Kia’s fourth-generation Rio – a model assembled and sold widely across the world – will make its world debut on 29 September at the Paris show.
The Rio’s “progressive new exterior and interior design” was led by the automaker’s design centres in Germany and California, in close collaboration with the company’s main centre in Namyang, Korea, Kia said.
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“Straight lines and smooth surfacing give the car a distinctive new character, while a longer front overhang and bonnet, longer wheelbase, and upright C-pillar give the car an even more confident and balanced appearance than its predecessor. The all-new Rio will offer buyers class-leading practicality and safety technology, the latest connectivity features, and more assured and engaging ride and handling characteristics.”
The Rio is the Korean automaker’s global best-selling model, with over 473,000 sold around the world in 2015. The next generation will enter production towards the end of 2016 for Europe, with production timings for other regions to be announced closer to launch.
According to just-auto‘s PLDB database, the latest Rio, like the outgoing model will be called Pride at home in South Korea and, in China, K2.
Sources have claimed Kia’s new Mexican plant will be an additional build location for this Rio generation. If this proves true, that would underline the supposed build location of an additional, large rear-wheel drive Kia: Sohari in South Korea where the previous Rio was made. It is believed that 60,000 units of annual capacity is being reserved at the Sohari plant for this luxury-sports model. That capacity would then be replaced by an equivalent number of next generation Rios being manufactured at Pesqueria (Nuevo León) in Mexico.
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