Aussie testing for '2.3L/100km' hybrid Kia

Kia will launch an LPG-fuelled hybrid version of the Cerato sedan in Korea in August. And Aussie journalists in South Korea for the launch of the new Sorento and Cerato Koup have sent a very clear message to their host; Kia must introduce the car Down Under.

"We're doing our level best to get an evaluation car out here," Kia Australia's Jonathan Fletcher told the Carsales Network, "hopefully by the end of the year, if we can.

"We need to drive it under our circumstances, on our roads. We also need to find out whether KMC [Kia Motor Company] can successfully [tune] the engine, to cope with our LPG.

Fletcher explained Australian gas differs from the fuel in Korea.

"Different proportions of [butane] and propane..." Fletcher explained.

"It varies between suppliers in Australia, but it's roughly 50/50. Over here [in South Korea] I think it's skewed more towards the propane than [butane]."

The cost-effective eco-car is entering LHD production in August and, at this stage, it's only intended for the South Korean market. Based on the Cerato sedan, the LPI Hybrid employs an LPG-fuelled 1.6-litre internal combustion four-cylinder engine and an electric motor to boost performance, both driving to the front wheels via a CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission).

The system developed by the Koreans for this car owes more to the Honda Civic Hybrid -- and more importantly, Hyundai's LPG/hybrid Elantra (more here) -- than the more radical Toyota Prius.

Packaging is impressive. Two gas tanks are located under the floor beneath the rear seat. They're positioned ahead of the rear axle, where they won't affect weight distribution and crash safety, and are shielded from underbody damage. The lithium-polymer battery pack is located over the rear axle in the forward part of the boot. By our guess, boot space is broadly equivalent to that of a light rather than a small car, but it's still more than adequate for most needs.

According to a Kia engineer on hand, the IC engine develops approximately 70kW of power and the electric motor provides a further 12kW. Regenerative braking recharge the battery packs. Performance is claimed to be better than for a 1.6-litre conventional Cerato.

The hybrid features an auto-stop/start facility and the combustion engine intakes the LPG as a liquid, thus approaching petrol engines for thermal efficiency.

The advantages to consumers in the Australian market are numerous. Fletcher says Kia is aiming for a purchase price premium (over a petrol) equivalent to that charged by manufacturers for diesel. This would price the LPI hybrid Cerato somewhere south of Honda's Civic Hybrid -- and also perhaps also the Honda Insight when that arrives next year.

"If the number starts with a '2', it's pretty strong," he said.

Furthermore, the consumer will be doing his or her bit for the environment; LPG resupply infrastructure is available right throughout the country; the car will achieve a good 'green vehicle guide' score and the actual cost of running the car (based on LPG pricing), would be cheaper than for diesels and most, if not all petrol hybrids.

Kia reckons that the gas/hybrid Cerato -- in city cycle, where hybrids tend to excel -- will return a fuel consumption figure of around 4.5L/100km. That's not as outstanding, environmentally, as Toyota's Prius -- but better for the wallet both in purchase price and running costs. Indeed, with LPG around half the price of petrol such consumption would equate finally to better than 2.3L/100km!

For Kia, the car could contribute to the brand's march onwards and upwards in the minds of consumers. It would be regarded as technologically advanced, but practical also.

But the company's management in South Korea is a little wary of committing to exports of the hybrid Cerato to Australia while any doubt remains over the chemical make-up of the local LPG.

"As of now, it is not decided," responded Kia Director, Soon Nam-Lee, through an interpreter during a Q&A session.

"We're testing the LP Gas [and] we are trying to find out if there is any difference between the Korean LP Gas and the Australian LP Gas, so we are trying to [develop] a test for the LP gas of the two countries."

So what then are the chances of the hybrid Cerato reaching our shores? We leave the final word on that to Fletcher -- and you may draw your own conclusions...

"For markets outside Korea, it then becomes: 'Well, assuming you've got a business case and you've got the infrastructure -- and from an engineering perspective -- it suits your country, okay, do your business case and, if we think it works, we'll tick it off'.

"We have the advantage of natural resources and we've got a pretty good system of LPG availability across the country."

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