Kia Motors Corp., South Korea’s second-largest automaker, said Friday that its Morning has been named the best foreign-made small city car and low-cost passenger vehicle in Germany.

The car, sold in the European market as the Picanto, ranked first among imported city cars evaluated by Auto Bild and the best performing low cost car under 10,000 euros (US$14,000) in a review carried out by Auto Zeitung, the carmaker said.

The two magazines are the leading automotive magazines in Germany and have strong influence on consumers interested in buying new cars.

“The Auto Bild magazine checked safety, passenger comfort, exterior design and interior roominess among the nine car models tested and gave the Morning 311 points for the top place honor,” Kia said in a press release.

It added that the magazine praised the car for showing consumers that a small city car has the potential to offer amenities of a mid-sized vehicle.

Second place went to the i10 model made by Kia’s sister company Hyundai Motor Co. with a score of 294, followed by the Twingo produced by French automaker Renault SA with 287 points.

In addition, the Morning ranked first among seven models reviewed by Auto Zeitung as the best low cost car in Germany.

The South Korean car sidestepped challenges by such vehicles as the Ford Motor Co.’s Ka and the Twingo. The Morning scored well in areas such as safety, power train, dynamic driving experience and economy.

Kia said that the good reviews of the Morning that began reaching German consumers early this year reflects the commercial value and growth potential of the vehicle and could fuel sales down the line. 

(Yonhap News)