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Honda, Hyundai and Kia get best word-of-mouth recommendations in US

Forget advertising, incentives and, yes, even our excellently crafted vehicle reviews, sometimes the best way for automakers to sell cars is still good ol' fashioned word of mouth. In an attempt to measure this "word of mouth" power, The Boston Consulting Group, a management consulting firm, has created a new study called the Brand Advocacy Index (BAI). The index takes a look at how various industries perform from person to person. Those industries include automotive, smartphones, grocery, mobile telecommunications and banking.
The study polled more than 32,000 individuals across Europe and in the US to come up with the top 55 brands in these various industries. On the automotive side of things, the top brands in the US were Honda, Hyundai and Kia, all tied at 63 percent. On a global scale, Volkswagen and Toyota scored the highest with a 65-percent BAI rating (both in France). The average BAI for auto industry players tallied 50 percent.
As for companies in other industries, Apple's iPhone was the index's top-rated smartphone, Trader Joe's was the highest recommended grocery store, Virgin was sat atop the mobile telecom industry and USAA was the top retail bank. Scroll down for the full press release on the new study.

Dancer who portrays Kia hamster accused of disability fraud

Tsk, tsk, dancing hamster. Kia's trio of anthropomorphic rodents may be down a member, as the actor that portrays one of the dancing hamsters has been arrested on charges of disability fraud. According to The Huffington Post, 27-year-old LeRoy Barnes accepted over $51,000 in disability payments following a workplace injury in 2010. While accepting the money, he's accused of performing under aliases, in addition to his costumed work for Kia. "Fraudulently collecting disability benefits is not only illegal, it disrespects legitimately injured Californians who are unable to work," Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said in a release obtained by HuffPo. Barnes was arrested back in March and posted $50,000 in bail the following day.

Kia dealers report K900 flagship RWD sedan is coming to US

Kia has told dealers that it will bring a $50,000 to $70,000, rear-drive flagship sedan to the United States early in 2014, although it won't be called what you think. Instead of the unloved Quoris name, the full-size sedan will be called the K900.
That name change is a welcomed one, judging by our initial reactions to Quoris. Names aside, though, the K900 sounds like an interesting piece of kit. It'll be riding on the same platform as the Hyundai Equus, although we suspect Kia's car will be quite a different beast than it's corporate cousin. Automotive News is reporting that the K900 should have a pair of engines when it arrives in the US - a 3.8-liter V6 and a 5.0-liter V8. The former puts out 290 horsepower, while the V8, which is likely the same Tau engine found in the Equus, should have around 420 hp. LED headlights, adaptive cruise control and all the other trimmings expected at this price point will also make appearances on the K900.
Kia's national dealer council, Don Hobden, told Automotive News the K900 should represent "7-Series value for a 5-Series price." While Kia wouldn't comment on the new model, AN reports that it's targeting 5,000 units next year, with a limited rollout at select dealerships.