Ian_Beavis: I'm very pleased to be doing this and I'm happy to follow on any questions you asked Len or ask new questions. I'm responsible for marketing product planning, public relations, pricing and research. And I promise not to give canned answers.

janecannary asks: I'm thinking of getting a Spectra5 and heard the dimensions are changing. Is that true?

Ian_Beavis: No, there is no change in the dimensions of the Spectra 5. The current generation will be unchanged for the next couple of years (dimensions).

docholiday asks: I'm debating between a Mazda5 or a Rondo. What makes the Rondo a better deal?

Ian_Beavis: The Rondo is more economical, more spacious, better priced - has the options of a V6 engine and looks like a car and not a baby minivan.

geril asks: What were some of your favorite ad campaigns?

Ian_Beavis: Well, the ones I've been involved with - a lot of Toyota advertising, Mitsubishi, Kia, Ford, Lincoln Mercury. I tend to like ads that work hard and sell the product. I really liked the "so long" sales ad that we did for Christmas, but I haven't liked very many of the car ads out there for the last 12 months. It's been a pretty thin year for car advertising. I did like our Sedona and Optima advertising because I was involved with them (shameless self promotion!) :)

Guest asks: Could I possibly get a right-hand drive Kia here in the US?

Ian_Beavis: You can't legally import one and you would have issues with issues related to being right-hand drive... not recommended

master asks: next year is predicted as a weak retail year. What will Kia do to maintain growth? Are ethnic markets part of the equation?

Ian_Beavis: With the Rondo we have completely revamped our line-up in the last 18 months so now we will focus on growth in each of the segments where our core products are - Spectra and Sportage. We probably have the most competitive product we've ever had. As an indication of our momentum, our traffic to our web site is up over 30% over same time last year. In terms of the ethnic markets, the Hispanic market is extremely important to us and we are trying to expand our activities in both the Asian markets as well as African American.

janecannary asks: How do you see Kia's reputation changing for the good? Some friends laugh when I say I'm looking at a Kia.

Ian_Beavis: I would tell them that you know something they don't. We often say that people looking at Kia's have more brains than money and you've obviously got friends with more money than brains. ;-) There is a lag effect perception gap in a quickly developing brand like Kia. We have the fastest improvement in quality in any brand over the last 5 years. In the latest JD Power survey our initial product quality is better than VW, Mazda, BMW and Mercedes-Benz, which comes as a great surprise to people - but the facts don't lie.

SillyBunny asks: What's been your biggest challenge in marketing the Kia brand?

Ian_Beavis: The perception gap is the perception gap and being a relatively small brand in a crowded and competitive market.

Richard Hardesty '06 Silver Spectra5 asks: How do you see KIA in conjunction with already working site's like StreetKiaz.com online supporting the KIA brand? Is there ways KIA can officially sponsor cars to help represent the brand such as is going on in the racing community, but with the tuner community?

Ian_Beavis: We have a proposal in the system at the moment to become more involved with the tuner community, but we have no plans in the foreseeable future to get into motor racing.

Mark Ingalls asks: Do you plan to use after market influence this year for advertising?

Ian_Beavis: Our advertising plans are pretty much set at the moment. I don't see the aftermarkets as an advertising opportunity, but more a public relations opportunity. One of the areas that we have to improve is word-of-mouth and that's not as much an advertising job as it is a PR job.

Bill Hurlin asks: Ian, many of the Spectra size vehicles are coming out with a larger 4 cylinder engine. Is there any chance we are going to see something like the spectra or spec 5 with the 2.4l engine?

Ian_Beavis: Not in the near future, but we are looking at other capacity engines. We are looking at other turbo charging, etc., but it is not immediate.

docholiday asks: Is the West Point plant in production yet? What vehicles will be built there?

Ian_Beavis: The West Point plant is under construction and won't be online until 2009. The decision has not been made as to what products will be built there. This plant is going to provide vehicles for North America, but also for export so we'll need to balance the decisions of what we build there.

Bill Hurlin asks: Regional meets of Kia enthusiasts have been popular in the last several years, where do you see Kia's involvement in the USA?

Ian_Beavis: Unfortunately, due to budgets, it is very small. We are headquartered in Irvine so getting around to the various markets is challenging. We want to support these groups but resources are stretched.

peanut asks: what kinds of non-traditional marketing stuff does Kia do? I spend all my time on the net and don't watch much TV anymore.

Ian_Beavis: That's the same as my media! We are basically involved in all available forms of non-traditional media, but understand that we have a share of under 2% in the market. We do a great deal of video, media, search, rich media - you name it!

harrychezt asks: Any chance of a Kia Optima Coupe?

Ian_Beavis: Funny you should say that! We've had some discussions about the market for that type of vehicle. Very early days yet, but something we are looking at given the success of the Camry Coupe and Accord Coupe. The real issue for us is there sufficient volume for that vehicle because the market would just be North America.

Mark Ingalls asks: Is KMA finally going to give up power for the streets? Or are we saving it for gas prices?

Ian_Beavis: Well, the answer is with each new generation of engine we produce we increase the horsepower and the fuel economy - you CAN have both. Just look at what we did with the latest 3.8 that we put in the Sedona, Sorento and the Amanti.

Dan Harris asks: I'm curious when we will see a vehicle from Kia designed as a sport compact sports car, much like the MazdaSpeed 3, SRT4's, Cobalt SS, Honda Si etc., etc.

Ian_Beavis: If I told you what we're up to there - we'd have to kill you. ;-) Be patient! To give you some indication of my taste in cars, when I was at Mitsubishi all I ever drove was a Lancer EVO.

Bill Hurlin asks: Will the C'eed come to North America?

Ian_Beavis: No - it is Europe only. However, we are going to get the Soul.

harrychezt asks: Is the upcoming Kia Soul meant as a Scion competitor?

Ian_Beavis: Absolutely. We get cross-shopped a lot with Scion. The biggest increase in cross-shopping in the last 12 months has been with Scion.

Jaime asks: Are there any plans on bringing overseas options, such as navigation and leather interiors to the US market?

Ian_Beavis: We already offer leather interiors in several - Rondo, Optima, Amanti and Sorento. As for navigation, we are more inclined to go with a portable rather than built-in route. The reason being we have data to support that people want more portable devices that they can take with them rather than having them stuck in the car.

KentuckyRanger asks: I own a Black Spectra 5 and so far I have 19k and have loved every Mile!

Ian_Beavis: Wonderful! We love to hear about people who love their cars.... and I hope you have many more years of happy motoring.

Jon Kervin asks: Is there any plans for factory forced induction, or partnership with aftermarket companies that currently have the parts?

Ian_Beavis: Not at this time due to warranty issues, however, we are working with Mobis who is our own parts provider on how we can work with the aftermarket.

peanut asks: Tasted any good (yet inexpensive) Australian wines lately?

Ian_Beavis: Ha ha ha - I'll drink anything!!! Not inexpensive, but definitely very good. I would recommend any Yalumba Shiraz.

smart buyer asks: what does the power to surprise mean?

Ian_Beavis: That's a discussion I just came from. Basically our view is the performance of our vehicles and the way we communicate with you will pleasantly surprise you. The new marketing materials that are now in production will actually use the idea of the power to surprise rather than just have it as a tag. Wait for the new Rondo commercial that starts running on February 5!

KentuckyRanger asks: Speaking of advertising, have you seen the Videos I've made? One is at http://www.carspace.com/videos/play!id=.59caf270

peanut asks: how does your brand strategy differ from Hyundai?

Ian_Beavis: The biggest difference is if you go to the Detroit Auto Show web site and look at the Kia Kue and then look at the Hyundai concept car that will pretty much tell you the difference between the 2 brands. Over time you will see even when we share the same platform our vehicles will be stylistically and different plus both brands will have unique vehicles only Kia has the Rondo.

jon_kervin asks: Are we going to see the Kia Pickup hit production soon?

Ian_Beavis: No - it's not on the front burner.

rik4 asks: What percentage of the Japanese market does Kia share now?

Ian_Beavis: It's very small. We tend to get most of our sales defecting from the domestics, particularly Ford.

Guest asks: Are you guys still sponsoring soccer? Will Beckham be riding around in a Sedona in LA?

Ian_Beavis: Ha ha ha ha ha ha! We can't afford Beckham. We are still very involved with the World Cup. I don't know what car company in the world could afford Beckham.

KentuckyRanger asks: Why is the Diesel models like the Spectra 5 not available in the US?

Ian_Beavis: Basically, it's US emissions. We've got an extensive study and are looking at hybrids, clean diesels and fuel cells. Like Len, I like diesels too!

jon_kervin asks: With the rapid expansion Kia has been enjoying, funds have to be getting tight. How much longer can we enjoy these long warranties for?

Ian_Beavis: There is no plan to discontinue the long warranty. We see it as a competitive edge.

bikechic55 asks: what do you feel is the defining quality of Kia vehicles, besides affordability :)?

Ian_Beavis: The pillar of Kia now and moving forward - value and high quality, value for money, looks great and is fun to drive in the future.

master asks: Kia has a new CEO…any changes from that?

Ian_Beavis: He's a very well- traveled, westernized CEO who enjoys working with the dealers and is keenly interested in growing and understanding our business in the US.

dbt asks: I'm going to the Chicago Auto Show. Will Kia have anything new there?

Ian_Beavis: Yes, we will. You'll have to go. We'll be showing you something that will give you a hint of our sporty direction.

danharris asks: What kind of advice would you have for a Kia Enthusiast car club?

Ian_Beavis: Let us know who you are, where you are and if we can keep you informed and with a look under the hood.

houston asks: Why didn't Kia use the name Caren for Rondo for US?

Ian_Beavis: People didn't like the Caren name, but they really liked Rondo.

dan asks: Why is the Ceed limited to Europe?

Ian_Beavis: It's been designed specifically for the European markets and Euro tastes and is being produced only in the Slovakia plant. It's part of Kia designing vehicles for specific markets. When we go to production in the US we'll have more vehicles tailored towards tastes in the United States.

jon_kervin asks: Is there any convertible model planned?

Ian_Beavis: Not at this time... very small market and tends to be very expensive specifically as you move towards retractable hardtops. Plus, they are bought by older customers and not younger ones.

KentuckyRanger asks: With the advent of so many high tech sound systems available in new Cars, is Kia going to start offering more in the audio side? Like direct inputs or USB ports for digital media players?

Ian_Beavis: Yes – progressively. We are working with Infinity and our R&D counterparts in Korea to adapt to what is a rapidly changing environment.

harrychezt asks: Kia: do they also have the long warranty, as Hyundai does now, on used cars, too?

Ian_Beavis: No, we don't have a certified used car program yet.

Jaime asks: Overseas, you offer different engine/transmission packages, such as a V6 with a manual, where as here we only get the auto with the v6. Are there any plans to bring over options like that?

Ian_Beavis: Stick shift transmissions on V6's is very low volume and to homologate that for the United States is very, very expensive.

jon_kervin asks: Does Kia have any high end luxury models on the backburner, or is Hyundai charged with that market segment?

Ian_Beavis: I can't talk for Hyundai, but we will expand our line-up over time and enter new spaces…where there is white space, but I can't tell you where.

master asks: are you growing your dealership body?

Ian_Beavis: We have about 650 dealers at the moment. We want to grow that a little bit, but we are more interested in increasing the sales per dealer rather than increasing the number of dealers by any great amount.

dbt asks: Any plans to increase driver legroom in the Sedona? (the issue that is so far keeping me from buying one)

Ian_Beavis: First, I've heard of us having a problem of leg room in the Sedona. We have comparable leg room to the Sienna and Odyssey. I'm assuming you mean the new Sedona as the previous Sedona was short on leg room.

onewithkia asks: Are there plans to market the Spectra5 separately from the Spectra sedan? I feel they are very different cars.

Ian_Beavis: We've tried to market them separately but we've found there are more similarities than differences; however we will always emphasize the sportiness of the 5 versus the 4.

jon_kervin asks: why did Kia choose the USA for a new plant over Mexico?

Ian_Beavis: Because of the size of the US market and the availability of the established supplier base.

dan asks: Will we see a full sized SUV?

Ian_Beavis: You might.

jon_kervin asks: what's the next model to get redesigned?

Ian_Beavis: Give me a break guys... I can't tell you that ;-)

master asks: will Kia consider any urban marketing the way others have?

Ian_Beavis: We're already doing urban marketing. Early last year we did a great deal of activity with Magic Johnson's company that specializes in operations in urban markets.

smart buyer asks: what car do you personally drive, and why?

Ian_Beavis: I currently have an Optima V6 but I just ordered a V6 Rondo. Why? I like the way they drive. But I am going to trick out the Rondo! If you go and look at the car we plan to reveal at the Chicago Auto Show, it will give you the flavor of what I plan to do to my Rondo.

KentuckyRanger asks: With all the Hybrids out there, does Kia plan on offering anything in this catagory?

Ian_Beavis: We've been studying hybrids for a while. The only time we will introduce a hybrid is if it satisfies the market and sticks with our brand, which means it means to be cost effective in terms of fuel economy. At the moment, they are still too expensive for the return. Yes, they have the potential to be good for the environment, but they are no where near as economical as people thought.

Jaime asks: Being that KIA designed a specifically European car, Are there any plans to develop a strictly American car? I see the American market seeking power, and personally I would love to see KIA have a car comparable to the EVO and STI.

Ian_Beavis: So would I. There will be vehicles in the future that will be designed more for the US market and the bulk of the sales will be in the US market, but that won't be until the time we have local production.

master asks: will you let me trick out your Rondo? No regrets!

Ian_Beavis: Ha ha ha ha - I've got people lining up to do it already, but thanks for the offer!

seanhaddy asks: Any plans on a turbo option for the spectra? Or a coupe model with more power?

Ian_Beavis: We're looking at ways to enhance the performance of Spectra in the future, but remember drivetrains are one of the most expensive and complex areas of a car for investment.

Jonathin Doody asks: Convince me: In a crowded field, why should I consider KIA?

Ian_Beavis: I think we offered more value for money, a better warranty and better sales and customer service than the big guys. The fact that our quality is improving as fast as it is you end up with an unbeatable product. If you want to get in touch with us, just go to our page on CarSpace http://www.carspace.com/kia and become friends with Kia! Thank you for your time tonight - great questions. And let us know what you think of the car at the Chicago Auto Show on Feb. 8.