Kia wants to be the sporty half of the Hyundai-Kia alliance, but that just hasn't come through in any of the brand's production cars. That might change if the Kia Koup concept goes into production, and it almost certainly will: "This is a production-ready design that could find its way into the Kia lineup and perhaps sooner than one might think," said Tom Kearns, chief designer for Kia Motors America (and owner of a '71 Porsche 911 S). When we do see it, expect "Spectra" to be part of its name, as the Koup is built on the company's front-drive, C-segment platform.
It comes straight out of Kia's new Irvine design studio, so it's no surprise to see styling cues borrowed from cars like the Honda Civic coupe and Scion tC. There's also some early '80s Lotus Esprit in there, as the lead designer, Kurt Kahl, bought one just before starting in on this 10-month project. The very angular look of the wedge-shaped coupe is quite intentional. As Hyundai goes for more organic designs (i.e., Genesis coupe), Kia will use harder lines to differentiate itself.
Naturally, Peter Schreyer, Kia's head of design, exerted some influence on the project as well. He's a fan of Miles Davis, apparently, and wanted the young design team to let its creativity flow much as Davis did on his trumpet. That's a nice image, but this was likely just a convenient talking point for Kearns and communications chief Alex Fedorak during the breakfast show-style press conference.
Just as interesting to us is the engine Kia plans to use. It's a version of the 2.0-liter Theta inline-4 in the current Spectra, but Kia has gone all modern and added a twin-scroll turbocharger and direct injection, providing huge gains in power and torque -- 290 hp and 289 pound-feet of torque, the latter available from 2,000-4,000 rpm. Obviously, all sorts of measures would have to be taken to keep torque steer in check, but Mazda has shown that big-horsepower front-drivers can be fun. The showcar has a six-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.
If Kia really wants to change its image, this Koup coupe will have to handle well. Specifically, it will have to be much more athletic than the current Spectra. But it's hard to make any predictions now. The Koup has showy bits like adaptive damping, fatty 245/40ZR19 tires and cross-drilled brake rotors, but we doubt any of these items could survive on a production car priced to compete with the Civic Si and Scion tC. We really do like those sinister, carbon-fiber-trimmed wheels, though. -- Erin Riches, Senior Editor, Inside Line
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Dare I say it, a cool Korean car? Yes, yes I think think I will. This one looks nice, certainly better than the Tiburon/Coupe and makes a nice companion sporty model to Hyundai's Genesis two-door. I don't begrudge the success of the South Koreans one bit, if they keep it up like this.
Wow! Brembo front brake calipers on a Kia! Who would've "thunk" it? I'm going to guess the rears aren't Brembos.
Hey Hyundai, how about dropping this 290hp DI turbo 4cyl into the lightweight Spec R Genesis Coupe? That would be a awesome tuner platform.
fwd??? this is gonna be disappointing unless kia can make this "zoom zoom" like mazda can. its no easy feat... make it rwd or awd and you'll have something special.
I think its is the first KIA I've ever enjoyed.....I'd be interested to sit in the production model.
In this photo, it looks like there might be Brembo rear brake calipers, too (HTML used due to link length). That's pretty crazy!
The tires appear to be Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3 tires, which are the same type of tires the long-term Ferrari 308 has. :o)
I do see the Civic and tC design cues, but I have to say I think this car looks downright German. The front end looks very VW while the rear screams Audi or BMW. The interior looks production-ready.
Overall a marvelous design. This would certainly be an adequate successor to the Tiburon.
can i say this is a hot design study! i love how it is so original and it doesnt mimic the genesis coupe. and i have to agree with estreka it does combine honda and scion design but it is executed much more fluidity. i hope that they do build this car as kia is hyundai's 'young image' maker. great job kia! keep it up! you are making this korean car owner proud!
It's like a organized honda civic si without the retarded elongated dash of the civic. I like it alot, I hope it comes in four doors.
I checked the specs -- the Koup does have Brembo calipers all the way around. But I can't see those making it to the production version.
I'm not much of a Kia or Hyundai fan but I really like this. :)
Looks oh so cool.
And I agree, the Genesis SPEC R should have this engine as long as it's above 300 HP.
This will be a sweet ride as long as they keep it as close to this show car as possible and it is tuner friendly!
Can You Spell CIVIC