Kia Motors at the 2019 Geneva Motor Show has revealed an all-electric concept vehicle called Imagine by Kia.
Featuring a low-mounted, induction-charged battery pack powering a compact drivetrain, the design of Imagine by Kia is ulitarian, sleek, versatile and spacious.
“Automotive design is about capturing the heart and making it beat that bit faster for that bit longer. We believe that there’s absolutely no reason why that should change simply because the car is electric,” said Gregory Guillaume, Vice President of Design for Kia Motors Europe. “That’s why our all-electric concept is designed to not only get your pulse racing, but to also signpost our holistic and emotional approach to electrification.”
“Today’s drivers understandably have many questions about electric cars. They’re concerned about range, the recharging network, and whether electric cars will still be dynamic and engaging to drive. So, when we first started thinking about this concept and imagining what its role would be, we knew that the best way to answer those questions and address those concerns was by approaching electrification purely from an emotional point of view.”
Fitted with an illuminated ‘tiger mask’ encircling the main LED headlamp units and a single flowing sheet of glass for both the windscreen and roof, Kia states that the four-door passenger vehicle is “intentionally designed to not sit within the industry’s predefined vehicle categories”.
“It’s a large C-segment car – the vehicle size that’s incredibly popular in Europe – but the only things it holds on to are Kia’s brand values,” explained Guillaume. “It hints at something familiar, but is something entirely new. I think of it as a category-buster, and a disruptor – it’s familiar and understood but at the same time progressive and new.”
With an interior described as being “one with a wry sense of humour”, the dashboard features 21 individual high-resolution screens that are curved synchronously.
“These 21 incredibly thin screens are a humorous and irreverent riposte to the on-going competition between some automotive manufacturers to see who can produce the car with the biggest screen,” said Ralph Kluge, Kia Motors Europe’s general manager of interior design.
“It’s an immersive display delivering information on the car’s climate control, birds-eye navigation, drive and media systems. The screens will also display a raft of Kia concepts from years gone by to create an emotional link between past, present and future,” said Kluge. “With this arresting combination of artistry and information we’re drawing on memories of our past in a car that’s heading straight into our future.”
Including 4 leather and silk-covered seats with a cabin swathed in a metallic fabric and leather, the airy interior is minimalistic, luxurious and awe-inspiring. There is also a front trunk and a traditional rear storage area.
“We imagined designing an all-electric car that not only answered consumer concerns around range, performance, recharging networks and driving dynamism, but one that also gave you goose bumps when you looked at it, and made the hairs on the back of your neck stand up when you drove it.”
