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Kia offers first glimpse at new Optima ahead of New York debut

The Optima is far and away Kia's top-selling model in America, outstripping anything else in the Korean automaker's lineup by some margin. But after four years, Kia is set to roll out an all-new model at the New York Auto Show next week. Before it does, though, it is giving us our first glimpse at the new sedan with the image above. Previewed by the Sportspace concept earlier this month in Geneva and in the pair of teaser renderings from last week, the new Optima should be instantly recognizable to anyone familiar with the current model – particularly from the front end we see here. The headlights line up with the tiger-nose grille, but now bear a little kink in the lower edge, and the full-width lower air dam has now been split between a taller center section flanked by twin vents. That front fender vent is still evident, a black roof is once again framed by the body-color window surrounds, but the hood appears more sculpted. Kia says the new Optima will be "available with multiple engine choices" and "features a more spacious interior, class-up premium features and a number of technologies not previously offered on Kia's best-selling midsize sedan." Just what those engine options and new technologies will be, we can't say for sure at this point, but the current model is offered around the world with a range of four-cylinder gasoline, diesel and hybrid engine options. We'll just have to wait another week or so to find out more. ALL-NEW 2016 KIA OPTIMA MAKES GLOBAL DEBUT AT NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW Instantly recognizable yet thoroughly fresh, Kia will introduce the all-new 2016 Optima at the upcoming New York Auto Show on April 1st at 1:20 PM. Available with multiple engine choices, the all-new Optima features a more spacious interior, class-up premium features and a number of technologies not previously offered on Kia's best-selling mid-size sedan. #KiaOptima #NYIAS

Kia's second Super Bowl commercial lets booth professionals have their revenge

This is more like it, Kia. After last year's highly successful Adriana Lima-infused Super Bowl commercial for the Optima, we weren't that impressed with this year's Super Bowl ad for the new Sorento called Space Babies that Kia showed us earlier in the week. Its second spot for this year's big game, however, gave us a chuckle.
Called Hotbots and starring Miss USA Alyssa Campanella as a futuristic robot, the ad plays out a fantasy that we know for certain has crossed the minds of many booth professionals. These are the attractive set of women and men who plant themselves next to new cars at auto shows. More than just eye candy, they're usually extremely well educated on the product's specs and features. Despite that fact, they have to put up with constant oogling and questions like, "Do you come with the car?" What this T-1000 won't put up with is fingerprints on her shiny new 2014 Kia Forte, and she does something about it. Watch for yourself below.

Dealership worker takes Kia Soul for 200-mile joyride

Most often, dealership road-test capers in customer cars involve exciting metal - an employee totals a Chevy Camaro ZL1, or a does the same thing with a Dodge Viper. Or tapes himself wringing out Italian exotics at triple-digit speeds on public roads. That kind of horseplay rarely involves mass-market metal because it's not worth getting caught running red lights in a 2001 Mitsubishi Montero - except that actually happened, too. But we still don't understand the mechanic at Peak Kia North in Windor, CO, who used a customer's Kia Soul as his own car for four days and put 200 miles on it. Owner Veronica Pief discovered the nonsense when she downloaded the 17 hours of driving video from her dashcam. She dropped the Soul off to have its speed-volume control fixed, but got it back with the extra mileage and the volume problem still hadn't been remedied. It got worse when she said of the dealership, "Afterwards, they just blew us off. They didn't care. They didn't show any concern." Sometime between that disrespect and Denver's KUSA 9NEWS doing a story on it, the dealer decided it should fix the situation. Pief said she wanted the dealer to buy her car back and pay off the loan, which sounds extreme, but she might have been thinking about the verbiage in her owner's manual. Kia is one of the automakers that's strict about voiding warranties if it deems a car has been abused. Peak Kia North gave Pief what she wanted just one day after the original story ran, buying the car back from her with plans to auction it and donate the proceeds to charity. And yes, the mechanic was fired. You can watch the local news report above. Related Video: News Source: Detroit Free Press, 9NEWS Auto News Kia Car Dealers Hatchback Videos viral video colorado