Kia Motors is replacing its Sedona minivan with a new SUV-inspired model called the Carnival starting in the second quarter of this year.
The Carnival 2022 ‘all-rounder’, also known as the minivan, features a square exterior, large front grille, and an overall design that is bolder and more robust than the outgoing model. It features new signature front and rear lighting as well as the new Kia logo, which was announced earlier this year.
The vehicle, which was unveiled on Tuesday, features a host of new safety features as well as new sliding configurations for the second row seats and a “VIP Lounge Seating” available with power controls and leg extensions much like an armchair. traditional reclining.
“The Kia Carnival is here to disrupt a frozen segment and once again proves what is possible when conventions are broken,” Sean Yoon, CEO of Kia Motors North America said in a statement.
The radical design change is the latest for the minivan segment, as automakers try to compete with crossovers and SUVs – segments that customers flock to for their space, capability and more rugged personality.
After decades of growth and vans accounting for about 8% of the light-duty vehicle market in the United States, sales from the mid-1990s to 2000s sales have fallen to less than 400,000 units in recent years. Much of the decline in the segment is attributed to the rise of crossovers and SUVs as well as the stigma of vehicles that are not cool and for “soccer moms”.
Sales of the Sedona fell about 70% between 2016 and 2020 to just 13,190 vehicles sold in the United States.
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