Sonoma in a Sedona - And a Chat with Kia CEO Len Hunt
I just got back from an 800-mile drive in our long-term Sedona. You can read the details on our long-term blog
, but the short version is that this minivan is yet another example of how Kia is stealing sales from long-time players. The van may not be the best in the category, but it's not far off the leaders, and (as usual with Kia) the price makes it quite the value proposition.
We're having a chat tonight with Len Hunt
, the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Kia Motors of America...
If you've got questions to ask regarding the state of Kia's product offering in the U.S. you can ask the man in charge directly between 6 and 7 Pacific Time. Is there really a truck in Kia's future? How close is the relationship between Hyundai and Kia in terms of parts sharing? How many times has he heard the "Ka-Ka-Ka-Kia" joke?
You can ask Len Hunt these questions and more tonight.
Will Kia also benefit from Hyundai's new car with Rear Wheel Drive?
Wow....that question shut us up good! Good luck, karl. You'll have to field this one yourself.
Yes, I believe Kia will benefit from the rear-wheel drive platform. Probably a year or two after Genesis goes on sale.
Are they still pretending to be Hyundai's sporty side?
I think they're supposed to be Hyundai's "lower-priced" side, which is sort of funny when you think about a "lower-priced Hyundai" concept. Not quite the same ring as "lower-priced Audi" (VW) or "lower-priced Lexus" (Toyota). But, as the Genesis shows, Hyundai is preparing to move up-market in the coming years, so Kia will be there to maintain their "low-priced/value" image.
Let's all give a shout-out for "Keepin' it real Kia!"
Soooo... no one has anything to report from the chat with Mr. Hunt?
Is the archive of the chat available to view? If so, where is it located?
I know we used to post the archive. Let me check.
Just checked. The archive will go up in about a week. I'll try to remember to put a link in here.
Kias make much better cars now a days but till the resale price issue is sorted out, buyers will stay away.
On the other hand, we can always rent a Kia.
It's been almost two weeks Karl... :-)
Transcript is up. You can use the link above to see it. Not sure when it went up exactly, but thanks for the reminder.