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My first trip to Geneva


Kiaclub Nieuwsrobot

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I was at the Geneva Motor Show 2011 and would like to share everything about the show with all of you who could not attend this year.

The Geneva Motor Show is the only top-5 motor show of the world that is held in a country where no cars are produced. If a motor show is hosted in a car-producing country, the focus of the motor show tends to be placed on that country’s brands. In contrast, there is no such bias at the Geneva Motor Show, so it will enable customers to evaluate the development trends of global car makers in a more objective manner.

The Geneva Motor Show is held at the PALEXPO convention center near Geneva International Airport which is also a transport hub where the railroad and expressway meet.

The official name of the Geneva Motor Show is the Geneva International Motor Show (Salon International de I’Auto), and it has been held every year since 1931.

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The motor show is open only to the press is on March 1 and 2 while the public will be able to take part from March 3 to March 13. I attended the motor show during the press days.

A total of 260 companies, including 53 car makers and many parts makers, participated in this year’s show. Kia held the world premieres of our all-new Picanto and all-new Rio, and displayed 13 models in total. Why don’t we move to the exhibition hall.

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Let’s move over to Kia stand where the all-new Rio and all-new Picanto made their debut.

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How were the cars displayed? Allow me to briefly describe the cars on the stand. For starters, I’ll show you Picanto and Rio.

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I tried my best to photograph them when there are no people around, but as people kept flooding in, I had a difficulty to take pictures of the cars alone. According to some journalists in attendance, the unstable oil prices due to the recent pro-democracy demonstrations in the Middle East and North Africa have brought the economical A and B segments to the fore, and the all-new Picanto and all-new Rio are well suited for penetrating the European market at this point in time.

The following are the Rio 1.1 liter diesel and a special edition of Soul.

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According to the all-new Rio brochure, the diesel model is “One of the cleanest cars on the markets, as it emits a mere 85g/km of CO2.” “85g” is wrapped onto the actual car for emphasis.

The next picture is of the special edition of Soul that has been neatly transformed using noticeable wrapping, while the wheels and white-tone interior stood out. This model is exclusively for Switzerland and comes with essential options like Rear-Parking Assistance, Fog Lamps, Bluetooth, 8-Speakers, Dual Air-Conditioner Control System, Cruise Control, etc.

Next are Kia’s representative CUV siblings: Sportage and Sorento.

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I was very glad that Sportage received top points in a new test from Consumer Reports a few weeks ago. And today’s newspaper reported that Sorento was picked by Consumer Reports as the best family SUV. As they also received an enthusiastic response at the motor show, I had to wait a long but pleasant time to take photographs without any people around.

I’d also like to show you the facelift version of cee’d, loved by many Europeans, and the hybrid version of Optima. The hybrid version of Optima attracted the most attention after the two world premiere cars. Its fuel efficiency is 36/40 mpg. Its 0->100km/hr acceleration is 9.2 seconds, and its maximum speed is 198km/h. It receives power from the motor for start and low-speed operations. High-brightness metallic materials are used for the radiator grill and fog lamp, and it comes with the next-generation infotainment system UVO. As this motor show emphasized environment-friendliness, I am sure the hybrid version of Optima shines even brighter.

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In addition to these models, various souvenirs, radiator grills and wheels representing the brand identity of Kia Motors were on display, pleasing the eyes of visitors.

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Lastly, the highlight of the motor show was the press conference. I am going to give you the details in my second post along with visuals. I’ll just attach a few pictures here so that you can get the feel of it, and I will also offer you a couple of teasers.

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Thank you for reading this rather long post and in my second post I will focus on the press conference as well as the general atmosphere of the motor show.

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