Kia will be displaying the production version of its Soul MPV at the Paris Motor Show next week.

It’s the first car that ex-Audi designer and now Kia chief of design Peter Schreyer has developed from conception.

Schreyer said: “The Soul will be a breakthrough vehicle for Kia on its journey to be seen as a design-led company and the maker of distinctive cars which consumers aspire to own. It’s also designed to get people talking about Kia.”

The Soul will come with a choice of three engines, two diesels in 124bhp and 113bhp guises and a 124bhp petrol.

Alongside the new Soul, which will arrive in UK showrooms in spring, Kia will be world debuting a hybrid version of the Soul, a Cee’d hybrid, a fuel-cell powered Sportage and a Cee’d ‘Idle Stop&Go’ car, which is due to go on sale in the New Year.

Soul production plans

Kia is planning to manufacture up to 136,000 examples of the Kia Soul annually at its Gwangju facility in Korea.

Overall sales volumes are expected to see 36,000 sales in the domestic Korean market, 50,000 units in North America, 30,000 in Europe and 20,000 in other ‘general’ markets worldwide.


 

A dedicated version of Kia Soul for the Chinese market will be produced locally in China at the rate of 40,000 units annually, starting during 2009.