Memo

I noticed this car in the parking lot today as I was walking to school and couldn't help but to notice it seemed like a complete rip off the Mercedes E series. Does Kia have any relation to Mercedes? Do car designs not get patented?

Showtime

No different than Nissan copying Porsche or Honda copying Ferrari or Lexus copying Mercedes or Infinity.... Well they should of copied someone, they would have had better success.
That Kia is like 30k and it looks decent, but.... it's a Kia.

-jel

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DankNstickY

either an E class or a jag


and i just noticed that it's even got that chrome trim on the front bumper, like the jag

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gear02

it's not like people won't know it's a kia or a benz. I mean it's a dead giveaway when the bumper falls off and the engine doesn't go past 40.

attgig

i'm going to have to go with copying the jag more than the benz....

oh, and also, the Kia's MSRP base is 25k and you know you're NEVER paying sticker on a kia. I'd think you could get a fully loaded amante for around 25ish.

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Showtime

How about Jag copying the benz?

-jel

DarkFury

Nah... I think that the Jag had the "rounded" headlamps with the current styling before Benz went back to the round headlight look. (older Benz's had them, but then they went "square" for the better part of the last decade.)

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bachviet

It doesn't really matter to me how a KIA looks like because I don't think I'm ready to buy one.

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psycho-

Kia = Hyundai = Large ownership stake by DaimlerChrysler

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attgig

how about benz copying the Dodge Neon....cmon, nobody had round headlights until the Neon came...

ski

Didn't know Kia = Hyundai.

To my knowledge
Kia = DaimlerChrysler
Hyundai = Nissan

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attgig

mmm...
NO
and NO

Hyundai bought out Kia. Hyundai is officially it's own company/entity. not owned by anything outside of Korea.

DarkFury

Benzos had round headlights back in the 70s.... before Neon was even thought of.

psycho-

you're almost right ATTGIG

That 10.5% will continue to be owned by DC until they sell it off

http://asia.news.yahoo.com/040512/af...5business.html

3 weeks ago

Hyundai, DaimlerChrysler end alliance


SEOUL (AFP) - US-German auto group DaimlerChrysler and South Korean partner Hyundai Motor have agreed to end their troubled partnership, the firms said

DaimlerChrysler will sell its entire 10.5 percent stake worth around one billion dollars in Hyundai Motor, the joint statement said.

"Both companies have agreed that successful cooperation on a per-project basis is possible without a shareholding relationship," the companies said in the statement released here and in Stuttgart, Germany.
"Therefore, as part of the realignment of the alliance, DaimlerChrysler has decided to sell its 10.5 percent stake in Hyundai Motor."
DaimlerChrysler acquired the stake in the company in 2000 for 400 million dollars and forged a strategic alliance with Hyundai but the partnership has been undermined by a dispute over a truck joint venture and projects in China.
Tension between the two carmakers, which planned to build commercial vehicles and engines together, boiled to the surface in October when Hyundai put on hold three-year-old talks on the planned truck joint venture amid differences over the two companies' Chinese activities.
"DaimlerChrysler AG and Hyundai Motor Company announced today that they have agreed to realign their strategic alliance to better reflect their respective companies' current business and strategic objectives," the statement said.
"Since commencement of the strategic alliance in September 2000, there have been significant changes in the global commercial vehicle and automotive markets, which have resulted in a re-prioritization of both companies' respective strategic objectives."
DaimlerChrysler has already converted its Hyundai stake into global depository receipts (GDRs), which are used as a vehicle to sell shares in the international market.
Hyundai and DaimlerChrysler's joint venture was intended to produce 100,000 of DaimlerChrysler's latest diesel engines from 2004 and 100,000 trucks annually from 2005.
However, Hyundai suspended talks after DaimlerChrysler moved to launch a separate joint venture with Hyundai's Chinese business partner.
Hyundai accused its Chinese partner, Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Corp. (BAIC), of violating a 2002 "exclusive" deal to launch an auto assembly joint venture.

kimchicowboy

just so you know, korea's the best at impersonations. in fact, i saw a "prowstar" coffee shop the other day with the same font and a VERY similar logo as starbuck's. and i saw a "redface" shop that has a font and logo very similar to the North Face's. hahaha. so funny.

there's a luxury car here called "the chairman." it's very similar to the previous generation S-class. i'll try to take a pic sometime if i can.

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psycho-

Ssangyong Chairman is actually based on the mid80s-1996 E class body. The engine and engineering work is sourced from Mercedes actually.

Mpowered

My understanding of the current round headlight design is mostly a throwback to the headlight design used from early to mid 1900's. At least for MB and Jag. Really, the only reason they went to the rectangle headlights was because that design was regulated in the U.S in either the late 70's or early 80's. After they were deregulated, pretty much all manufacturers changed to a separate bulb and reflector design.

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psycho-

It wasn't the shape that was regulated/deregulated. It was brightness and reflectivity if I'm correct. After a while, companies figured out how to make them fit into different shapes. Computer designs helped alot.

kimchicowboy

you're such a nerd, psycho. hehehehe.

attgig

http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/D...23/sych600.htm

brain

Looks like a crossbreed between the old generation S class and the Lexus LS430.

yippiekiyeh

Um no... ahem... Round headlights have been around since the car was invented... check the cars from any era, there have been cars with round headlights.

DankNstickY

um... does he really have to use the sarcasm tags for some of you?