Kia Motors recognised with three accolades at 2018 iF Design Awards

MUSCAT: Reinforcing the brand’s reputation for eye-catching yet functional car design, Kia Motors was accoladed with three prestigious 2018 iF Design Awards.

In the ‘Product Design’ category, the winners were identified as Kia Stinger, Stonic and Picanto.

This latest hat-trick of accolades brings the manufacturer’s total number of iF Design prizes to 15. In fact, this is the second consecutive year in which Kia has won three iF Design Awards, and the ninth year in a row the company has won in at least one category.

iF Design Awards are presented across seven categories: Product, Packaging, Communication, Service Design / UX, Architecture, Interior Design, and Professional Concept. Kia’s new models have been honoured in the Product Design category.

The Kia Stinger, designed at Kia’s European design centre in Frankfurt, Germany, marries classic Gran Turismo design with a spacious and luxurious interior. The Stinger features elegant fastback proportions and a muscular ‘coke bottle’ shape down its flanks, highlighting its rear-wheel biased power delivery.

Also designed in Frankfurt, the Stonic, Kia’s debut compact crossover, offers a striking and bold exterior design, combined with an elevated seating position and practical SUV format. It is the most colourful Kia ever made, offering buyers a wide choice of two-tone paint combinations and interior colours.

The third-generation of the Kia Picanto brings a youthful and energetic character to the Asegment. It boasts a distinctive new design and a high-quality and hi-tech cabin. Despite its compact dimensions, the Picanto’s intelligent design makes it one of the most spacious cars in its class.

Since it was launched in 1953, the iF Design Award has become one of the world’s most important prizes for excellence in design. The award has its origins in the ‘FormgerechteIndustrieerzeugnisse’ (Good Industrial Design) product shows initiated by the Hannover Messe, and is now one of the world’s largest design competitions. In 2018, companies from 54 countries submitted 6,402 products to be judged by an independent international jury of 63 design experts. iF Design Awards are presented across seven categories: Product, Packaging, Communication, Service Design / UX, Architecture, Interior Design, and Professional Concept. Kia’s new models have been honoured in the Product Design category.

The official presentation ceremony for 2018 iF design Awards took place at the BMW Welt in Munich. A selection of the winning products is on display at the iF Design exhibition in Hamburg’s HafenCity. Additionally, all winners can be seen on the iF website, www.ifdesign.de, and can be viewed on the ‘iF Design’ smartphone app.

Please visit the Reliable International showroom in Oman to discover a Kia just right for your needs.

Kia Motors Corporation was founded in 1944 and is Korea’s oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. Over 3 million Kia vehicles a year are produced in 10 manufacturing and assembly operations in five countries, which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering around 150 countries.

Reliable International Automotive (RIA), the distributor for Kia in Oman has been ranked amongst the top Kia distributors worldwide and has been honoured with prestigious accolades including the ‘Good Partnership award, ‘Family Like Care’ Service award’, ‘Kia ‘Distributor of Distinction’ award and the ‘Kia Award for Overall Excellence and Outstanding Performance’ amongst Kia distributors worldwide was bestowed most deservingly.