KIA WINS BIG AT THE ANNUAL STANDARD BANK PEOPLE’S WHEELS AWARDS

What is the Standard Bank People’s Wheels Awards? The People’s Wheels Awards is a competition that prides itself as the voice of the South African motor consumer. All vehicles are judged in their respective categories and the outcome is solely based on the general public’s votes. This year, there was a wide range of contestants, ranging from budget city cars to hot hatches to super cars, in a total of 30 categories.

Kia Motors was honored in three categories:

- Best Budget Buy: Kia Picanto - Best SUV/Crossover: Kia Sportage - Ownership Brand Champion: Kia Motors South Africa joint 3rd place

 The Kia Picanto was crowned as the winner of the “Budget Buy” category for the third consecutive year, scoring the majority of the votes beating competitors such as the Chevrolet Spark and the Hyundai i10. This year, the Kia Sportage also took top honors in its nominated category, and was announced as the winner in the “Best SUV/Crossover” category.

The competition also introduced a new category this year called the “Ownership Brand Champion Category”, and Kia Motors South Africa was awarded a joint 3rd place with Honda South Africa.

Other Kia models were well represented including the Kia Rio as a contender in the “Compact Hatch” category and the Kia Cerato in the “Contemporary Hatches and Sedans” category.

Kia winning three awards is a critical achievement. “One of our biggest objectives at Kia Motors South Africa is to create top of mind awareness and familiarity in the mindset of the South African consumer. To date, our marketing efforts have been very aggressive, and to be recognized in this category is evidence of how far we have come as a brand”, commented David Sieff, Marketing Director at Kia Motors South Africa.

Congratulations Kia Motors!