What's Wrong With This Picture: Kia's Optima-sm Edition

by Edward Niedermeyer

March 14th, 2010 1:12 PM

whats wrong with this picture kias optima sm edition

Quick, want to guess what the single piece brings more traffic to TTAC than any other? Thanks to an early Korean-spec test (don’t worry, further tests of the US-spec model are forthcoming) and the blessings of good Google rankings, our 2011 Hyundai Sonata review has been our single biggest source of traffic over the last several months. But getting a review out early isn’t the only reason so many folks are finding their way to TTAC by way of the Sonata: people are researching the car like crazy. Kelly Blue Book lists the Sonata as its number four most-researched vehicle, as does Edmunds.com, indicating that it’s poised to play with the perennial chart-toppers from Honda and Toyota. Meanwhile, Kia still has yet to make the jump to mainstream prominence, although its version of the Sonata (still unfortunately named Optima) could be an important step in Korea’s bid to make inroads on the US market. Certainly its Peter Schreyer-designed lines won’t have anyone confusing the Optima with a decontented Sonata.

#3WTP #Design #Hyundai #Kia #Optima #Sonata

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 43 comments

Disaster on Mar 15, 2010

I can see a lot of different influences in it...Ford Fusion, VW CC, Hyundai Genesis, Kia's own Forte. It is a nicely styled car but add me to the list of people who hate nonfunctional fender vents, and the wheels do look aftermarket...not in a good way.

Like Reply
Panzerfaust on Mar 15, 2010

^ I agree. It looks like a Buick from the side and a Ford Fusion from the front. Nicely done, but hardly original. The wheels look like they were picked by an 18 year old.

Like Reply

Recent Comments

Rna65689660 Late last September US 2 from St. Ignace, MI to Everett, WA.
Tassos I find it ridiculous to call any of these later, less luxurious, less substsantial (compared to their 1940s-1960s glorious ancestors) Lincolns "rare rides".There was absolutely nothing rare about them. the roads were full of them then.
Tassos Highway 1 in CA, both ways (LA to SF)Rheinstrasse in Germany, with spectacular views of the castles distracting the driverAlmost all German Autobahns, over 2 3-day weekends, for a total of 6,000 KMMany European scenic coastal roads, some of them many many times every year (those near my summer home)
6-speed Pomodoro Pikes Peak. Me and a car group arrived half hour before the gate opened so we could set our own pace. Everyone kept their foot on the gas like a gangster until the trees disappeared. Amazing trip.
Tassos In Japan any car the size of the Camry is very cumbersome and impractical.In the US those who buy the Camry, 99% of them don't give a rat's behind about driving enjoyment, they are not auto enthusiasts. I also recommend TOyotas to such people whenever they ask me, while I would absolutely never even consider one for me (except maybe a Lexus LS 600h when I turn 105 and probably have a chauffeur anyway)I find it an utterly ridiculous waste of billions of good $ to use the "camry" in any kind of racing, esp NASCAR.