Moses Akaigwe
Recently, at the Washington Auto Show, Kia received four 2020 Best Car for the Money awards from U.S. News & World Report in four separate categories: the Forte {Cerato} won for best compact car; the Soul was best subcompact SUV; Sorento best 3-row SUV; and Sedona {Cranival} best minivan.
“Winning one Best Car for the Money awards is a great honor,” said Michael Cole, president, Kia Motors America (KMA). “Winning four is fantastic. It’s Kia’s mission to provide consumers with desirable high-quality vehicles at the best value, and so this recognition from U.S. News & World Report is tremendously gratifying.”
Winners are chosen by the best combination of quality and value. Quality is determined by each vehicle’s performance in U.S. News & World Report Best Car Rankings and value is measured by a combination of transaction prices and five-year total ownership costs.
U.S. News & World Report executive editor Jaime Page Deaton said, “Kia winning four Best Car for the Money Awards shows just how well the company’s strategy of providing quality, feature-filled cars has paid off. In each category that Kia won, the model not only represented a great value in terms of price and ownership costs, but also in terms of providing a top-notch ownership experience.”
At a similar award ceremony earlier, Kia Telluride was named 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year by the distinguished North American Car of the Year jury (NACTOY). This first-time honor for the Kia brand caps an unprecedented number of awards for Kia’s three-row SUV from major consumer and enthusiast publications since the Telluride appeared in dealerships early last year.
“We are immensely proud of Telluride capturing North American Utility of the Year,” said Sean Yoon, CEO of Kia Motors North America. “It solidifies years of effort on behalf of every Kia employee to build vehicles consumers desire and industry experts value. Winning the North American Utility Vehicle of the Year is an honour that marks Kia’s arrival in the top tier of the world’s automotive manufacturers.”
NACTOY jurors voted Telluride number one after spending months of deliberation, including test drives, comparisons and other evaluations. To be eligible, vehicles must be all-new or substantially new and must be available at dealerships close to the announcement of the awards. The Telluride prevailed over a field of 12 semi-finalists and three finalists in the utility category.
“The Kia Telluride makes owning an SUV look cool while offering the smooth ride and rich interior of a luxury vehicle without the luxury price,” said Kirk Bell, NACTOY secretary-treasurer.
The Telluride continues to be one of Kia Motors America’s best-selling vehicles. Since going on sale, nearly 60,000 Tellurides have been sold and demand continues to outpace supply. Conceived, designed, developed, and assembled in the U.S. specifically for the U.S. market in West Point, Georgia, Telluride is the first Kia vehicle to be exported from the United States.
Kia vehicles are also doing well in the Nigerian market where Kia Motors Nigeria assembles the range for the local market at a plant located in Isolo, Lagos..