For Korean manufacturer Kia, which initially conquered the European market on the back of a groundbreaking seven-year warranty for all its models, the ProCeed represents a stunning step forward into the future of driving.
With its eye-catching shooting brake design, combining the space of an estate car with the looks and performance of a tourer, the ProCeed represents not only an unexpected addition to Kia’s Ceed family but also a unique proposition for the entire European mid-market.
“We want to surprise our customers with the ProCeed and inject a sense of fun into the Kia brand,” explains Emilio Herrera, COO of Kia Motors Europe.
“We already had strong foundations of quality and design. Now we are adding new body types and attracting a new type of customer—a younger, trendier and more fashionable car buyer.”
In many respects, the ProCeed represents the culmination of more than a decade’s worth of focused investments in high-end car design at Kia. Following the appointment of legendary German car designer Peter Schreyer in 2006, Kia’s models have become noted as much for their style and individuality as for their practicality and reliability.
With its combination of inventive good looks and versatility, the ProCeed adds another dimension to the Kia brand, Herrera says, and will help prolong the company’s steady climb up the European market share rankings.
As befits a car that makes such a bold statement, Kia initially unveiled the ProCeed to the world’s media as a concept vehicle at the prestigious Frankfurt Motor Show back in 2017.
“It is time to take Kia to the next level.” Emilio Herrera, COO, Kia Motors Europe
Gregory Guillaume, who as vice president for design at Kia Motors Europe oversaw the birth of the ProCeed, says that the car’s striking design is a daring response by Kia to fast-changing fashions in the European mid-sized market.
“Because of the fall in demand for three-door hatches, we had to completely rethink our plans for the Ceed family,” Guillaume says. “We used the crisis to reinvent our design proposals and to create a car which has a louder, stronger and more emotional character than anything else in its segment. It embodies all of our values of youthful dynamism, emotional engagement and design-led desirability.
“At Kia, we always like to do the unexpected. We were the first in our mainstream market to launch a shooting brake design and I think it is going to delight drivers all across Europe.”
Perhaps the most striking feature of the new ProCeed is its dramatic, swept-back silhouette and steeply raked rear windscreen, which are set to become instantly recognizable on the roads of Europe this year. Lower and longer than its five-door hatchback and sports wagon cousins, the car enjoys all their practical advantages, including a trunk with capacity of 594 litres and rear seats that can be laid flat at the touch of a lever.
“The ProCeed is the most emotional car in its market.” Gregory Guillaume, VP Design, Kia Motors Europe
The ProCeed will be available exclusively in GT and GT-Line versions, a reflection of Kia’s focus on creating a design that emphasizes confidence and sportiness. “The ProCeed is a model that not only sits at the top of the Ceed family, but is immediately identifiable as the most emotionally engaging car in the range,” Guillaume says.
“For Kia, it is the true halo model of the Ceed family. It is the most rewarding and the most engaging car to drive in its class. The ProCeed is the boldest and loudest expression of all the values that Kia stands for,” he adds
As published in TIME magazine
