Kia Corporation has unveiled the first exterior and interior design images of the EV6 sedan, the first all-electric vehicle and the cousin of the Hyundai Ioniq5. The new car is the first to adopt a new design language called Opposites United: The Alliance of Opposites. This language draws its inspiration, according to Kia’s design communication, “from the contrasts observed between nature and humanity. What a program!
“As the brand’s first dedicated 100% electric vehicle, the EV6 combines forward-thinking, human-centric design with an electrified powertrain. We strongly believe it is a relevant offering for the new electric vehicle market,” said Karim Habib, below, Kia’s Senior Vice President and Global Head of Design. “With EV6, we sought to create a distinctive and striking design, combining sophisticated, high-tech styling elements with rich, clean volumes, while offering a space typical of a decidedly futuristic electric vehicle.”
Opposites United is a design philosophy for all future Kia models. It is based on five key pillars: Bold for Nature, Joy for Reason, Power to Progress, Technology for Life, and Tension for Serenity.
The “Bold for Nature” pillar is based on interaction with nature, drawing inspiration from the details, shapes and proportions found in nature. This pillar pushes the design to be inspired by both organic and technical structures, and is more likely to be found on board, as the exterior design is characterised by a combination of simple, clean lines and constantly changing surfaces.
The “Joy for Reason” pillar is dedicated to the feel and ambience of future Kia cars, combining the emotional and the rational “to give birth to vehicles that will have a direct impact on the state of mind of their passengers by promoting relaxation and inspiration.”
With the “Power to Progress” pillar, Kia will continue to evolve the design and architecture of its future models by harnessing the skills and expertise it has acquired in recent years during its styling transformation to create innovative concepts.
The “Technology for Life” pillar encompasses new technologies and innovations to further improve the HMI, the human-machine interface. Future Kia cars will benefit from technological innovations in lighting, haptics and in-car connectivity.
Finally, Kia refers to the “Tension for Serenity” pillar as “evoking the tension between opposing forces and creative contrasts, and enshrining the stylistic balance of two opposing forces. It encourages the emergence of striking design concepts that use precise, highly technical details to create real surface tension – and to give shape to a unified, forward-looking design vision.”
“We want our products to offer an instinctive and natural experience to enhance our customers’ daily lives. We aim to create electric vehicles that are original, ingenious and exciting. More than ever, the ideas of our designers and the direction of the brand are closely linked,” adds Karim Habib.
The Kia EV6 crossover is the result of collaboration between Kia’s three design centres in Namyang (South Korea), Frankfurt (Germany) and Irvine (California, USA). It is the symbol of a real evolution of the brand’s design. And it will be unveiled in a fortnight’s time at its world presentation.