The SP concept based compact SUV will be sourced from South Korea right from the second half of next year for the United States
Kia Motors has already announced that its first SUV for India will be launched during the second half of next year. Still in the development stage, it has not received an official production nomenclature yet despite the Tusker and Trazor monikers often cropping up on the internet.
Based on the SP concept showcased at the 2018 Auto Expo in February, the SUV will compete against the likes of Hyundai Creta, upcoming Nissan Kicks and Tata Harrier. Though the concept was specifically designed for the Indian audience, it will reportedly have far more reach in its road-going guise.
It will also be sold in developed markets like United States as the plan has been revealed by Kia’s Chief Executive Officer, Han-Woo Park to Automotive News. The production model will be manufactured at the Korean brand’s newly established Anantapur plant in Andhra Pradesh for India.
Catering to the global arena, mainly the US, the compact SUV will be sourced from South Korea from the second half of next year – the same timeline Kia has planned to launch the model domestically. The nameplate it will carry is still up for anybody’s discussion as the Tusker, Trazor, Trailster and SP-Z could be considered.
Kia might opt for an entirely different name too. While it’s the first offering from Kia for India, the same cannot be said for US as the company sells a range of SUVs there. It is expected to be positioned under the Sportage to rival Jeep Renegade, Toyota C-HR and Honda HR-V.
In Europe though, Kia will add another SUV based on the third generation Ceed. The brand is also brining in the bigger Telluride revealed at the NY Fashion Week a couple of months ago and it will be produced at Georgia plant sharing space with Optima and Sorento in the United States. Both the SUVs could be followed by a pickup truck but no certain announcements have been made on it yet.