Ever wondered how a concept car is designed and developed? Yea, we neither. But we’re going to find out anyway.

Motortrend’s Downshift team has been in touch with guys at Kia’s California design centre over the past 9 months and chronicled every step of the job, from the initial sketches to the final unveiling at the Chicago auto show. It’s a fascinating story, mainly because of the car itself.

The Kia Track’ster is a design study of a crossover version of the Kia Soul. It does have some striking design features, such as the lower intake grille, immense LED driving lights with billet aluminium surrounds, and a chiseled side profile. The lower valance, trimmed in carbon fibre and accented with Inferno Orange, rides just inches off the ground and lends to the car’s menacing stance. It also features HRE-K1 monoblock billet performance wheels that were a joint effort of Kia’s California design team and HRE. The wheels are wrapped in 245/40-19-inch front and massive 285/35-19-inch rear Michelin Pilot Sport PS2 high-performance tyres.

Sadly, there’s no production plans for the Track’ster, but it might inspire a future crossover by the Koran car maker.