KIA GT revealed

KIA has let its designers loose to come up with the GT, a four-door, rear drive super sedan that harks back to the 1970s and the glory days of GTs.

Jaguar wasn't the only brand to reveal a sleek-looking rear-drive concept at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Unlike the Jaguar, the KIA GT is a four-door sports sedan.

Although work on the KIA GT concept first started in November 2010, the idea of a powerful rear-wheel drive KIA saloon had been percolating in the minds of KIA’s European designers for some time. "This concept allows us to explore exciting new design directions, as using a rear-drive layout creates very different proportions compared to a front-wheel drive car," says Peter Schreyer, KIA’s Chief Design Officer.

"The classic front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout of a performance saloon has distinct appeal not just for the domestic Korean audience, but also for the European and American markets."

"At the onset of this project," adds Gregory Guillaume, KIA’s European Design Chief, "the design team was inspired by the spirit of iconic 1970s GT cars: sumptuous and elegant vehicles capable of whisking passengers from Paris to the South of France in effortless style and at high speed. We wanted to create something similarly graceful, athletic and confident, but not aggressive or overbearing."

This focus of dynamism and pace is sharpened by the car's aeronautical theme, headlined by the multi-piece propeller-style alloy and carbon-fibre wheels, the jet-themed rear-view cameras, the low-slung front air intake, the aerodynamically efficient rear diffuser and the winglets that curve in from the front flanks and flow into the headlamps.

One of Schreyer and Guillaume's key goals was to ensure that the car's proportions couldn't be mistaken for anything other than a rear-wheel drive performance saloon. Hence the extended bonnet with the front wheels pushed right to the very front of the car, the cab-rearward stance, powerful rear shoulders and truncated rear end.

Both Schreyer and Guillaume are particularly passionate about the KIA GT's lights. The alloy-framed central grille is flanked by headlamp units that each house a bank of six deeply-recessed LED illuminators, to create a highly distinctive nocturnal signature. The advanced construction of the headlamps is mirrored by the single sweeping wing-shaped tail-light that flows around the car's flanks and incorporates two sets of three upright stanchions.

The front doors and rear-hinged rear doors open outward at a slight upward angle, imbuing the car with what Schreyer describes as an air of grace and confidence. Despite its low stance, fast roofline and shallow glasshouse, the KIA GT's clean and uncluttered cabin architecture has created a spacious and airy interior with generous accommodation for the driver and three passengers.

The single-piece seats float on arched supports, further accentuating the cabin's spacious dimensions. The KIA design team deliberately chose to emphasise the proportions of the transmission tunnel to reinforce the power and performance of the saloon, but then balanced this muscularity by moving away from a button-laden centre console and creating a strongly driver-centric layout.

"One of the great things about working on this project was that this is a very real car," says Schreyer. "It felt good to be working on a car that could roll down the road tomorrow. Yes, it would be a dream to put this into production – it has a logical layout, with four seats, and good luggage space, and it's also engaging and dynamic and makes a strong statement. It's exactly the kind of car KIA should be making."