Is Kia going to build this thing? That was probably the most frequently asked question at Kia’s stand during the official public days of 2009 Detroit Auto Show. That’s when Kia unveiled a briliant-astic Soul based concept car called Soul’ster. “It’s up to you out there!” wrote Mike Thorpey in his exclusive “inside scoop” on the design process of the Kia Soulster concept car at the Kia Buzz website a while ago.

Finished in attractive yellow color, the Soulster has been one of the most pleasant surprises of the North American International Auto Show. The two-door concept car has been equipped with canvas top, 19-inch alloy wheels, LED technology equipped head-lamps and some polished chrome to provide the vehicle a rugged yet still refined exterior look.

The Soulster concept has been created to show the the flexibility of the new Soul platform but in my opinion Kia could be having an expansion of successful Soul line-up expansion in plans so Soulser was also developed to test the waters whether there’s enough interest for such a niche vehicle.

According to Kia Motors officials, reception to the Soulster concept has been very, very positive, but the company refused to reveal any information on it’s possible mass production.

Speaking of it’s production, one of the Korean magazines just recently reported that decision on Soulster’s production will soon be made. If the concept gets a green light then we can expect to see a Soul based sub-compact pick-up hitting Kia’s US showrooms already in the second half of 2010!

Kia Motors 2009 Sustainability Magazine “MOVE” released, features an exclusive interview with Kia’s Chief Design Officer, Peter Schreyer!

Kia Motors Corporation has been publishing sustainability report once a year since 2003. The annual report with a purpose to inform it’s shareholders of  companiy’s proggress on sustainable and demonstrate Kia Motors’ ongoing commitment to practicing and advancing sustanbility managment.

The 2009 MOVE magazine features a huge amount of Kia news, including CEO message, Kia’s plans for 2009, Kia’s product line-up presentation, information on company’s fuel cell electric vehicle -FCEV development, Kia’s green automotive future and others.

In addition to many other interesting news, this year’s issue of MOVE magazine also features a very exclusive interview with Kia’s Chief Design Officier Peter Schreyer, revealing his views on the power of car design and it’s importance.

A 102-page sustanbility report has a lot of interesting content so make sure you read it fully. It took me about an hour to read through it and I must admit it was worth the time spent. You can read the report here: 2009 Sustainability Magazine “MOVE”

According to a member of our Kia Forum, his Kia dealer already received the first 2010 Kia Forte compact sedan. The replacement for Spectra sedan has had it’s US premiere at Chicago auto show earlier this year and has been expected to hit the dealers across the USA in late spring or early summer.

This particular Forte model is painted in “Copperhead” color and is equipped with automatic transmission and 17-inch aluminium alloy wheels. The 2010 Forte sedan might look hot on the pictures, but according to Kid Icarus - the guy who took these shots, the car looks absolutely fantastic in-person, especially it’s interior.

Kia Soul scores maximum 5 star safety rating at Euro NCAP crash tests!

The popular Kia Soul crossover has been awarded with the highest possible 5-star safety rating in the latest European New Car Assessment Programme -Euro NCAP crash tests reported Kia today.

Despite it’s compact size, the Soul achieved a great overall weighted score of 75 percent, more than enough to achieve a 5-star rating. Breaking down the latest crash test results, the Soul crossover was rated 87 percent for adult protection, 86 percent for child protection (based on 18-month- and three-year-old child), 39 percent for pedestrian protection and 86 percent for Safety Assist equipment.

The five star safety rating places Soul among the safest B-segment family cars in the world. The 2010 Soul crossover is following the European-built cee’d as the second vehicle in the Kia’s model range that received the highest possible 5-star safety rating at EuroNCAP.

It was back in 2007 when cee’d scored the first 5-star safety rating at strict European crash tests for Kia. Since January 2009 Euro NCAP have been using a different ratings calculation and their new testing scheme is even more strict than it was in 2007 when cee’d was tested.

Euro NCAP test results for Kia Soul:

Adult Occupant Protection 87 percent (31.2 points of max possible 36)
Pedestrian Protection 39 percent(13.9 points of max possible 36)
Child Protection 86 percent (42 points of max possible 49)
Safety Assist 86 percent (6 points of max possible 7)

The perfect 5-star EuroNCAP safety rating is enabled in part by the use of high-tensile strength steel and all the up-to-date safety technology fitted to the 2010 Kia Soul crossover.

UPDATE: Kia Soul crash test video added!

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We don’t speak much about the Kia Amanti here, do we!? Kia’s flagship model, also known as Opirus at some international markets, gets only mentioned every once in a while, mostly when I post the US Kia sales results at the end of each month when we criticize it’s low sales numbers. But today we are gonna do an exception and the Amanti is going to make it to the headlines of our Kia blog. And there is a good reason for that.

Kia Motors Korea has launched the 2010 model year Opirus sedan at it’s domestic Korean market. Dubbed the Opirus Premium, the vehicle received some really nice upgrades inside-out including better quality materials inside, slightly redesigned front and rear fascias and most importantly, some major technical improvements.

Starting with the tech stuff, there is a brand new 6-speed automatic transmission replacing the five-speed automatic, which has been available since Opirus’ launch in 2003. This is the first Kia, in addition to the 2010 Kia Sorento, that has benefited from this new technology.

The all-new six-speed automatic transmission has been developed in conjunction with Hyundai Motor Company and will find it’s place in several other mid-sized Kia vehicles. Apart from the Opirus (Amanti in US), the six-speed automatic transmission will also be included on Kia Borrego, Sedona, next generation Optima YF and the 2010 Kia VG. Thanks to the new transmission, the Opirus Premium sedan now achieves considerable improvements in performance and more importantly, the fuel economy.

In addition to the new tranny, there is also a revised engine line-up put under the hood of Opirus Premium. The 3.3L Lambda engine has 4.9 percent higher power output and  2.2 percent improvement in maximum torque compared to the previous engine. The Opirus Premium equipped with this engine packs an impressive 259 horsepower and achieves 10.1 km/ liter (12.2 percent improvement).

The Opirus Premium is also available with a revised 3.8L Lambda engine that packs 284 horsepower and a 2.7L V6 with a maximum hp output of 195 hp. Both of the engines have also seen improvements of horsepower and fuel consumption ratings when compared to previous engines.

The new model of Opirus also brings a host of new exterior elements such as a revised front grille that now goes in-line with latest Kia products and has a shape of tiger nose. The vehicle has also received new bumpers front and rear (notice the cool design of the rear bumper) and new LED turn signals at placed at front, rear and in the side mirrors.

The overall exterior look has been further refined with a set of new alloy wheels, that now look really elegant and classy and some new chrome accents which add some luxury to the overall exterior appearance. [Photosource: rpm9.kr ]

Although the Opirus Premium retained it’s overall shape it did receive an array of needed improvements and we can safely state that it now looks better than ever. 

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The 2010 mini-MPV from Kia will be officially unveiled at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show in September. When it goes on sale early in the 2010, this all-new B-segment people mover will be joining the already crowded mini-van segment and the battle for younger European customers. 

Over the past two year, the 2010 Kia YN has been put through an extensive real life testing programs to sort out all the bugs that a new car might suffer from. With such an extensive on-road testing program, car spy photographers have had many chances to catch the prototypes in the wild and expose it to the wider public through various automotive websites.

Our previous Kia YN spy report, issued on Friday, has revealed some interesting facts about the official naming of the 2010 Kia YN. The same spy report also featured an image showcasing the YN prototype while hauling a trailer somewhere in the Europe. It’s interesting to see that everytime we get new spy shots, the YN looses some of it’s camouflage. In this case it has slightly less camouflage on it’s front fascia than we have been used to see by now.

The YN mini-MPV has been first unveiled as a No3 concept car at the 2009 Geneva auto show and it was announced that when production model gets released it’s final exterior shape won’t get changed much. The image attached below proves the statement to be true. 

As you can see the front fascia design on the YN prototype looks very close to the one seen at the No3 concept car. The major design difference between the No3 and YN prototype is a slightly different and less aggressive signature grille. The differentiation continues with the brand’s logo position which has been moved from the No3’s upper part of bumper to the middle of the grille on the YN prototype. When comparing both vehicles head to head, you can also notice a few slight design changes that have been implemented to the front bumper. [Photo source: Motorauthority]

See the image comparison of the 2010 Kia YN and No3 concept car after the jump…

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Kia might name it’s latest mini MPV model as Kia KV3 

Kia Sedona and Rondo minivans have been on the market for years and both are already established and very well known nameplates among similar people-movers out there. Neither of them has been particularly successful, but their sales results haven’t been bad either, especially in the US market where Sedona’s sales has been on increase lately, while Rondo continuously beats it’s main rival Mazda5 in terms of sales each month.

As you know, Kia keeps it’s range of cars expanding fast and each year the company ads one or two new models to it’s line-up. So far, this year we have seen the funky Kia Soul hitting the market, while later in the year we are expecting to see the Forte Koup making its way into the Kia showrooms.

But that’s not all, at about the same time as US will get the 2010 Kia Forte Koup, Europe will see the official unveiling of the new Kia mini MPV model, which will be joining Sedona and Rondo as a third people mover in Kia’s line-up. Codenamed YN, the new Kia mini-MPV is unfortunately destined for the European market only and there are no plans to export it to the States.

In Europe, similar mini-MPVs have been really popular and the segment has been on a rise with more new models coming-in each year. So such people mover is what Kia lacked until now to compete head to head against Opel Meriva, Renault Modus and Nissan Note - all belonging to the mini MPV segment.

Earlier this year Kia gave us an opportunity to take closer look at the No3 concept car, which was the vehicle that previewed the final YN product. Now, only a few months later and we can see a slightly disguised production-ready model being tested by Kia’s engineers in Europe. The new model is, surprisingly(!), benchmarked against Opel Meriva which has been on sale for like five years already and is getting a replacement at about the same time as Kia YN.   

Production name Kia KV3?

The new model will be officially launched at the upcoming Frankfurt auto show in September this year while it’s European sales is expected to commence by February 2010. The new Kia MPV will share it’s underpinnings with the Soul crossover and it’s platform, as well as engines and transmission, will also be used in the next generation Rio sub-compact car.

What’s really very interesting about this all-new Kia model is it’s official name. There has been a lot of speculation on renaming scheme that Kia has reportedly been having in the plans. I have already talked about that and also mentioned that Kia could start using numeric names on some of it’s future models. It’s very likely that Kia will use the KV3 nomenclature on it’s YN mini-MPV car. The KV3 means: “K” for Kia, “V” for the versatility of a MPV vehicle and “3″ being the model line. [Source: Carmagazine ]

There’s a great head-to-head comparison test between the 2010 Kia Soul and 2010 Nissan Cube on the Youtube. Both of the “cubes” have just recently entered the US market and although I’m not sure how Cube has sold in it’s first full sales month, I know that Soul did a tremendous job. Selling above three thousand units in April alone, that’s a pretty high number for a fresh new vehicle, isn’t it!?

Well, I’m not going to talk, but rather let you watch this cool test-drive video. What I’d like to hear from after you finish are the pros and cons on both cars. List a few things that you like and don’t like about the Soul and Cube.

One week is over and and here we have the winner of the “Kia Soul” MP3 player contest. Congrats goes out to Dejan Krsmanovic for winning the brand-new MP3 player.

There were 68 people who entered the contest, which really is a nice number and if I’m honest a bit higher than I expected! To enter the contest you had to write down correct answers to seven different questions all related to Kia Motors Company and it’s great vehicles. Most of you provided correct answers while only three or four of you gave me the wrong answers!

Here’s the list of correct answers:

1. Peter Schreyer
2. Soul Diva, Soul Burner and Soul Searcher
3. 3.228 units
4. Slovakia
5. Soul’ster
6. 2002 or 2003 (depending on country)
7. hamsters

I want to thank each of you for entering my first-ever MP3 player contest. As I already mentioned before, this is the first contest @ KIA-WORLD blog but not the last one! I have two more “Kia Soul” MP3 players left and a pair of comfortable vests to give away. So watch out for the new contest real soon!

I would like to remind everyone that today is the last day to enter the MP3 player give-away contest to win the 4GB MP3 player. The MP3 player I’m giving away is a very exclusive one as it features Kia Soul paintings at each side of it. It was created specially for the purpose of Kia Soul promotion and not many of them were produced. I received one as a present at the official Kia Soul launching ceremony in Valencia and I’m enjoying it very much.  

At the time when I’m writing this post, 55 people have already entered the contest so your chances to win the MP3 player are still pretty high. Your chances are a lot higher than let’s say winning a $ million at your National Lottery, so enter the contest ASAP!

How do you enter the contest… Simply answer these 7 easy questions and send them to my e-mail at info@kia-world.net!

1. Name Kia Motor’s Chief Design Officer!

2. Name all three Kia Soul concepts that were displayed at the 2008 Geneva auto show! 

3. How many Kia Souls were sold in the US market in April 2009?

4. Name the country where Kia cee’d is being manufactured!

5. What is the name of the Soul based “pick up” concept car?

6. When was the first generation (!) Kia Sorento launched?

7. What animal was used in the latest Soul commercial?

The winner of the contest will be announced  here at our Kia blog by tomorrow evening! Good luck!

A week ago we interviewed our fellow friend Cynthia, a member of Kiasoulforums dot com, who presented her Soul ownership experiences so far and revealed to us some thoughts on her Lava Kia Soul. She has been crowned as a May 2009 Soul Of The Month winner, our second round of monthly competition.

With some delay, we are now bringing you the honorable interview with Todd, the Soul owner who became the very first winner of the Soul Of The Month competition. His black Kia Soul Burner 4U has been picked by forum members as a favourite Soul ride in the month of April 2009.  

1. How and when did you find out about the Kia Soul?
I originally had heard about the Soul when it was a concept via the internet then read somewhere that it was released.

2. How long have you owned your Soul and what are your experiences so far?
I have had my Soul for over a month and a half and absolutely love it. My giant ego loves the fact that people constantly stare at it and point:)

3. If you had to pick one thing what was it that really sold you on the Kia Soul?
Besides the overall looks of the Soul it definitely was the ‘complete package’ and value.

4. Did you name your Soul?
I haven’t but that doesn’t mean I wont. Just havent had the opportunity to do so yet.

5. Can you tell us some interesting comments that you have heard about your ride from friends, family and other people?
Besides my wife who pretends not to like it…I think she is jelous as I love my Soul probably too much, everyone I speak with is blown away by the car. I manage a bank and I have had at least ten clients ask me to take them out to the car for a closer look….too funny.

Continue your read after the jump and find out more about the mods that Todd installed so far and read what he thinks about Kia cars. 

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Kia fans and car enthusiasts in more than 40 countries around the world will soon have the opportunity to feel the Kia experience with the launch of a global road show designed to showcase the improved quality, value and excitement of Kia’s newest line-up of vehicles directly to consumers.

The 2009 Kia road show kicked off in Portugal and, by the end of the year, will have travelled to more than 150 major cities in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and Central and South America. The show brings current and potential Kia drivers up close and personal with Kia’s latest models through customer test drives, multi-media games and sporting events.

Kia Soul and Kia Forte the company’s most recently launched models, will be highlighted during the tour, emphasizing the company’s focus on dynamic styling and design and increasing overall brand awareness. Since Forte is not going to be on sale in Western Europe this is going to be a rare opportunity for us Kia fans to see the vehicle up-close and test drive it. The company has not mentioned whether it will also be presenting it’s attractive 2010 Forte Koup at the road show.

With local variations, the road show will be held in areas with high consumer traffic, such as shopping malls and city parks, and will feature a massive tent and trailer wrapped with Kia images. Kia is also planning to run local advertising and public relations campaigns to maximize brand exposure. Plans to host promotional events which emphasize the company’s FIFA World Cup and Australian Open sponsorships are also part of the 2009 tour. The events will promote physical activity and are meant to convey Kia’s adventurous and young-at-heart brand image to consumers.

“This is a great opportunity for consumers to experience our newest products,” said Francisco Morais, Marketing Manager of Kia Motors Portugal, “The diverse and exciting events that we have planned will showcase the cee’d (5-door, sporty wagon and pro_cee’d) and Soul’s strength in design, performance and fun in a proactive way.”

Kia Road show gallery: 

Another day and here we have another news report related to the striking Kia Forte Koup. Among all Kia vehicles, the upcoming Forte Koup has been the most commonly seen car at the blog over the past two weeks with fresh new images hitting the web almost on daily basis. 

During this past weekend you could have seen some cool pics showcasing the hot-looking Forte Koup painted in dark-silver color and equipped with a nicely designed set of 17-inch alloy-wheels. A closer look at Forte’s sexy but revealed a US registration plate, which tells us that the model was obviously a US-spec Kia Forte Koup.

Following those great shots, we have a series of new ones brought to my e-mail box earlier today. Based on the reg-plates, this time, the Koup has been spotted in South Korea while running on a race-track. The purpose of testing is not known, but the Koup you see is obviously undergoing some high-speed race-track testing.

This makes me wonder what if Kia engineers have put a more powerful engine under it’s hood and are now testing the vehicle before it hits the production!? The company has two newly developed turbo engines that could fit the Forte pretty well.

First possible option is the 2.0L turbo engine that has just recently been applied to the 2010 Hyundai Genesis Coupe and generates 210 hp while the second one, a 1.6L turbo engine with 175 hp is still waiting to make it’s production premiere.

But since the US-spec Forte Koup will have a 2.4L inline four-cylinder engine that produces 174 hp it’s more likely that a possible sporty Koup variant is going to feature the same 210hp turbo powerplant under the hood as you can get in a Hyundai Genesis Coupe.

Except of some rumors we have heard last year, no official words have been released about a sporty range of Kia models so far. Related link: exclusive Kia Forte Koup review 

Here are the latest “spy shots” of the HOT looking Kia Forte Koup. The model has been spotted in a garage of one of the tuning shops. Registration plate attached at rear bumper indicates that this must be the US-spec Forte Koup model.

So far, we have seen many shots of the new Kia Forte Koup and every time I see the car I like it more! Is it just me or it’s the same by you?

Related link: Exclusive Kia Forte Koup review

Cynthia Mitchel comes from Canada and has bought herself a brand-new Kia Soul crossover about six weeks ago. A while ago, she has joined our fast growing Kia Soul community and soon aferwards she has been nominated to enter the Soul of the month competition.

Soul of the month competition is run at Kia Soul Forum during the last week of each month when forum members vote and pick their favourite Kia Soul ride. So far, we have had two Soul of the month competitions; the first one (April ‘09) was won by a member Imapfsr, while the second one (May 2009) was won by Lava Girl (Cynthia Mitchell).

The winner of the Soul of the month competition gets a $ million prize in cash* and a honorable interview published at the KIA-WORLD blog! Here’s the first in a series of interviews where Cynthia talks about her Soul and ownership experience so far. Enjoy your read! *that was a joke obviously :)  

How and when did you find out about the Kia Soul?
I saw the commercials on tv. At first I didn’t really pay any attention to them and then one day I did. It was the msrp starting price that sold me.

How long have you owned your Soul and what are your experinces so far?
I have had my soul for 6 weeks today.

If you had to pick one thing what was it that really sold you on the Kia Soul?
Uniqueness!!!

Follow the link to read more! 

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