With sales up by a stellar 209 percent last year, the striking Kia Optima garnered new fans at an impressive rate, and among those impressed were clearly the writers at Autobytel. In fact, the folks at the popular online resource for all things automotive were so taken by the Optima that they named it their Sedan of the Year.
It’s another seal of approval for the Optima’s recent makeover, which introduced Kia’s much-lauded design language—developed by design chief Peter Schreyer, who has been responsible for style icons like the original Audi TT—to a new segment of the marketplace. The result is what Autobytel calls a “coupe-like elegance that just happens to have four doors.”
It also just happens to offer one of the most comprehensive powertrain lineups of any mainstream mid-size on the road today. The Optima’s standard powerplant is a 200-hp I4 engine that rings up an EPA line of 24 mpg city/35 mpg highway/28 mpg combined; that’s the same combined EPA mark as the all-new Toyota Camry, but with an extra 22 horses under the hood. For more power, drivers can choose the Optima Turbo, which relies on a 2.0-liter I4 engine worth 274 hp to attain EPA marks of 22/34/26; again, that’s more power than available in the V6 Camry, with fuel-economy ratings that are higher than the Toyota’s by 1 mpg/4 mpg/1 mpg. Finally, for the ultimate choice in Optima fuel efficiency, Kia offers its award-winning sedan with a hybrid system that can reach 35/40/37.
And as Autobytel points out, the Optima offers a similarly comprehensive, high-tech approach to the rest of its features, highlighted by an eight-speaker Infinity audio system and Kia’s UVO infotainment and connectivity setup, enabled by cutting-edge technology from Microsoft. Other up-scale amenities available across the Optima lineup include:
- Heat and cooled front seats, with heated rear seats, a heated steering wheel and heated side mirrors
- A panoramic sunroof
- Push-button start
- An eight-way power-adjustable driver’s seat
- Carbon-fiber, leather and chrome trims
- Navigation with a rearview camera system
- An illuminated and cooled glovebox
- Dual-zone climate control with rear-seat vents
- Steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters
- Premium 18-inch polished-alloy wheels
- Auto-leveling high-intensity discharge headlamps
- Chrome-tipped dual exhaust
Further, the Optima and Optima Turbo are both built at Kia’s U.S. manufacturing complex in West Point, Ga.
“Since its introduction, the Optima has been attracting new customers to the brand with the right balance of performance, modern amenities and fuel economy that consumers are looking for,” said Michael Sprague, vice president of marketing and communications, KMA. “The mid-size sedan segment is more competitive than ever, and Autobytel’s recognition of the Optima continues to keep Kia’s momentum going into 2012.”
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