Two Kia SUVs are once again the recipients of Kelley Blue Book Best Buy Awards. For the second consecutive year, the Kia EV9 was named “Best 3-Row Electric Vehicle,” and the Telluride SUV took top honors in the “Best Midsize SUV” category for the sixth straight year.
“To have two of Kia’s most popular SUVs recognized multiple years in a row by Kelley Blue Book is a great honor and a tremendous validation for Kia’s world-class design, engineering and easy-to-use technology,” said Steven Center, COO & EVP, Kia America. “The Kelley Blue Book Best Buy Awards bestowed once again on the EV9 and Telluride prove that Kia is exceeding expectations with vehicles that are popular with consumers and admired by industry experts. Both vehicles have played key roles in Kia’s total transformation, and we are immensely proud of this ongoing recognition.”
The editors of Kelley Blue Book once again highlighted EV9’s compelling combination of price, power and range. At the same time, KBB.com editors acknowledged the wide variety of models that were considered along with Telluride in the midsize SUV category.“There are several great contenders in this class, and we had long conversations exploring all their various virtues. But we couldn’t get away from the obvious and logical conclusion — the Kia Telluride is too good to be toppled,” said Brian Moody, executive editor, Kelley Blue Book. “It does everything a midsize SUV has to do and does it well. Factor in all the features for the price, and the Telluride looks even more attractive. Speaking for ourselves a moment, we like the chunky and cool styling, and we really enjoy driving the vehicle.”
Now in its 11th year, Kelley Blue Book’s annual Best Buy Awards is a comprehensive awards program that highlights the top model in vehicle segments most relevant to new-car shoppers, with award categories evolving over the years to align with the changing automotive landscape. The awards are a culmination of a year-long regimen of expert vehicle testing of nearly every new model available in the U.S., plus an analysis of vehicle-related data, including vehicle pricing and transaction prices, 5-Year Cost to Own data (which includes depreciation, insurance, maintenance, financing, fuel, fees and taxes for new cars), consumer reviews and ratings, and vehicle sales information.
SOURCE: Kia
