Eyeing Its Ridiculously Car-heavy Lineup, Kia Promises the U.S. a New Small Crossover

A subcompact crossover will appear on U.S. shores next year, Kia claims, in order to create a new entry point below the Sportage. It’s also a vehicle consumers in India are eager to learn more about. Before you start calling it the Korean EcoSport, however, be aware that this is a new crossover, and U.S.-bound production will take place in South Korea, not the subcontinent.

While last year’s release of the Kia Stonic sparked assumptions that the diminutive utility vehicle would find its way here, that proved not to be the case. The new vehicle will be based on Kia’s SP Concept, which shares its mechanicals with the Indian-market Hyundai Creta, a name that inspires as many visions of a Greek island as it does actor Richard Crenna.

In China, the SP’s platform mate carries the ix25 moniker, though Dominican Republic customers receive a version called the Cantus, as “creta” is apparently a term used to describe part of the female anatomy. The SP concept premiered at India’s 2018 AutoExpo in February.

Speaking to Automotive News, Kia Motors Corp. CEO Han-Woo Park said plans are afoot to bolster the brand’s utility vehicle sales in the United States. Year-to-date, light trucks account for only 41 percent of the brand’s U.S. volume. Meanwhile, Kia fields the Rio, Forte, Optima, Cadenza, Stinger, and K900. That ratio needs flipping.

“We expect our performance in the U.S. market to rebound soon,” Park said.

The unnamed small crossover will arrive in the second half of 2019, Park said, hot on the heels of the U.S.-built Telluride SUV. There’s a chance that, after doubling the number of Kia utility vehicles in U.S. showrooms (the Soul and Niro are too conventional to fall under this category), the brand might not stop there. More light truck models are under consideration, including a pickup truck. However, Park admits that, given Americans’ thirst for established truck lines and heritage, a Kia truck could be a tough sell.

Kia’s plan is to increase its car to truck sales ratio to 40:60, which is still below the nationwide sales average of 31:69. Achieving this will probably take three years, Park said.

More crossovers would mean more sales, greater margins, and higher average transaction prices for Kia, which saw its year-to-date sales slip 1.3 percent in 2018 following years of annual increases.

[Image: Kia Motors]