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2014 Kia Cadenza

Kia's Second Effort At Luxury Finds More Love Than The Amanti
The same recent global economic crises that have led luxury automakers to invade the small car market are also somewhat responsible for the influx of near-luxury sedans from mainstream automakers. As the likes of Mercedes-Benz and Audi are reaching down for new customers, automakers like Hyundai, Chevrolet and Toyota are reaching up to bridge the gap and fill in the white space between the industry's typical high-volume large sedans and established luxury sedans. Joining this emerging market, the 2014 Kia Cadenza is the latest sedan to blur the line between value and luxury. One of Kia's core focuses has been offering value to customers, and even with a starting price of $35,100, the Cadenza still represents plenty of that kind of thinking.
Despite what might first come to mind, the Cadenza is not named after a piece of furniture. Instead, Kia notes the name for its new front-wheel-drive flagship comes from the Italian musical term that translates as 'cadence'. The name thus fits in nicely with the brand's other musically inspired model name, Forte. Much like the Hyundai Genesis, the Cadenza will serve as a test of sorts to see how much customers are willing to pay for a Kia, and despite recent reports indicating that Kia has confirmed the Quoris for next year, the reality is that the availability of the bigger rear-wheel-drive flagship will be determined in part by how well the Cadenza strikes a chord with buyers.

Kia gives K900 Matrix spoof for Super Bowl commercial

Kia made a splash when it announced that Laurence Fishburne would revisit Morpheus, his bespectacled, blade-wielding badass character from the Matrix trilogy for a Super Bowl commercial. When we originally broke that story, we offered up a brief synopsis of the spot, produced by David&Goliath.
Now, we have an extended, 90-second version of the 60-second Kia K900 commercial that's slated to air during this weekend's Super Bowl. While it does stick to the brief we reported on a few weeks back, there's a big, ridiculous twist in the last bit of the video, not to mention a few easter eggs for fans of the movies. We won't spoil it for you, so scroll down and have a look.
After you've watched the video, scroll just a bit further down and have a look at Kia's official press release on the commercial.

Kia to launch four-door coupe next year

Kia has been toying for some time with the idea of building a sporty four-door model. But according to the latest reports from Seoul, the Korean automaker intends to stop showboating and finally put one into production. And it could come as early as next year. Reuters reports that the project known internally as CK will join Kia's lineup as its second rear-drive model, alongside the larger K900. Power would reportedly come in from engines displacing 2.0, 2.2, and 3.0 liters. The target would apparently be the BMW 4 Series Gran Coupe, but with a sportier, more youthful edge. That's something which Kia has been keen to capitalize on since the success of the Soul. It took similarly unconventional approaches with the new Sportage and the recent Telluride concept, but has not managed as of yet to transfer that youthful, unorthodox vibe to the lower-slung side of its lineup. With parent company Hyundai having recently launched the Genesis premium sub-brand, the sporty, young image could be left for Kia to pursue. Only time will tell if Toyota's abandonment of its Scion brand will leave room for Kia to swoop in, or if it'll be a dead end. Reuters anticipates the new Kia to launch in May 2017, with a targeted annual production of 60,000 vehicles worldwide. Expect some elements to carry over from recent four-door coupe concepts like the Novo (pictured) from last year and the GT concept of 2011. Reports have been circulating since then that the latter would reach production. Related Video: