Since I heard about Kia’s KND-4 concept car debut at L.A. Auto Show, I was hoping to get a video of it’s unveiling. I have been extensively searching the web for the last five days and having a bit of luck in my pocket, I found one today.

After watching it, I can honestly admit it overexceeded my expectations. Instead of short KND-4 video preview I was looking for, I got a complete Kia press conference from L.A. Auto Show. Here it is…

Though the exterior of Kia Borrego has been already shown at official Kia teaser shots, the interior has remained much more elusive.

A keen KIA-WORLD blog reader sent us an interior spy picture which is believed to be the Borrego (Mohave) interior.

As the new Borrego’s official debut looms closer, more and more vehicle details have been turning up and we are closely watching not to miss any of them.

More details on Kia Borrego: Part1,  Part2,  Part3,  Part4

An insurance and financial services company, Allianz Versicherungs and Kia Motors Europe have agreed on their first Europe-wide co-operation for car insurance.

With this move, Allianz expects to strnegthen its collaboration with the automotive industry internationally.

While Allianz also has cooperative arrangements with car makers and dealers outside of Germany, the current contract with KIA is Allianz’s first agreement with a manufacturer that calls for cooperative efforts to begin throughout Europe right from the outset.

Walter Gutberlet, CEO of Allianz Versicherungs, said: “KIA Europe is an importer with great sales potential in the European market. We’re delighted to be able to support the brand’s growth prospects with our insurance products on a European scale. We’re finding that Allianz’s decision to establish the automotive sales channel as a core line of business beyond Germany’s borders was the right one.”

Hi there folks. Interested in future of Kia cars? I found a very interesting test drive article with Kia Sportage FCEV. I hope guys at Carmagazine won’t get angry, because posting it here! Enjoy…

What is FCEV? It stands for Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle, and this Sportage SUV is Kia’s latest attempt at a hydrogen-powered car. This technology has been the talk of the industry for the last decade as the ultimate in eco-friendly motoring.

Most experts thought production cars were another ten to 15 years away, as sky-high development costs and a lack of accessible filling stations were the stumbling blocks. However, Honda recently announced it would sell a Ł50,000 fuel cell saloon from next year in America and Japan, so all car makers are now re-assessing their plans. (more…)

While we admire the beauty of futuristic concept and production cars in Los Angeles, there is another big auto event going on the other side of planet. The Guangzhou Auto Show might not sound familiar to you, but this is one of the biggest auto events held in China.

The Guangzhou Auto Show is beeing held for the fifth time and is expected to see several thousand visitors per day pour through the doors to look at several hundred cars from all the big names, both domestically and foregin made.

While Chinese companies have introduced several new production mini cars such as BYD F1 or Geely LC-1, Kia unveiled it’s attractive European made Pro_cee’d hatchback at the show.

To see the Pro_cee’d exhibited in China is quite a surprise to me. Till now, Kia always stated that the cee’d will only be sold in Europe, but after rumours appeared to see it also in Australia by the 09, Kia might have upped their appetites and changed their plans.

Now the question is: Is Kia getting ready to release the family of cee’d cars in China and other parts of the world (Australia)?

Auto Show Gallery:

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The Kee sports coupe was one of the best looking concept cars at Frankfurt’s Motor Show. Receiving nothing but praise and positive comments in Europe, Kia decided bringing it to L.A. Auto Show to get additional feedback on it’s design.

Unfortunately the Kee concept car never made it to L.A.! The Kee was damaged while beeing transported to the auto show scene. Acording to Kia, the damage was too big and impossible to repair, that’s why they were forced to send it back to Europe to get repaired.

While searching for additional information on Kee accident I found a sweet video where Kee is beeing driven. A few lucky car journalists had actualy a chance to take a spin in it. Let’s hear their findings on Kia Kee! (Video also includes a short interview with Kia’s Chief designer, Peter Schreyer!)

…Fiat 500!

Unfortunately, Kia cee’d missed the chance to win the 2008 European Car Of the Year Award. The voting numbers are finally in and the number of votes cee’d recieved was enough for it to finish just outside the podium in 4th place.

The retro-style super mini beat all of the competiting finalists to win the 2008 European Car Of The Year title. Fiat 500 got 385 votes, which was more than enough to finish the competition ahead of another new super mini, the Mazda 2, with 325 votes and Ford Mondeo on third place. As said, Kia Cee’d was placed 4th, ahead of such great cars as Nissan Qashqai, Mercedes C Class and Peugeot 308.

Congratulations to all people at Kia Motors for this very encouraging result! The cee’d really is a major turning point in the history of your company. Just keep up with the good work, and you will soon have a COTY award on your hands!

Four minivans and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) of Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors have been included in the list of 34 “safest” cars selected by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) in the United States.

According to the companies Friday, Hyundai Motor’s “Santa Fe,” “Veracruz” and “Entourage” and Kia Motors’ “Sedona” earned the “Top Safety Pick” award for their performance in safety tests.

Hyundai Motor’s Santa Fe was selected as one of the top picks in the category of SUV along with the BMW X5, while Kia Motors’ Sedona (known here in South Korea as the “Grand Carnival”) got a nod in the minivan category. (more…)

Gallery:

KND-4 drawings:

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KND-4 exterior:

KND-4 exterior details:

KND-4 interior:

Kia unveils KND-4 concept SUV at Los Angeles Auto Show! (official press release)

Kia Motor Finance Company (KMFC) yesterday held grand opening ceremonies for its Southeast Regional Service Center in Austell, Ga.

The new center will provide full retail credit and funding services for Kia dealers in the Southern and Eastern regions and allow KMFC to service its dealers more effectively from within the Eastern Time Zone.

“This new location is centrally located in the booming Atlanta metropolis,” said Michael Buckingham, president and chief executive officer, KMFC. “The Kia dealer base is growing and this new facility will enable us to offer even better service and quicker response time for our dealers.” (more…)

Kia Motors America (KMA) today unveiled the all-new KND-4 compact SUV concept vehicle at the Los Angeles International Auto Show.

Having made its world debut at the Seoul Motor Show in April, the KND-4 concept was specifically designed to provide an idea of what next-generation Kia compact SUVs will be like. Conceived at the Kia Design Center in Korea, the new concept exhibits a powerful and strong character that corresponds with Kia’s philosophy of “Exciting and Enabling.”

“The KND-4 compact SUV is a vital vehicle because it showcases dynamic and sophisticated styling cues that are strongly indicative of future Kia SUV models,” said Len Hunt, executive vice president and COO of KMA. “Designed with active and independent consumers in mind, KND-4 demonstrates Kia’s ongoing commitment to making vehicles that are both stylish and technologically advanced.” (more…)

South Korean Antitrust Regulator Rules Against Hyundai, Kia Over Subcontractors

South Korea’s antitrust regulator said Thursday it has fined Hyundai Motor Co. and ordered Kia Motors Corp. to pay subcontractors for fair trade violations.The Korea Fair Trade Commission said in a statement that it fined Hyundai Motor 1.69 billion won ($1.85 million) and ordered Kia to pay 4.6 billion won ($5 million) to subcontractors.

The regulator said that from December 2002 to April 2003, Hyundai Motor used its dominant buyer position to force its 26 subcontractors to lower the prices of parts they supplied to the automaker. (more…)

I promised to report on Hyundai-Kia debuts at this year’s L.A. Auto Show. The show hardly began and Hyundai already made some action there. Here is their latest and the best concept car ever (continue here to see video and lots of pics):

HYUNDAI UNVEILS REAR-WHEEL DRIVE CONCEPT GENESIS COUPE

LOS ANGELES, 11/14/2007;

Hyundai unveiled its highly anticipated Concept Genesis Coupe during a press conference at the Los Angeles International Auto Show today. The concept car heralds the introduction of an all-new, rear-wheel drive 2 + 2 sports coupe scheduled to join the Hyundai lineup in the spring of 2009.

Following the introduction earlier this year of the Concept Genesis sedan, Concept Genesis Coupe signals Hyundai’s second step in broadening its appeal to driving enthusiasts. (more…)

Unlike Hyundai, which hopes to attract spectators with the muscle sports coupe named Genesis, it’s sister carmaker Kia Motors Corp.’s exhibit will be comprised of existing models and the compact SUV concept KND-4, which was already displayed on other events before. KND-4 made it’s debut at Seoul Motor Show this year.

The company had planned to include another show car, Kia Kee coupe concept, unveiled at the International Auto Show in Frankfurt, Germany in September. But the vehicle was pulled out due to the damage vehicle occured while beeing transported to the scene.

The news sounded like a morning joke at first, but later during the day, this was confirmed by Michael Choo, an International PR Manager at Kia Motors Corp. “Yes it’s true! The Kee concept car had a crash while on its way to Las Vagas for national dealer conference.” said Choo.

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The automotive industry is mowing from Tokio to Los Angeles this week. Instead of wacky concept cars we are preparing to see some real road stuff at Los Angeles. L.A. Auto Show starts on Friday 16th and promises 14 worldwide and 30 North American vehicle debuts during the show. Most of the cars you will see here will soon hit the showroms!

Thanks to California’s eco friendly attitude and environmentally oriented people the L.A. Auto Show became the greenest in United States. There has been significant “green” movement in auto industry toward making cars more environment friendly in recent years! Therefore expect to see many eco cars at L.A.!

Along with the green movement, muscle is still the priority for some companies. For the first time, Hyundai belongs to that group. Hyundai will debut their rear-wheel Genesis Sports Coupe at the show. Acording to Hyundai officials, the 300 hp sports car will cost less than 30.000 dollars when hitting the market in 2009. Some pics were already taken before it’s presentation and you can see them here.

And don’t forget, our main reason to follow the auto show is still Kia Motors and their stand! We are going to report on Kia unveilings (KCD-4 concept) and other news. There will also be lots of Kia photos to see! You have a good reason now to stop by! See you later!

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