Things we know about the upcoming Kia Rio-based small crossover.
The all-new Kia Stonic was launched in Europe last week, allowing us to learn a whole lot more about this cool new small crossover vehicle.
It’s still a couple of months away from arriving in showrooms in Europe, but that is not the case in South Korea, where it will be available for sale on July 13.
The Korean media is buzzing about the new release, which has allowed us to put together even more information about the new Stonic, so let’s take a closer look at what Korean consumers can expect.
Kia Stonic Korean release date
The official Korean unveiling took place earlier this week at the Namyang research & development center in Hwasung.
It was during this event that the July 13 sale date was announced, with Kia also saying that they have already started to receive pre-orders.
Exterior colors of Kia Stonic
There will initially be 6 exterior color options for the Korean-spec Stonic crossover, although more may be added at a later date.
Interior color options
There is expected to be a black and white color combination used on the dashboard, seats and door panels, but you can also expect to see some color accents that will add a touch of flair.
The Korean-specs Kia Stonic brochure reveals that three different color accents will be available:
- orange
- gloss black
- matte brown
AWD option in Kia Stonic?
Many thought that since the Hyundai Kona has an AWD option, the Stonic would, too, but these vehicles ride on different platforms, so no AWD for the Stonic!
Pricing in South Korea
The good news is that the front-wheel-drive only platform that the Stonic rides on is cheaper than that of the Kona, which helps cushion the blow of no AWD being available.
The Korean-market pricing for the Kia Stonic is as competitive as it gets, as it will seriously undercut much of its competition.
The starting price in Korea will be around 19 million won (US$16,709), which is about 2 million won less than rivals such as the Hyundai Kona, SsangYong Motor’s Tivoli, and Renault Samsung’s QM3.
Stonic EV coming or not?
There have been a lot of rumors suggesting that an all-electric version of the Kia Stonic would be made available at a later date, but those reports are being denied by the Koreans.
Mr. Seo Bo-Wan, domestic marketing director for Kia, went as far as to say that there are no plans for a Stonic EV now or anytime in the future.
His comments come on the heels of reports suggesting that the Stonic EV would be coming as soon as next year, and that it would have a range of around 390 kilometers.
If it’s not going to be offered as an EV, then we can almost certainly rule out hybrid or PHEV variants, too.
Seo Bo-Wan stated that the reason for not going this route was so that consumers would be better able to differentiate between the Stonic and the Niro, which will be getting an EV variant sometime next year. (Picture)
So they have not added AWD to compete with the Honda HR-V, Nissan Juke, Toyota CH-R. No offense but that sounds kinda stupid in 2017 when crossovers this size are popular now. Also with Kia having the benefit of award winning utility vehicles you’d think that would be an advantage for Kia. Im curious to,know whats their sells strategy when the competition has AWD.
I think Kia won’t be selling the Stonic in U.S., so there’s no problem not offering 4WD. It will be sold mainly in EU where customers buy mostly FWD crossovers.
As you already know, the Stonic is built on a Rio platform. The Kona on the other hand is built on a new platform that can offer AWD. And that platform will be used on the next Soul, which means the Soul is most likely (& finally) getting the AWD option.
If Kia offered Stonic with AWD in the U.S. it could significantly cut into the Soul sales (Niro hybrid did that already) and that’s what Kia doesn’t want.
Yep – Kia won’t mess with Soul sales in the U.S. The Stonic won’t come here.
It’s such a nice looking crossover too. But good point. If it is not broken dont fix it. I guess the Sportage has to be that AWD Juke rival then
Toyota C-HR dont have AWD sowhat?
Kia Australia has stated that they won’t be getting the Stonic, but instead, a different CUV model around 2019.
Seems likely that we’ll be getting this new CUV model as well.
Still, kinda odd that Kia would have gone thru the trouble of developing 3 different subcompact CUVs for different markets.
Denis – AWD is important to some people. I’m actually considering AWD for my next rig, as I may move to a very snowy, icy place next.
I think AWD is unnecessary for this category of SUV. Just a few people care about it.