It was discovered in a recent survey that 50% of Brits have built some form of flat pack furniture in the last few years. So Kia have decided to pull the covers off a completely new motoring solution, the Concept i.
With the Concept i, Kia will be the first manufacturer to offer a modular car to UK customers enabling them to choose almost every aspect of their car from a simple ‘menu’. With the help of their local Kia dealer, customers can choose the engine, transmission and trim specification of their vehicle before opting for the rear module - saloon, hatch, estate or pick-up formats are all available.
Once the specification is complete, the dealer can supply the individual modules for the customer to build themselves in the comfort of their own home garage. Some parts, such as glass and body panels, will be supplied in flat pack form. The dealer can arrange for customer collection or the modules can be delivered to a UK address of the customer’s choosing, at no extra cost.
The target price is under £4,000, which Kia believes offers excellent value. But they stated the hardest part was getting the instruction manual right and all the right parts in the boxes. Apparently you don’t even need a comprehensive tool kit - there’s a simple Allen key included in the kit. Although you do need a wheel brace, which is available as an option.
The ‘i’ adds extra flexibility to the car as a mode of transport and, with the benefit of being able to change the back half of the car, it means that customers don’t have to buy a new car when their lifestyle changes. They can simply ‘change’ their car by swapping the hatch back portion for the estate portion if a baby arrives. Or they could swap it for the pick-up rear end if they’re planning to go into business.
What a fool I was to have brought a new car yesterday!
We will review the concept next week after our volunteer family set about building a flat-pack Kia.
Jackie Violet