Kia’s premieres for this year’s Shanghai Auto Show are two cars that have been specifically designed, engineered, and built for Chinese buyers.
The first one is called the Pegas, and it’s a compact sedan that targets young buyers. It benefits from the brand’s instantly recognizable design, and comes with the ‘tiger nose’ grille, a visual signature of all modern Kias sold around the world.
It has a 2,570 mm (101 in) wheelbase, and a maximum boot capacity of 475 liters, which, according to the automaker, makes it “one of the most versatile, useful cars in its class”. The company didn’t have much to say about it, except that it gets a large sunroof, and a front passenger central armrest to enhance comfort on long journeys.
Powering the new Kia Pegas is a 1.4-liter multi-point injection petrol engine that churns out 95 PS (94 HP) and 133 Nm (98 lb-ft) of torque. The output is channeled to the front wheels through a standard 5-speed manual transmission, or an optional 4-speed auto.
Bringing a robust design to the K2, otherwise known as the Rio in other markets, is the new Kia K2 Cross. It adds plastic cladding all around, a 45 mm (1.77 in) increased ground clearance, and new roof rails – while maintaining the same wheelbase length as the hatch, even if the extra bits add 40 mm (1.57 in) to its length, and 30 mm (1.18 in) to its width.
Customers will get to choose between a pair of petrol engines, a 1.4-liter with 100 PS (99 HP) and 132 Nm (97 lb-ft) of torque, and a 1.6-liter that develops 123 PS (121 HP) and 151 Nm (111 lb-ft) of torque, which work together with a 6-speed manual or automatic transmission.
Kia will open the order books for the new Pegas and K2 Cross in China in the second half of the year.
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