Kia Fan Reporter - Geneva Motor Show 2012

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Kia Motors America and LPGA Star Michelle Wie Donate $50,000 to Camp Pendelton’s Armed Services YMCA ‘Operation Hero’ Program

On the eve of the third annual Kia Classic Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA) golf tournament at La Costa Resort and Spa, Kia Motors America (KMA) and two-time LPGA winner Michelle Wie paired up today to donate $50,000 to Operation Hero, one of the keystone programs of the nearby Camp Pendleton Armed Services YMCA (ASYMCA). The funds, which are intended to help Operation Hero maintain staff and provide equipment and supplies to more than 375 kindergarten and elementary students at Camp Pendleton, commemorate Michelle Wie's graduation from Stanford University. Operation Hero provides free mentoring and tutoring to at-risk elementary-aged children of military families living at Camp Pendleton, which is home to more than 100,000 men and women of the armed forces and their families.

"As a Southern California-based company and one of the fastest growing auto brands in the U.S., Kia Motors is deeply committed to supporting the local communities in which we do business," said Tom Loveless, vice president, sales, KMA. "Operation Hope delivers much needed services and assistance to the children of our military service men and women and it is our privilege to make a contribution in partnership with Michelle Wie and celebrate her college graduation in a special and meaningful way."

"Our after school program, Operation Hero, is our most critical program for the young military children attending the five elementary schools on Camp Pendleton," said George Brown, Executive Director, Camp Pendleton Armed Services YMCA. "While reducing their stress levels, the program provides the children skills to be successful socially and academically at both home and school."

The donation comes prior to Michelle Wie's participation in the third annual Kia Classic, from March 19-25 at La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, Calif., in which a strong field of the LPGA players from around the world will compete for a $1.7 million purse with the winner taking home a first-place check for $255,000 and one of the first range-topping Optima Limited sedans¹ to roll off the production line at Kia's U.S. manufacturing plant in West Point, Georgia.

 

**  Courtesy of Kia Media

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Kia Rio and Picanto win European design awards

Kia has been awarded two top honors for its Picanto and Rio models in the 2012 red dot design competition.

The five-door versions of Kia’s striking A-segment Picanto and B-segment Rio were both winners in red dot’s internationally-acclaimed ‘Product Design’ category, in a competition that saw more than 4,500 products entered by 1,800 manufacturers from 58 countries across a variety of product sectors.

Judging was carried out by an international jury of highly respected design experts, who scrutinized and tested the products in detail, with winners selected on the basis of their level of innovation, functionality, ergonomics, durability, ecological compatibility and intuitive handling. Only products featuring the highest standards of design are eligible for the coveted red dot.

These two latest wins bring Kia’s red dot total to six, with the Soul crossover winning in 2009, Venga compact MPV in 2010, and both Sportage compact SUV and Optima sedan claiming top spots in 2011. Optima was also named ‘best of the best’ in 2011 – the red dot competition’s highest accolade for groundbreaking design, for which only the best products in each category are eligible.

“We are very proud of the red dot awards for the Picanto and the Rio,” comments Kia’s Chief Officer Peter Schreyer.

“They are a great tribute to our entire global design team, because all three Kia design centers were involved in the development of both vehicles – and the results are absolutely harmonious models with a strong presence. I am particularly happy about this thoroughly creative and successful collaboration between our teams in Korea, Europe and America.”

Thomas Oh, Kia Senior Executive Vice President and COO, added, “As global buyers increasingly switch to smaller cars, design is becoming an ever more important factor in the A- and B-segments. Rio and Picanto are key volume models for us and are already in great demand around the world.

“These coveted red dot awards are another endorsement of Kia’s commitment to high quality and striking design combined with minimal environmental impact and excellent value for money in its products. Our impressive sales growth across the globe, at a time when the wider automotive industry is experiencing a drop in sales, is testament to this strategy and its successful implementation.”

The wins closely follow a number of other awards for Rio and Picanto, including Rio being named best in the ‘Exterieur’ class at the Automotive Brand Contest in 2011, and Picanto three-door honoured with an iF product design award 2012 – the fourth Kia model to receive this award.

The red dot product design awards are one of the world’s major design contests and have been held by the Design Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia since 1955. The 2012 awards will be presented to winners at a gala event at the Alvar Aalto-designed opera house in Essen, Germany, on July 2 2012.

Kia Motors Corporation (www.kia.com) -- a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart -- was founded in 1944 and is Korea's oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. Over 2.5 million Kia vehicles a year are produced in 15 manufacturing and assembly operations in ten countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 172 countries. Kia today has over 47,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of US$39 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Open and an official automotive partner of FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World Cup™. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.

*Article Courtesy of Kia Motors America - Media

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KIA MOTORS POSTS LARGEST GAINS IN FUEL ECONOMY AND CO2 REDUCTION AMONG ALL AUTOMAKERS IN THE U.S. ACCORDING TO 2011 EPA FUEL ECONOMY TRENDS REPORT

In its commitment to produce sustainable and fuel-efficient vehicles, Kia Motors America (KMA) has "had the biggest improvement in adjusted CO2 and fuel economy performance from MY 2009 to MY 2010" of any automaker, according to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) latest fuel economy trends reporttitled, "Light-Duty Automotive Technology, Carbon Dioxide Emissions, and Fuel Economy Trends: 1975 Through 2011." Kia's fuel economy gain from 2009 to 2010 was 11.6 percent, while its reduction in CO2 emissions was 10.1 percent, beating all other major manufacturers by considerable margins based on the EPA's most recent data. In addition, the report shows Kia as tied for the highest Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) at 27.0 miles-per-gallon for MY 2010. Kia is ranked number two for MY 2010 CO2 values, ahead of traditional leaders such as Honda and Toyota.

"As an industry leader in fuel economy, Kia is committed to providing safe, high-quality vehicles that are socially relevant to consumers," said Michael Sprague, vice president, marketing & communications, KMA. "Our goal is to stay ahead of the industry by applying innovative technologies such as direct-injection and turbo charged engines to advance our efforts and continue improving on the benchmarks Kia has set in the sustainability realm."

Kia Motors' EcoDynamics philosophy has created a global alternative fuel and powertrain research program to develop advanced fuel-stretching and emissions-cutting technologies. In 2011, Kia introduced the brand's first-ever hybrid vehicle in the U.S., and the 2013 Rio and Rio 5-door will be the first vehicles in the subcompact segment to offer fuel-saving Idle Stop and Go technology.

The EPA report summarizes key trends in CO2 emissions and fuel economy for gasoline- and diesel-fueled personal vehicles sold in the United States, beginning MY 1975. Overall, the automotive industry's fleetwide average real world MY 2010 CO2 emissions and fuel economy have marked slight improvements over MY 2009 and the most favorable levels since this analysis began in 1975.

 

**  Courtesy of Kia Media

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First Drive: 2012 Kia Optima Limited

The Kia brand's bold design language, under styling chief -- and Automobile Magazine Man of the Year -- Peter Schreyer, is perhaps most impressive on the Optima mid-size sedan, which was unveiled at the 2010 New York auto show. Consumers took note, snapping up 84,590 Optimas in 2011, nearly doubling the nameplate's previous best year. (That number, however, still puts the model far behind class leaders such as the Toyota Camry, the Nissan Altima, and the Honda Accord, all of which sold more than 250,000 copies last year.) Kia officials expect to move even more Optimas in 2012, as production at the company's two-year-old factory in West Point, Georgia, ramps up fully.

The Optima is currently the largest and most expensive sedan in Kia's U.S. lineup. That will remain the case for at least the next several months, as Kia won't yet confirm whether the larger Cadenza (a.k.a. the K7) will be sold here. Expect an announcement on this front sometime this summer, when we will likely also learn if we'll get the rear-wheel-drive Kia K9, which is just making its debut at the Geneva show.

In the meantime, Kia has added the top-of-the-line Limited to the Optima lineup. The "Drive the Dream" Super Bowl commercial with Adriana Lima, Moetley Cruee, and Chuck Liddell actually marked the debut of the Limited, although you might have missed that nuance while watching the overstimulating ninety-second ad.

The Limited itself is a bit of a nuance, too, since it's not a trim level but merely a $3300 option package for the top-of-the-line SX models equipped with the $4350 "SX Technology & Premium Package." Making your Optima a Limited adds only cosmetic touches: softer leather upholstery, LED daytime running lights, chrome wheels, red-painted front brake calipers, chrome-accented side sills and a similarly finished rear spoiler, subtle wood interior trim, nicer material for the headliner, and, yes, a first-aid kit. Also, a blue "L" badge is installed next to the "SX" lettering on the trunk lid, so you could actually call it the Optima SXL.

The $34,900 Limited is as fancy as you can build an Optima; the required technology/premium package means that it also includes navigation, a cool panoramic sunroof, an upgraded stereo, heated and ventilated front seats, and heated rear seat cushions. Kia's head product planner, Ralph Tjoa, says that the Limited is designed to appeal to buyers who previously owned luxury cars such as the Lexus ES, the Nissan Maxima, the Toyota Avalon, and the Volkswagen CC. "These buyers expect more," Tjoa says, pointing out that they're able to pay for more, as 27 percent of Optima buyers have an annual household income of more than $100,000.

A base Optima -- still a very nice car -- starts at $21,750. About half of Optima buyers so far have sprung for the upper EX, EX Turbo, or SX trim levels, so Kia figures that about ten percent will opt for the Optima Limited.

Those customers should be quite happy with their purchase, as the feature-filled car drives exactly like any other turbocharged Optima. It rides smoothly (more smoothly, in fact, than pretty much every other Korean car on the market), it handles better than most mid-size-car buyers will ever require, it steers pretty well, and it accelerates quickly and unobtrusively. We drove the Optima mostly on Florida interstates, and we considered driving it all the way north to Michigan rather than catch our flight early the next morning. Snowbirds who often make the I-75 trek would adore this car, as would style-conscious people who seek moderate driving satisfaction.

Our only complaints about the Limited trim level are that the chrome wheels and the red brake calipers look decidedly aftermarket (and not in a good way) and that the tack-on rear spoiler looks like it was pulled off another car.

Optimas with the Limited package will reach dealers in the next few weeks bearing, as previously noted, an MSRP of $34,900. In other Optima sales news, the hybrid model, which went on sale last summer on the coasts, will be rolled out in the rest of the country by early May, but won't get the Limited package.

 

**  Courtesy of Automobile Magazine

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Kia Motors America Announces Kia Classic Winner to Receive New Range-topping Optima Limited

The third annual Kia Classic, from March 19-25, is attracting a strong field of LPGA players who will compete for a $1.7 million purse with the winner taking home a first-place check for $255,000 and one of the first range-topping 2012 Optima Limited midsize sedans to roll off the production line at Kia's U.S. manufacturing plant in West Point, Georgia.

"Kia is one of the fastest growing auto brands in the U.S., and sports marketing initiatives such as our involvement with the LPGA have significantly raised awareness and consideration for the brand and our vehicles," said Michael Sprague, vice president, marketing & communications, KMA. "We are pleased to offer an enhanced prize package for the winner of this year's Kia Classic. The Optima Limited is Kia's most refined and premium product offering to date, and we are excited to showcase the vehicle to golf fans at the Kia Classic and reward some of the tour's best players for their outstanding performances."

In addition to the Kia Classic winner, Kia will honor the outstanding achievements of LPGA players this season by presenting the winners of the Kia Performance Award with an Optima Limited. The awards, which will be presented at the CME Group Titleholders event in November, include:

Kia Power Drive Awarded to the player with the longest average driving distance

Following strong event-attendance and TV-ratings growth in the tournament's second year, Kia signed on as the "Official Automaker of the LPGA." Kia also serves as the "Official Tournament Vehicle" of eight LPGA events.

 

**  Courtesy of SYS-CON Media

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2012 Optima "Socially" - Kia Commercial