New Kia Family Car Challenger For Europe To Be Named "cee'd"

KENT, England - August 14, 2006: Kia has revealed its all-new family car, revealed in photo form at the recent London Motor Show and set to make its world premiere in production-ready form at the Mondial de L’Automobile in Paris on 28 September will be called cee’d (pronounced ‘seed’).

Taking the name given to its concept-car predecessor, the Kia cee’d is set to hit showrooms at the end of the year and is Kia’s first all-European designed and engineered car. It will be built at Kia’s newly-built factory in Slovakia purely for the European market.

"Our new C-segment model marks a major turning point in Kia’s history and is named cee’d for several reasons," explained Jean-Charles Lievens, Senior Vice President Kia Motors Europe. "cee’d is a short, dynamic and innovative name. It’s unconventional, a name which breaks the automotive rules. A surprising name for a car destined to surprise our rivals and delight our customers. I’m sure the name will get people talking about Kia and also be easy to remember.

"The ‘CE’ symbolises that this model is made in the European Community and the ‘ED’ indicates this car is a European Design created especially with European consumers in mind. ‘cee’d’ represents the ‘seed’ for abundant growth in Kia sales that the new model will undoubtedly ensure. Finally, we wanted to introduce a fresh name in line with Kia’s brand attributes – quality, trustworthy and dynamic," added Lievens.

With its exceptional quality, appearance, style, performance and handling, the Kia cee’d will bring about a landmark change in Kia’s fortunes in the highly competitive C-segment. When it goes on sale in December 2006, the five-door hatchback cee’d will be Kia’s strongest-ever contender for C-segment honours and a genuine challenger to the established class leaders in this closely fought sector.

"Conceived in Europe, made in Europe and sold in Europe, cee’d is a modern Kia designed to fulfil 100% of European consumers’ needs," concluded SVP Lievens.

An on-sale date, specifications and prices have not yet been set for the UK, but Mr Byung Kwang Jang, President of Kia Motors (UK) Ltd, said: "The C-segment is probably the most important part of the UK market and certainly the most hotly contested. Our new car has been designed by Europeans with the European market uppermost in mind. It sets dramatically improved levels of quality, interior feel and design for Kia and indicates our determination to challenge the biggest names in Europe.

"We are aiming to bring a truly competitive car to British buyers that will appeal right across the board from families to singles and business customers and our growing existing and potential customer audience can rest assured that we shall maintain our reputation for outstanding equipment levels and competitive pricing," added Mr Jang.