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Wonder Woman Kia Sportage is anything but invisible

The spectacular partnering of Kia and DC Entertainment (the company we grew up loving as DC Comics) continues here at the New York Auto Show, with this Wonder Woman-inspired 2013 Kia Sportage. Ardent Autoblog readers will undoubtedly remember the fruits of earlier Kia/DC efforts: Batman Optima, Flash Forte Koup, Green Lantern Soul, Cyborg Forte, Aquaman Rio and Superman Optima Hybrid. (We're still trying to figure out who Cyborg is, too.)
The Wonder Woman Sportage, sporting the Amazing Amazon's particularly patriotic livery, is perhaps the most, eh, eye-catching super-Kia to date. (Actually, no, none of the superhero rides seared our eyeballs like Supe's hybrid.) Red, white and blue paint with spangled sides, an aggressively low body kit and a WW logo grille really sell the theme. Of course, The Lasso of Truth is represented too, showing up in the design as a subtle gold line that wraps around the bodywork.
As with the earlier DC concept cars, the Wonder Woman Sportage's real goal - aside from entertaining the kid-contingent of auto show goers - is to raise awareness for the We Can Be Heroes charity. The DC charitable program seeks to raise money and awareness about the hunger crisis in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia. Get a better look at Wonder Woman's crossover in our attached galleries and find the Kia press release below.

In lifetime analysis, Kia Soul EV is way, way cleaner than diesel model

The heart of the matter is that the battery-electric Kia Soul is better for the environment. And not just because it doesn't create any emissions while on the road. From beginning to end, the Soul EV has a far lower environmental impact than its more conventional counterparts. TUV Nord, the German technical inspection group, says the Soul EV has a carbon footprint that is 40-percent smaller than the one from the diesel-powered Soul sold in Europe. That's factoring in everything from the materials that go into building the car to the recyclability once it's defunct to, of course, tailpipe emissions. Or lack thereof. Kia plans to start sales of the Soul EV in its native South Korea sometime this year and is keeping global sales expectations modest, saying it plans to make about 5,000 Soul EVs annually. The car will be priced at the equivalent of about $39,000 US in South Korea, though government subsidies will cut that down a bit. Kia hasn't set an official launch date for the car in the US, but expects for the Soul EV to be available to Americans by the end of the year, Kia US spokesman James Hope told AutoblogGreen. Check out the press release about the Kia Soul EV's TUV Nord score below and read our First Drive impressions of the model here. Kia Soul EV earns whole-life environmental certificate - Soul EV achieves major TUV Nord Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) certificate - ISO 14040 certification considers whole-life environmental impact of Soul EV (SEOUL) June 18, 2014 – The Kia Soul EV has become the latest model from the Korean brand to earn important certification for its outstanding whole-life environmental credentials. TUV Nord, an independent technical inspection organisation, has certified the new Kia Soul EV according to the ISO 14040 Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) standard. LCA examines the environmental impact of both the car and the overall manufacturing process throughout its whole life, taking into account factors such as choice of materials, tailpipe emissions and recycling. Comparing the Soul EV to its diesel counterpart currently on sale in Europe, the zero-emissions electric vehicle scored particularly strongly for 'Global Warming Potential', emitting 39.7% fewer greenhouse gases over the whole life of the vehicle, such as carbon dioxide and methane.

LeBron James ad claims $10M fan bet proving he drives K900

As one of the nation's most famous and top paid professional athletes, LeBron James' Kia K900 sponsorship has always left us suspicious to its sincerity. The basketball player could buy any other vehicle in the world but claimed to be a fan of Kia's rear-wheel drive sedan even before he signed up as the brand's pitchman. While no weirder than many other NBA auto ads, the idea is still hard to believe. The company now wants to challenge the cynics with a three-commercial campaign called The Truth that stars King James responding to actual tweets about him driving the K900. The first commercial titled Ten Mil (above) starts with James checking Twitter and finding a skeptic that bets $10 million that the player doesn't drive the K900 to games. Since that's not the case, James confirms that a wager on social media is a binding contract and hops in the Kia with an armored car following him to go pick up the cash. However, the spot misses the mark slightly because we still only have James' word that he really takes the Kia to games Once the spots start airing, you can bet Cleveland fans start keeping an eye on how the player arrives to Quicken Loans Arena. It better be in the K900 for this campaign to work. LEBRON JAMES TELLS "THE TRUTH" ABOUT DRIVING HIS KIA K900 LUXURY SEDAN 11-Time NBA All-Star Responds To Real Tweets in New Ad Campaign First of three spots from "The Truth" campaign will begin airing on TV tonight and can be viewed at Kia.com and YouTube.com/Kia Multiplatform campaign will run through the remainder of basketball season and includes television, digital and social media elements IRVINE, Calif., December 3, 2015 – Last year, when LeBron James Tweeted "Rolling around in my K900. Love this car!!" and later stated he was a K900 driver before becoming Kia Motors' luxury ambassador, naysayers took to social media to question the validity of his claims. Now, with sales of Kia's rear-drive luxury sedan up considerably over 2014 levels, the 11-time NBA All-Star and avid car collector is tackling that skepticism head-on to prove the K900 is in fact "Fit For A King" in a new ad campaign from Kia Motors America (KMA).