5:36 am, September 11, 2013
TWO of the most talked about Kia concept cars in years are likely to appear in dealer showrooms in the future, Car Dealer has learnt.
The firm is 99 per cent ready to sign-off its first ever sports car, while Kia’s star of the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show – the Niro – is likely to be built.
Revealed two years ago at the Frankfurt Motor Show, the sleek Kia GT (pictured right) is ’99 per cent production ready’, according to a company director.
‘The Kia GT, which we unveiled here a couple of years ago, is around 99 per cent approved for production and we’ll see the GT on European streets in the near future,’ Kia Europe’s vice president for sales and marketing, Benny Oeyen, exclusively told us.
‘The introduction of our first sports car will encourage us to aim upmarket and show our customers the direction the brand is continuing to move in.’
Meanwile, unveiled this week at Frankfurt, Kia’s Niro concept is likely to hit dealers’ showroom floors as well.
‘At this point, I’m very sure the Kia Niro concept will come to the market,’ said Oeyen. ‘It’s a brilliant car, and has a great shape. We will carry out market research in the coming days to see what customers think of it. Then we will work on our business case.’
The compact SUV Niro concept is B-SUV-sized and currently has a 160bhp 1.6-litre turbo petrol under its bonnet. If it goes into production, it could also be available with Kia’s new 1.0-litre petrol engine.
‘The SUV crossover is an extremely hot segment at the moment,’ Oeyen said. ‘Customers are very keen to downsize their vehicles at the moment but at a reasonable price. However, at the same time, they’re looking for a car that still looks good and isn’t too small or impractical. The Niro will be very important here.’
If the Niro is confirmed for the road, it’s predicted to roll off the production line in 2016.
The addition of a sports car and a funky B-SUV could bolster Kia’s already strong sales figures in Europe by bringing new customers to the brand.
Despite the European market hitting its lowest point in 20 years, the Korean firm has still managed to up its performance by 50 per cent.
‘In 2004 we were considered a basic budget brand, but now we are progressing. One of the biggest things we have to work on is the Kia brand image, which is why our dealers are key to our success – they are the touch point with our customers.’
