Customized vehicles are a familiar sight this time of year, but this Kia Sportage has a grander purpose as the company has donated the crossover to Sea Turtle Inc.
Designed to help the non-profit save endangered sea turtles, the one-off model is based on the Sportage X-Pro and has been equipped with a roof rack, a ladder, and “larger, low-pressure tires that provide enhanced performance on soft sandy beaches.”
The upgrades don’t end there as the model sports a green paintjob, special badging, and a modified tow hitch. The crossover has also been equipped with red LED lights as studies have shown red light is better tolerated by migrating sea turtles than bright white light.
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Kia didn’t release interior pictures, but noted the cabin and cargo compartment have innovative storage solutions. Details are limited, but the company said these “modifications were designed to allow Sea Turtle Inc, to transport eggs, sea turtle hatchlings, and even rehabilitated adult sea turtles as needed.”
Kia America’s vice president of marketing, Russell Wager, said “We worked very closely with the experts at Sea Turtle Inc to modify this Sportage X-Pro SUV to specifically address their needs in terms of performance, convenience, functionality, and operation, especially when driven in areas in which sea turtle nests are present.” He added the crossover will “help this important organization complete their tasks more efficiently and enable them to rescue even more endangered sea turtles than the 5,600 they saved last year.”
Kia donated the Sportage to the organization as part of their Accelerate The Good initiative, which has already seen the automaker make a monetary donation to help Sea Turtle Inc upgrade their facilities.