By Kim Hyun-cheol
Staff Reporter
Kia Motors Friday announced it will unveil its latest small-sized sedan model, the Forte, at its headquarters in Seoul next week.
A 1.6-liter edition will first debut in the Korean market, and the lineup will be extended to a 2.0-liter one at the end of the year if early, the automaker said.
The first official images of the Forte, which will replace the current Cerato, were released last month. The Forte will first be available in a sedan body only, but a new coupe model will be also launched next year, Kia said.
The new vehicle draws heavily on the style of the recently revealed concept model Koup, also featuring a new, edgier look under the baton of Kia's design chief Peter Schreyer, whose works include bestsellers Audi TT and the Volkswagen New Beetle.
Using the same engine with the Avante, Hyundai Motor's steady seller, the Forte has a slightly longer body by 2.5 centimeters. Its price range is also likely to be set slightly higher than the Avante at around 12 million won ($11,541) for the basic edition.
Kia expects the Forte to attract a younger target audience, and will also help the manufacturer reach its goal of doubling its global sales tally by 2010 by offering customers a more upmarket and stylish range of models.
Once launched, the Forte will compete with SM3 of Renault Samsung and the Avante. The emulation will be more intense later this year, when GM Daewoo launches its newest model, currently called "J300," which is its project name, purportedly in October.
Kia is showing confidence that the edgy Forte can take the advantage among its rivals. Its ambition with the new model, however, could be much deeper than seen above the water.
In spite of a solid reputation in recreational vehicles, Kia has been shadowed by its family firm Hyundai.
Its first new model of the year, the Mojave, couldn't get over Hyundai's Veracruz, which was launched two years ago. Its sales were tallied at 5,725 in the first half of the year, while the Veracruz sold 6,351.
Before this year, the Lotze sedan was outshined by Hyundai's bestseller Sonata, and the Sportage by the Tucson. Kia's breakthroughs always came in fields not overlapped by Hyundai ― as in examples of mini car New Morning, mini vans Carens and Grand Carnival.
With the two marquees sharing same engines and interior features, lower brand value and demerits in design have been a huge drag for Kia. The trend, however, is gradually changing under design chief Schreyer.
Lotze Innovation, the Lotze's new edition and also the first product since the German designer took office, is slowly catching up with the Sonata. Launched in June, it sold 5,117 vehicles in the first month to outnumber Renault Samsung's SM5 first time in 29 months.
Growing sales of Kia in the end means more shares of an unrivaled Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group in the local market.
Market share of Hyundai-Kia, world's fifth biggest automaker, grew to 76.3 percent in the January-June period this year. The company is looking to extend the figure up to 85 percent by the end of the year.