The slow reveal of the Kia K8 continues, with the Korean carmaker officially opening the doors of its new sedan to show us the interior. Kia promises “a first-class interior lounge that blends premium luxury with effortless style and unrivalled comfort,” and at first glance, it certainly looks that way.
Wood is generously used here, with the material covering many surfaces like the door panels, centre console as well as the dashboard. For the dash, the wood trim sports an intricate diamond lattice pattern that mimics the exterior, and that theme is present throughout the cabin, including for the speaker covers and stitched Nappa leather upholstery.
Complementing the wood and leather are various metals, which Kia says are “stylistic elements directly inspired by modern yachts.” It adds that this marriage of old and new “creates the feeling of youth and industrial chic, successfully marrying traditional with contemporary.”
The modern aspect here is the panoramic curved display sitting atop the table-like dash, which integrates dual 12-inch displays. One of the displays acts as the digital instrument cluster, while the other is a touchscreen for the infotainment system. Below the latter is a touch panel that does double duty, allowing drivers to either adjust the climate system or quickly access various infotainment functions.
Swapping between the modes is done via a centrally located button on the panel, and this two-in-one approach allows for a cleaner and more minimalistic dashboard. Said panel occupies a dedicated section together with the engine start/stop button and hazard light button. The air vents also occupy this space, but they aren’t arranged in line with all the others, with the passenger-side one positioned higher than the rest.
There’s nothing to bridge the centre console to the dash, allowing for a storage cubby to be placed at the front. In this area, you’ll also find a raised section that accommodates the drive-by-wire transmission dial and soft-touch switches for the various vehicle functions like drive modes, seat comfort, parking-related items and the electronic parking brake.
Other features mentioned include Kia’s innovative Star Cloud interior lighting system that is capable of projecting glittering and interactive ambient lighting on the door trim and dashboard areas. The K8 is also the first Kia model to have a 14-speaker audio system from Meridian as well as a new steering wheel design.
Other details like engines and safety systems will be revealed later on, ahead of the K8’s launch in Korea later this year, with other markets to follow. The K8 replaces the K7/Cadenza that has been around for a good number of years now,
The post Kia K8 interior revealed ahead of full debut this year appeared first on Paul Tan's Automotive News.
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