Kia Track'ster concept revealed at Chicago show
Kia Track'ster concept revealed at Chicago show
By Bob Hume, 08th February 2012
The global motoring press is going nuts about the Kia concept that was unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show today and rightly so. This track-focused design study, based on a 3-door Soul not only looks stunning but also promises performance to match.
Dealing with the aestheics first,Tom Kearns, chief designer for Kia Motors America explained: “The idea was to make the Track‘ster tough looking, like a bulldog but the car had to be approachable as well. We wanted to base the car in reality so people instantly knew it was a Soul but with a lot of attitude. It had to be a bold interpretation that would change people‘s conceptions of what a sporty Kia could be.”
250BHP Track'ster concept based on Kia Soul
A mass of orange, white and carbon fibre, adorns a heavily race-styled body and it seems to work - albeit in an unsubtle kind of way. At the front, a massive grille is flanked by LED lights with aluminium surrounds, sitting above a valance that sits inches off the ground. Beefy arches enclose immense, custom-built 19 inch rims.
The cockpit is just as striking: racing seats, sports steering wheel and a stripped-out feel. There are no rear seats and in their place, a rear strut brace and stowage area for racing gear.
Kia Track’ster
A 2.0-litre turbocharged in-line-four engine lays 250bhp onto the road and is distributed to all four wheels via an electronically controlled system. The Track‘ster rides on a lowered sport suspension tuned for the track.
While there are no current plans to produce the Track‘ster, Kia‘s California design centre team enthusiastically took on the project. “Concept cars are icing on the cake,” said Kearns. “They allow Kia‘s design team to dream about what could be. Whether that dream becomes a reality or not is a separate question.”
