By Kim Tae-gyu
Korea Times Correspondent
IRVINE, Calif. ― Kia Motors, the major affiliate of Korea's Hyundai Automotive Group, will strive to continue its fast expansion in the United States by recording double-digit growth this year.
Kia Motors America (KMA), the subsidiary of Kia here, said Wednesday that it aims to sell a total of 347,000 vehicles in 2010 in the world's second-largest automotive market, up 15 percent from last year.
If the company achieves this goal, its market share is expected to top the 3 percent plateau just two years after surpassing 2 percent in 2008 when sales amounted to 270,000 cars
Tom Loveless, vice president of sales for KMA, said that the company would accomplish this goal by promoting its three go-to models, the 2011 Sorento, the Soul and the Forte.
``We are going to target three vehicles in terms of our priority. Our top priority is the all-new 2011 Sorento. We will do everything to make it a success,'' Loveless told a press conference at the KMA head office.
The 3 percent target does not appear to be overly aggressive. Considering Kia Motor's January performance, it even seems to be somewhat conservative.
According to trade journal Automotive News, U.S. end users snapped up 22,123 Kia vehicles during the first month of 2010, up 5.1 percent from the previous month. This translates into a market share of 3.2 percent.
In particular, Kia's brand-new models have won the hearts and minds of U.S. clients as amply demonstrated by the 2011 Sorento.
Some 7,398 of the crossover utility vehicles were sold in January alone as soon as it debuted, which is in line with the strategies of KMA.
The models are currently being cranked out in the U.S. factory of Kia Motors, which began operation late last month in West Point, Georgia, which is southwest of Atlanta.
``The 2011 Sorento attracts clients based on its highly-customized size, design and technology. Thanks to popularity of the made-in-the-U.S. Sorento models, we expect the brand awareness of Kia Motors to rise substantially,'' KMA said in a press release.
Kia tapped into the U.S. market in 1994 and has increased its presence together with its sister company Hyundai Motor.
The former has jacked up its market share there for the past 15 consecutive years on a year-on-year basis through 2009.
Along with Hyundai, Kia ranks as the world's sixth-largest automobile producer, a position attained by taking advantage of the global financial crisis in 2008 and 2009.
A vast majority of 44 auto-making brands in the U.S. saw their sales volume go down last year amid the economic distress with three exceptions, including Kia Motors and Hyundai Motor.