Upcoming Kia Optima teased and it looks rather stunning
Hyundai and sister company Kia continue to knock designs out of the park.
Take away the shadows and clever lighting and this, ladies and gents, is the next-generation Kia Optima. My oh my, how far Kia has come.
The original teaser photos showing the red Optima were published to Hyundai Motor Group's official Facebook page last month, but new photos from Kia show off even more of the car. They preview the South Korean market Kia K5, otherwise known as the Optima. Keep in mind, the Optima is mechanically related to the Hyundai Sonata, which debuted its own striking design earlier this year. Kia, arguably, may have the better looking sedan here.
Up front, the latest interpretation of the company's tiger nose grille is longer and stretched. In fact, it looks like it integrates the headlights more than ever. Outlining the grille is a snappy LED signature light, which looks super fluid, almost as if the designer free-sketched the element. New sketches also reveal the car's wider look, though we'll need to see the car in production form before we make any final judgements.
Moving around to the rear, a horizontal taillight unit stretches across with lighted dashes making up the design. At the tips of the taillights, the elements points downward, which will probably emphasize the sedan's wider looks. It also looks like there's a pretty prominent chrome strip that runs from the A-pillar out to the rear. It gets chunkier as it flows, and gives off a coupe-like look. Despite the eye trickery, it does still appear the Optima will sport a traditional trunk and not a liftback like the Stinger sedan.
One of the latest sketches reveals a very Audi A7 look and that's hardly a bad thing.
Inside, a design sketch teases the lack of a traditional gear selector in favor of a rotary dial, perhaps. Two screens make up the majority of the car's dashboard with digital gauges front and center, and a screen to the right of the driver for infotainment uses.
Kia's parent automaker hasn't spoken to when we'll see the Optima bow, but with teasers out in the wild for the South Korean market, we'll likely see the car debut there first. We could see a debut occur in the US by the end of this year, but if not, certainly in 2020. So many have written off the sedan segment, but perhaps with these kinds of designs, sedans will make a statement once again.
Originally published Oct. 30.
Update, Nov. 11: Adds gallery with new teaser photos.
