European debut expected at IAA 2017 in September.
Kia is bringing a new B-SUV to the market this year - the Kia Stonic. The company has announced in South Korea that it will release the Kia Stonic in July.
Kia says that it clubbed the words 'Speedy' and 'Tonic', which refers to the first and last note in the musical scale, to form the name 'Stonic'. The name hints that the vehicle is agile and offers something new and fresh in its segment.
Sleek headlamps featuring daytime running lights, Tiger nose grille, vertical (front) fog lamp garnish, muscular wheel arches, black plastic cladding, notably raked back glass, slim tail lamps with distinctive graphics, rear bumper with integrated diffuser and dual exhaust are the key design traits hinted by the vehicle's design sketches. The production version will have much bigger windows and more conventional sized alloy rims and tyres. It will have a black interior with a contrasting colour accent on the centre console, flat-bottomed three-spoke steering wheel and a large floating display for the infotainment system.
Kia hasn't released the Kia Stonic's specifications details yet, but we expect it to share its engines with the Kia Rio, as both are based on the same platform. The 2017 Kia Rio is offered in 100 PS/120 PS 1.0-litre T-GDI petrol (5MT/6MT), 84 PS 1.25-litre MPI petrol (5MT), 100 PS 1.4-litre MPI petrol (6MT/4AT) and 90 PS 1.4-litre TCI (WGT) diesel (6MT) configurations.
Also Read: Kia starts taking pre-orders for Kia Stinger in South Korea
The Kia Stonic completes the company's global crossover/SUV range. However, it doesn't mean that there are no region-specific models on the cards. Kia is developing another sub-compact SUV for Australia and possibly other markets. The company has confirmed a B-SUV for India too, but we are yet to know whether it is the Stonic, the model currently under development for Australia or a re-engineered version of the China-only KX3.
The Kia Stonic will compete with the likes of Renault Captur (Euro version), Mazda CX-3, Toyota C-HR, Honda HR-V, Opel Mokka X and Nissan Juke.
