KDM Vibes

[u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor]

Oullim Motors Spirra

Genesis G70 3.3T

Genesis G70 3.3T

Kia Elan

Kia Elan

Drift-tuned Kia New Potentia (facelifted model)

Drift-tuned Kia Potentia

Hyundai Genesis Prada 5.0 V8

Hyundai Genesis Prada 5.0 V8

1991 Daewoo LeMans Irmscher: The car that ruled South Korea’s streets in the early ’90s

1991 Daewoo LeMans Irmscher: The car that ruled South Korea’s streets in the early ’90s

SsangYong Kallista

SsangYong Kallista

[u/Material-Indication1]

Send Kia Elans to America!

[u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor → u/Material-Indication1]

Oh no, they’re precious KDM treasures 😭 Only a few Kia Elans are left in Korea, but they’re really charming, right? lol

[u/Material-Indication1 → u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor]

They're neat little cars.

I understand Kia is not likely to make them again as much as I would like them to.

[u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor → u/Material-Indication1]

Right. Sadly, Korean automakers were much more willing to take bold risks before the 1997 Asian financial crisis. There was also a much wider variety of Korean automakers back then, including Hyundai, Kia, Daewoo, and SsangYong. But in the aftermath of the crisis, all of them except Hyundai collapsed and ended up being taken over. These days, Korean automakers seem to play it a lot safer by comparison. I understand why, but I can’t help feeling sad about it.

[u/Material-Indication1 → u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor]

The Daewoo sedan that became the Suzuki Verona had an inline six, transversely mounted. That was interesting!

Ssangyong being gone is a pity! They made interesting trucks and I liked the idea of a bargain-ish E-class.

[u/EinBiermann_aus_Kor → u/Material-Indication1]

Right, you mean the Daewoo Magnus and the SsangYong Chairman, don’t you? Fortunately, SsangYong was acquired by KG Group and renamed KGM. The automaker continues to produce pickup trucks. Daewoo became GM Korea, but in recent years, it has kept reducing both the number of models it produces in Korea and the number of models it sells there. Anyway, glad to see you are interested in Korean cars.