Kia will trim two sedans from its U.S. showrooms, though many new-car shoppers may not even realize that the high-end Cadenza and K900 didn’t make the cut for the 2021 model year.
The move comes as Kia pushes its lineup in the direction of SUVs and crossovers far more popular with consumers. Last year, Kia delivered just 305 K900s; that means that at least half of Kia’s 750 dealers never even had one in inventory. The Cadenza was marginally more popular, reaching just 1,265 new garages and driveways in 2020. Collectively, the sedans accounted for barely a blip in Kia’s 586,105 sales recorded in 2020 in the U.S.
By comparison, Kia sold more than six times as many Telluride SUVs in the month of January than it did Cadenzas and K900s combined during all of 2020. And last year Kia introduced another all-new crossover in the compact Seltos.
Needless to say, Kia’s dealers probably won’t miss the slow-selling four-doors.
The Cadenza was a well-equipped front-wheel-drive luxury sedan that started around $38,000, while the ultra-luxurious K900 offered Mercedes-Benz-rivaling features for about $60,000. Both helped push Kia’s image in a more upscale direction, though neither had anywhere near the star power of the company’s Telluride — a three-row SUV with a waiting list.
The automaker now offers four sedans: the Rio starting at around $16,000, the compact Forte, the recently-introduced K5, and the sport-oriented Stinger.
Though the Cadenza and K900 sedans are discontinued, there might still be some on dealer lots.
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