Twenty-seven years ago, the first Kia-built cars arrived on American shores badged as the Ford Festiva. At the time, it was hard to imagine that barely a quarter century later, the manufacturer of those low-budget, minicars would be producing a full-size luxury sedan could credibly be compared to some of the best cars in the world. After spending a week with the 2015 Kia K900 V8 VIP, I’ve come to some conclusions about whether the South Korean automaker has succeeded.
Kia didn’t begin selling cars in North America under its own brand until 1996 and frankly its initial offerings, the Sportage and Sephia didn’t look very promising. It wasn’t long after that the Asian financial crisis sent Kia and many other South Korean companies into bankruptcy which ironically may have been the best thing to happen to the automaker. Hyundai bought one-third of Kia and a controlling interest and it’s been a steady upward trajectory for both brands ever since.
For Kia in particular, the transformation began with the 2006 hiring of designer Peter Schreyer away from Audi. Under Schreyer’s guidance, Kia has developed a signature style that comes off as sporty and yet surprisingly sophisticated even on Kia’s entry-level cars. The K900 takes this visual language to a new level with an athletic stance that belies the sedan’s impressive dimensions. Replace the Kia badges with blue and white BMW roundels and apply a twin kidney grille and this could easily be seen as a next generation 7 Series.
Shark tooth detailing on the K900 grille with a discretely integrated front camera
The Kia design team has done a particularly nice job of the detailing on the grille which contains an array of what look like chrome shark’s teeth. The grille is flanked by headlamps consisting of eight LEDs each that provide surprisingly bright, even and crisp lighting at night, while a front facing camera is discreetly incorporated into the center.
Inside, the K900 is lushly appointed in leather, wood and chrome although the designers were perhaps a bit heavy-handed with the piano black finish on the dash and center console. The instrument cluster consists of a high-resolution 12-inch LCD display that does a remarkable job of emulating the look of classic round analog gauges in normal mode. In sport mode, the display switches to a different layout dominated by large digital readouts for the speedometer and tach surrounded by analog arcs that grow with the numbers.
A 12-inch high-resolution LCD provides reconfigurable gauges
A heads-up display unit projects speed, navigation and other alerts into the air in front of the driver. However, if you were polarized sun glasses, you’ll want to maximize the brightness of the HUD because the technology used by Kia fades significantly when viewed through these lenses.
A second large display dominates the center of the dashboard and unlike the HUD, it still looks great through sunglasses. The latest generation of Kia’s UVO infotainment system can be controlled using an iDrive-style knob on the console as well as some voice commands. The voice commands seemed somewhat limited and despite the quiet cabin environment, recognition was not as reliable as some other vehicles I’ve driven recently. The system also seemed to take a long time to boot up when starting the car and reconnecting a phone over bluetooth could take a couple of minutes.
The infotainment system works reasonably well but takes a long time to boot up and reconnect to phones
While the bluetooth connection time might seem like a quibble, it’s actually important if like me you get most of your media via a smartphone. Unlike Ford SYNC AppLink which can control dozens of apps directly through the head unit or with voice commands, UVO can only operate the ubiquitous Pandora (as well as providing other features like 911 connect and maintenance reminders). If the phone reconnects quickly, you can set up the app you want and start playing media right after you start up while the car is still stationary. If it takes time to reconnect, you may end up fiddling with the phone after you start driving, which we all know is a safety hazard. Other than the startup time, the bluetooth control does work well, allowing you to pause, play, fast forward and rewind using the vehicle controls without touching the phone.
The seats in the K900 V8 VIP offer a wide range of adjustability including one of my personal favorites, adjustable thigh support. Even the back seats can recline which is great for those sitting there on a long road trip. The rear cabin is also positively cavernous, taking full advantage of the nearly 120-inch wheelbase. Unfortunately, while the broad front seats are comfortable, they don’t provide a whole lot of lateral support.
The rear seats in the VIP edition provide enormous leg room and the ability to recline
While Kia and Hyundai remain separate companies, they do share technology and engineering resources to the benefit of both brands. Engines and platforms ultimately find a home in the products both brands, but each has unique styling, tuning and character. For example, when Kia set out to develop its new luxury flagship, they dipped into the shared parts bin to use components originally developed for the Hyundai Genesis.
Going from the Sephia to the K900 in less than 20 years is nothing short of astounding
Compared to the most recent Genesis I drove, the K900’s driving dynamics definitely feel softer, most notably the steering feel. At around town speeds, the tiller felt decidedly overboosted and devoid of feedback even with the drive mode set to sport. As speed increased, it did tighten up a bit, but anyone enamored with the dynamics of a BMW would not find contentment behind this wheel.
Compare the K900 to rivals from Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz
The ride and handling felt similarly soft by comparison. The K900 never had the wallowy, floating quality of an older American land yacht, but it was definitely disconnected, more akin to the way a 90s-era Lexus LS felt than a contemporary German sedan. For those looking for a crisp-handling big sedan at lower price than the Europeans, the current Genesis is actually the better choice. The K900 is the choice for those that want quiet, controlled isolation during their commute.
The K900 Luxury edition gets full LED headlamps that bend into turns.
Even as Kia and Hyundai have continued to improve every vehicle they build and steadily move upmarket, value has remained an essential part of the equation. With a starting price for the K900 V8 of just $54,900, Kia undercuts the Lexus LS by some $17,000 while a Mercedes-Benz S550 will cost of a minimum of $40,000 more. The loaded K900 V8 VIP featured all the goodies including the panoramic moonroof, adaptive cruise control, the reclining rear seats and more for a total of $66,400 including delivery.
The biggest hindrance to the success of the K900 may well be the Kia badges. It’s not clear yet whether customers that remember the original Sportage and Sephia would even consider a 60 grand luxury sedan from the same company. While this isn’t quite the machine for those that aspire to a BMW 7 or an AMG S63, it’s definitely worth setting aside preconceived notions about cheap Korean budget boxes to take a serious look. Kia has progressed far further in the past two decades than I ever would have guessed and my guess is that a few years from now when the second-generation K900 hits the streets, drivers won’t even think twice before cross-shopping against the Germans and Japanese.
Click here for full specs of the 2015 Kia K900
