Kia Motors rolls out Forte hybrid car

SEOUL, July 15 (Yonhap) -- Kia Motors Corp. launched its first hybrid car in South Korea Wednesday, following a belated foray into the growing market by its parent Hyundai Motor Co. in a bid to catch up with its Japanese rivals.

The Forte Hybrid LPI, a hybrid version of Kia's Forte compact car, is powered by
liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and an electric motor with lithium ion polymer
batteries.
LPG is readily available at many stations throughout South Korea, but a lack of
supply in foreign markets means Kia has no plans to sell the new model overseas
in the immediate future.
"We do not have any particular plans to release the Forte Hybrid LPI overseas at
this stage," a Kia official said.
The carmaker said it aims to sell 2,000 units of the Forte Hybrid LPI by the end
of this year.
Equipped with a 1.6-liter engine, the new model is priced from 20.54 million won
(US$15,978) to 23.35 million won, depending on features. It runs on an average
17.8km per liter.
Kia said it took 25 months and cost the company 240 billion won to develop the
hybrid Forte.
The launch of the new car comes a week after Hyundai began selling its first
hybrid car, the Avante LPI Hybrid, which also uses both LPG and an electric
motor.
Hyundai plans to introduce a gasoline-electric version of its Sonata hybrid sedan
in the United States next year.
Some analysts say the release of the models by Hyundai and Kia was a stopgap
measure to fend off competition with Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co.,
which currently sell popular hybrid models in South Korea.
Hyundai and Kia control more than 80 percent of the South Korean auto market.
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