It’s an answer car companies have sought ever since the GM brand progression—graduate from a Chevrolet to a Pontiac, then to an Oldsmobile followed by a Buick, and then drive a Cadillac until you die—first faltered: At what point does the upper limit of the budget brand trespass into the premiere nameplate’s territory? The question gets more confusing when both of an automaker’s brands are budget marques.
Kia and Hyundai were so eager to emulate more-established brands that they jumped into this quandary with both feet, albeit with limited success. The Kia Amanti, intended to toe this line, succeeded instead in reaching new heights in awkward styling and driving like all four tires were flat. The Kia Cadenza, which will make its formal auto-show debut in the Middle East at the Saudi Arabia auto show, will replace the awkwardly-styled Amanti in the realm of the Hyundai Azera.
The Cadenza (at least in this first picture) appears to fix the Amanti’s aesthetic foibles. Its stately greenhouse promises a spacious interior for passengers front and rear, and the overall design is kept from looking boring by subtle details like depressed hood edges and the crease rising sharply from the front door that reaches back through the door handles.
Engine choices will likely include Kia’s 175-hp, 2.4-liter inline-four and the Amanti’s 3.8-liter V-6 making around 260 hp. Expect U.S. sales of the Cadenza to commence later in 2010.
Thanks to: Car and Driver
