2015 Kia K900 And Soul Named Among Best Cars For Families By U.S. News & World Report

IRVINE, Calif., March 12, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Kia Motors America (KMA) is proud to announce that U.S. News & World Report has honored the K900 flagship¹ sedan and the 2015 Soul urban passenger vehicle with "Best Cars for Families" awards in the Luxury Large Car and Hatchback categories, respectively.  U.S. News Best Cars, the automotive channel of U.S. News & World Report, has published rankings for new vehicles sold in America since 2007, and the awards continue each vehicle's string of recent accolades from respected organizations such as Robb Report, Cars.com and Kelly Blue Book.

"Having the Soul and K900 named to U.S. News and World Report's 'Best Cars for Families' list demonstrates how far the Kia brand has come in terms of quality, safety, packaging, and amenities," said Michael Sprague, executive vice president of sales and marketing, KMA.  "The entire Kia model line – including our iconic urban passenger vehicle and luxury flagship sedan – offers a winning blend of sophisticated design and user-friendly technology with a consistent emphasis on value."

The award methodology combines professional automotive reviews, safety and reliability ratings, seating and cargo volume figures and the availability of family-friendly features.  Within each of 19 categories, the vehicle with the highest composite score is named the Best Car for Families in that category.

"Parents might first look at Kia models for their value, but the Soul and K900 prove there are many other reasons to consider the brand," said Jamie Page Deaton, managing editor, U.S. News Best Cars.  "Features like heated rear seats, proximity key, and Kia's UVO^® system work together to make family life easier and families more comfortable.  Excellent safety and reliability ratings make the Kia Soul and K900 cars that families can feel good about driving."

2015 Kia K900

The 2015 K900 challenges the rear-drive luxury sedan segment with an extensive list of standard equipment, world-class accommodations, premium driving dynamics and stunning design that redefines consumer perception and expectations of the Kia brand. 

Offered in two trim levels, Premium and Luxury, the K900's list of standard equipment features first-class accommodations and advanced technology.  The range-topping VIP+ package adds luxury amenities including quilted Nappa leather trim seats available in two new colors: Indigo Blue and Tuscan Brown.  For 2015, the K900 Premium features an optional interior Highline Package that includes beige or black Nappa leather and wood-trimmed heated steering wheel.

"The 2015 K900 is the Best Luxury Large Car for Families because it has features families will love, including heated and cooled rear seats and rear climate controls," noted Deaton.  "Features like a power trunk, proximity key, parking sensors and a rearview camera will make driving the family a pleasure."

2015 Kia Soul

Completely redesigned for 2014, the iconic Soul enters the 2015 model year with select enhancements focused on increasing the hot-selling urban utility vehicle's fun factor.  The signature Soul design is instantly recognizable yet thoroughly fresh.  Honoring Soul owners' fierce individualism, three unique trim levels remain available: Base, Plus and Exclaim. 

"Its styling makes the Soul stand out in the pickup lane at school, but the Soul's excellent safety and reliability ratings are what make it a standout choice for families," remarked Deaton.  "Available features like heated rear seats and the connectivity provided by Kia's UVO system are the icing on the cake."

Enhancements to packaging for the Base model include a new UVO² eServices Package.  UVO eServices is a free subscription telematics service available for 10 years/100,000 miles.  For 2015, UVO eServices offers four new features: Geo-fencing, Speed Alert, Curfew Alert and Driving Score³.  Many more new technologies for comfort and convenience are featured in the new UVO system, including Siri^® "Eyes Free⁴" and Local Search – powered by Google⁵ – for finding locations, addresses and points of interest. 

Sirius XM Travel Link⁶, offering access to traffic, weather, fuel prices, sports scores, stock information and movie times, makes the Soul the perfect companion for those who live their lives on the road with family and friends.

About Kia Motors America
Kia Motors America (KMA) is the marketing and distribution arm of Kia Motors Corporation based in Seoul, South Korea, and in 2014 was the #1 ranked mainstream brand according to Strategic Vision's Total Quality Index.  KMA proudly serves as the "Official Automotive Partner" of the NBA and LPGA and set an all-time annual sales record in 2014, surpassing the 500,000 unit mark for the third consecutive year. KMA offers a complete line of vehicles, including the rear-drive K9001 flagship sedan, Cadenza premium sedan, Sorento CUV, Soul urban passenger vehicle, Soul Electric Vehicle⁷, Sportage compact CUV, Optima midsize sedan, Optima Hybrid, the Forte compact sedan, Forte5 and Forte Koup, Rio and Rio 5-door subcompacts and the Sedona midsize multi-purpose vehicle, through a network of more than 765 dealers across the United States.  Kia's U.S. manufacturing plant in West Point, Georgia, builds the Optima* and Sorento* and is responsible for the creation of more than 14,000 plant and supplier jobs.

Information about KMA and its full vehicle line-up is available at www.kia.com. For media information, including photography, visit www.kiamedia.com.  To receive custom email notifications for press releases the moment they are published, subscribe at www.kiamedia.com/us/en/newsalert.

About U.S. News & World Report
The U.S. News Best Cars site receives more than 45 million unique visitors. More than 65 percent of visitors were actively shopping for a car, while 80 percent of those active shoppers reported that the U.S. News Best Cars site influenced their car purchasing decision.

* The Sorento and Optima GDI (EX, SX & Limited and certain LX Trims only) are assembled in the United States from U.S. and globally sourced parts.
¹ 2015 K900 V8 available in select trims and in select markets with limited availability.
² Warning: Driving while distracted can result in a loss of vehicle control that may lead to an accident, severe personal injury and death. Always drive safely and use caution.
³ The Driving Score is for informational purposes only and is based on factors such as the smoothness, consistency, and length of time that the driver applies the accelerator and brake pedals during a trip segment.
⁴ Siri is a registered trademark of Apple, Inc.
⁵ Google is a registered trademark of Google Inc.
⁶ Sirius services require subscriptions, sold separately after 3-month trial included with vehicle purchase/lease.  Subscriptions governed by SiriusXM Customer Agreement at siriusxm.com© 2014 SiriusXM Radio Inc. Sirius, XM and all related marks and logos are trademarks of SiriusXM Radio Inc.
⁷ 2015 Soul EV in select markets with limited availability.

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SOURCE Kia Motors America