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Kia this week says New Zealand will become the first country to get a diesel Kia Optima before it moves to other markets, including Australia. The 1.7-litre turbo-diesel - an overbored 1.6-litre turbo-diesel as fitted to the Soul - with about 90kW and 320Nm has been chosen for the Optima, based primarily on its weight.
Kia Product manager Ji-Hoon Han says the 1.7 is one of the R-Series diesels and is from the same family as the 2-litre and 2.2-litre engines fitted to Kia’s Sorento and Sportage plus Hyundai’s Santa Fe. He says the 1.7 was smaller and lighter than the 2-litre and, because it produced the same 320Nm of torque, was the ideal powerplant for the 1.5-tonne Optima.
New Zealand will, like Australia, get the 2.4-litre GDI Optima early next year. It will receive the diesel in June but it won’t get to Australia either later in 2011 or early in 2012. Part f that is due to demand in Australia for diesel sedans, says Mr Han.
“Australia’s interest in diesels for cars isn’t as big as some other markets,’‘ he says. “So we will start with New Zealand and then the UK before we look at Australia.’’
Kia is expanding its diesel engine factory in Korea, expecting the majority of work to be ready in April. It says the expansion was attributed to growing global demand for the diesels.
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