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(Tue 02 Mar 10) Kia's stand at this year's Geneva Show is a busy old place, with a new model, a superlow-CO2 version of an existing car and an all-electric vehicle on display.
The new model is the latest Sportage, which has a tougher act to follow than its predecessor did. The original Sportage was nothing special at all, but the one that replaced it in 2004 was very substantially better, not least because apart from its practicality it had outstanding ride quality. As previously reported, the third-generation car is longer, lower and wider than the current one. It's also more aerodynamic, and although the larger rear overhang might mean a slight reduction in off-road ability, it has also (along with a more compact rear suspension layout) allowed Kia to increase the luggage capacity to 564 litres with the rear seats in place and 1353 litres when they are folded down. Kia says that the Sportage will be offered in LX and EX trim levels, with a choice of four engines (two-litre petrol and diesel, plus a 1.7 diesel and a 1.6 direct-injection petrol), front- or four-wheel drive and manual or automatic transmission. UK specifications have not yet been confirmed, so we might not get everything in that list, though it's a safe bet that the all-new two-litre diesel will be offered here.
The low-CO2 car is a version of the cee'd. In our road test of the cee'd EcoDynamics we expressed some disappointment that its CO2 emissions were officially 110g/km. That would have been outstanding five years ago, but it's less so now that several manufacturers are creating similarly-sized cars which beat the 100g/km mark. Kia seems to have been aware of this too, and the prototype cee'd on display at Geneva has a much more impressive figure of 98g/km. That has been achieved by remapping the ignition and fuel injection, raising the gearing, using low-viscosity oil in the engine and transmission and fitting a more efficient alternator and a less power-sapping water pump. This would be a very good car for Kia to sell in the UK, but there are no immediate plans. According to Kia UK Managing Director Michael Cole, "We are constantly monitoring demand in the UK market and we will be working with our colleagues at Kia Motors Europe to bring this further developed technology to the UK at the appropriate time."
The electric car is based on the Venga. Instead of an engine, there's a 107bhp electric motor lying under the bonnet, while the fuel tank under the boot floor has been replaced by a battery pack. Kia says the top speed is 87mph and the 0-62mph time is 11.8 seconds, while the battery can be fully recharged from a mains supply in eight hours, or to 80% of its capacity in twenty minutes using a quick recharging cycle. |
