Sportage and Kia Optima triumph at the world-renowned design competition
Having
swept the board at the iF awards, the new Sportage and Kia Optima have now gone on
to impress the jury of the "red dot award" design competition - one
of the best-known and most highly regarded of its kind in the world. Some 1,700
companies from 60 countries took part this year. In
addition to evaluating design, the top-class international jury also
considered innovation, functional effectiveness, ergonomics,
durability, ecological compatibility and user friendliness.
The new Sportage: muscular in appearance, with elegant contours
The new
Sportage earned the highly sought-after red dot with a design which marks a
fundamental change of direction in the shaping of compact SUVs. It embodies the
newly developed visual dynamics of the Kia brand by combining essential SUV
features (athletic appearance, generous ground clearance, raised seating
position and a sense of great robustness and safety) with elegant, urban and
cosmopolitan contours. At the same
time, the spacious cabin provides safety for all occupants while appearing just
as dynamic and athletic as the exterior design.
The new Kia Optima: best of the best!
Designed
under Peter Schreyer’s guidance by Kia design teams in Frankfurt, Germany and
Irvine, California, the new Kia Optima is hitting the European market in late 2011.
It even managed to win the very highest
award of the competition, coming top in the category "best of the best" - the highest possible endorsement for ground-breaking design which
is only conferred on the very best products in a category.
With its
entirely new shaping, this medium category sedan and successor to the Magentis
perpetuates the design-oriented transformation of the Kia brand. The Optima's
elegant proportions, striking lines and streamlined side profile give the new
Kia Optima (length: 4.85 metres, width: 1.83 metres) an air of luxury,
self-confidence and athletic flair. The members of the jury were also impressed
by the vehicle's long drawn-out, flat roof line and the clearly shaped,
striking rear.
In the same
way as its ground-breaking exterior appearance, the sedan's comfortable
interior, newly developed high-performance engines and exceptional fuel
efficiency were additional award-winning features.