Here are the very-first interior spy shots of the forthcoming Kia TAM. Have a look!

Although we have seen some Kia TAM spy shots before, this is the first time we get an up-close look at the interior of Kia’s first-ever “kei-style” car. These spy shots are not of the highest quality, but at least they give us the first good look at the TAM’s interior layout.

The new Kia Tam is a sub-compact crossover vehicle built upon the same platform as 2012 Kia Picanto. Although the actual dimensions of the vehicle have not been release yet, the TAM appears to be about the same size as Picanto city-car, with exception of much higher roof. Perfect size for rural city area.

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Kia Racing wins yet another motor competition as Michael Galati and Nic Jönsson drive their Kia Forte Koup first to the finish Line.

With Kia Motors America still celebrating their historic first win in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge -CTSCC in April, the motoring team of the company has added another feather in its cap by winning the Road America 200 in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

Michael Galati and Nic Jönsson were the winners in the GRAND-AM, and they have shown their mettle once again by winning this latest competition. Their No. 10 Infinity Audio Kia Forte Koup won the competition from more than 25 other teams. In a thrilling 2.5-hour race, Michael and Nic used the Forte Koup’s braking and handling to their advantage to beat other cars, some of which were turbocharged.

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Kelley’s Blue Book names 2011 Kia Forte Koup one of the “Top 10 Coolest Cars Under $18.000″!

The Kia 2011 Forte Koup has been named one of the “Top 10 Coolest Cars Under $18,000″ by Kelley Blue Book’s popular site kbb.com. Kelley Blue Book is the leading and one of the most popular providers of information regarding new and used cars in the USA.

The “Top 10 Coolest New Cars Under $18,000″ list surveyed the marketplace for new cars that were fun to own, drive and, most importantly, had the “cool factor”. The editors of kbb.com included the cars by checking their Fair Purchase Price from Kelley Blue Book, which accurately reflects the changing prices in a changing marketplace.

The 2011 Forte Koup was selected for the list because of its style, affordability and modern technologies that it provides at the given price range. According to the editors of Kelley Blue Book’s kbb.com, the Kia Forte Koup was also the sportiest looking car in the list.

Those who don’t know much about the stylish sports coupe from Kia, let us reveal you a few important facts about it. The Forte Koup comes in two trims, EX and SX, and is a two-door coupe that come pre-installed with an overabundance of amenities and power.

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Kia Motors is back again with an ad campaign that has the cast of popular children’s characters that were first seen during the 2010 Super Bowl.

Titled Joyride 2, the campaign has different children’s characters, that include Muno (from the award winning series YO GABBA GABBA!, that was created by Christian Jacobs and Scott Schultz), Sock Monkey ( from In My Own Dream Studio), MR. X (BLABLA KIDS) and a teddy bear and vintage robot.

All these characters are shown to go on a summer road trip that has line dancing, skydiving, and a fishing expedition. While on the road trip, the characters are shown to interact with the locals, including a bear that is angry for some reason. They are then shown to take a spin in the 2012 Kia Sorento crossover with class-leading fuel economy and horsepower.

The original Joyride campaign was created by David&Goliath, Kia Motors America’s ad agency of record; and they are also the agency responsible for the Joyride 2. The campaign’s main theme is the adventures that await a young couple with their Sorento. The first unique spot has been aired already, and the second one will be aired in July.

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Kia Motors launches new video commercial showcasing the 2012 Picanto city-car painted in Lemongrass exterior color!

What we have here is a brand-new video commercial for the 2012 Kia Picanto, which will be used to promote the forth-coming city car across entire world. The commercial features funky music and showcases some of the convenience features available in the Picanto. Those include LED headlights, six airbags, power-folding side-view mirrors with LED turn signal, slide power sunroof and stylish alloy-wheels.

The 2012 Kia Picanto will soon be available on all major markets across the world, except of North America. Initially, the model will only be offered as a five-door hatchback but later Kia also plans to introduce a sportier three-door version with unique treatment to C-pillar, bumpers and grille. Unfortunately, the all-new Kia Picanto 3-door will be marketed exclusively for European market.

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Kia Motors announced its global sales figures for passenger cars and recreational vehicles for May 2011, with a record total of 207.839 units sold. This represents a year-on-year increase of 18.7 percent over the same month a year ago.

The best selling Kia Motors’ car for the overseas market (which includes every market excluding the home country of Korea) was the C-segment Cerato/Forte. With 38.204 units sold in the overseas market in the month of May 2011, the Cerato has definitely caught the interest of consumers.

The second-highest selling vehicle from Kia was the popular Sportage crossover, selling 28.563 units during the same month of May. The rest of the top sellers were the mid-size CUV Sorento with 18.459 units sold, B-segment Rio with 18.191 units sold, and the 2012 Soul crossover vehicle with at 17.812 units sold.

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The popular hamster ad campaign from Kia Motors has just been awarded one of the most prestigious advertizing awards, the Gold Effie award by the 2011 North American Effie Awards.

The hamster oriented advertizing campaign for the Kia Motors’ Soul urban crossover vehicle was awarded the Effie in the “David vs Goliath” category. This category recognizes campaigns and brands that are punching above their weight in the market – the advertizing David taking on the advertizing Goliaths. The campaign consisted of dancing and singing hamsters, and was called “This or That” campaign.

The “This or That” campaign comes after another successful campaign called “A New Way To Roll”. Both the campaigns have attracted attention from customers, and led to increased sales of the Kia Soul, as well as more awareness of the Kia brand.

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Parents Magazine and Edmunds.com name 2012 Kia Sorento CUV one of the “Best Family Cars of 2011″!

The Sorento CUV has been a favorite of consumers ever since its launch in early 2010, making it Kia Motors’ best-selling vehicle in the States. The reasons for its success were brought to the fore again when it was named one of the “Best Family Cars of 2011″ by Parents Magazine and Edmunds.com.

Kia Sorento was selected for this honor because it offers families a number of convenience and safety features, including a spacious interior, the option of third row seating, responsive handling and a low price. The car has been mentioned in other Best Cars of 2011 lists, including in Kiplinger’s Personal Finance’s “Best Cars for Families”, and Kelley Blue Book or kbb.com’s  “Top 10 Cars for 2011″.

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New Kia TAM image hits the web; previews Kia’s new mini-MPV, which is scheduled to debut in Korea during the second half of 2011!

South Korean automobile enthusiast portal Motorblog.kr today released the “rendering image” of the new Kia TAM in advance of the sub-compact MPV’s official debut. The image previews Kia’s forthcoming mini-MPV,  which will be at the automakers production plant in South Korea alongside the 2012 Kia Picanto.

Codenamed TAM, the all-new mini-MPV is expected to reach the Korean Kia dealerships in the second half of 2011, while later it might also appear in Europe and other International markets.

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Kia Motors America reveals more details about expansion plans for its Georgia-based manufacturing plant…

Kia Motors Manufacturing of Georgia recently announced plans for a $100 million expansion that will create 1000 new jobs at its manufacturing plant located in West Point, Georgia. With expansion works, Kia will lift the annual production of vehicles from 300.000 in 2011 to as much as 360.000 in 2012.

The expansion plan will upgrade the stamping shop with a 5.400-ton transfer press, while the welding shop will get additional robots. Kia also intends to increase the size of paint shop to accommodate the complexities involved with producing a new vehicle and add more than 500 additional parking spaces in the team member parking area.

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Kia Motors America’s unprecedented growth trend continued in May with the brand posting its best-ever monthly sales of 48.212 units – a 53.4-percent increase from May 2010, and a 2.4-percent increase over the previous record set last month.

Kia’s year-to-date sales are up 44.8 percent over 2010, while the brand’s U.S. market share climbed to an all-time high on the strength of May sales. The U.S. built* Sorento was Kia’s best-selling vehicle for the 17th consecutive month.

Demand for the popular Soul urban passenger vehicle remained high in May, exceeding its previous best-ever sales total with 11.157 units sold.

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Kia updates its best-selling 2012 Sorento crossover with 2,4L GDI four-cylinder engine and UVO infotainment system!

The Georgia-made Kia Sorento has just gotten better. For the new model year, Kia Motors America upgraded its best-selling vehicle with new engine, which boasts more power, and Kia’s new UVO hands-free infotainment system based on the Windows Embedded Automotive platform.

The 2012 Kia Sorento is available with 2,4L four-cylinder engine which features gasoline direct-injection -GDI technology. Kia’s upgraded four-cylinder engine powerplant packing 191 horsepower. In comparison to non-GDI engine, the new unit delivers lower emissions and outstanding fuel economy rating. According to Kia Motor America, the 2012 Sorento crossover achieves up to 32 MPG on highway.

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