Kia’s design team led by former Audi designer Peter Schreyer continue to strive, as two of their latest models win top awards in the 2012 red dot design competition. The cars in question are the latest incarnations of the Picanto and Rio, both small city hatchbacks available in the European market. Kia has come a long way in design in recent years.
These awards bring Kia’s total red dot wards to six, with the Soul winning in 2009, Venga in 2010, and both Sportage and Optima claiming top spots in 2011. Optima was also named ‘best of the best’ in 2011 for its groundbreaking design. And you have to take into account that American models, such as the Koup have never been included in the competition, otherwise it could have been seven awards for Kia.
For those of you who don’t know, red dot award is held by Design Centre of North Rhine-Westphalia since 1955 and is one of the most coveted design contests in the world. Kia’s A-segment Picanto and B-segment Rio were both winners in red dot’s ‘Product Design’ category, competing against 4,500 products entered by 1,800 manufacturers from 58 countries.
“We are very proud of the red dot awards for the Picanto and the Rio,” comments Kia’s Chief Officer Peter Schreyer. “They are a great tribute to our entire global design team, because all three Kia design centres were involved in the development of both vehicles. I am particularly happy about this thoroughly creative and successful collaboration between our teams in Korea, Europe and America.”