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Kia's Ex_cee'dingly pretty cabrio
23 February 2007
In silent acknowledgement of the fact that the Cee'd Wagon might not have Geneva show-goers flocking to Kia's stand on March 8th, the brand has today released pictures of what could become the most desirable member of its new European Cee'd family; it's a two-door, four-seat, Astra Twintop-style Cee'd cabrio concept.
This concept car is Kia's way of attracting the twenty- and thirtysomething European customers it has aimed its Cee'd at to the Geneva stand. It's based on the forthcoming Cee'd three-door, which goes into production in December at the firm's Slovakian factory. But, later in the model's life, it could father a road-going version to go up against the Focus CC and Astra Twintop.
The concept's fabric hood is a deliberate statement of retro simplicity. 'The fabric hood will have renaissance,' says Kia's Chief Design Officer Peter Schreyer. 'It is the quintessential element of a truly rewarding cabrio.'
The only sticking point, for us, is what it's called; after the Pro_cee'd wagon concept, we hoped we'd seen the last laboured pun on the marque's hatchback name. We hadn't; this cabrio's called the Ex_cee'd. So what next: the Super_cee'd hot hatchback? The Suc_cee'd saloon version? What about the Ante_cee'd retro spin-off?
Spare us Kia, please.
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