Kia has provided a glimpse of the new Ceed crossover that will be revealed later this year.
The new model will be the first crossover and the fourth variant in the family car line-up alongside the five-door hatch, Sportwagon estate and Proceed shooting brake.
Kia’s crossover will face intense competition in the rapidly growing segment, recent releases including the Volkswagen T-Roc and the Kona from Kia sister brand Hyundai. The car will sit between the compact Stonic and larger Sportage in the south Korean manufacturer’s SUV line-up.
Strong demand for crossover
According to Gregory Guillaume, vice president of design for Kia Motors Europe, the crossover is another type of vehicle that the brand feels very strongly deserves to be a member of the Ceed family.
“It will the play the role that’s needed to make the Ceed range stronger and even more exciting, more appealing, to European consumers,” Guillaume says.
“The design will be nothing like you’ve seen in the Ceed family so far. This will be the next big surprise from Kia.”
While the crossover features a more streamlined look than its hatchback sibling, the sketch showing a raked design and a high bootline, it is expected to employ the same powertrains as the regular Ceed upon which it is based.
The core unit is likely to be a 1.0-litre turbocharged three-cylinder petrol engine in a variety of outputs, along with a larger, 1.6-litre diesel unit. It is also likely to be front-wheel-drive only.
Keyword: Crossover to become fourth Kia Ceed variant