2023 Kia Forte Lxs on 2040-cars

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Kia plans dedicated PHEV by year’s end, battery-electric crossover in 2021

Back in January, Kia announced something it called its “Plan S” strategy. The $25 billion plan broadly outlines its targets for electric vehicles, with the highlight being plans to sell 11 battery-electric models by the end of 2025, including launching its first dedicated new EV here in the U.S. in 2021. Now we have some new details on what the Korean automaker has in mind for the latter, plus a juicy new tidbit about a new plug-in hybrid coming later this year. It comes via a scripted Earth Day video message between Neil Dunlop, product and technology PR manager, whoÂ’s shown wandering around a forest, and Steve Kosowski, manager of KiaÂ’s long-range strategy, product strategy and mobility, whoÂ’s quarantined at home. Kosowski calls Plan S “a preemptive shift” away from being a traditional manufacturer of combustion vehicles to one focused on electric vehicles, electrified vehicles and mobility. First up will be a dedicated new PHEV model coming to the U.S. by yearÂ’s end. There are no real details offered, but Kosowski brings up the HabaNiro crossover and Imagine concepts as examples of KiaÂ’s design excellence and innovation. The brand has already said the Imagine will go into production within one or two years, but it was never clear whether the “large C-segment car,” as they described it, would make it here. Imagine by Kia Concept View 12 Photos More is said about KiaÂ’s first dedicated EV model, due here by the end of 2021 — possibly earlier in other markets — and riding on a dedicated new EV platform. “ItÂ’s a crossover design that really blurs the line between passenger cars, CUVs, crossovers, itÂ’s a little bit car, a little bit crossover,” Kosowski says. It will have a range of about 300 miles and sub-20-minute fast-charging time. “In the end it will be a very stunning, dramatic new Kia EV, something that youÂ’ve never seen before.” The range figure squares with what Kia advertised with the HabaNiro concept, which it unveiled at the 2019 New York Auto Show, while the automaker has described both it and the Imagine as blurring traditional vehicle segment lines. Both concepts will doubtless lose some of their more fanciful elements — bye bye, HabaNiro's lava red interior — on the way to production, however. Kia is developing a new EV platform that it will share with Hyundai.

Kia Venga puts a fresh face on mini minivans

Minivans in America have grown to become anything but mini. That's not the case overseas, however, where Ford offers the B-Max, Citroen the C3 Picasso and Kia the Venga. On the European market now since 2009, the Venga shares its underpinnings with the Soul and with the Hyundai i20. The shape which Peter Schreyer sketched for it won a prestigious iF Design Award upon its debut, but five years later, it was time for a bit of a refresh. Debuting alongside the updated Rio at the Paris Motor Show, the new Venga has received some updated sheetmetal, an upgraded cabin and enhanced equipment – all the better for transporting a (small) family around some European metropolis, where the streets are narrow and the parking even tighter.

Kia decides on Mexico plant location for small car assembly

Mexico has long been a hot spot for auto manufacturing, but the country's fortunes have been boosted lately, with Honda, Mazda and Nissan recently adding factories there, and BMW is said to be poised to join them soon. Now, new reports indicate that Kia might start building south of the border to keep up with demand.
Insiders speaking to Reuters claim that the Korean automaker is very close to striking a deal to build a factory for two small models in Monterrey, Mexico, with a 300,000-vehicle annual capacity. Assembly could reportedly begin as soon as 21 months after ground is broken.
If true, Kia has done a fantastic job of keeping the deal under wraps. The only hint at anything like this brewing was a rumor last year that Hyundai may have investigation building a factory in Mexico. The company currently operates a factory in Georgia that builds the Optima and Sorento.