KIA OPIRUS NAMED ´MOST DELIGHTFUL´ CAR

• Customers form emotional bond with Opirus luxury sedan
• ´Delight´ research in USA surveys almost 75,000 new car buyers
• Opirus (and Amanti) sales total more than 44,000 during 2004

Kia Motors Europe Headquarters, Eschborn, Germany - 12 January 2005

Just 18 months after the Kia Opirus (called the Amanti in the USA), went on sale in North America, its unqiue appeal to customers has been acknowledged by its nomination as a ´Most Delightful Vehicle´ by the San Diego, California based research company Strategic Vision.

The annual ´Customer Delight Index Study´ takes a comprehensive look at the product attributes and customer benefits that generate extremely positive responses from the primary drivers of the vehicle. In the mid-size category, the Kia beat a host of rivals, including models from Acura, Honda and Nissan.

Strategic Vision surveyed almost 75,000 owners of 2004 models who purchased their new cars between October 2003 and March 2004, and had owned their new car for at least 90 days.
"To win a ´delightful´ rating, which outperforms both ´excellent´ and ´completely satisfied´ in the survey, the vehicle must have pleased the customer immensely," commented Dr Darrel Edwards, founder of Strategic Vision. "The customer must be so delighted with the vehicle that he or she feels a strong emotional bond with the product, the brand and the manufacturer."

During 2004, Kia sold 10,185 Opirus models in Korea and a further 34,175 units in export markets. In Europe the Top-5 countries for Opirus sales are Germany, Spain, Switzerland,
France, Italy and Denmark.

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Editors Notes

Kia Motors Europe
Kia Motors Europe is the European sales, marketing, and service arm of Kia Motors Corporation. With its headquarters in Eschborn, Germany, it covers 20 markets in Europe. The European sales target is 300,000 units per year by 2005, thanks to new products and new diesel engines.

About Kia Motors Corporation
Kia Motors Corporation (www.kiamotors.com), which celebrated its 60th anniversary in 2004, is among the world´s fastest growing automobile companies. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to be a ´Top 5´ global automaker by 2010. Kia´s 15 manufacturing and assembly operations in 12 countries make more than one million vehicles each year. These vehicles are sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 190 countries.

Founded in 1944, Kia Motors Corporation is Korea´s oldest manufacturer of automobiles. Kia today has 30,000 employees and annual revenues of US$ 12 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis Open and the international sponsor of the Davis Cup.

Press Contact:

Kia Motors Europe GmbH
Hauptstrasse 185, 65760 Eschborn, Germany.
Tel.: +49 (6196) 509 2132 / Fax.: +49 (6196) 509 2100