Rare Rides Icons: The History of Kia’s Larger and Full-size Sedans (Part XIII)

Past time in our Kia significant auto saga, we realized significantly about the 2nd-technology K9. Kia’s big, rear-travel luxury sedan wore K900 badging most spots (together with North The usa) but was also known as Quoris on occasion. Following a initially technology that unsuccessful to seize the curiosity of world wide people, Kia went more substantial and greater for its 2nd endeavor. 

The more substantial, extra lavish, and additional refined K900 debuted in 2018 for the 2019 design 12 months. It was as good a car or truck as Kia could give, a assertion that was printed with an asterisk: From inception, any Kia flagship had to be lesser than its Genesis (nee Hyundai) sibling. Not as significant, not as lavish, not as showy, not as pricey, and with no a very long-wheelbase limousine. Let’s find out how it fared.

Kia introduced the K900 in New York in March 2018, through that year’s version of the New York Intercontinental Auto Clearly show. Journalists collected close to amongst bouts of shrimp gorging to eye the most important new Kia. They checked its leather-based-lined inside, eyed the subdued referential styling, and waited to get their hands on a press loaner. 

While it very first appeared in New York, the K900 went on sale in all marketplaces at the similar time. For American purposes, the new K900 was offered in a more constrained trim configuration: All illustrations had been driven by the 3.3-liter twin-turbo V6. The slow-selling V8 model was off-limits. Moreover, though other markets obtained rear- and all-wheel push versions, only all-wheel generate was presented in North America. In all probability a good selection offered the consider charge on V8 and rear-travel sedans above the earlier few of many years. 

In its one trim, the K900 questioned $59,900 ($70,504 adj.) and made available a couple options packages that upgraded particulars like rear seat lodging and the measurement of the touchscreen. Examination autos for the push ended up typically geared up with equally the VIP rear seat deal and larger display screen, which place the K900 at $64,895 ($76,384 adj.)

The pricing built the K900 a relative cut price in the substantial luxurious sedan class. It made available far more tools for significantly less dollars than the German and Japanese opposition and was effectively priced down a dimension course (eg. Audi A6 funds for A8 proportions). It also carried Kia’s normal 10-12 months, 100,000-mile powertrain warranty, which was a lot additional generous than any of its competition. 

Opinions praised the value-laden Kia but were keen to mention a lack of typical refinement compared to its level of competition. And although it seemed far better than before, its spinoff styling was a little bit much too bland and meant the K900 lacked any unique identification. Additional, it was confident that a large, pricey Kia would deficiency the upmarket model status of even the comparable Genesis G90. 

All individuals variables pointed to a resale price that was among the the worst of any passenger auto of the time, which negated the initial value argument. Also worthy of noting, the huge luxurious sedan consumer was not most likely all that involved with value for revenue. With its new K900, Kia fell into the precise identical predicament as it had with equally generations of Cadenza. 

It was always going to be an uphill fight for Kia to provide its greatest vehicle in America, but income figures in 2019 ended up even worse than any organization could have anticipated. In 2019 the very best regular monthly K900 gross sales determine was April when 43 were marketed across the nation. At the end of the 12 months, 392 full 2019 K900s located homes. That was only slightly superior than the outgoing 2018 design, which offered 354 copies in its remaining yr. 

In 2020, the K900 experienced its peak revenue thirty day period in Oct, where an spectacular 41 were being bought. Full US K900 sales for the calendar year sunk to a dismal 305. The K900 was officially on sale by January 2021 as a 2020 design, where it took sellers till October to promote off the remaining 85 cars. 

There is no mention of Canada in these figures simply because Kia made the decision not to offer the new K900 north of the border. Given the aged model sold only 4 copies in 2018, the decision was a smart a single. The sluggish income make the next-gen K900 just one of the rarest cars in the region. Acquire a lottery ticket if you ever transpire to see one on the street.

Income in other markets had been not spectacular both. Shortly following the K900’s launch, Kia was already in preparations for a considerable facelift. The rework was taken care of by a new confront at Kia, Karim Habib. A native Canadian, Habib was appointed as senior VP and head of Kia layout in September 2019. Peter Schreyer was replaced the earlier November by Luc Donckerwolke, the new President of Layout Management for Hyundai Group.

Habib refreshed the K900’s appears via new front and rear clips for the 2022 product year. The entrance stop featured sharper headlamps that ended up broader and thinner than right before and bore more than a passing resemblance to Volvo lamps. The grille was even now a trapezoidal style but was sharper in implementation. It featured a chunkier geometric texture in the center and went even further in phasing out the Tiger Nose entrance-close design and style. 

A new set of wheels arrived with the refresh they seemed almost the exact same as just before but had a little much less spokes. The aspect profile altered only via a trim applique to the front fender. It was very long and slim and changed the uncomfortable-on the lookout AWD badging that previously occupied the house.

At the rear, improvements incorporated an update to the new Kia badge (desperately necessary) and a revision to the rear lamps and reduced valance. The Bentley-like light clusters had been current somewhat with a new inside of edge, and a extra contemporary and linear lens style. The new edge led to a thin purple heckblende that spanned the car’s width and incorporated a new chrome trim strip. 

There was a reshaping of the trunk lid, and its surface area was smoothed as the license plate vacated the area and headed south. Beneath the bumper, the license plate appeared above a lightly edited exhaust region, exactly where there had been a couple of new pink reflector strips. The one central reversing light of the initial design was changed by two smaller LEDs on both side. And as opposed to the initial model, the refreshed K900 was accessible in this spectacular emerald environmentally friendly shade.

The refresh also provided a somewhat revised inside. The central contact screen was more substantial, and freshly the similar measurement as the one in the G90. There was also a new fingerprint authentication program, pulled all over again from Genesis. The interior seemed additional up-to-day than it did previously and appeared to provide some nicer high-quality elements, also. 

In other places the K900’s mechanicals adjusted minor with the refresh, save for just one major deletion. The 5.-liter Hyundai Tau V8 was eliminated, which left only 3.3- and 3.8-liter K900s. The sedan is even now in creation right now, and on sale in specific markets (typically South Korea). There is no phrase on how extensive the refresh delayed its inescapable execution. 

And even though 1 might think that concludes our Kia massive sedan coverage, we’ve received 1 much more to include to the portfolio. A different front-driver, it was the K7/Cadenza’s rapid substitute for spots other than North The usa: the K8! Till upcoming time.

[Images: Kia]

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