Korea’s Kia Launches Stonic CUV in Home Market

Kia holds the sales launch of its Stonic CUV on Thursday, July 13, at a resort and casino in Seoul, and delivers a few surprises regarding targeted sales volumes and drivetrain offerings available for the Korea market.

The Stonic will be available in Korea only with a 1.6L turbodiesel engine, while the possibility of offering a gasoline engine remains under review.

By comparison, sister company Hyundai’s Kona is offered in Korea with a range of gasoline and diesel engines.

Kia’s domestic marketing chief, Seo Bo-Won, says the decision to launch only a diesel was based on perceived customer expectations for the new entry, mainly a low price point and good fuel economy.

The Stonic is priced from 19 million to 22.9 million won ($16,000-$20,000), and undercuts the Kona diesel versions by about 2 million won ($1,800) in all trim levels. The Kona gas-engine range is priced from 18.5 million to 28.75 million won ($16,300-$25,300).

Kia has no plan for introducing the Stonic in the U.S. market. Seo says only that sales of the CUV will launch in Europe during the third quarter, followed shortly by Asian markets.

The engine range for Europe includes three gasoline and a diesel option: a 1.0L turbo-GDI engine that develops 120 hp, and two naturally aspirated 1.2L and 1.4L engines. The 1.6L turbodiesel generates 110 hp.

Some analysts, noting Hyundai owns a 34% stake in Kia and both are controlled by Hyundai Motor Group’s senior management team, believe Kia is keeping the Stonic out of the U.S. market so as not to hamper the Kona, which launches there at year-end.

At the launch event Kia spokesmen note the Stonic has racked up 1,500 preorders since its Korea unveiling June  27, far short of the 5,000 preorders Hyundai booked for the competing Kona in about the same time.

The sales target for the Stonic in Korea is 1,500 units per month, compared to the Kona target of nearly 4,500.

Hyundai Motor Group does not provide a global sales target for the Stonic, or targets for any other market.

In Korea the B-segment SUV market stood at about 100,000 units in 2016, with Ssangyong’s Tivoli CUV claiming 28,886 deliveries. Renault Samsung was second in volume, selling 15,301 copies of the QM3, a Korean version of the Renault Captur CUV that is imported from a Renault plant in Valladolid, Spain. Analysts believe Hyundai’s and Kia’s entries will expand the B segment in 2017 and subsequent years.