Kia Release New Venga Specification

As expected, Kia announced prices, specification and colours on its all new Kia Venga supermini/MPV.

Kia Venga Details

Kia are holding their first dealer conference today so we should see more detailed specs on the forth coming Kia Venga MPV.

The conference will also discuss the all new Kia Sorento SUV with prices, specs, colours etc.. to follow.

Both are due to launch 1st February.

In other Kia news the Korean car maker has shown its determination to have another great year by announcing its industry leading 7 year warranty across the entire car range. If that doesn't have the likes of Ford and GM quaking in their boots then nothing will.

Kia Strike With New Ceed Special Editions

As well as announcing it's new 2010 pricing structure Kia also launched two special edition models based on the Ceed 5door and sporty 3dr Pro Ceed hatch.

The new Ceed Strike 5dr will be available in three colours including a unique Byte Blue metallic paintwork.

Based around the entry level Ceed 1 with a 1.4 petrol engine, the Strike Limited Editions will include additonal equipment such as 16inch 'Dark' grey alloy wheels as well as Bluetooth and iPod connectivity. Other key features include remote central locking, body coloured door handles and air conditioning. Prices start at £10,995 OTR.

The Pro Ceed Strike will feature the same equipment as the 5dr hatch but with the addition of a rear boot spoiler. Available in unique Byte Blue metallic, Infra Red and Arctic white the Pro Ceed Strike will set a new entry price point for the Ceed range at £10,695 OTR.

With the VAT rising back to 17.5%, car manufacturers are desperately trying to keep the cost of vehicles down. To ensure they remain competitive Kia have set the Ceed Strike's price point by fixing the dealer margin, and like all its special editions, will not be supported by additional bonuses. As much as its network of dealers would like to make money, a lot are in favour of this strategy as it prevents desperate discounting which ultimately hurts the resale value. Not that Kia need any help shifting metal right now.

As they always say in motoring circles 'today's discount is tomorrows depreciation'.

Kia's New GDi Engine

88 million pounds and 46 mths later enter the new GDi engine from Kia.

Putting the Kia & Hyundai brands at the cutting edge of engine design and management the GDi needed to achieve three seemly incompatible goals: lower emissions while raising power output and improving fuel economy.

Based on the new Theta II family of units, the first engine to go to market is the 2.4 litre four cylinder unit with a compression ratio of 11.3:1, delivering 201ps at 6300rpm and 25.5kg.m of torque at 4250rpm in its initial Korean domestic market specification.

It's likely that the new 2010 Sorento & Santa Fe from Hyundai will get these engines when full production gets underway by the end of 2010.

GDI explained

One serious limitation of conventional fuel injection systems is that as engine revolutions increase, the valve opening and closing times get progressively shorter, thus reducing the time available to inject fuel. GDI avoids this problem altogether by positioning the fuel injector in the most optimal location, directly inside the combustion chamber to offer unparalleled precision. With this shorter and more direct path, far greater control is attained over the combustion process: A high pressure fuel pump injects the fuel at pressures of up to 150 bar, in precise amounts and intervals.

The injection is split into two phases to achieve optimum combustion: in the first phase, the pilot injection and ignition trigger the piston's downward power stroke. Then, in the main injection phase, during the piston's descent, more fuel is injected and is ignited.

This split-injection technique reduces loading on the catalytic converter and helps lower emissions. This is particularly beneficial during cold starts when emissions are highest because the catalyst has not reached its optimal operating temperature. Split-injection enables the catalytic converter to reach the optimal operating temperature faster thus reducing emissions by 25 percent during cold starts and meet’s California Air Resources Board’s ULEV-2 and PZEV standards.

Couple Name Baby Kia

When an expectant mother started going into labour at 2am in the morning, a quick call to her mother had them racing up the motorway en-route to hospital in her Kia Carens.

With a nervous dad onboard things had progressed somewhat and at 04:30am Samantha gave birth to a healthy baby girl weighing in at 6lbs 7ozs in the back of the Carens.

When Kia UK found out they presented the couple with a brand new shiny top of the range Carens. Nice gesture i have to say.

But that's not all. They also threw in two sets of waterproof seat covers and two car-car bags to keep their new Carens, and Grannie’s, nice and shiny.

And the new baby's name? Kia of course!!

Ceed Gets Driver Power

You know times have changed when so called 'lesser brands' like Skoda and Kia beat more established and posher marques from VW and Mercedes-Benz for driverbility.

Of course we all know the Skoda is really a Volkswagen but the Kia Ceed story is one deserving of merit.

In the latest AutoExpress Driver Power survey the Ceed came 6th overall and number one in the C-Segment class beating the VW Golf which came in at a lowly 22nd.

The Driver Power survey measures the views of over 21,400 new car drivers across the UK. The cars they drive are scrutinised and scored on their performance in a number of key areas, including practicality, build quality, reliability, and running costs.

The Kia dealer network was also under scrutiny and, amongst others, was measured on helpfulness and attitude, standard of workmanship and value for money.

In these hard economic times drivers are looking at alternative vehicles which give more value for money and the likes of VW can't rest on their laurels and assume brand snobbery will win the day. The bottom line is the Kia Ceed has a dynamic design, high build quality and frugal engines, all backed by a seven-year 100,000 mile warranty and all for much less wonger.

Kia Find Plenty Of Soul Mates

Despite a lack of heavyweight advertising the new Kia Soul is already proving popular with drivers across Europe.

Early figures show over 5000 units have been sold across Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France and here in the UK. This puts the Soul 13% above Kia's expected target of around 4425 units in the first quarter of 2009.

The lack of mainstream advertising has been down to slow production output and a high demand for other Kia products like the Ceed which is at the heart of Kia's global sales growth. However marketing of the Kia Soul gets underway in the USA and Australia this month and with the Soul’s monthly sales rate accelerating, with 1,334 cars delivered in January, the keys for a further 1,485 cars handed to customers in February and an additional 2,172 units being driven away from Kia dealer showrooms in March, Kia will be confident of supply and will throw more money at going to market.

Already a multi-award winner, the Kia Soul was the first Korean car ever to receive the prestigious recognition of a design award from the world renowned reddot product design competition. Here in the UK Fast Car magazine named Soul the ‘Best New Model for 2009’ and this week in the USA, Ward’s AutoWorld announced the winners of its annual ‘Interior of the Year’ awards. Soul was named ‘Grooviest Interior’ winning its class when looks, value, safety, comfort and convenience were assessed.

Kia Soul Concept Arrives in Detroit

The Kia Soul brought a sunny beach feel to the 2009 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS).

The Kia Soul’ster open-air concept, is a variation on the highly anticipated Kia Soul. The Soul'ster concept has ‘young at heart buyers’ budgets in mind. It’s to be an efficient front-drive car based on the Kia Soul production model, which made its debut at the 2008 Mondial de l’Automobile in Paris in October.

Like the Kia Soul it’s another example of Kia’s increased and long-term focus on design, with a unique face, the Soul’ster has a tough refined charter. This two-door concept, with roadster roots, in an exciting yellow finish, projects a hip industrial look. The windshield has been shortened for a sportier appearance and hunkered down appearance. The two piece roof will enable passengers to expose the front and back seating areas independently. The roll bar, serves a dual purpose and includes a place for the slider tracks, while providing protection not found in traditional convertibles.

The Kia Soul makes its debut in the UK in Spring of this year.

Kia In The Black And The Red

Kia launched two new special edition hatchbacks designed to kick start an early agressive sales campaign in 2009.

The Kia Picanto Red slots in between the 2 and 3 trims and offers a sporty rear spoiler, new designed 14" alloy wheels and front fog lamps as well as lower emissions to keep it in the ever popular £35 per year tax bracket.

Available in a unique Scarlet Red for no additional cost, the Picanto Red comes in both manual and automatic version starting from £7645 and £8430 respectively.

To match the exteior you'll get a nice coordinated red cloth trim, alloy pedals, an iPod compatible CD player with the usual AUX/USB connectivity, air conditioning and a host of other goodies thrown in for good measure.

For those who like something a little larger than a supermini there's a new Kia Rio 'Black' Special Edition.

Priced from a very tempting £8,745 OTR for the 1.4 litre petrol manual and £9,720 OTR for the 1.5 CRDi manual, the Rio Black is a unique factory built model with 16" alloy wheels and a rear spoiler to give it that mean sporty look.

All–Round Electric Windows, Front Fog Lights, Air Conditioning, 6 Airbags and a Midnight Black Mica Paint complements a very generous specification.

Finally the 1.4 petrol and 1.5 CRDi engines come with a 5-speed manual transmission with the diesel offering a low CO2 and band B £35 VED road tax.

The Rio Black is available now with the Picanto Red following in January.

Lower Emissions For Picanto

In an act of environmentalism, Kia have found a way to reduce the emissions on it's recently facelifted Kia Picanto supermini...rip one of the back seats out!!

Although the move isn't as drastic as it first sounds, the weight saving exercise is enough to push the emissions down to just 118g/km CO2 bringing it into VED tax band B, which costs the customer just £35 per year.

Currently Kia offer a 4-seat version on the basic Picanto 1.0 and 5-seats on the Picanto 2 & 3 variants.

Special Edition Picanto

The first production model to adopt this comes in the way of the new Picanto Chill. A special edition which includes air conditioning, remote central locking, iPod compatibility and a snazzy array of colours including a special blue paint.

This version also becomes exempt from the London Congestion Charge in the planned changes to the system due for introduction in October 2008. The automatic remains in tax band C with CO2 of 143g/km, costing £120 per year.

TV Still The Way Forward For Kia

After one rather weird and annoying TV ad, Kia are still determined to flaunt themselves on TV and ram the message home that the Korean giant means business.

As for that annoying TV ad, thank god we didn't get a sequel!

Instead, Kia went for a more subtle approach featuring a couple who meet for the first time and after a quick wizz around the block in a Kia Ceed, the guy turns to the lady and proposes marriage, children, a house, a dog and a lifetime of happiness. Naturally she says yes and so the story ends.

The notion being that everybody makes a commitment. The guy commits to buying a Kia for the first time, Kia commit themselves to a 7 year warranty, a first in Europe and the UK, and...you get the general idea. Lets hope the car and the marriage doesn't break down before 7 years. I digress

This latest TV deal only involves 1 years commitment where Kia Sponsors Channel Five and popular US crime shows including CSI series, CSI: Miami, CSI: NY, Law and Order, The Shield, NCIS and Criminal Minds.

Creating only 55 seconds of brand exposure within an hour of programming, Kia clearly feel this is money well spent. Idents will start with the Ceed and the Sportage, followed by the remainder of the range at a later date.

The programme starts tonight with CSI at 9pm.

Kia Realign Ceed Prices

Following a slow start to sales of Kia's all new Cee'd Hatchback and pressure from dealers, Kia recently announced a limited edition Ceed SR, with a price point of £10,495 (£500 less than the 1.4S).

Since then sales have started to show signs of recovery and to keep the momentum going, Kia announced a realignment of it's Diesel prices.

Following the success of the diesel for petrol pricing offer on Kia Rio and Sportage at the beginning of the year, and recognising the strength of their Cee’d diesel derivatives, Kia announced that from May 16th to June 30th 2007, all Cee’d S, GS and LS diesel derivatives will be available at the same price as the equivalent petrol derivatives. This offer excludes SR limited editions.

To help push along existing stocks of the 1.4 & 1.6 S model, which took a dip when the SR came along, Kia will also be offering dealers incentives to quickly sell these from stock, so expect some big discounting on those models.

Kia's new Zilina plant is now producing high volumes of Cee’d every day and next year it is planned to increase output further. So it's obvious Kia need to accelerate their sales performance to ensure the Kia Ceed becomes a major player in the C segment, and prepare for further sales growth in 2008.

Kia Ceed Three Day Test Drive Improvements

Kia UK have made some changes to their Kia Ceed three-day test drive programme to make it more flexible and ensure as many customers as possible take up the opportunity.

In the event of a no-show, Kia dealers can now open up the test drive to a walk-in prospect on the same day, provided the driver meets the necessary insurance requirements.

If your not familiar with the scheme visit the Kia Three Day Test Drive website for more information.

Meanwhile new service books for existing Kia Ceed customers with vehicles covered by the improved 7 year warranty packages will be available this week. Owners are being contacted directly by KMUK, but the handover of the new documents may provide an opportunity for dealers to gain new service plan sales.