Kia teased the possibility of an estate/wagon body style for its fourth-gen Optima when it unveiled the Sportspace concept prior to this year’s Geneva Motor Show. After some initial hesitance, Kia then cleared the new Optima wagon for production. After stressing our imaginations on how the car will look like, Theophilus Chin has made it easier for us to picture the Optima wagon with these renders.
Based on the US-market Kia Optima (in SX 2.0 turbo trim), the wagon rendering is virtually indistinguishable from the front fascia all the way to the C-pillar. Following Kia’s current design language, the trademark tiger nose grille is still retained along with the aggressive body kit.
Shifting our focus to the additional real estate beyond the C-pillar, the roofline is extended as part of the wagon body style, sloping downwards to the rear hatch. As a result, the third window is now larger than before. Additionally, the chrome element that begins from the front fender and frames the side windows are now extended further and parallel to the roofline.
At the rear, the hatch appears less recessed compared to the sedan but still hosts part of the long wraparound taillights. Unlike the Sportspace concept, the design of the cluster adopts a more conventional look instead. At the bottom, the twin exhaust tips are still retained but are now housed within a black trim piece instead of the diffuser element of the sedan.
The fourth-gen Kia Optima sedan has already been launched in the US with the choice of a new 1.6 litre turbocharged four-pot engine or 2.0 litre GDI four-cylinder with outputs rated at 178 hp/264 Nm and 247 hp/352 Nm, respectively. Europe meanwhile gets an upgrade 1.7 litre CRDi diesel engine with 141 PS and 340 Nm of torque. There are even plans to introduce a plug-in hybrid model in the future as well.
When the Kia Optima wagon eventually arrives, it will have to compete against the Peugeot 508 SW and Mazda 6 Touring. Based on these renderings, do you think the Korean model has the looks to go up against those established models?
GALLERY: US-market 2016 Kia Optima
Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.
Don’t waste your hard earned money on car depreciation. Buy used car from me better.
It does look good.