cee´d - surprising new name for all-new Kia

• New Kia cee´d to make its world premiere at Paris Motor Show
• New name represents ´seed´ for future growth of Kia´s European sales
• cee´d is first Kia to be designed and manufactured in Europe
• First photos of stylish spacious interior reveal top-quality design

Kia Motors Europe Headquarters, Eschborn, Germany - 14 August 2006

Kia Motors Corporation has revealed the name of its all-new family car which will make its world premiere in production-ready form at the Mondial de L´Automobile in Paris on 28 September - the Kia cee´d (pronounced ´seed´). Kia has also released the first photographs showing the top-quality design of the stylish, spacious cee´d interior.

"Our new C-segment model marks a major turning point in Kia´s history and is named cee´d for several reasons," explained Jean-Charles Lievens, Senior Vice President Kia Motors Europe. "cee´d is a short, dynamic and innovative name. It´s unconventional, a name which breaks the automotive rules. A surprising name for a car destined to surprise our rivals and delight our customers. I´m sure the name will get people talking about Kia and also be easy to remember.

"The ´CE´ symbolises that this model is made in the European Community and the ´ED´ indicates this car is a European Design created especially with European consumers in mind. ´cee´d´ represents the ´seed´ for abundant growth in Kia sales that the new model will undoubtedly ensure. Finally, we wanted to introduce a fresh name in line with Kia´s brand attributes - quality, trustworthy and dynamic," added Lievens.

With its exceptional quality, appearance, style, performance and handling, the Kia cee´d will bring about a landmark change in Kia´s fortunes in the highly competitive C-segment. When it goes on sale in December 2006, the five-door hatchback cee´d will be Kia´s strongest-ever contender for C-segment honours and a genuine challenger to the established class leaders in this closely fought sector.

cee´d will be produced at Kia´s first-ever European manufacturing facility in Slovakia and will be marketed in Europe. Echoing the stylish appearance of the Kia concept car of the same name (exhibited at the Geneva Show earlier this year), cee´d is a truly European design.

"Conceived in Europe, made in Europe and sold in Europe, cee´d is a modern Kia designed to fulfil 100% of European consumers´ needs," concluded SVP Lievens.

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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 29 markets in Europe.

About Kia Motors Corporation
Kia Motors Corporation (www.kiamotors.com) was founded in 1944 and is Korea´s oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the world´s premier automotive brands.

Kia´s 12 manufacturing and assembly operations in seven countries produce more than 1.1 million vehicles a year that are sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 160 countries. Kia today has 32,500 employees and annual revenues of US$16 billion.

Kia is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis Open and an official worldwide sponsor of the Davis Cup. From 2007 to 2014, Kia will be an official automotive partner of FIFA - governing body of soccer´s FIFA World Cup.

Kia Motors Corporation´s brand slogan - ´The Power to Surprise´ - represents the company´s global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation.

Press Contact

Mr Jean-Charles Lievens
Tel 0049 6196 5092 102

Kia Motors Europe GmbH
Hauptstrasse 185, 65760 Eschborn, Germany.
Tel 0049 6196 5092 132 / Fax 0049 6196 5092 100