Kia Imagine Concept: Tally Up Another Bubbly Concept Crossover
The hot new trend in automotive design seems to be high-riding sedans with a slight crossover shape. Nissan was one of the first to the party with its electric IMs Concept and now Kia has its own sedan-crossover-EV mashup.
Dubbed ‘Imagine by Kia’ (we’re just going to call it the Kia Imagine..), this concept is described as a pure electric four-door passenger car that blends “elements of a muscular sports utility vehicle, a sleek and athletic family saloon, and a versatile and spacious crossover,” into a single vehicle.
“It’s a large C-segment car – the vehicle size that’s incredibly popular in Europe – but the only things it holds on to are Kia’s brand values,” said Kia Europe’s vice president of design Gregory Guillaume. “It hints at something familiar, but is something entirely new. I think of it as a category-buster, and a disruptor – it’s familiar and understood but at the same time progressive and new.”
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Kia says that unlike the brand’s current EV, the e-Niro crossover, the Imagine isn’t based on an existing Kia architecture, instead featuring a new platform with a low-mounted battery pack that powers a “compact,” electric drivetrain of unknown specifications. It’s not clear if the automaker plans to put the design study into production, but Guillaume seems excited at the prospect of it.
“We imagined a future where engaging and dynamic cars like this were an integral part of our transport requirements,” he said.
The Kia Imagine concept will appear at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show this week. Stay tuned for additional information and coverage.
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Sam McEachern holds a diploma in journalism from St. Clair College in Windsor, Ontario, and has been covering the automotive industry for over 5 years. He conducts reviews and writes AutoGuide's news content. He's a die-hard motorsports fan with a passion for performance cars of all sorts.
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