Kia will continue to sell performance-oriented vehicles but doesn’t plan on following in the footsteps of sister company Hyundai by launching a dedicated performance sub-brand.
Speaking with Autocar, Hyundai-Kia high-performance development boss Albert Biermann said Kia will develop a small fleet of GT models but that unlike the N-branded models from Hyundai, racetrack performance will not be a priority.
“For Kia, it is not the decision to enter with high-performance cars. We did it with Hyundai N but there’s a clear decision not to with Kia, and GT needs to be a reasonable package,” Biermann said.
“With the Ceed GT now, the minute you go high-performance, you need to work at a race track, and then the costs go up and the business case gets very challenging. Doing that next step is not an easy step.”
Don’t expect any true M or AMG rivals from Kia.
The most obvious example of Kia’s new range of performance models is the Stinger GT S. The sports sedan is a direct rival to established players from BMW, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi and features a twin-turbo 3.3-liter six-cylinder engine delivering 365 hp. At the moment, it is the benchmark for performance models from Kia. However, Biermann revealed that the next-generation Optima GT will take things to a new level.
“For the next Optima GT, you can expect an interesting powertrain and suspension at the next level. It’ll be the next level of Kia driving performance.”
A selection of other GT models are being planned by Kia. Chief among these will be a warmed-up version of the third-generation Soul.
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