2005 Kia Sedona on 2040-cars

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Kia previews next-gen infotainment systems at CES

While improving its quality, appeal and market share in recent years, Kia has made tremendous strides in transportation technology as well, and aims to further that at the upcoming Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas with new telematics and infotainment systems.
Among the new tech Kia will be displaying at CES this year will be several future advancements to its UVO system. The User-Centered Driver (UCD) concept centers around a widescreen head-up display that projects vital data such as speed, navigation directions and traffic information across 18 inches above the instrument cluster, joined by a 12.3-inch TFT display that presents the information in a 3D view, wireless mobile charging and hand-gesture recognition.
The In-Vehicle Information (IVI) concept uses a multi-display system (based around a 20-inch multi-touch center-console display) that synchronizes with a tablet or smartphone to interface with the concierge service, social networking, parking assist and smart radio functions. The system also enables vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication and HD wireless connectivity.

Rimac will help Kia turn the Imagine concept into a high-performance flagship

The segment-bending Imagine concept Kia unveiled at the 2019 Geneva auto show will spawn a high-performance flagship in 2021. Rimac, which Kia and Hyundai jointly invested in, will help bring it to the market. "This car will have a significant effect on how consumers perceive Kia and its part in future electrification. We want it to demonstrate super-high performance levels but in a package that is different," affirmed Carlos Lahoz, the automaker's marketing chief, in an interview with British magazine Autocar. "Super-high performance" isn't a term we've ever used to describe a Kia, even the Stinger doesn't merit this label, so Lahoz's comments sketch an image of a model that breaks all ties with members of the company's current range. Croatia-based Rimac, an expert in making quick electric cars, will play a role in the development process. The extent of Rimac's involvement remains a mystery. Similarly, we don't know how Kia defines the term "super-high performance," and whether it alludes to straight-line speed, Tail of the Dragon-taming handling, or both. Like the Imagine concept (pictured), the production model will arrive as a sedan-crossover cocktail vaguely reminiscent of the short-lived Volvo S60 Cross Country, among other high-riding four-doors. Its front and rear ends will likely be toned down, but Kia stylists have been on a roll in recent years so we expect a head-turning design. As for the 21-screen infotainment system, which Kia labeled a "humorous riposte" to the industry's obsession with in-car displays, we're betting it won't make the leap from the show floor to the showroom floor.  The sheet metal will hide a new platform Kia is developing jointly with Hyundai specifically to underpin electric cars. Autoblog understands it will underpin future Genesis models, too. The architecture will be compatible with an 800-volt electrical system that charges the battery from 20% to 80% in 20 minutes, and Autocar reported the Imagine will offer up to 310 miles of driving range, though odds are that's on the optimistic WLTP testing cycle. Kia's announcement that the Imagine — a name the production version won't wear — will arrive in 2021 suggests it could land on our shores for the 2022 model year. The company hasn't revealed whether it will sell the model in the United States, however. Don't let the idea of a high-horsepower, quasi-luxury electric car from Kia fool you.

Are old airbags killers?

Takata airbags may not be the only ones with some very serious problems. A new report from TheDetroitBureau.com claims that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has opened its second investigation into bad airbag inflators, and this time, they aren't from Takata. The focus of this latest case is on the airbag inflators in some 500,000 older Chrysler Town and Country minivans and Kia Optima sedans, all of which come from ARC Automotive. While the Takata case looks at problems stemming from the engineering and production process, the ARC investigation focuses on the age of the inflators. As TDB explains, airbag inflators are essentially what the military refers to as shaped charges, sort of like Claymores (for fans of the Call of Duty series). In combat, they blow up in a specific direction, protecting those behind the explosion, although in the case of airbags, the explosion "[creates] a precise rush of hot gases" that inflate the bags. NHTSA's worry is that with the increased average age of today's vehicles, years and years of being bounced, jolted, and shaken about and exposed to often-radical temperature changes have altered the nature of the explosives in these vehicles, causing too big of an explosion. "It may be a reasonable assumption that as these things age they deteriorate." – Analyst George Peterson "It may be a reasonable assumption that as these things age they deteriorate," analyst George Peterson told TheDetroitBureau.com. NHTSA boss Mark Rosekind backed up aging angle. "Cars are lasting on the road a lot longer than ever before," Rosekind told TDB, adding that seals could start breaking down. "Is aging now an issue? That's part of the investigation going on." NHTSA has only identified two "incidents" so far, although according to Center for Auto Safety Director Clarence Ditlow, there's genuine concern that there could be additional unidentified cases. "Could we have missed more? That could be the case," Ditlow told TDB, citing the misidentified deaths in the Takata investigation. Ditlow was quick to point out that, even in older vehicles, airbags are much more likely to protect than harm. "No one is saying you should disable your airbags," the safety advocate told TDB. "You're far more likely to be helped than hurt by one if they go off." At least one automaker, meanwhile, has already been advised of the investigation by NHTSA and is checking its airbags.