Kia Named Best Manufacturer Of 2012
British consumer magazine Which? has named Kia Motors as the Best Car Manufacturer for 2012 in its annual awards. The magazine praised the company’s “superb range of cars”, along with the brand’s excellent value for money and “industry leading” warranty as crucial elements in the decision.
Presenting the award, the magazine’s Chief Executive, Peter Vicary-Smith said: "This is the first time Kia has made the short-list and to walk off with the title is a significant achievement."
He praised Kia for being one of the top ranked brands in the 2012 Which? survey for both customer satisfaction and reliability, noting that it had triumphed against strong competition from BMW, Toyota, Hyundai and Skoda in taking the top honours.
In its commendation, the magazine says: "Kia's new Rio, Sorento, and Picanto have all impressed in our Test Lab, while the new cee'd 2012 and Optima get the thumbs-up from our initial road tests. Compared to where it was just five years ago, we feel that Kia is the most improved car brand around."
Which? is the UK's biggest not-for-profit consumer organisation and has a strong record over the last 50 years for recommending only thoroughly tested products to its more than one million subscriber base.
The award comes soon after Kia rated highly in the latest JD Power & Associates Initial Quality Study and it further underlines the advances the company has made in quality achievements.
The recognition is not before time, according to Todd McDonald, General Manager of Kia Motors New Zealand.
“Kia has been working relentlessly on continuous improvement, from design and technology development, right through the build quality production stage to the customer experience in the dealership and it’s great to see these efforts being recognised,” he says.
“But you can never stand still – Kia is always looking to make improvements and you’ll see this with the exciting new products that are now in the pipeline.”
