In 2010, Nissan kick started the boom of the mini SUVs with the Juke, and now everyone wants in.
Kia is one of them, as European marketing director Artur Martins confirmed to Autocar at the launch of the Optima SW and Niro hybrid in Europe.
“There’s space to grow with SUVs, into lower segments. This model makes sense for us, and we will bring it in the future, two years maximum”, he said about the brand’s Juke rival.
Few details about the car are known at this point. Given its size, it’ll most likely be underpinned by the same platform as the next-generation Rio and, when it launches, will just be the first in an expanded range of Kia SUVs.
Just a month ago, the company lifted the veil on the Telluride, a concept previewing an impending entrant into the ever-expanding large SUV market. While it isn’t known when the road-going version of the Telluride will arrive, it’s unlikely to launch before the Juke rival.
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