Kia Soul and hybrid concepts star in Paris

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2008-10-03 16:49

Seoul--(뉴스와이어)--The eagerly awaited Kia Soul urban crossover passenger car unveiled by Kia Motors Corporation at the Mondial de l’Automobile in Paris today (Thursday) is destined to appeal to a whole new group of European, North American and global consumers. Also on display in France are the new ISG (Idle Stop&Go) equipped Kia cee’d, new concept models of the cee’d Hybrid and Soul Hybrid, and the zero-emissions hydrogen-powered Kia Sportage FCEV prototype.

“Soul redefines the concept of freedom. It’s a brand new urban car packed full of liberating ideas – a car that challenges every consumer to ‘free your mind’ and to rethink everything they know about Kia,” enthuses Mr. Hyoung-Keun Lee, Senior Executive Vice President and COO, International Business Division, Kia Motors Corporation.

Kia Motors Corporation Chief Design Officer, Peter Schreyer, who has overseen the evolution of Kia Soul from 2006 concept fantasy to its 2008 production reality, comments, “Conceived in the USA, developed in Korea and fine-tuned in Europe, I strongly believe that the production Kia Soul has successfully achieved its own distinctive style and will generate an irresistible customer appeal for the young-at-heart.”

Choice of 126 ps diesel and gasoline engines
Soul customers in Europe will be offered a choice of 126 ps diesel or 126 ps gasoline engine, based closely on the 1.6-litre units produced for the successful Kia cee’d model made in Slovakia. For the USA, Canada and some non-European general markets, the Kia Soul will also be available with a 2-litre, 142 ps gasoline engine.

Soul acceleration times (to 100 kph) range from 10.4 to 11.3 seconds and fuel consumption spreads over a 5.1 to 6.6 litres/100 km span, while CO2 figures vary between 137 and 159 g/km for European models.

Kia Soul cars supplied to the majority of countries in Western Europe and all of North America will be fitted with six airbags, four disc brakes and ESP (Electronic Stability
Programme) as standard.

Every Kia Soul in Europe will be equipped with a factory-fit RDS radio/CD player with MP3 compatibility, plus six audio speakers, a 112-watt output, innovative PowerBass technology and a roof-top antenna. An Upgraded Sound System – complete with ‘Sound Sensitive Mood Lighting’, 315-watt output, a large dash-top centre speaker, external amplifier and a sub-woofer in the trunk for a total of eight speakers – can be specified.

To celebrate the arrival of Soul, Kia will be displaying seven examples of its latest model at a special ‘Soul World’ zone throughout the 18-day Paris Show.

Four new models star in Kia’s ‘Green Zone’
Kia is displaying four new models in its ‘Green Zone’ at Paris – the Kia cee’d ISG, Soul Hybrid, cee’d Hybrid and Sportage FCEV. Kia’s new ISG (Idle Stop&Go) system, which makes its world premiere at Paris, will be available on Kia cee’d gasoline models from early 2009. The innovative ISG system cuts fuel consumption and emissions in heavy traffic by up to 15%.

Also making their world premieres at Paris are the Kia cee’d Hybrid and the Kia Soul Hybrid concept cars. Both cars feature a 1.6-litre gasoline engine, mated to a 15 kW, 105 Nm electric motor and automatic transmission. Fuel consumption is greatly reduced and CO2 emissions are cut to as low as 114 g/km for the cee’d Hybrid.

As part of Kia Motors Corporation’s continuing fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV) test programme, the zero-emissions Kia Sportage FCEV is undergoing constant evolution and now boasts a higher output 100kW (136 ps) fuel cell, lively performance and greatly extended 300 km driving range.

Editor’s note:
Please contact pr@kia.co.kr for the full Kia Paris Motor Show press kit and images.

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. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the world's premier automotive brands. More than 1.4 million vehicles a year are produced in 14 manufacturing and assembly operations in eight countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 165 countries. Kia today has over 40,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of almost US$17 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis Open and an official worldwide sponsor of the Davis Cup. Kia is an official automotive partner of FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World Cup -- as well as a EUROTOP partner of UEFA. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.

웹사이트: http://www.kiamotors.com