Kia Racing Treks West For Round Three Of The Pirelli World Challenge On The Streets Of Long Beach

IRVINE, Calif., April 10, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- With both turbocharged Kia Racing Optimas having scored hard-fought top-ten finishes at the 2014 Pirelli World Challenge (PWC) season opener in St. Petersburg, Fla., the Kia Racing team had just three days in their Buford, Ga., shop to prepare the No. 36 DonorsChoose.org and No. 38 B.R.A.K.E.S. machines before making the long haul west to another ocean-side street circuit, this time the legendary 1.968-mile, 11-turn concrete canyon in Long Beach, Calif.  For the second consecutive year, Kia Motors America (KMA) is the presenting sponsor of the "Roar by the Shore" and will host over 200 KMA team members from the company's U.S. headquarters in nearby Irvine, Calif.

"Kia's involvement in motorsports helps demonstrate the quality, durability and performance of our vehicles, highlighting the turbocharged Optima and enhancing our brand reputation among customers, dealers, KMA team members and fans," said Michael Sprague, executive vice president of sales and marketing, KMA.  "We're thrilled to welcome the Kia Racing team back to Southern California, and with our U.S. headquarters less than 30 miles down the road from Long Beach, you can be sure that we'll have a large and enthusiastic cheering section on hand at the race."

2014 marks the third trip for Kia Racing to Long Beach, an annual cross-country trek that also provides the occasion for a visit by the team to KMA's corporate offices in Irvine, Calif., to sign autographs and meet their biggest fans.

Round 3 of the PWC takes place on Sunday, April 13 at 4:30 p.m. PT.  Tape delayed television coverage on NBC Sports Network takes place on Sunday, April 20 at 2:30 p.m. PT.

Race fans can watch live coverage of the races online at www.world-challengetv.com and catch the latest news and updates from the Kia Racing Facebook page at www.facebook.com/kiaracing and follow the team on Twitter: @KiaRacing.

About Kia Motors America

Kia Motors America (KMA) is the marketing and distribution arm of Kia Motors Corporation based in Seoul, South Korea.  KMA proudly serves as the "Official Automotive Partner" of the NBA and LPGA and surpassed the 500,000 annual sales mark for the second consecutive year in 2013 following the launch  of seven all-new or significantly redesigned vehicles.  KMA offers a complete line of vehicles, including the rear-drive K900 flagship sedan[1], Cadenza premium sedan, Sorento CUV, Soul urban passenger vehicle, Sportage compact CUV, Optima midsize sedan, Optima Hybrid, the Forte compact sedan, Forte5 and Forte Koup, Rio and Rio 5-door sub-compacts and the Sedona minivan, 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.

* The Sorento and Optima GDI (EX Trims and certain LX Trims only) and GDI Turbo are built in the United States from U.S. and globally sourced parts. 

[1]  V6 expected Summer 2014.  V6 and V8 initially only available in select markets with limited availability.  

Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20140410/LA02439

SOURCE Kia Motors America