News: Kia turns up the heat

Kia, which has now built itself a massive European and Irish customer base on the back of its value for money proposition (and that now-famous long seven-year warranty) is winding up to launch it’s first ever high-performance model. 


Based on the three-door coupe Pro_Cee’d version of the popular Cee’d hatchback, the Pro_Cee’d GT (seen here in design sketch form) will be a rival to the likes of the VW Golf GTI and Ford Focus ST.

The design is, once again, down to Kia’s famed ex-Audi stylist Peter Schreyer, and will feature an aggressive bodykit, a prominent GT badge in the grille and red highlights along the body. The three-door Pro_Cee’d GT will arrive first, and that will be followed by a five-door hatchback version, while apparently an estate version is under consideration, such is the popularity of the load-lugging version of the Cee’d.

Under the bonnet will be a tuned and tweaked version of the same 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine already found in the turbo versions of the Hyundai Veloster coupe (Hyundai and Kia are, of course, part of the same company these days). In the Veloster, that engine makes 184bhp but that will be increased to a much more muscular 200bhp for the Kia. The only transmission for the moment will be a six-speed manual gearbox; Kia isn’t yet ready to offer a rival to VW’s dual-clutch DSG ‘box.

Depending on how the car is received, this could be the start of something big for Kia. It’s known that Kia is keen to kick off its own in-house tuning and performance arm, rather like Mercedes’ AMG, but it needs the Pro_Cee’d GT to sell well initially to justify the investment. 

If it comes off, then we could see hot versions of both the Rio hatchback and Soul crossover, as well as the possibility of a large, rear-drive coupe to take on the likes of the Audi A5 and Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe.