Today is Kia’s annual Investor Day. A day when it focuses on shareholders, announcing and detailing the company’s future plans. It’s where an automaker talks about new models without showing them or giving details, more of an overview of how it expects to perform over the short and long term.
Kia
Kia is a South Korean automaker headquartered in Seoul. It was originally founded in 1944 as a bicycle manufacturer which later built small motorcycles, and Mazda-licensed trucks and cars. After building an assembly plant in th early 70s, the company also produced the Bisa range of cars until 1981 before coming to a half due to the political situation at the time. Production kicked off again in 1986 in partnership with Ford, and in 1992 the company started sellling cars in North America. Today it is the second-largest automaker in South Korea, right behind Hyundai.
- Founded
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June 9, 1944 (as Kyungsung Precision Industry)
- Founder
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Kim Cheol-ho
- Headquarters
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Seoul, South Korea
- Owned By
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Hyundai Motor Group
- Current CEO
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Ho Sung Song
One of the most exciting and likely most significant new announcements was the reveal of a new gas engine: a more efficient 2.5-liter turbocharged engine that will improve hybrid and extended-range electric models like Kia’s popular Sorento CUV.
Brand New Gas Engine With More Power, Efficiency
Kia’s CEO didn’t spend much time talking about the new gas engine, but a slide in the presentation to investors covered more. Kia called it a new “modular, high-efficiency engine.” It said that the new engine would improve thermal efficiency by five percent compared with previous models and boost output by 12 percent.
Looking at Kia’s current Smartstream 2.5-liter turbo-four gives us a glimpse of how much performance a new engine could offer. In the Kia K5 and Sorento, the engine offers as much as 290 horsepower, while in the Genesis G70 it makes up to 300. That could give a new model 336 horsepower, with that boosted even higher with the assistance of a hybrid electric motor.
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Kia’s new hybrid system will be four percent more fuel efficient the company said. It will also offer a smoother transition between engine and motor as well as enhanced acceleration. Kia didn’t detail the new extended-range EV system, but said that it would use a new 2.5-liter engine and would give the brand a “flexible market approach.”
Kia Plans To Grow Sales Worldwide
The Korean automaker is looking to significantly grow its sales. The target is a 4.5 percent market share, or 4.19 million vehicles by 2030. To help do that, it will need to grow its total capacity, which is just 3.63 million vehicles currently.
Of the 4.19 million sales, it expects EVs to account for 1.26 million, and for hybrid and EREV models to total 1.07 million.
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In 2025, it plans to launch five new models worldwide, as well as one refresh and three new versions of existing vehicles. Kia said it plans to launch an electric pickup in North America, with a long-term sales target of 90,000 units per year. Around the world, it will begin selling the EV3, EV4, EV5, and EV2 (Kia’s order) over the coming years. It plans to expand production of mid-to-large electric SUVs in North America while building compact models and hatchbacks in Europe.
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