Author:
ROBIN ROBERTS
Kia UK sales director Yaser Shabsogh believes the new Sportswagon now on sale will do even better than the previous SW estate did for the former cee’d lineup.
“With the former SW we actually did good business with genuine small business buyers and fleets and it took about 45pc of all cee’d sales but our early indications are that the new Sportswagon will take closer to 60pc,” he said.
Historically, Kia has not been a major fleet player but built its reputation on retail sales and in the last few years has looked to supporting dealers with dedicated fleet advisors and has increased this team from 10 to 12 and more appointments will follow.
At the same time, Kia plan to increase the number of strategically placed specialist fleet dealerships and these will double from the current 20 over the next three years out of a total dealership list of 173 outlets which will grow to over 180 in the same timeframe.
The cee’d Sportswagon is made for Europe and with the fleet market so dominant, the cee’d Sportswagon will be sold in the UK with turbodiesel engines.
The entry-level 89bhp 1.4 CRDi engine develops 220Nm of torque from 1500rpm, while the 126bhp 1.6 CRDi raises the torque output to 260Nm from only 1900rpm and they use manual or automatic six-speed gearboxes.
Kia says 1.4-litre cee’d Sportswagon is capable of 67.3mpg and has CO2emissions of 109g/km, which means a Benefit-in-Kind (BIK) taxation rate of 15 per cent in 2012-13. Manual 1.6-litre versions, with CO2emissions of 116g/km, fall into the 17 per cent BIK band, and are almost as sparing in their use of fuel, with official combined economy of 64.2mpg.
Last year, Kia UK sold approximately 55,000 models and believes it’s on course for 65,000 this year and to double its numbers again in a few years as new products are brought into showrooms, said Mr Shabsogh.
A significant proportion of those sales will be cee’d hatchbacks and Sportswagon models, which have already shown they could rise 40pc this year.
“We will do this not by discounting but by giving our dealers and customers much better products than our rivals, cars which look very attractive, are well equipped, drive well and have longer warranties which show our confidence in the products,” added Mr Shabsogh (left).
“Fleet sales will play a more important role for us because a model like the Sportswagon appeals to professionals such as surveyors and engineers who want more than a company car with a big capacity for their equipment, they want style, comfort and good technical features,” he said.
“People ask how we can offer a seven years warranty and that’s simple to answer because we know we have quality products which are not going to cost us lots of money in claims and repairs so we can factor those advantages into the prices in showrooms.”
On the retail side too, Kia UK has seen a growth in sales thanks to the wider acceptance of personal contract plans. With the former SW about 25pc of registrations were via the pcp scheme but it now expects this type of finance to account for half the business for Sportswagon.
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