One of the most satisfied car chiefs at the Frankfurt IAA must be Michael Cole, chief operating officer of Kia Motors Europe. His list of vehicle introductions was longer than most of his rivals’ entire model ranges.

Stinger, Stonic, Optima wagon and Niro hybrids, Picanto X-line and Sorento GT-line. While the Stonic crossover comes with a choice of 20 two-tone paint variations, yet another newcomer, the Proceed concept, comes with a choice of three smells.

Really.

According to Gregory Guillaume, head of European design, You can choose aged leather, oily garage – invoking classic cars apparently – or high octane racing fuel. It’s all about appealing to the senses, that’s designers for you.

Guillaume can actually lay claim to being the father of the grammatically nightmarish pro_cee’d, his first design for Kia back in 2008. The market, he said, has moved on since then as people seek an alternative to the hot hatch. This has led to his reworked and “re-imagined”, grammatically easier, Proceed. An extended hot hatch with five-door versatility.

Back to the production models, Cole said many car bosses would kill to be able to do what he is doing as Kia continues to push out more and more new models.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

“Next year will not be any quieter,” he added without revealing exactly what is in store.

“We have shown so much new product that Stinger has become almost a side show because we showed it a little while ago although it is not actually launched in Europe until next month.”

He expects all the new product, which be launched during quarter four or early in January, will lead to a 10th consecutive year of growth in Europe for the Kia brand.

“We keep hitting new milestones,” said Cole. “This year we cracked 3% market share in Europe for the first time and to achieve 10 years of consecutive growth in 2018 would be fantastic, particularly in what we expect to be a flat market.”

Despite the ever increasing sales, the supply line from South Korea is keeping up with demand, he said.

“There have been slightly longer lead times with some specifications and with Niro because of the unexpected demand, but we are largely keeping up.”

Cole said word from Seoul is the country is pretty relaxed over recent tensions with North Korea. The posturing from over the border is a common occurrence.

As far as the market in Europe is concerned, he is more worried about the current trend to demonise diesel.

“The industry was once put under pressure to increase diesel and now the goalposts have moved again. It’s a shame because I believe that diesel can be part of the solution rather than the cause of  the problem.

“Of course we want to clean up diesel and the industry has been doing so. Modern clean diesels are much better in terms of CO2 and NOx.”