First Kia cee’d reviews with many great images appear on the web…

The very first cee’ds are already hitting European streets. The model has been on sale for a few months now and the demand is exceeding Kia’s expectations (which is good, isn’t it!?).

With days passing by we see more and more reviews coming in as well. Several publications have already published their very first impressions of the Kia’s new C-segment ride. The reviews seem very positive! It’s not just consumers that like the cee’d but also automobile magazines.

One of those reviews has just recently been published at the avtomoto portal from Slovenia. They had written a complete cee’d test drive report ans posted a number of really nice shots.

We are posting on of the images here, but you can find many more at the link posted below. Check it out and enjoy the pics!

UPDATE: Link has been excluded due to deleted source article at the avtomoto portal. Sprry for that.

Kia cee’d quote from  UK’s Autoexpress:

Previous Kias have been designed to be adequate, rather than class-leading. But the cee’d is an impressive compact family hatch. Inoffensive styling and a well built cabin aren’t all the cee’d has to offer – it has the dynamic abilities to challenge many rivals, too. Add in an unbeatable seven-year manufacturer’s warranty, and this is a Kia that will give rivals a run for their money.

To read the full article, head over to Autoexpress.co.uk and search Kia Cee’d CRDI.

First sales statistics reveal that Kia has a winner on its hands. The company received thousands of orders for the all-new cee’d hatchback since its launch. At the moment, Slovakian factory does not work at full capacity, but production will gradually expand during the coming months.

When fully operational, Kia’s first Euroean factory will be capable of producing as much as 300.000 new vehicles. Majority of the vehicles will belong to cee’d family, but the plant was designed to build at least two other models. It is very likely that Kia will move the production of Sportage SUV from Korea sometime by the end of 2009.

Back to Kia cee’d. The all-new cee’d features dynamic exterior design, which is attractive to European consumer’s tastes. Those looking forsportier versions of the cee’d will have to wait until Kia brings a hotter, 200-hp cee’d to the market. If you can’t wait for it, you can buy a sporty kit and fit it to the cee’d right now.

Incus XR body kit is available in most European countries and can be fited to the vehicle. The XR kit from INCUS includes a redesigned front bumper with more agressive air intake, as well as updated sporty grille. At rear, there’s an updated bumper with integrated tail-pipes (looks really attractive and sounds nice as well), while side of the car also features the “skirts”.

The cee’d XR also features redesigned alloy-wheels and XR badging in the grille!

Here are some images of the XR body kit, built by INCUS:

Kia has announced it has chosen Michelin to supply tires for the European-built Kia cee’d. According to the official statement, Michelin tires will be standard on all three versions of cee’d. Michelin will be exclusive suplier and will supply two sizes of their tires to Kia’s manufacturing plant in Slovakia.

The all-new Kia cee’d range, which will include five-door hatch, sporty wagon and a three foor variant named pro_cee’d will be outfitted with the latest-generation Michelin Energy tires for 15 and 16 inch wheels and Michelin Primacy HP for 17 inch wheels.

Speaking at the cee’d’s official international launch near Rome, Michael Lugert, Kia’s Vehicle Evaluation Manager explained how the R&D process began: “Very early in the vehicle’s evolution, Kia decided to fit Michelin tyres to the car exclusively so we could fine-tune the new models ride and handling characteristics very precisely.”

In addition, the collaboration between Kia nd Michellin included creating tyres that improve fuel consumption and reduce CO2 emissions – without reducing grip. These tires are known to reduce fuel consumption by 0.2L per 100 km, as well as carbon dioxide emissions by up to 4 grams per kilometer.

Tip: check out a tire pressure in your Kia oftenly for safer driving and to reduce the fuel consumption of the vehicle.

This is the Sportage fuel cell vehicle, one of the technically most advanced vehicles using fuel cell technology!

According to Kia, the Sportage FCEV is based on the second-generation Sportage, and has been developed alongside the conventional Sportage model. It uses the same powertrain architecture as the new Hyundai Tucson FCEV prototype, which has also been developed to showcase the company’s highly advanced fuel-cell technology to the world.

Kia’s decision to enter the hydrogen-fuel cell development stream might seem unusual at first, being that most experimental projects of this magnitude are normally explored only by the largest automotive firms, but Kia is not only committed to the green movement but also is targeting to be among the top five global volume leaders by 2010. Therefore such development is an essential part of the company’s growth.

A collaboration of Kia’s engineers and experts called in from North America came together to engineer and assemble the Sportage FCEV. Unlike hydrogen-powered internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, such as BMW’s 7-Series and MINI Cooper dual-fuel prototypes that can operate on gasoline or hydrogen, Kia’s concept ingests a strict diet of hydrogen assisted by electrical power.

Although hydrogen-power is expected to be the next step forward in zero-emissions vehicles, there are many problems that pure electric/fuel cell vehicles face. One of the roadblocks was creating enough power and torque to move the SUV along at a reasonable rate of speed. Another, equally important, was giving the vehicle enough range to make it useful for daily driving. What’s more, cold-weather energy storage posed critical problems if prospective future owners could expect to operate it in sub-zero temperatures.

In a smart move, Kia decided to work in collaboration with world-renowned fuel cell experts UTC Fuel Cells of Hartford, Connecticut and Enovas Systems of Torrance, California for drivetrain solutions, the same group that helped Kia’s parent automaker Hyundai’s Santa Fe FCEV score best-in-class for efficiency and noise at the 2001 Michelin Challenge Bibendum.

Together, the two firms adapted a zero-emissions drivetrain which could be fitted to the Sportage’s conventional chassis. In place of the conventional 2.0-liter I-4 or 2.7-liter V6 gasoline engines is a ZEV powerplant that’s capable of producing 80 kW (107 horsepower) of output which can propel the Sportage to 150 km/h (93 mph).

Aside from the powerful motor, Kia has also equipped the Sportage FCEV with a 152-liter hydrogen storage tank that’s mounted low on the chassis, ahead of the rear axles, allowing for a maximum range of 330 km (205 miles). The cylindrical fuel tank’s positioning actually lowers the Sportage’s center of gravity, and unlike other fuel cell vehicles, does not intrude on interior space. A new lithium ion polymer battery which has undergone extensive testing provides 152 volts of charge, allowing the Sportage to operate in harsher climates.

(more…)

Kia has announced it has produced the very first batch of cee’d Sporty Wagons. Kia cee’d sporty wagon is based on a 5-door Kia cee’d which has been unveiled at Paris Auto Show. Only four cee’d Sporty Wagons were produced so far at Kias Slovakian factory, but the company plans to ramp up production fast to meet the yearly sales targets of 50.000 cee’d sporty wagons.

The first four cars were produced as pilot cars last Friday to test the Sporty Wagon production line. The very first four cee’d sporty wagons will not be on sale, but next 3.000 units that Kia plans to produce after the first pilot production run will be avaliable for European customers. Production will start within a few days and will gradually increase to up to 4000 units per month.

With the 2010 model year, Kia plans to update the cee’d Sporty Wagon. Just yesterday, the company released its first official image of the 2010 Kia cee’d and revealed a much improved and updated exterior look, including the new “face” of Kia.

In addition to Sorento SUV, the cee’d hatchback has been one the first Kia models that customers have been buying for emotional reasons. Since its launch about two years ago, cee’d has been instrumental in placing Kia firmly as one of the top five global automakers.

The 2010 Kia cee’d Sporty Wagon will be officially unveiled at the upcoming IAA Frankfurt Motor Show alongside with new Kia mini MPV and all-new Sorento crossover.

Kia cee’d SW image: