Kia Motors will begin a diverse marketing campaign for its new K9 sedan, which will be introduced in May in Korea, so that the new model will be able to outsell luxury foreign sedans sold in Korea. 

Kia Motors will open 10 new exclusive showrooms for the brand new luxury model in large cities including Seoul and Busan, with top-class interiors and services up to the standards of Mercedes Benz and BMW showrooms.

This would be the first time a domestic car maker set up an exclusive showroom for a new car model in Korea, Kia Motors officials said. The special display rooms will be equipped with high-tech equipment such as computers with screen on two sides to make the showrooms look exclusive and chic.

The K9 is a flagship sedan model for Kia Motors produced with ambitions to overtake the foreign luxury car models sold in Korea, and only potential buyers with a penchant for buying luxury cars will be invited to the “VIP Showcase” event to see the new model and learn about its advantages.

The brand new luxury model is scheduled to be unveiled officially on May 2 at the Grand Hyatt Hotel near Namsan, Seoul. Kia Motors’s sales agents will accept the contract to sell the cars from May 9 and the first 500 pre-contract buyers will get a Galaxy Tab tablet PC for free and a pair of tickets for the opera “The Marriage of Figaro.” 

The price for the K9 model will be 10 million won more than the Hyundai Genesis since its interior and gadgets are comparable in luxury to those of the Equus, the top sedan model for Hyundai Motor, although its engine is the same class as the Genesis.

The K9, with a 3.3-liter capacity engine, is priced from 53 million won to 87.5 million won. The minimum price of the Genesis is 42.11 million won. Compared to the Equus, however, it is cheaper as the prices of different Equus models range from 67.41 million won to 109.9 million won.

The K9’s prices are competitive with those of the BMW 520d and 528i models, which range in price from 61.5 million won to 71.9 million won; the Mercedes Benz E300, which range in price from 68.8 million won to 80.09 million won; and the Audi A6, which range in price from 59 million won to 78.7 million won, all of which are foreign car models that sell well in Korea.

Kia Motors said the K9 models have the same capacities as those foreign luxury car models and are equipped with all of the high-tech and luxury gadgets that those foreign car models have, thus making it very competitive. The high-tech gadgets on the K9 include the back-up warning system, the electronic gear lever, and the high-tech telematrix service ‘UVO.’ The back-up warning system tells the driver of cars approaching from behind and other obstacles and is being introduced for the first time on the K9 model.

The K9 models also are the first cars in Korea equipped with the snow mode to automatically adjust the engine torque and speed on snow-covered roads to keep the cars from sliding. The gadget compensated for the tendency of cars, primarily those with engines in the back, from sliding on slippery roads.