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Ken Gratton11 Jun 2015
NEWS

Hope fades for Kia Optima wagon in Oz

But small KX3 SUV is on the local wishlist – if it ever makes it to the global stage

Kia Australia is still evaluating the Optima wagon – the production version of the Sportspace concept – for Australia, but the prospects of the tailgated Optima making it here are increasingly remote.

The new sedan will make its Australian debut in November, but while Kia has committed to building the Optima wagon for global markets, Jeff Shafer, the brand's senior product manager here, told motoring.com.au last week that the wagon is by no means certain to make it to our SUV-fixated shores.

"We're still investigating the Optima wagon; certainly the Sportspace has got great reaction, but wagons in Australia are a tough sell. We're still looking at that..." Shafer said.

Ironically, as much as Kia Australia appears to be distancing itself from a family car that the parent company is actually building for world markets, the local arm would love to have another family car that is currently available in the Chinese market only – the KX3.

"The KX3 is just for China, and there's no intention of that model going outside of China..." Shafer initially stated.

But the product planning exec also remarked that the local arm "would really like to have KX3" or a car much like it available in Australia.

Damien Meredith, Kia Australia COO, strongly agreed with Shafer on that point, explaining that the KX3 or a model much like it would sell in "a segment that's growing dramatically."

"If Kia develops one [a 'B' SUV], we'd put our hand up [for it]," Shafer confirmed.

In much the same way Hyundai's ix25 was relegated to China-only status until recently, but it will now be built in India and Europe for global markets. It's anticipated to make it to Australia, likely wearing the Creta nameplate confirmed about a week ago.

Based on that precedent, a KX3-based vehicle for Kia in global markets seems likely in the future. In Australia it would neatly complement the popular Sportage, which is due for replacement in January.

Still on the local stage, Kia will make its "final decision" on the Picanto light hatch next month, says Meredith, but previous information from Kia indicates it's practically settled that the car will go on sale here, although the actual launch date has been pushed back from the original third-quarter timing.

"We would like to have it in the marketplace either very late this year or very early next year," Meredith told motoring.com.au during the launch of the new Sorento last week.

Another car Kia Australia would love to offer local buyers – but can't – is the pro_cee'd GT with a dual-clutch transmission.

"Unfortunately, at the moment there's no word on an automatic transmission for that vehicle; we'd love to have it, especially if it was a DCT," said Shafer.

Meredith sees parent company Hyundai's Veloster Turbo – recently scoring a seven-speed DCT – as an example of local demand driving a product planning decision. And the Kia COO is all in favour of a DCT for the pro_cee'd GT as well.

Kia has also been debating the expansion of the cee'd range in Australia – from the pro_cee'd GT that is the sole representative example here – but the importer is tending to focus more on maintaining the Cerato as the brand's small-car standard bearer. So far the company's efforts are bearing fruit, with the Cerato moving up from 11th best-selling small car in the market to sixth, based on year-to-date VFACTS figures. The Cerato remains a long way from threatening the dominance of Corolla or Mazda3, but it is making progress – in a very hard-fought segment.

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Written byKen Gratton
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