Kia releases pictures of its new luxury sedan

(February 28, 2012) Kia has released the first photos of its biggest sedan ever, the K9, which is set to be introduced in its home market of South Korea later this spring.

The sedan is built on the same platform as the Genesis sedan of Kia’s sister Hyundai.

Its exterior has a slightly sportier look and maintains the company’s signature “Tiger’s Mouth” grille. It has a European look especially through the shoulder line and the long, sloping roofline. The company’s press release emphasized the K9’s luxury features, and it is clearly the most upscale car ever to emerge from Kia. No pricing information was available.

Kia hasn’t finalized a launch date and won’t release further specifications until closer to launch. As well, company officials haven’t decided when it will be sold in other countries and what it will be called outside of South Korea. Kia’s K5 sedan is called Optima outside of South Korea and the K7 is called Cadenza.

“The name for export markets will not be K9, but we haven’t finalized the export name,” Kia spokesman Michael Choo told the Wall Street Journal. “It’s not going to be sold in Western Europe or China but all other markets are on the table.”

Source: Wall Street Journal