it is difficult to describe the ideal smell, adding: ‘If we don’t like the smell, we try to find the cause of the problem by breaking the materials down and cooking them to find out where the wrong odour is coming from.’
Eva Padberg and the Kia Rio
Pictures for hardcore Kia Fans! The Kia Rio hatchback is a far cry from what we’d call an eye-turner. That is unless you adorn the Korean compact hatch with an “accessory” of the likes of German super model, Eva Padberg. Sweet pics!
Kia KEE_wii Concept
Kia introduced today a unique development of its sports coupe concept - the KEE_wii. The latest upgrade involves the addition of high-tech drive system that removes the need for a steering wheel and pedals.
We have taken inspiration from current computer gaming technology to create a completely new steering and pedal system called Dynamic On-Road Kinetics. The traditional driving controls are replaced by a small ‘controller’ which fits comfortably into two hands. Making steering motions with the small controller will turn the car in whichever direction the driver likes whilst accelerator and brakes are button operated. It is a very simple and intuitive system
The KEE_wii dynamic control system will be available on new Kia models on next year and will then be optional on forthcoming generations of models as they are updated or replaced.
Kia KOUP
The Kia revealed a new 2door prototype called the “KOUP”. The KOUP’s specifications says that it is based on Euro-designed Cee’d hatch platform, with which it shares the exact same wheelbase length.
The Kia has fitted the KOUP with a 2.0-liter Theta II engine paired with a GDI twin scroll turbocharger that delivers 290 Hp and 289 lb-ft of maximum torque available between 2,000 and 4,000 rpm. Power is transferred to the front wheels via a six-speed, automatic with steering-column mounted paddle shifters.
PRESS RELEASE
NEW YORK, March 20, 2008 – Combining youthful exuberance with a sporty and sleek design, Kia Motors America (KMA) today globally debuted the KOUP concept at the 2008 New York International Auto Show (NYIAS) during a press conference at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. Illustrating the shape and evolution of future Kia vehicles, the simple yet bold and aggressive KOUP exterior is complemented by its realistic and sleek interior design. Originating from the Kia Motors America Design Center in Irvine, Calif., the KOUP concept embodies Kia’s philosophy of “Exciting and Enabling” with its balanced proportions and fluid design set to evoke an emotional driving experience.
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2009 Kia Optima
The Kia has unveiled its facelifted Optima sedan. The 2009 Optima features refreshed fascia patterns and color schemes in the interior. Power comes from a new 2.4-liter four cylinder engine that produces 175 Hp and 169 lb-ft of torque and a revised version of the 2.7-liter V6 engine that delivers 190 Hp and 184 lb-ft of torque.
PRESS RELEASE
KIA DEBUTS 2009 OPTIMA AT NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW
NEW YORK, March 20, 2008 – Kia Motors America (KMA) today globally unveiled the 2009 Optima midsize sedan at the New York International Auto Show. On sale in early fall, the refreshed Optima offers a completely modified exterior, which offers a more aggressive, dynamic style than previous models, and is outfitted with a new engine that provides more power and better fuel economy. For 2009, Optima also is larger than its predecessors, which complements its distinctive new styling and separates itself from other vehicles in the growing midsize segment.
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