Kia Motors
Kia was founded in December 1944 as Kyungsung Precision Industry, a manufacturer of steel tubing and bicycle parts, eventually producing Korea’s first domestic bicycle, the Samchully, in 1951. In 1952, Kyungsung Precision Industry changed its name to Kia Industries and later built Honda-licensed small motorcycles (starting in 1957), Mazda-licensed trucks (1962) and cars (1974). The company opened its first integrated automotive assembly plant in 1973, the Sohari Plant. However, during the Asian financial crisis, Kia declared bankruptcy in 1997; and in 1998 reached an agreement with Hyundai Motor Company to diversify by exchanging ownership between both companies
Kia Motors Corporation, commonly known as Kia Motors .”Kia automobile”‘; stylized as KIɅ) is a South Korean multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Seoul. It is South Korea’s second-largest automobile manufacturer following the Hyundai Motor Company, with sales of over 3.3 million vehicles in 2015.
- Etymology of Kia motors
- Kia motors in India
- Controversies of kia motors
- Kia Cars model with Price in India
- Upcoming Car models
Etymology of Kia motors
According to Kia Motors, the name “Kia” derives from the Sino-Korean characters “ki” (“to arise”) and “a” (which stands for East Asia); it is roughly translated as “Rising from the East.
Kia Motors in India
The company has entered the Indian market in July 2019 with their global mid-sized SUV Kia Seltos. The company has built a production facility on a Greenfield land in Anantpur district, Andhra Pradesh near Penukonda. The annual production capacity is 300,000 units. Kia Motors has appointed Kookhyun Shim as MD & CEO for its Indian arm. Kia has committed investments to the tune of $1.1 billion to develop operations in India including investing in a network of over 250 customer touch-points that include service, sales and spares establishments.
In the past, the Kia cars were very neutral. When you saw one on the road, you didn’t really know if it was Korean or Japanese…I think it’s very important that you are able to recognise a Kia at first sight. — Peter Schreyer
Controversies of kia motors
In late 2012, Kia Motors was forced to admit error in inflating its United States Environmental Protection Agency mileage claims and had to reduce its fuel economy claims.
Kia Cars model with Price in India
| Model | Price (Ex. showroom) |
| Kia Seltos | Rs. 9.89 – 17.34 Lakh* |
| Kia carnival | Rs. 24.95 – 33.95 Lakh* |
Upcoming Car models
| Models | Price (expected) | Estimated launch date |
| Kia stonic | Rs. 9.0 lakh | Jan 15, 2020 |
| Kia sonet | Rs. 7.0 lakh | Aug 15, 2020 |
| Kia soul | Rs. 10.0 lakh | Oct 01, 2020 |
| Kia ceed | Rs. 9.0 lakh | Nov 11, 2020 |
| Kia stinger | Rs. 50.0 lakh | Apr 01, 2020 |
| Kia sportage | Rs. 25.0 lakh | Apr 10, 2020 |