Kia's march upmarket appears to be continuing unabated. After first entering the hot hatch segment with the pro_cee'd GT and the executive saloon market with the K900 (which we are unlikely to get in Ireland, ever), the South Korean manufacturer now appears to be stretching out into the sports coupé sector. At least that is what we take from the first teaser image of the car that Kia is set to bring to Detroit in January.
The as-yet unnamed 2+2 sports car has been conceived and designed by Kia's California-based team at Irvine under the stewardship of Peter Schreyer, and with its long bonnet and stubby boot it bears more than a passing resemblance to the 2007 Kee concept - one of Schreyer's first designs and the first car to wear the now trademark 'tiger mouth' front grille.
Kia says the concept is "aimed at delivering head-turning looks whilst providing superb driving enjoyment" but provides no details of its powertrain. The Kee concept shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show was powered by a 200hp 2.0-litre V6 petrol engine that fed its power to the rear wheels via a six-speed manual transmission and if the "superb driving enjoyment" statement rings true it stands to reason that the Detroit car may well be a rear-driver too, especially given the swollen rear arches of the teaser image.
Anything else?
Unfortunately that is all speculation and we will have to wait until the car is unveiled on the Kia stand in Detroit on January 13 to find out.